Official submission guidelines and validation criteria for the SPD-Z benchmark.

1. SPD-Z 1.7.17. Download: https://siliconindexlabs.com/download/spd-z.
2. A newer release is valid from the day it is listed in the changelog below. Listed versions stay valid unless the changelog says otherwise. No other version or build is valid.
3. Memory Score only. The AI Memory Score is not valid.
4. Run the full benchmark from the Benchmark page of the SPD-Z window.
5. Systems with more than 64 logical processors or more than one CPU socket are not valid until listed here.

6. Intel CPU (Skylake or newer): No Windows OS limitation.
7. AMD CPU, and Intel CPU older than Skylake: The platform clock (HPET) must be enabled if BCLK is changed after boot.
8. Windows 10 or Windows 11 (x64), installed directly on the bare-metal hardware. No virtual machines, Wine, Proton, or other compatibility layers. No Linux.

9. Anything that changes how time is measured, by Windows or by SPD-Z. Enabling the platform clock (HPET) is allowed.
10. Affinity masks, process tools, or anything else outside the BIOS that changes which processors or threads SPD-Z uses.
11. Changing memory, CPU, or clock settings while the benchmark is running.
12. RAM caching software.

13. Verification link: Score is the Memory Score in points. Higher is better.
14. Save run file: Save the run file (Save run in SPD-Z) for every result you submit. HWBOT moderators may ask for it, for a re-run, for a video of the full run, or for a rig photo.

15. No screenshot required if the verification link shows the RUNNING TIMINGS section and the full thread count of the CPU.
16. In every other case: Full desktop screenshot with the SPD-Z result window and the CPU-Z CPU and Memory tabs visible. No clipping or cropping.

17. Required link format: https://siliconindexlabs.com/benchmarks/<run id> with nothing after the run ID. The link must open publicly for everyone.
18. The “run by” name on the link must be exactly your HWBOT username. Anonymous runs are not valid.
19. The score you enter must equal the Memory Score shown on the link page.
20. The CPU, motherboard, and memory you enter must match the link. The link must show the installed memory modules.
21. The speed and timings on the link must be the ones used for the run. If you change settings in Windows, restart SPD-Z before the run.
22. A link that shows a virtualization note on the Environment line is not valid.
23. Links dated before the beta release listed below are not valid.
24. A run can be used by one member only.