Noun
protected mode (uncountable)
English Wikipedia has an article on:protected modeWikipedia
(computing) An operational mode of x86-compatible CPUs, in which software can use features such as virtual memory, paging, and safe multitasking.
An OS that is aware of SSE will activate Enhanced mode, whereas an unaware OS will only enter into traditional Protected mode. Source: Internet
Protected mode on the 80386 can operate with paging either enabled or disabled; the segmentation mechanism is always active and generates virtual addresses that are then mapped by the paging mechanism if it is enabled. Source: Internet
Protected mode also did not provide a significant enough performance advantage over the 8086-compatible real mode to justify supporting its capabilities. Source: Internet
Protected mode, in contrast, is used for almost everything else. Source: Internet