4 ms·

How could it possibly patch bugs without phoning home? Are you claiming that it is self modifying code?

akerl_ 10y ago
I wouldn't consider "running an update where it pulls new code" to be "phoning home", any more than my car is "phoning home" when I drive it to the dealership for repairs. The implication the comment I was replying to gave was that the device sent unexpected network traffic back to Intel HQ, with the connotation that it was doing so to leak information about my system.
- benchaney 10y ago
  "Running an update where it pulls new code" is definitely an example of phoning home, and it opens the door to all sorts of vulnerabilities, such as the one featured in the Apple vs the FBI case.
  - twr 10y ago
    Intel microcode updates on Linux are provided through regular distribution repositories. There is no phoning home feature.
    - benchaney 10y ago
      Do they get updated when you run the package manager, or do they update automatically?
      - akerl_ 10y ago
        Either via the package manager or via the user manually downloading and loading the microcode update of their choosing. For example: http://askubuntu.com/questions/545925/how-to-update-intel-microcode-properly http://askubuntu.com/questions/545925/how-to-update-intel-mi...
      - twr 10y ago
        Binary packaging systems download microcode.dat (a text blob containing microcode) from Intel during the build process. Microcode.dat gets converted into an initramfs image that supplies the new microcode early in the system boot. Users download the built binary package, which then modifies the boot parameters of their system. So normally only the build servers contact Intel. Source-based distributions may. But even then the source files are verified with cryptographic hashes (which are in turn signed by the maintainers' private keys). Edit: I may have misread your question. I thought you were asking by implication if the microcode blob is pulled after the install. If not, then: No. Updates happen when the package manager decides. https://www.kernel.org/doc/Documentation/x86/early-microcode.txt https://www.kernel.org/doc/Documentation/x86/early-microcode... https://gitlab.com/iucode-tool/iucode-tool https://gitlab.com/iucode-tool/iucode-tool https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/26400/Linux-Processor-Microcode-Data-File https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/26400/Linux-Proces...
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]

I wouldn't consider "running an update where it pulls new code" to be "phoning home", any more than my car is "phoning home" when I drive it to the dealership for repairs. The implication the comment I was replying to gave was that the device sent unexpected network traffic back to Intel HQ, with the connotation that it was doing so to leak information about my system.

benchaney 10y ago
"Running an update where it pulls new code" is definitely an example of phoning home, and it opens the door to all sorts of vulnerabilities, such as the one featured in the Apple vs the FBI case.
- twr 10y ago
  Intel microcode updates on Linux are provided through regular distribution repositories. There is no phoning home feature.
  - benchaney 10y ago
    Do they get updated when you run the package manager, or do they update automatically?
    - akerl_ 10y ago
      Either via the package manager or via the user manually downloading and loading the microcode update of their choosing. For example: http://askubuntu.com/questions/545925/how-to-update-intel-microcode-properly http://askubuntu.com/questions/545925/how-to-update-intel-mi...
    - twr 10y ago
      Binary packaging systems download microcode.dat (a text blob containing microcode) from Intel during the build process. Microcode.dat gets converted into an initramfs image that supplies the new microcode early in the system boot. Users download the built binary package, which then modifies the boot parameters of their system. So normally only the build servers contact Intel. Source-based distributions may. But even then the source files are verified with cryptographic hashes (which are in turn signed by the maintainers' private keys). Edit: I may have misread your question. I thought you were asking by implication if the microcode blob is pulled after the install. If not, then: No. Updates happen when the package manager decides. https://www.kernel.org/doc/Documentation/x86/early-microcode.txt https://www.kernel.org/doc/Documentation/x86/early-microcode... https://gitlab.com/iucode-tool/iucode-tool https://gitlab.com/iucode-tool/iucode-tool https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/26400/Linux-Processor-Microcode-Data-File https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/26400/Linux-Proces...

deleted 10y ago

[deleted]