Intel releases new microcode relatively frequently. There appear to be about 13 microcode updates for the i7 since launch. https://downloadcenter.intel.com/Se

Intel releases new microcode relatively frequently. There appear to be about 13 microcode updates for the i7 since launch. https://downloadcenter.intel.com/SearchResult.aspx?lang=eng&ProductFamily=Processors&ProductLine=Desktop&ProductProduct=Intel%C2%AE+Core%E2%84%A2+i7+Desktop+Processor&ProdId=3426&LineId=3004&FamilyId=24 https://downloadcenter.intel.com/SearchResult.aspx?lang=eng&... If I understand correctly, most of the updates are designed to fix bugs related to surrounding hardware (motherboards, memory). If you look at the BIOS updates for your computer/motherboard, you might notice notes about microcode updates. The BIOS can apply these just as easily as the OS, and when they are hardware compatibility issues, that is the only way for it to work. Not every update makes it into a BIOS version for every board, and not every version makes it into a Windows update (AFAIK).