vinaopk.blogg.se - Intel management engine firmware

Ring -2: Ring -2 is the System Management Mode (SMM).

The hypervisor like Xen or KVM has more access right than the operating system which runs in the container started by the hypervisor - naturally. Thus rings from -1 to -3 have been introduced: In the last decades, a couple of functionality has been added, such that the normal ring model does not apply anymore. It has the most amount of privileges (you might think)

Ring 0: Ring 0 is the operating system kernel.

It is most restricted and has the least amount of privileges. Privilege rings for the x86 taken from Wikipedia These protection rings are mechanisms to protect the user and are formally named hierarchical protection domains. The Linux Kernel Privilege Levels are normally described in rings.

But what are these Rings about? The Ring Terminology In the Ring Terminology, it lives in Ring -3. There are some ways to disable or reduce the functionality of the Intel ME. Without the Intel ME, your computer or server system will not be able to boot. When the CPU starts, it loads the firmware into the PCH. The Intel ME firmware resides in the internal flash which sits on each mainboard. The Intel Management Engine is an autonomous part within the Platform Controller Hub (PCH) on your mainboard, which can control everything: Turning your computer on/off and log into your computer regardless if an operating system is installed or not. One of the first was the Intel Management Engine, called Intel ME. In the last years, Intel invented a couple of Trust Technologies. Intel is one of the biggest semiconductors in the world and inventor of the x86 architecture.