Intel may introduce in-chip purchase functions

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There have been rumors that Intel will add more optional additional hardware functions to the processor in the future, which will be activated in a specific way. According to Phoronix, recently Intel released a Linux patch to support the driver called “Intel Software Defined Silicon (SDSi)”, which may allow activation of certain functions in the chip in the future, but it can only be provided as an upgrade option. This means that without changing the hardware if you purchase a license upgrade, you can activate other additional hardware functions in the Intel chip. However, Intel did not provide more details. It is not clear which upgrade options will be available for the time being, but apparently, Intel has prepared support in the Linux kernel. This approach focuses more on the enterprise-level Xeon series processors, rather than the consumer-level Core series processors.

Intel Xeon E-2300
According to the description, SDSi is a post-manufacturing mechanism for activating additional chip hardware functions, which are enabled through license activation. The SDSi driver provides the application with an ioctl interface corresponding to the socket to perform three main configuration functions, including:

  • Provide verification key certificate (AKC), which is a key written into the internal NVRAM, used to verify the activation of a specific function of a specific load
  • Provides Activated Payload Capability (CAP), which is a token that uses AKC authentication and is applied to the CPU configuration to activate new functions
  • Read SDSi status certificate, including CPU configuration status
At present, the Linux patch is only about authentication and SDSi processing, and there is no corresponding upgrade function. It is still under review. Devices that support SDSi are listed as PCIe VSEC functions on Intel Out-of-Band Management Service Module (OOBMSM) devices.

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