Context-Dependent Address Space Hiding for Privileged Memory Isolation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Modern computing systems face security vulnerabilities due to more-privileged software components having access to resources allocated to less-privileged components, leading to issues like speculation attacks and cache timing side-channels, which are difficult to mitigate without significant performance overhead.
Innovation Solution
Implement a hardware-supported context-dependent address space hiding mechanism using a software-managed context-register to dynamically hide portions of the more-privileged address space based on the 'in-context' CID, preventing access to 'out-of-context' resources.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If more-privileged software components are given access to resources allocated to less-privileged components, then resource management and scheduling functionality is enabled, but security vulnerabilities and data leaks occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the address space of the more-privileged software component into different portions: a first portion accessible to the more-privileged component itself, and a second portion hidden from it. This segmentation allows the more-privileged component to manage resources for multiple less-privileged components while preventing it from accessing memory belonging to other less-privileged components, thus resolving the contradiction between resource management capability and data leak prevention.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism (context-dependent address space hiding) between the more-privileged software component and the less-privileged components. This intermediary dynamically controls which portions of the address space are visible to the more-privileged component based on the current execution context, enabling secure resource management without direct access to all allocated resources.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If existing mitigation techniques are used to prevent access to out-of-context memory, then security is improved, but performance overhead increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by allowing the more-privileged software component to automatically hide portions of its own address space based on the execution context without requiring explicit software intervention or complex mitigation mechanisms. The hardware automatically enforces the context-dependent address space hiding, eliminating the need for additional software overhead while maintaining security.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If context-dependent address space hiding is implemented in software, then security is improved, but device complexity and maintenance requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex software-based address space management with a hardware-supported mechanism. The hardware automatically manages context-dependent address space hiding based on context identifiers, eliminating the need for complex software implementations and reducing maintenance requirements while maintaining robust security controls.
Data Source
AI summary
A system, method and processor that mitigates security vulnerabilities using context-dependent address space hiding. In some embodiments, a hardware mechanism allows a more-privileged software component managing multiple less-privileged software components to blind itself against “out-of-context” less-privileged software components. The hardware mechanism can allow the more-privileged software component to dynamically hide a portion of the more-privileged address space related to the “out-of-context” less-privileged software components, based on knowledge of the “in-context” less-privileged software component. A context register is set with a value from which an address range, within the address space of the more-privileged software component, can be determined, where the address range is associated with a first less-privileged software component can be determined. When the more-privileged software component attempts to access data from other less-privileged software components, it is prevented from accessing such data, based at least in part on the context register.