LPC Bus Smart Card Interface for Secure Authentication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current computer systems lack a method to access removable integrated circuit devices, such as smart cards, through a Low Pin Count (LPC) bus, preventing trusted operating systems and applications from interfacing with user-provided credential information.
Innovation Solution
An integrated circuit device interface is coupled to the CPU through an LPC bus, allowing user credential information to be provided by a removable IC device, enabling access control and authentication by software executing on the computer system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a removable smart card interface is added to enable credential access, then authentication capability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The LPC bus interface is designed to serve multiple purposes: it provides credential authentication through smart card reading, maintains backward compatibility with existing ISA bus devices, and enables secure access control for applications and information. This multi-functionality resolves the contradiction by making the interface versatile without requiring entirely new hardware architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
A driver program acts as an intermediary layer between the LPC bus interface and the operating system. This driver handles the complexity of low-level interface communication, smart card protocol management, and credential verification, thereby hiding the interface complexity from both the user and the core system while enabling robust authentication functionality.
2Ease of manufacture
If LPC bus interface is used for smart card communication, then ease of manufacture is improved, but software compatibility requirements worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-installs and configures a specific driver program for the LPC bus interface before authentication operations. This driver is designed to work with the hardware configuration and establishes the communication protocol in advance. While this improves ease of manufacture by simplifying hardware-software integration, it creates a requirement for this specific software component to be present, thereby worsening software compatibility across different systems.
Data Source
AI summary
A computer system may receive one or more credentials of a user (e.g., username, password, etc.) from an integrated circuit (IC) device carried by the user. The computer system may include an IC device interface to receive the user credential(s) from the IC device. The IC device interface may be coupled to a CPU of the computer system through a low pin count (LPC) bus. The user credential(s) may be used to grant access to software and/or to grant access to information. Access may be granted to information stored on the computer system. In some embodiments, the computer system may be coupled to a network and transmit the user credential(s) from the IC device and a request for access of information to a service provider coupled to the network. The service provider may grant or deny the request for access of information based on user credential(s).