Nested Virtual Machine Bootloader for Secure Program Execution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing virtual computer systems struggle to maintain a secure environment, especially when the hypervisor is unreliable, as there is no guarantee that all hypervisors on a general network are reliable.
Innovation Solution
An arithmetic processing apparatus and system that allows for the acquisition of a secure program from outside, utilizing a bootloader to start a secure program in a virtual arithmetic processing apparatus, ensuring that the secure program and hypervisor are managed in a controlled environment, even if the underlying hypervisor is unreliable.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a hypervisor is used to manage virtual computers, then resource management and virtualization capabilities are improved, but security reliability deteriorates when the hypervisor is unreliable
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the virtualization function into two parts: the original hypervisor for resource management and a nested virtual machine (VM2) for security-critical operations. This segmentation allows the security function to be isolated from the potentially unreliable hypervisor, enabling secure code scanning even when the hypervisor cannot be trusted.
Solution Approach 2:
VM2 acts as an intermediary between the untrusted hypervisor and the security scanning function. The VM2 receives code from the virtual machine, performs security scanning, and returns results, thereby mediating the security-critical operation without requiring direct trust in the hypervisor.
2Reliability
If code scanning is performed by a special virtual computer, then security scanning capability is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The nested virtual machine VM2 serves multiple functions: it acts as both a regular virtual machine for computation and as a secure scanning environment for code analysis. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated scanning hardware or software, thereby limiting the increase in system complexity.
3Productivity
If the hypervisor manages all code groups, then resource management efficiency is improved, but security control deteriorates when the hypervisor is untrusted
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments code management into two pathways: general code management handled by the hypervisor for efficiency, and security-critical code scanning handled by the nested VM2 for reliability. This segmentation allows the hypervisor to maintain high resource management efficiency while ceding security control to the more trustworthy nested virtual machine.
Data Source
AI summary
To provide a secure arithmetic processing environment even in a system with an unreliable hypervisor, an arithmetic processing apparatus is capable of acquiring a secure program from outside. The the arithmetic processing apparatus includes at least: hardware including at least a CPU, an input/output apparatus, and a storage apparatus; a hypervisor managing the hardware; and one or more virtual arithmetic processing apparatuses provided with a virtual arithmetic processing environment by the hypervisor, wherein each of the virtual arithmetic processing apparatuses includes at least a guest OS and a memory, a bootloader is transferred to the memory for each of virtual arithmetic processing apparatuses from the outside in such a manner that the bootloader can only be used by the hardware from the virtual arithmetic processing apparatus, the bootloader acquires the secure program, and the bootloader starts the secure program in the virtual arithmetic processing apparatus.