Transport Software Update Isolation for Critical Patch Verification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle software update systems lack secure and efficient mechanisms to ensure the integrity and safety of software updates, particularly for critical components, preventing unauthorized or unsafe updates.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for parsing software updates into critical and non-critical portions, verifying the critical portion based on a trusted source, and running it in isolation before applying it to the entire system, utilizing a blockchain network for consensus-based validation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If software updates are applied directly to the entire system without isolation testing, then productivity is improved through faster update deployment, but reliability deteriorates due to increased risk of unauthorized or unsafe updates affecting critical components
Solution Approach 1:
The software update is segmented into two distinct portions: a first portion designated for isolated testing and a second portion for system-wide deployment. This segmentation allows the update to be tested in a controlled environment before full deployment, thereby maintaining both productivity and reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The first portion of the software update is executed in isolation before the second portion is deployed to the entire system. This preliminary action enables safe testing and validation of critical updates without risking the stability of the complete system, resolving the contradiction between fast deployment and safe updating.
2Reliability
If critical software updates are tested in isolation before full deployment, then reliability is improved through safer update validation, but productivity deteriorates due to extended testing time
Solution Approach 1:
Only the critical first portion of the software update requiring extensive validation is executed in isolation, while non-critical portions can be deployed more quickly. This partial action approach maintains reliability for critical functions without unnecessarily extending the deployment time for the entire system.
3Adaptability or versatility
If software updates from untrusted sources are allowed, then adaptability is improved through greater flexibility in updating, but security deteriorates due to potential unauthorized access or system compromise
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces an intermediary verification mechanism that mediates between untrusted update sources and the critical transport component. The isolated execution environment acts as a buffer, allowing updates from flexible sources to be tested safely before determining whether to proceed with full deployment, thus maintaining both adaptability and security.
Data Source
AI summary
An example operation includes one or more of receiving a software update at a first component in a target transport, parsing the software update by a second component in the target transport into a first portion of critical updates and a second portion of non-critical updates, verifying the first portion, by the second component, based on a source of the software update, running, by the second component, the verified first portion with a dedicated process on the target transport for a pre-set period of time, and responsive to positive results over the period of time, running the verified first portion with other processes on the target transport.