[Beowulf] Intel CPU design bug & security flaw - kernel fix imposes performance penalty

[Jones de Andrade]

Meaning:

AMD would also be on the same hook;

We, "non-average computer users", are still [verb of your choice here].

On Wed, Jan 3, 2018 at 6:29 PM, Kevin Van Workum <vanw+beowulf at sabalcore.com
> wrote:

> Intel's response: https://www.streetinsider.com/
> Corporate+News/Intel+%28INTC%29+Responds+to+Security+
> Research+Findings/13648696.html
>
> On Wed, Jan 3, 2018 at 12:57 PM, Joe Landman <joe.landman at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Looks like it will respond to a 'nopti' boot option (at least the patches
>> I've seen from 4-Dec)
>>
>>
>>
>> On 01/03/2018 12:57 PM, Ellis H. Wilson III wrote:
>>
>>> On 01/03/2018 12:47 PM, Lux, Jim (337K) wrote:
>>>
>>>> I suppose the down side is that if they do kernel mods to fix this
>>>> for the 99.9%, it adversely affects the performance for the 0.1%
>>>> (that is, us).
>>>>
>>>
>>> We've been discussing this extensively at my workplace, and the
>>> overwhelming expectation is that at least in Linux the fix should be
>>> configurable such that those operating in non-multitenant systems (such as
>>> scale-out storage appliances) can disable it.
>>>
>>> If this ends up not being the case, I would expect it in the short-term
>>> to lock us out of upgrading to newer kernels where the fix and resultant
>>> overheads come into play until we're on newer CPUs where the architecture
>>> deficiency is resolved.  This latter part (the expectation of Intel fixing
>>> it in their newer HW) is all the more reason I'm inclined to believe the
>>> fix will be delivered as a tunable.
>>>
>>> Best,
>>>
>>> ellis
>>>
>>>
>> --
>> Joe Landman
>> e: joe.landman at gmail.com
>> t: @hpcjoe
>> w: https://scalability.org
>> g: https://github.com/joelandman
>> l: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joelandman
>>
>>
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>
>
>
> --
> Kevin Van Workum, PhD
> Sabalcore Computing Inc.
>
>
>
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