Re: I wonder about motherboards
"Incorrect - it is in fact part of the chipset rather than the CPU. "
Perhaps someone would care to clarify these snippets then (from Intel, not from Wikipedia):
https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000025619/software.html
(Intel® Management Engine Critical Firmware Update (Intel SA-00086), 22 Nov 17)
Mentions various vulnerable Intel product families including the Intel Atom C3000 SoC family.
Do readers (especially Maventi) know what SoC means? ("System on chip", for those who've not come across it). Basically, "just add DRAM" (plus a few other odds and ends depending on application). Something that in x86-speak doesn't have the classical Intel-x86 Northbridge, Southbridge, etc chipset external to the package where the "CPU" lives.
So, in an Intel C3000 SoC product, where is that "chipset"? Is it perhaps in the same package as the CPU? Is Maventi proposing a distinction without a difference?
Here's a hint from Intel:
"The Innovation Engine (IE) is an embedded core within the SoC. It is similar to Intel® Management Engine (Intel® ME), with some privilege and I/O differences. The IE is designed to assist original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in providing a more secure form of the Intel ME. IE code is cryptographically bound to the OEM, and code that is not authenticated by the OEM will not load. The system can operate normally without having to activate IE because it is an optional feature." (etc)
from
https://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/intel-atom-processor-c3000-family-technical-overview
Clarification very welcome. Have a great weekend.