This new update also covers Intel X-series of chips along with Xeon scalable and Xeon-D processors used in data centers
The Meltdown and Spectre saga continues as Intel has now sent out firmware updates to its partner OEM manufacturers in order to mitigate the second class of Spectre bug. The latest fix will cover all processors in Intel’s 6th gen (Skylake), 7th gen (Kaby Lake) and 8th gen (Coffee lake) lineup. Intel’s X-series chips will also be covered under the new firmware update. On the server side, Intel Xeon Scalable and Intel Xeon D processors which are meant for data center systems will also be covered under the same update.
Navin Shenoy, VP/GM Mobile Client Platforms, Intel said in a blog post. “We have now released production microcode updates to our OEM customers and partners for Kaby Lake- and Coffee Lake-based platforms, plus additional Skylake-based platforms. This represents our 6th, 7th and 8th Generation Intel Core product lines as well as our latest Intel Core X-series processor family. It also includes our recently announced Intel Xeon Scalable and Intel Xeon D processors for data center systems.”
He added “the new microcode will be made available in most cases through OEM firmware updates. I continue to encourage people to always keep their systems up-to-date. There is also a comprehensive schedule and current status for planned microcode updates available online.”
The latest update will allow motherboard manufacturers to roll-out updates to customers which will address the security risks that came to light by the Spectre bug. Older Intel platform users will have to wait a bit longer as the company is still working on some critical updates. Intel also shared an updated timeline of when Spectre Microcode updates will be released. You can take a look at the updated sheet here.
This update comes after users started facing random reboots on machines based on both Intel and AMD processors after the first update. Intel then said, they have identified the root cause of the problem and will push out new firmware updates to address the issue. In the aftermath, Linus Torvalds, the creator of Linux, stated the firmware update as “pure garbage”. This time we hope users won’t face similar issues.
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