Huge Intel CPU Bug

[Lecivius]

ORIGINAL: Lobster

ORIGINAL: Zap

So when should I buy a new computer that will have the new CPU without this bug. i'm sure all the stores and shipping outlets are stocked full of these bug ridden CPU'ss

Ouch. This is looking like a multi billion dollar snafu. [8|]

Yes and no. It's not good, but it is not easy to exploit by any means, and many of those ways that can be used to exploit can be patched. I am paranoid extremis when it comes to security, and while I am not happy this is here, I don't think my hairs on fire....yet [;)]

[Franciscus]

Glad I didn’t replace my iMac yet [:)]

[zakblood]

seems you maybe didn't read my last post or so?

iMac chips and

All Mac systems and iOS devices are affected

i'm sorry to say

[stuart3]

So when should I buy a new computer that will have the new CPU without this bug. i'm sure all the stores and shipping outlets are stocked full of these bug ridden CPU'ss

Well...

Firstly all of the chip manufacturers will have to think about whether they still want to continue with whatever current plans they have to produce improved versions of their current products as those will be affected by the same problems. Then they will have to design and produce new ranges of problem free CPUs.

Of course, as with all new ranges of CPUs, they will initially be very expensive until a second generation of those CPUs hits the market and the prices of the first generation chips fall.

So to answer your question - perhaps two or three years?

[Gilmer]

This is very troubling. Is it something they should have foreseen?Or is internet/computer security so wide open it's almost impossible to catch everything?

[Franciscus]

ORIGINAL: zakblood

seems you maybe didn't read my last post or so?

iMac chips and

All Mac systems and iOS devices are affected

i'm sorry to say

Yes, Zac I read it and I am aware that my trusty 2011 iMac is probably affected. But although it’s working flawlessly I was considering buying a new one (due to the risk of hard drive failure in a system with 7 years).

Now I will wait a couple more years [:D]

Cheers

[zakblood]

seems the effect has been over said, as most won't notice the difference, it seems data centers and certain types or programs only, not games etc, so think this one is all hype tbh

[aaatoysandmore]

One question that comes to mind; you don't reckon this is a ploy to get people to buy new computers and iphones and stuff? I've always been skeptical about virus program sellers doing this and now this. Just makes me wonder.

[zakblood]

no, it's knocked one hell more money off the shares than any newer sales would have given them tbh

[aaatoysandmore]

ORIGINAL: zakblood

no, it's knocked one hell more money off the shares than any newer sales would have given them tbh

There are billions of users out there and stock prices go back up. Railroad Tycoons used to use this strategy to bankrupt a railroad and buy back the stock at a much lower price before it started going back up again.

[zakblood]

atm in the real world tests it's effecting SDD more than CPU tbh, so far in any real numbers

[stuart3]

Intel are about to release patches for Meltdown and Spectre.

Brian Krzanich has stated that '90% of processors and products from the past five years would be patched "within a week"'.

Good news for many, but I do wonder where that leaves those of us who have processors between five and ten years old and still affected.

It may be that our patches will come later, but if Intel don't eventually patch my cpu, then the next PC I buy won't have Intel inside.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-42616474

[Mobius]

ORIGINAL: stuart3

Intel are about to release patches for Meltdown and Spectre.

Brian Krzanich has stated that '90% of processors and products from the past five years would be patched "within a week"'.

Good news for many, but I do wonder where that leaves those of us who have processors between five and ten years old and still affected.

It may be that our patches will come later, but if Intel don't eventually patch my cpu, then the next PC I buy won't have Intel inside.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-42616474

Well, the alternative is to have two rigs. One cheap system connected to the net for browsing and email. One high powered system for gaming. This is mostly air gapped to the outside worlds and connects only for updates.

[zakblood]

being doing this for years, have a good gaming rig, which only gets used for gaming then a few none gaming pc's for other stuff like forums and testing and general work

[stuart3]

Well, the alternative is to have two rigs. One cheap system connected to the net for browsing and email. One high powered system for gaming. This is mostly air gapped to the outside worlds and connects only for updates.

My current system, though getting on a bit, is still more than powerful enough to comfortably handle every game I have chosen to throw at it. So it seems a bit of an extravagance to buy a low spec rig in order to duplicate tasks it handles with ease.

I will bear your suggestion in mind when I eventually decide to upgrade, perhaps in a couple of years time. I might retain the current machine for simpler tasks.

The final line of my earlier post was a statement of intent, not a complaint that my rig's performance has suddenly been noticeably degraded.

[Simulacra53]

Yeah, probably trying to sell new CPUs with new back doors...

A 30% or even 5-10% hit on performance will have people scream for compensation.
Hell, 30% is huge, that’s not a fix that is disaster...

[Simulacra53]

Give people a choice, or give them a replacement CPU / viable alternative.

For me the cure is worse than the actual problem - consumer level.

[Simulacra53]

ORIGINAL: aaatoysandmore

One question that comes to mind; you don't reckon this is a ploy to get people to buy new computers and iphones and stuff? I've always been skeptical about virus program sellers doing this and now this. Just makes me wonder.

Economy by crisis.

[demyansk]

I have a 9 year old cpu

[PipFromSlitherine]

The worst case performance hits are only going to be on systems which are doing large numbers of kernel-switches. Games are almost unaffected. It is going to hit server-type setups more. There is no (reasonable) way that CPU makers could have foreseen this exploit. Meltdown is arguably something which should have been preventable (doing speculative memory reads into protected memory seems a little squiffy in truth) but Spectre is almost impossible to avoid on modern architectures without fairly substantial CPU performance degradation.

Cheers

Pip