Intel Chips Design Flaw

[deya]

Some information regarding browser patches;

https://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer...security-holes

[deya]

Microsoft Pauses Rollout of Windows Meltdown and Spectre Patches for AMD Devices;

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/new...r-amd-devices/

[Anupam]

I got the cumulative update KB4056892 via Windows Updates today on the desktop.

Last night I went over to the Avast forum, to see if there was any information as to why the update had not reached my computers yet.

There I saw many people saying that they uninstalled Avast, and when they rebooted, the update was there in Windows Updates. Many people updated their Windows 10 PCs that way... by uninstalling Avast first, and then letting the computer update automatically via WU. They installed Avast after that without problems.

Avast said that they had done the required changes in the registry, and Avast users confirmed that. But, the update still wasn't being pushed from Microsoft. Maybe it was an issue from Microsoft, but there has been no clue on Avast forum regarding this. It was quite disappointing. There was just a post that Avast was compatible with the patch.

I was thinking of uninstalling Avast, but decided to wait for today, which is patch Tuesday, and thankfully got the update.

But, all this is pretty messed up. No communication from the companies also makes it even worse.

Haven't turned on the laptop yet today, but I guess it will update too.

[deya]

Agreed about it being pretty messed up, and the lack of communication from some companies isn't helpful but, as usual, I suspect it's all about damage limitation to their products and share prices. I also suspect that if you're one of the unlucky ones who's PC fails to work properly after one of these updates then you're on your own. That's the way these people operate.

See what happens today with the patches. My desktop has an AMD processor and is running fine after installing KB4056892, but who knows what's coming next?

Some 'experts' telling you install patches straight away, others telling you to wait.

[Anupam]

I uninstalled Avast on my laptop, just to see if there were any more updates which I wouldn't have got with Avast. But, only the cumulative update is the one that was released, so I guess it's okay with Avast installed too.

But, just wondering why even with the compatibility met, Windows Updates were not released to users with Avast on their PCs. Perhaps it's Microsoft's fault.

Maybe they are using this an excuse to get users to give up their third party antivirus? Far fetched, but who knows.

I hope your desktop continues to work fine deya.

Well, even if the experts tell to wait, with Windows 10 home editions, you cannot really stop the updates.

[deya]

It's hard to work out a reason why some are getting updates and some not. Some have installed the updates without a problem while others, with similar software and components, have run into problems. It seems that it's older AMD chips that are suffering from issues after the install. But this is only info I've come across by reading various forum threads.

It's possible to defer upgrades or stop automatic Windows updates and driver updates via O&OShutUp10 but I'm not going to do that with my home PC's. See what happens.

There's a lot more to this, that's for sure. But no point panicking about it. I think it's too complex for most of us to fully understand anyway. Doesn't matter which OS you're using, it's hardware in your devices that's the problem and they're trying to fix it with software updates. That's the way I see it at least, and depending on the age of your OS/device determines whether or not it'll get fixed and chances are many won't.

All I'll say is, the way some of these huge corporations are run and operate is quite sickening.

[deya]

Just got the patch Tuesday updates for my laptop (Intel) and desktop (AMD) and installed them;

Security update for Adobe Flash Player - KB4056887

Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool - KB890830

... and that's it, for both machines. So no cumulative update.

Also came across this from Windows Support;

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/...ectre-meltdown

... lots of links and FAQ's in the article.

[Anupam]

Originally Posted by deya

Doesn't matter which OS you're using, it's hardware in your devices that's the problem and they're trying to fix it with software updates. That's the way I see it at least, and depending on the age of your OS/device determines whether or not it'll get fixed and chances are many won't.

All I'll say is, the way some of these huge corporations are run and operate is quite sickening.

You are very right about this. It's a hardware vulnerability being patched with a software patch. But thankfully, atleast a software patch is available, otherwise, it would never be addressed, and they would just tell customers to change all their old stuff.

Anyways, as you said, depending on the age of the device, not all devices will be able to get a fix. I have an old laptop, and an old Android phone, for which I am sure there won't be any updates/patches.

For the desktop too, there has been no firmware available for the motherboard yet, which is also quite a few years old now. I don't think there will be an update... let's see.

Meanwhile, I got the cumulative update on my laptop and desktop, but for the other two updates of Windows Malicious Software Removal tool, and Flash Player, I had to manually check for the update. Both computers received the update thankfully.. the laptop without Avast at present, and desktop with Avast. So, Avast has no issues thankfully with the updates.

[IO.Hazard]

It is good to see Microsoft is at least issuing patches for a problem Intel, AMD and ARM should have solved years ago. However, there are some reports of users having a corrupted Windows 10 installation after applying the patches as well as some AMD-based computers getting unbootable.

Luckily, Intel has promised that all CPUs made during the last 5 years will receive a patch by the end of this week. Older CPUs will get patched too, but that will take until the end of the month.

As for the performance issues, Steven Walton from Techspot benchmarked the desktop performance of Intel-based PCs both PRE-updated and POST-updated. You can see the benchmarks HERE.

Storage performance is the most affected after the patch, while other functions remain the same or get about 3% to 5% slower.

[Anupam]

Originally Posted by IO.Hazard

Luckily, Intel has promised that all CPUs made during the last 5 years will receive a patch by the end of this week. Older CPUs will get patched too, but that will take until the end of the month.

What kind of a patch will this be? I mean, a firmware update or what?