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Blue-RiBBon Development
foR SecuRe, ReliaBle SyStemS
MARKET oUtlooK
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MARKET oUtlooK
In the investment world, we’re familiar with “blue
chip stocks” – the solid, reliable choices that
consistently produce good returns, outperform
their competitors, and never succumb to wild dips
or corrections in the market. Every industry has
its blue chips, and every investor has their favorites.
In the technology world, there are also blue-
chip companies that supply the most solid, reliable,
and trouble-free components to their clients and
customers. Intel has been one of those blue-chip
vendors for more than 30 years, but its “portfolio”
recently got even better. With technologies from the
extended Intel family, embedded software leader Wind
River* and security pioneer McAfee*, Intel delivers
a one-two-three punch that is the envy of product-
development teams.
Greater than the Sum of Its parts
Everyone is familiar with Intel’s role in the personal
computer (PC) market, and how Intel’s breakneck
pace of progress catapulted PCs into the mainstream
industry they are today. Less well known is Intel’s role in
embedded systems, the electronics that surround us and
drive the global infrastructure. From factory automation
systems, to power generation, to wireless base stations,
and innumerable other ubiquitous systems, Intel chips
power everything from the everyday to the exotic.
Today’s embedded systems are as complex as
yesterday’s PCs. Indeed, sometimes they really are
like PCs, repurposed or redesigned to accommodate
different embedded, industrial, medical, or high-
reliability requirements. More often, however,
embedded systems are designed from the ground up
and are uniquely tailored to their purpose, whether
it’s monitoring a power substation or delivering
individual medical care. But regardless of a system’s
provenance, they all share some things in common –
and not all of them are good.
As embedded systems become more complex
and more ubiquitous, they also become more
vulnerable to failure or attack. The rise of widespread
wireless connectivity also leaves these systems
more exposed to outside attacks. In short, today’s
embedded systems need the same kind of cyber-
and anti-hacking protection as any computer. Maybe
even more so. It’s one thing to lose the data on a
PC to hackers. It’s another to have a power station’s
monitoring systems brought down, or to lose faith
in the security of a medical device, surveillance
system, or robot controller. Computer breaches can
cost money; insecure embedded systems can ruin
lives and careers.
That’s why Intel is at the forefront of securing
embedded systems with its three-part strategy.
First, there’s the secure silicon. Intel’s wildly popular
microprocessors include innumerable features
that make the chips themselves secure, robust,
and trustworthy. Second, Wind River provides one
of the industry’s most trusted real-time operating
systems and embedded software, giving embedded
programmers a safe and secure foundation for
their products. And third, McAfee’s industry-leading
security technology – which often goes far beyond
the familiar antivirus products – adds a tough layer
of armor around modern embedded systems. All
three complement one another to provide something
greater than merely the sum of their parts. The
Intel/Wind River/McAfee combination delivers
investment-grade components to engineering firms
in any market.
Secure Silicon
Intel’s security suite starts with Intel chips, of course.
For decades, the family of Intel® architecture (“x86”)
microprocessor chips has included security features that
Blue-RiBBon Development foR SecuRe, ReliaBle SyStemSMARKET oUtlooK
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MARKET oUtlooK
other microprocessors just didn’t have. It starts with Intel
architecture’s four-level privilege hierarchy, which separates
all software into four distinct privilege levels, or rings.
Programs can’t move outside their ring, so low-privilege
programs can’t interrupt or interfere with higher-privileged
code. These rules are enforced in the silicon itself, so they
can’t be sidestepped, ignored, or thwarted by malicious
code. These privilege rings have been a part of every
Intel architecture processor for 20 years, with continual
enhancements and improvements over that time.
Then there’s the chips’ memory-protection units,
which prevent buggy (or malicious) programs from
overwriting memory, possibly corrupting data, breaching
security, or causing failures. Like the privilege rings, Intel
chips have offered memory protection for years, and it’s a
feature that programmers have come to reply upon. Intel®
processors also offer an execute-disable (XD) bit, a silicon
“on/off switch” that disables the ability to run arbitrary
software, one common vector for attacks. These features,
and plenty more, make Intel architecture’s processor
family a safe, secure, and reliable foundation for even the
most mission-critical systems.
Wind River* means Real time
But the security features don’t stop there. Even safe and
secure systems can fail. Bugs, programming mistakes,
and simple software errors can bring down a system
just as rapidly as a focused attack. That’s why reliable
commercial-grade software with built-in security
capabilities is so important for modern embedded
systems across market segments.
For more than 30 years, Wind River has been the blue-
chip standard with its real-time operating system (RTOS)
and broad portfolio of embedded software. First with its
VxWorks* product RTOS, later with its industry-leading
embedded Linux*, and now with its platforms for intelligent
systems, Wind River has been the preferred choice for
engineering teams with an emphasis on reliability and
robustness. From the early days, Wind River software has
been optimized for Intel architecture processors, and that
connection is even stronger today.
In addition to its runtime embedded software,
Wind River also provides top-grade development
tools for the programmers and engineers who have
to make these systems work. Wind River ’s tools
for development and debugging and its simulation
software can effectively make time stand still or even
run backwards, allowing programmers to find and fix
bugs in uniquely powerful ways. Development teams
can work remotely, even across continents, and
stay on the same page using full system simulators,
enabling around-the-clock development before
hardware is even available. It’s a whole new level of
full-system design, available now through Intel and
Wind River.
mcAfee* Security layerViruses, worms, Trojans, and assorted malware used
to be just the province of networked computers. But
now everyday embedded systems are subject to
the same attacks, and more. That’s why industrial-
grade security technology is required for every type
of medical, industrial, automotive, communications,
or aeronautic system. Any development team that
doesn’t design-in security from the outset is likely to
find itself starting over again, perhaps after a rude
introduction to their product’s security holes.
Design teams can leverage McAfee’s software-
based security in their own systems, hardening
embedded products against viruses, denial-of-service
attacks, network scans, Trojans, to name a few. The
company’s around-the-clock threat detection keeps
developersapprised of the latest outbreaks. Encryption
and filtering technology help keep threats from
Blue-RiBBon Development foR SecuRe, ReliaBle SyStemSMARKET oUtlooK
“McAfee* has been the
leader in computer
security for years, and
now that expertise is
focused on Intel-based
product development.”
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penetrating the system in the first place. It’s like having
an entire company focused on protecting your system –
which is exactly what theydo. What embedded system
isn’t important enough to warrant that kind of security?
SummaryProduct development has always been tough.
That’s why engineers and programmers are highly
compensated, and why good program managers build
good teams that are productive and efficient. But
now, with always-on Internet connections, numerous
wireless standards, ubiquitous connectivity, real-time
demands, regulatory approval, and shorter product
life cycles, those jobs became tougher still. With that
solid foundation, developers can create new products
and new value. They can focus on their value-add, and
worry less about the basic details. Blue-chip companies
always were the best investment.
© 2013 UBM Tech, a UBM company. All Rights Reserved. © 2013 Intel Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Intel and the Intel logo are trademarks of Intel Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.*Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.Information in this document is provided in connection with intel® products. No license, express or implied, by estoppel or otherwise, to any intel-lectual property rights is granted by this document. Except as provided in intel’s terms and conditions of sale for such products, intel assumes no liability whatsoever, and intel disclaims any express or implied warranty, relating to sale and/or use of intel products including liability or warran- ties relating to fitness for a particular purpose, merchantability, or infringement of any patent, copyright or other intellectual property right. A “Mission critical application” is any application in which failure of the intel product could result, directly or indirectly, in personal injury or death. Should you purchase or use intel’s products for any such mission critical application, you shall indemnify and hold intel and its subsidiaries, subcontractors and affiliates, and the directors, officers, and employees of each, harmless against all claims costs, damages, and expenses and reasonable attor-neys’ fees arising out of, directly or indirectly, any claim of product liability, personal injury, or death arising in any way out of such mission critical application, whether or not intel or its subcontractor was negligent in the design, manufacture, or warning of the intel product or any of its parts.Intel may make changes to specifications and product descriptions at any time, without notice. Designers must not rely on the absence or charac-teristics of any features or instructions marked “reserved” or “undefined.” Intel reserves these for future definition and shall have no responsibility whatsoever for conflicts or incompatibilities arising from future changes to them. The information here is subject to change without notice. Do not finalize a design with this information. The products described in this document may contain design defects or errors known as errata which may cause the product to deviate from published specifications. Current characterized errata are available on request. Contact your local Intel sales office or your distributor to obtain the latest specifications and before placing your product order. Copies of documents which have an order number and are referenced in this document, or other Intel literature, may be obtained by calling 1-800-548-4725, or by visiting Intel’s Web site at www.intel.com.
aBout INTEL
Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) is a world leader in computing innovation. The company designs and builds
the essential technologies that serve as the foundation for the world’s computing devices. Additional
information about Intel is available at www.intel.com/pressroom and blogs.intel.com.
Blue-RiBBon Development foR SecuRe, ReliaBle SyStemSMARKET oUtlooK
“The wisest investment a
product team can make
is to rely on the most
reliable and most secure
tools they can get.”
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