[Cryptography] Intel Management Engine pwnd

[Jerry Leichter]

>>    In fact it's unlikely a system that complex *could* be implemented
>>    directly in hardware for any reasonable price, if at all.  That's
>>    why microcode was invented.  And ... there's tons of it in any x86
>>    implementation.  Is that hardware or software?  Is that distinction
>>    even meaningful?
> 
> Yes, it's still meaningful.
> If it's hw, you can't update it.
> If it's firmware, sometimes you can.
> If it's software, usually you can.
...which of course leads you to the exact opposite of the assertion I was responding to:  That the properties of the chip should be implemented in hardware, not in software.
                                                        -- Jerry