Virtual high privilege mode for a system management request

• US 10,303,501 B2
• Filed: 08/30/2011
• Issued: 05/28/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Ali, Valiuddin Y, Pires, Jose Paulo Xavier, Mann, James M, Balacheff, Boris, Dalton, Chris I
• Primary Examiner(s): Chowdhury, Ziaul A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wei, Zengpu
• Application Number:
  US14/240,198
• Publication Number:
  US 20150040130A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,828 Days
• Field of Search: 718 1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45587 Isolation or security of virtual machine instances
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/57 Certifying or maintaining trusted computer platforms, e.g. secure boots or power-downs, version controls, system software checks, secure updates or assessing vulnerabilities
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/572 Secure firmware programming, e.g. of basic input output system [BIOS]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/575 Secure boot
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4401 Bootstrapping security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45541 Bare-metal, i.e. hypervisor runs directly on hardware
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45558 Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects

Abstract

A computing system and a method of handling a system management request. The computing system includes a virtual high-privilege mode in a trusted domain managed by the virtual machine monitor. The virtual high-privilege mode handles the system management request.

Claims

1. A computing system comprising:

a processor;

a physical basic input/output system (BIOS);

a virtual machine monitor (VMM) to manage a trusted virtual machine (VM); and

a virtual high-privilege mode in the trusted VM to handle a system management request,

the VMM to trap requests to access functionalities of the physical BIOS from sources other than the trusted VM, the trapping of the requests preventing the requests from being communicated to the physical BIOS.

2. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the virtual high-privilege mode is a virtual system management interrupt mode to handle a system management request.

3. The computing system of claim 2, wherein the processor does not enter a system management mode in response to the system management request.

4. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the trusted VM is a domain 0 VM.

5. The computing system of claim 2, wherein the system management request is provided to the virtual high-privilege mode using one of a virtual basic input output system (vBIOS), a Windows management instrumentation (WMI) wrapper, or a remote procedure call (RPC).

6. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the virtual high-privilege mode in the trusted VM is to respond to the system management request by calling the physical BIOS.

7. The computing system of claim 6, wherein the VMM allows the call of the physical BIOS by the virtual high-privilege mode in the trusted VM to pass to the physical BIOS.

8. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the VMM is to route the system management request from a guest virtual machine to the virtual high-privilege mode in the trusted VM.

9. A method of handling a system management request in a computing system, comprising:

managing, by a virtual machine monitor (VMM), a trusted virtual machine (VM) with a virtual high-privilege mode, the trusted VM with the virtual high-privilege mode to receive the system management request;

preventing the system management request from initiating a system management mode at a processor of the computing system;

handling the system management request by the trusted VM with the virtual high-privilege mode; and

trapping, by the VMM, requests to a physical basic input/output system (BIOS) of the computing system from sources other than the trusted VM, the trapping of the requests preventing the requests from being communicated to the physical BIOS.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising changing a system configuration of the computing system by the trusted VM with the virtual high-privilege mode.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising issuing a system management interrupt from a guest domain, the system management request comprising the system management interrupt.

12. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

calling, by the trusted VM with the virtual high-privilege mode, the physical BIOS in response to the system management request.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

routing, by the VMM, the system management request from a guest virtual machine to the trusted VM with the virtual high-privilege mode.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the trusted VM is a domain 0 VM.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein trapping the requests to the physical BIOS comprises trapping requests to access functionalities of the physical BIOS.

16. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions that upon execution cause a computing system to:

manage, by a virtual machine monitor (VMM), a trusted virtual machine (VM);

receive a system management request by a virtual high-privilege mode environment in the trusted VM;

prevent the system management request from initiating a system management mode;

handle the system management request in the virtual high-privilege mode environment of the trusted VM;

trap, by the VMM, requests to a physical basic input/output system (BIOS) of the computing system from sources other than the trusted VM, the trapping of the requests preventing the requests from being communicated to the physical BIOS.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein the trusted VM including the virtual high-privilege mode environment is to change a system configuration that is not changeable by a guest domain.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions upon execution cause the computing device to:

forward the system management request from a virtual basic input output system (vBIOS) to the trusted VM including the virtual high-privilege mode environment.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions upon execution cause the computing system to further:

call, by the trusted VM including the virtual high-privilege mode environment, the physical BIOS in response to the system management request.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein the instructions upon execution cause the computing system to further:

route, by the VMM, the system management request from a guest virtual machine to the trusted VM with the virtual high-privilege mode.