Integration of Untrusted Applications and Frameworks with a Secure Operating System Environment

• US 20140115646A1
• Filed: 12/17/2012
• Published: 04/24/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rajgopal, Narayan, Russo, Fabian, Miville, Xavier
• Granted Patent: US 9,344,762 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/110
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/443 OS processes, e.g. booting an STB, implementing a Java virtual machine in an STB or power management in an STB
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4433 Implementing client middleware, e.g. Multimedia Home Platform [MHP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4437 Implementing a Virtual Machine [VM] virtual machines in general G06F9/45533
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4627 Rights management associated to the content security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08

Abstract

A set top box or like device utilizing trusted applications in conjunction with an untrusted software framework. In one implementation, trusted or certified applications are received from a service provider for execution by a software framework of the device. Certification of a trusted application may entail, for example, verifying that the application is executable by the device in a manner consist with the industry standard certification process. The software framework may comprise, for example, an Android framework supported by an underlying Linux operating system environment and isolated in a Linux resource container. A secure access client/server interface may also be provided to support interactions between the software framework and trusted portions of the device. In further embodiments, both trusted applications and a set top box application utilized by the device to perform traditional set top box operations are implemented in at least one version of an Android or like framework.

Claims

1. An apparatus operable as a set top box, the apparatus having underlying hardware resources, comprising:

a set top box application to perform trusted media processing operations utilizing the underlying hardware resources;

a software framework;

a secure access interface configured to support communications between the set top box application and the software framework; and

at least one trusted software application, the application executable on the software framework.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, the secure access interface performing at least one operation selected from the group consisting of:

handle and pointer validation, non-pointer parameter validation, heap isolation, and resource release relating to unused resources.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a secure operating system environment, the secure access interface configured to support communications between the software framework and the secure operating system environment.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the secure operating system environment comprises a Linux-based operating system kernel.

5. The apparatus of claim 3, the secure access interface comprising a secure access server and secure access client, the secure access client incorporated in the software framework.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein communications between the secure access server and secure access client occur, at least in part, through inter-process communication calls.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the untrusted software framework comprises at least one version of an Android framework.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the media processing device is a set top box device, and wherein the at least one trusted software application is provided by a service operator.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 certified in accordance with an industry standard certification process, the at least one trusted application certified to be executable by the apparatus in a manner consistent with the industry standard certification process.

10. A method used in a media processing device that includes a software framework, the method comprising:

receiving a trusted application software for use by the media processing device;

associating the trusted application software with the software framework, the software framework supporting execution of the trusted application software; and

establishing a restricted operating system environment for execution of the software framework.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the media processing device is a set top box device, and wherein the trusted application software is provided by a service operator.

12. The method of claim 11, the set top box certified in accordance with an industry standard certification process, the trusted application software certified to be executable by the software framework in a manner consist with the industry standard certification process.

13. The method of claim 10, the media processing device further including a set top box application, the method further comprising:

providing a secure access interface to regulate interactions between the set top box application and components of the software framework.

14. The method of claim 10, the media processing device including a plurality of software frameworks, wherein associating the trusted application software with the software framework comprises selecting a compatible one of the plurality of software frameworks to support execution of the trusted application software.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the restricted operating system environment comprises a virtual machine container.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the software framework and trusted application software are based on at least one version of an Android framework.

17. A media processing device having hardware resources for performing media delivery operations, comprising:

processing circuitry;

a trusted software application;

a software framework for execution of the trusted software application; and

an operating system executed by the processing circuitry, the operating system configured to establish or support a privileged operating system environment and a restricted operating system environment, the software framework executed in the restricted operating system environment.

18. The media processing device of claim 17, further comprising:

a set top box application for performing secure media processing operations, the set top box application executed in the privileged operating system environment.

19. The media processing device of claim 18, the trusted software application and the set top box application implemented in accordance with at least one version of an Android framework.

20. The media processing device of claim 17 certified in accordance with an industry standard certification process, wherein the trusted software application is provided by a service operator.