Processor including general-purpose and cryptographic functionality in which cryptographic operations are visible to user-specified software
US7620821B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Feb 24, 2005 |
| Grant date | Nov 17, 2009 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 20, 2027 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F21/72
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A processor including general-purpose and cryptographic functionality, in which cryptographic operations are visible to user-specified software. According to one embodiment, a processor may include instruction execution logic configured to execute instructions specified by a user of the processor, where the instructions are compliant with a general-purpose instruction set architecture. The processor may further include a cryptographic functional unit configured to implement a plurality of cryptographic operations, and further configured to process the cryptographic operations independently of the instruction execution logic. A subset of the instructions may be executable to cause individual ones of the cryptographic operations to be processed by the cryptographic functional unit.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.