Intel Corporation
Microprocessor pipeline circuitry to support cryptographic computing

Abstract:

In one embodiment, a processor of a cryptographic computing system includes data cache units storing encrypted data and circuitry coupled to the data cache units. The circuitry accesses a sequence of cryptographic-based instructions to execute based on the encrypted data, decrypts the encrypted data based on a first pointer value, executes the cryptographic-based instruction using the decrypted data, encrypts a result of the execution of the cryptographic-based instruction based on a second pointer value, and stores the encrypted result in the data cache units. In some embodiments, the circuitry generates, for each cryptographic-based instruction, at least one encryption-based microoperation and at least one non-encryption-based microoperation. The circuitry also schedules the at least one encryption-based microoperation and the at least one non-encryption-based microoperation for execution based on timings of the encryption-based microoperation.