On Mon, Jan 17, 2011 at 10:29 PM, William Kenworthy <bi...@iinet.net.au> wrote: > The bios microcode update is likely an enable setting rather than the > bios actually updating the cpu. You need to do some reading/asking of > the manufacturers (not here) if it bothers you.
Thanks for the links, I didn't realize they made the microcode data available separately. >From Intel's download site for the microcode data: "The microcode data file contains the latest microcode definitions for all Intel processors. Intel releases microcode updates to correct processor behavior as documented in the respective processor specification updates. While the regular approach to getting this microcode update is via a BIOS upgrade, Intel realizes that this can be an administrative hassle. The Linux Operating System and VMware ESX products have a mechanism to update the microcode after booting. For example, this file will be used by the operating system mechanism if the file is placed in the /etc/firmware directory of the Linux system."
