Entries by Roland

How to build a more secure personal computer

/by

Tags: Coreboot, F2A85-M, F2A85-M PRO, A10-5800KLast Update: Jan 2021 This guide is based on the BIOS UEFI replacement called Coreboot which runs on an ASUS F2A85-M or F2A85-M PRO mainboard with an AMD A10-5800K CPU with integrated graphics. 1. Introduction and aim This initial idea came up with the uprising problems and vulnerabilities of Intel ME and AMD […]

How to set up Postfix on Debian to use a mailhoster with SMTP

/by

Tags: Postfix, Mailhoster, Linux, SMTPLast update: Jul 2022 Tested with: Debian 10. Note: Seems to stop working on Debian 11. First we need to install packages: If it’s not opening up automatically you can configure Postfix with “sudo dpkg-reconfigure postfix”.Confige Postfix by choosing: satellite system system mail name = your-computername smtp relay host = [your-mailhost]:port […]

How to install XFCE and VNC on a headless Ubuntu 18.04

/by

Tags: XFCE, VNC, Ubuntu Linux, headlessLast update: Dec 2019 I’ve tested some tutorials on the internet which guide through the installation of VNC. Unfortunately some of them just didn’t work out therefore I’m writing down the current way that works flawlessly. Prerequisites:– Freshly installed Ubuntu 18.04 server edition (headless installation – no GUI).– We assume […]

About Intel Management Engine (Intel ME) & Intel Active Management Technlogy (iAMT)

/by

Tags: intel me, intel amtLast update: Jun 2018 Technological overview The Intel Management Engine (Intel ME) is a standalone microcontroller component which operates independent from your computer’s hardware. It provides an interface between operating system, hardware and BIOS. The Intel ME subsystem is hosting the firmware of Intel Active Management Technology (iAMT). Intel ME and […]

About AMD TrustZone, AMD Platform Security Processor (PSP), AMD Secure Technology

/by

Tags: amd trustzone, amd psp, amd secure technologyLast update: jun 2018 Technological overview ARM, originally Acorn RISC Machine, is a set of architectures for computer processors. In 2004 ARM developed TrustZone – an optional extension for processors which provide a secure execution environment (source 01). In 2012 AMD announced the integration of ARM’s TrustZone into […]

Open and secure computing

/by

Tags: open source, firmware, blob, coreboot, librebootLast Update: Nov 2018 Introduction When you think about computers there are always two levels which are coexistent: hard- and software. Every software is running on top of hardware. Despite the probability that open and free software might be better (refer to comparison between open and closed source) there are […]

System alternatives without Intel ME / iAMT and AMD PSP / Secure Technology

/by

Tags: computer system without intel me, amd pspLast update: Jan 2021 Due to a lack of documentation and possiblities to deactivate these “secure execution environments” those can’t be disabled on our own. If you are interested you can read some more details about Intel ME/iAMT and AMD Platform Secure Processor / AMD Secure Technology. This article is providing […]

AMD processors without AMD PSP / Secure Technology

/by

Tags: amd, cpu, apu, psp, secure technology, trusted environment, secure execution environmentLast update: Nov 2020 If we want to find the latest CPU which is not equipped with any secure execution environment, we need to look into the official and other documentations, which are available publicly. From news in the media we assume the secure […]

Wie Meltdown funktioniert

/by

Tags: meltdown, intel cpu vulnerabilityLast update: Aug 2020 1. Einleitung Unsere heutigen gewöhnlichen Computersysteme funktionieren nach dem Prinzip der sog. Von-Neumann-Architektur nach welcher es im Computer einen gemeinsamen Speicher gibt, der sowohl Programmbefehle als auch Daten hält. Mit Daten sind unsere gewöhnlichen Nutzdaten gemeint, die wir als Nutzer speichern und verarbeiten. Da sich dies nur […]