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Ask HN: Delay buying new devices due to Meltdown/Spectre CPU bug?

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Re: Ask HN: Delay buying new devices due to Meltdown/Spectre CPU bug?

#41

Post by alltakendamned »

kikoreis wrote: post #37
keldaris wrote: post #33

There's no point in waiting. Neither Intel nor AMD will significantly adjust their roadmaps due to these issues simply because they don't realistically have the flexibility to do so. Evaluate your threat model in the context of Meltdown/Spectre and opt in or out of the mitigations accordingly. There are relatively few cases where the workload is both significantly affected by the mitigations and vulnerable to these a…

Do you have actual facts to back up your first paragraph? If it's just an informed opinion, mine is: if you can, you should definitely wait before buying new server parts.

You underestimate how long it takes to "patch" hardware. Having an opinion does not make it an informed one.

Read the following thread: https://twitter.com/securelyfitz/status/949370010652196864

Re: Ask HN: Delay buying new devices due to Meltdown/Spectre CPU bug?

#42

Post by keldaris »

kikoreis wrote: post #37
keldaris wrote: post #33

There's no point in waiting. Neither Intel nor AMD will significantly adjust their roadmaps due to these issues simply because they don't realistically have the flexibility to do so. Evaluate your threat model in the context of Meltdown/Spectre and opt in or out of the mitigations accordingly. There are relatively few cases where the workload is both significantly affected by the mitigations and vulnerable to these a…

Do you have actual facts to back up your first paragraph? If it's just an informed opinion, mine is: if you can, you should definitely wait before buying new server parts.

I don't have any facts that aren't already public - the official as well as the leaked roadmaps of the CPU manufacturers and general knowledge of how the industry works. What I'm wondering is - what, specifically, do you think is it that's so worth waiting for at the moment?

Re: Ask HN: Delay buying new devices due to Meltdown/Spectre CPU bug?

#43

Post by XzetaU8 »

alltakendamned wrote: post #41
kikoreis wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you have actual facts to back up your first paragraph? If it's just an informed opinion, mine is: if you can, you should definitely wait before buying new server parts.

You underestimate how long it takes to "patch" hardware. Having an opinion does not make it an informed one. Read the following thread: https://twitter.com/securelyfitz/status/949370010652196864

"Come 2019 and 2020, other products in the pipeline will have more involved fixes that again improve performance over the software and quick fixes. The solution everyone wants is a full fix with no performance impact. I can't imagine that coming any sooner than 2021"

Re: Ask HN: Delay buying new devices due to Meltdown/Spectre CPU bug?

#44

Post by donatj »

I was putting serious consideration into an iMac Pro but this has at the least made me stop to consider the options.

I write and run a ton of multithreaded data processing scripts and really feel this is going to be a world of hurt for me.

My last fully speced iMac has lasted me eight years, so I might just wait it out and perhaps pick up something far cheaper in the meantime.

Re: Ask HN: Delay buying new devices due to Meltdown/Spectre CPU bug?

#45

Post by throwawayaway12 »

johnchristopher wrote: post #36
javitury wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Unless you are building a server, it does not matter The average HN user is not the typical desktop/laptop user. I bet we use virtual machines, compilers, technologies like nvme, databases (postgres/mysql)... more often than the typical desktop/laptop user.

> The average HN user is not the typical desktop/laptop user. Maybe so, maybe not. Personnaly I have the hunch that most HN users use the same setup as the typical desktop/laptop users.

They might have the same macbook pro, but it might not be a dedicated email/youtube machine.

Re: Ask HN: Delay buying new devices due to Meltdown/Spectre CPU bug?

#46

Post by teget »

Pilfer wrote: post #3

The Meltdown and Spectre attacks require code execution on your local machine. You can avoid both the Meltdown and Spectre attacks by not downloading and running untrusted software. The Javascript attack vector for Spectre will be patched by browser vendors. If you operate safe computing practices it is unlikely you will be hit by either the Meltdown or Spectre attacks.

I wonder how long it will take to get the fixes to all electron/cef based applications.

Re: Ask HN: Delay buying new devices due to Meltdown/Spectre CPU bug?

#47

Post by foxhop »

Delay or upgrade by purchasing used hardware. I often buy my gear 3-4 years old from Ebay, it lets me upgrade without the sticker shock. This assumes you don't need the latest and greatest. I do this with laptops and server gear.

This is similar to purchasing used cars, you can steadily upgrade with much less capital and therefore each purchase holds much less risk. Also it's much better for the environment.

Re: Ask HN: Delay buying new devices due to Meltdown/Spectre CPU bug?

#48

Post by dogma1138 »

et-al wrote: post #27
Pilfer wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

iMessage uses the WebKit rendering engine to run Javascript. The WebKit engine will be patched by its vendor Apple.

Ugh.. when Apple introduced apps and stickers into iMessage, I knew it could be a vector for attacks. Too bad Apple doesn't give users the option to have only "text-only" messages.

It does it’s called using SMS.

Re: Ask HN: Delay buying new devices due to Meltdown/Spectre CPU bug?

#49

Post by mhkool »

I would wait a month or so to get all information about this topic and evaluate it. As of now, it seems that AMD has an immediate fix that does not impact performance while Intel's immediate fix has a large performance impact. I do not understand why most people want to stick with Intel...
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