AMD: Microcode and OS updates for second variant of Specter are available

AMD has announced that updates are available to address the Specter v2 vulnerability. This is done in the form of microcode via motherboard manufacturers and via a Windows update released on Tuesday.

AMD reports that it has made the microcode available to its partners and customers. It is unclear whether they have published any updates based on that. This concerns new code for processor variants from the Bulldozer series, which was introduced by the manufacturer in 2011. Users can turn to motherboard and PC manufacturers for the necessary BIOS updates, according to AMD. In addition, Microsoft has released an update for Windows 10.

According to AMD, the measures against the second variant of Specter, also known as branch target injection, consist of a combination of bios and OS updates. For Linux users, the manufacturer refers to updates that have been released through various distributions earlier this year. The Windows update is called KB4093112 and is automatically delivered to users of the operating system. AMD announces that there are no updates for Windows Server 2016 yet and that they will be available after necessary testing.

Initially, the Windows patches for AMD caused problems for users with certain system configurations. As a result, Microsoft temporarily halted the update process. Patches for the first variant of Specter have already been released via the operating system. The Meltdown leak does not apply to AMD processors.