A System Architecture for Reconfigurable Trusted Platforms

For improving the security of embedded systems, trusted computing is a promising technology. For the area of microprocessors in general and personal computers in particular the Trusted Computing Group (TCG) has published detailed specifications. The resulting hardware has been available for some years. This contribution discusses the feasibility of deploying ideas from trusted computing in the domain of reconfigurable hardware, esp. FPGAs, and possible benefits and drawbacks. We give a proposal to use actually available FPGA technology to build a trusted platform on reconfigurable hardware. We also show how trusted computing can deal with partial dynamic reconfiguration while still allowing the user to fully exploit its potentials.