Upgrading the graphics system controller firmware on your graphics card is infrequent, but if you own a non-impossible combination of an Intel Arc graphics card and an AMD CPU, it may not be possible. all.that is According to the developer (opens in new tab) of Firmware update plugin (opens in new tab) For Linux reported by phonics (opens in new tab).
The problem is Intel Management Engine (opens in new tab) (It takes the initials MEI for some reason). This feature has been part of the Platform Controller Hub on virtually all Intel chipsets since 2008. As a result, MEI is always running while power is being supplied to the motherboard, regardless of whether the PC is powered on or not (AMD has had a feature equivalent since 2013. Platform Security Processor ).
MEI’s exact behavior is largely undocumented, it hides code in firmware and uses its own microprocessor (often Intel Quark). It also has a UNIX-like operating system with access to memory, network and display. So this computer within the computer definitely does something, but exactly what it does is unclear and Intel said nothing.
One thing you can do is update your graphics card’s firmware. Intel utilizes this feature in its new line of Arc discrete GPU boards. However, this poses a problem for anyone using another vendor’s product or system that is too old to support MEI.
The issue was discovered when a coder tried to obtain open source Linux drivers for Arc boards running on IBM’s POWER architecture. Intel’s graphics driver didn’t need him to support non-x86 processors before the Arc launch. The boards are now available for Arm, RISC-V, and more. It’s not perfect, but we’re making progress.
Currently, there doesn’t seem to be a way around this issue unless Intel changes how they deliver their GSK firmware. Luckily, firmware updates of this kind are rare, but they can add new features such as: Last year’s update (opens in new tab) Added resizable BAR functionality to Nvidia’s RTX 30 series cards.
