Method for enabling value-added feature on hardware devices using a confidential mechanism to access hardware registers in a batch manner

摘要

A method for enabling value-added hardware on an interface board in a computer system is disclosed. The method first determines whether an interface board is connected to a bus of a computer system. Then, a general-purpose top-level device driver, which controls standard functions associated with the interface board, is loaded into kernel memory space of the computer system. Next, a value-added device driver is loaded into memory of the computer system. The value-added device driver corresponds to the interface board determined to be connected to the bus of the computer system. Predetermined information, such as a password, or confidential or cryptographic information, is stored at a predetermined address within a memory space of the interface board. The predetermined address corresponds to a predetermined address within value-added hardware on the interface board. A predetermined response is received from the interface board based on the predetermined information. Access to the value-added hardware is enabled through the value-added device driver when the predetermined response is an expected response. The value-added device driver can be loaded into kernel memory of the computer, or can be part of an application program that is loaded into user memory of the computer.