Efficient Hardware Repair

Researchers devise a new way to patch hardware like software, without slowing processors.

Defective chips can be expensive for computer manufacturers, especially when the hardware is recalled. They can also be a hassle for consumers, as they can cause computers to miscalculate, slow down, and, sometimes, crash. Computer-science professor Josep Torrellas thinks he has found a better way to deal with faulty chips: an efficient repair mechanism that treats hardware more like software, by fixing bugs with downloadable patches. His system is still in development, but he says it could ultimately make chip production faster and cheaper.

"We know how to fix software really easily," says Torrellas, a professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. "We send patches around. Wouldn't it be nice if you could simply get another patch from the vendor to fix your hardware?"

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