Confidential VMs in the cloud
summary
Confidential VMs remove the host from the trusted computing base so encrypted memory (AMD SEV/SNP, Intel TDX) and register protection keep runtime secrets inaccessible to the hypervisor; practical tooling uses secure boot + shim, Unified Kernel Image UKIs, LUKS root encryption unlocked only after attestation, and vTPM PCR measurements to bind keys to exact UKI hashes. Fedora/RHEL ship UKIs and a TPM policy that releases the root key after correct measurements; limitation: static initramfs and vendor key management.
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chapters (9)
- 0:00Start
- 0:46Confidential VM types on public clouds
- 4:41Data confidentiality is achieved
- 8:50Hardware support
- 9:28Protecting data "at rest"
- 24:19UKI implications: static initramfs
- 25:35UKI implications: static cmdline
- 27:37TPM policy
- 31:29Bonus: potential attack vectors
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