US 12,652,228 B2Granted

Trusted or attested packet timestamping

AssigneeAmazon Technologies, Inc.

InventorsAlan Michael Judge, Said Bshara, Julien Ridoux, Joshua Benjamin Levinson, David James Goodell, Erez Izenberg, Anthony Nicholas Liguori

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Abstract

Various embodiments of apparatuses and methods for trusted and/or attested packet timestamping are described. In some embodiments, the disclosed system and methods include a reference timekeeper providing a reference clock to host computing devices. The host computing devices host compute instances using a first set of computing resources, and also contain isolated timing hardware utilizing a different set of computing resources. The isolated timing hardware sets a hardware clock based on a signal corresponding to the reference clock from the reference timekeeper. The isolated timing hardware then receives a packet from a particular compute instance, creates a timestamp for the packet based at least in part on the hardware clock, where the timestamp is outside the control of the compute instances, and sends the packet and the timestamp through a data network to transmit to a packet destination.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A system, comprising:

a reference timekeeper providing a reference clock synchronized to a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS);
and
a plurality of host computing devices, wherein individual host computing devices comprise computing hardware resources to host one or more compute instances, and further comprise a separate isolated timing hardware;
and
wherein the separate isolated timing hardware of a particular host computing device of the plurality of host computing devices is configured to:
set a hardware clock of the separate isolated timing hardware based on a signal corresponding to the reference clock obtained from the reference timekeeper via a dedicated time network inaccessible to the one or more compute instances hosted by the particular host computing device;
receive a packet from a particular compute instance of the one or more compute instances hosted by the particular host computing device, wherein the packet comprises a packet destination;
create a timestamp for the packet based on the hardware clock of the separate isolated timing hardware, wherein the timestamp is outside the control of the one or more compute instances, including the particular compute instance;
and
provide the packet and the timestamp to a data network distinct from the dedicated time network to transmit to the packet destination.

7 more elements

One or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media storing program instructions, that when executed on or across one or more processors of a networking hardware computing resource, cause the one or more processors to:

receive at the networking hardware computing resource, wherein the networking hardware computing resource is coupled to a host computing device comprising separate computing hardware resources that host one or more compute instances, a packet that has left the control of a particular compute instance of the one or more compute instances, wherein the packet comprises a packet destination;
create, at the networking hardware computing resource, a timestamp for the packet based on a hardware clock of the networking hardware computing resource, wherein the timestamp is outside the control of the particular compute instance;
and
provide the packet and the timestamp to a data network for transmission to the packet destination.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 17/705,157Filed 25 Mar 2022
Published: US 2023/0308378 A128 Sep 2023
Granted: 9 Jun 2026
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification11 codes

G06F 9/5072
Partitioning or combining of resources: grid computing
H04L 43/106
Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route: using time related information in packets, e.g. by adding timestamps
G06F 1/04
Details not covered by groups G06F3/00 - G06F13/00 and G06F21/00: generating or distributing clock signals or signals derived directly therefrom
H04J 3/0644
Clock or time synchronisation among nodes; Internode synchronisation: external master-clock