On Tue, 28 Jun 2016, Jochen Sprickerhof wrote: > microcode : 0x6a AFAIK, this microcode revision level is subtly incompatible with Linux due to documented processor errata. Unfortunately, your system really needs a firmware and microcode update to run Debian in a stable way.
Worse, it looks like your current firmware has components that are incompatible with the minimum microcode revision recommended by Intel to the general public. This is my best guess of why it hanged when the kernel tried to load microcode 0x8a during early boot. Assuming it is not a bug in the microcode update itself or in the kernel, the only way to fix this for real is to get a firmware update from your vendor (likely packaged as a BIOS/UEFI update). That said, I can add code to the intel-microcode package that will blacklist it from such Skylake systems. It would be quite imperfect and have an unknown level of false positives and negatives (since I will be keying the blacklist on the current microcode revision level, not on whatever firmware component is actually causing trouble). If anyone else also has issues with the microcode update, please report to this bug with the /proc/cpuinfo contents... > BIOS Information > Release Date: 04/08/2016 This is weird. A BIOS this new should ship with a much newer microcode revision level... Here's an incomplete list of the Skylake-U microcodes released since revision 0x6a, note their dates: sig 0x000406e3, pf mask 0xc0, 2016-01-07, rev 0x0076, size 95232 sig 0x000406e3, pf mask 0xc0, 2016-02-21, rev 0x0082, size 96256 sig 0x000406e3, pf mask 0xc0, 2016-03-01, rev 0x0084, size 96256 sig 0x000406e3, pf mask 0xc0, 2016-03-16, rev 0x0088, size 96256 sig 0x000406e3, pf mask 0xc0, 2016-04-06, rev 0x008a, size 96256 sig 0x000406e3, pf mask 0xc0, 2016-05-26, rev 0x0094, size 96256 Revision 0x8a is what Intel is recommending to the general public in release 20160607 (and which your system "objected to"), and some laptop vendors are shipping microcode that is newer than that already. > System Information > Manufacturer: TUXEDO > Product Name: Skylake Platform > OEM Strings > String 1: System BIOS Version :106_ [04/08/2016] > String 2: Embedded Controller Firmware Version :1.5U_ [03/14/2016] Just out of curiosity, is your system a "Tuxedo InfinityBook 13v2" from tuxedocomputers.com ? Anyway, can you check if a newer firmware update is already available from your system vendor, and install it? If such an update fixes this issue, could you please send the new details to this bug report? Should a firmware update not be available yet from your system vendor, please request on their support channels a BIOS/UEFI update that has: - The latest stable revision of the Skylake-U microcode (must be at least 0x8a, but likely should be even newer) - The latest stable revision of the Skylake-U and chipset FSPs (firmware support packages) - The latest stable revision of the Skylake TXT/SGX modules (if used) - The latest stable revision of the PCH microcode/firmware (TPM, Intel ME, etc) That should fix a *lot* of subtle issues caused by Skylake platform errata that are worked around/fixed in the latest firmware and microcode updates... -- "One disk to rule them all, One disk to find them. One disk to bring them all and in the darkness grind them. In the Land of Redmond where the shadows lie." -- The Silicon Valley Tarot Henrique Holschuh
