System requirements

In order to install and use the Anjuna SGX Runtime, you’ll need a host that supports Intel® Software Guard Extensions (SGX).

If you plan to use the Anjuna SGX Runtime on your own host, make sure to choose a CPU that supports Intel® SGX.

If you plan to rely on a cloud-computing provider, make sure you choose one whose offerings include options with Intel® SGX support.

Intel® processors that support Intel® SGX

The Anjuna SGX Runtime Installer will check if the processor supports Intel® SGX and if Intel® SGX is enabled.

Ice Lake processors are recommended because they have significantly more enclave page cache memory, which improves performance.

Intel® SGX support is also available on the following Intel® processor families:

How to determine if a processor supports Intel® SGX

First, find the name of the CPU in the server’s specifications. For example, “Intel® Xeon® Platinum 8362 Processor”.

Then, search Intel product specifications for the name. On the product page, under the heading “Security & Reliability”, look for “Intel® Software Guard Extensions (Intel® SGX)” and confirm its value begins with “Yes”. For example:

Is Intel® SGX supported

To determine if a processor is Ice Lake, you can check under the heading “Essentials” for the “Code Name”, which should say “Products formerly Ice Lake”.

Processor is Ice Lake

Cloud providers that support Intel® SGX

The following cloud providers have product offerings that support Intel® SGX:

It is not enough to choose a provider that offers Intel® SGX support. You must make sure that when provisioning cloud-based hosts, you choose options that include Intel® SGX support.

One-click deployment to Microsoft Azure

If you have a Microsoft Azure subscription, then you can deploy a Confidential Computing VM on Azure by clicking the following button:

Deploy to Azure

Other requirements

Besides ensuring that your host meets the hardware requirements listed above, you must also ensure that:

  • You are running a supported operating system; supported systems include:

    • Ubuntu 18.04 (Bionic Beaver) Server and Desktop editions

    • Ubuntu 20.04 (Focal Fossa) Server and Desktop editions

  • The user performing the install has superuser (root or sudo) privileges

  • The Intel® SGX driver is installed and loaded

  • The Intel® Platform Software (PSW) is installed and running

The Anjuna installer automatically tries to install the Intel® SGX driver and the Intel® Platform Software if they are not already installed.