Software Fault Isolation for Robust Compilation

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that software fault isolation can achieve the necessary compartmentalization for robust compilation on basic RISC processors, enhancing security in unsafe language environments.

Contribution

It introduces a method to realize robust compilation through software fault isolation on simple RISC processors, addressing memory safety vulnerabilities.

Findings

Software fault isolation can provide compartmentalization for robust compilation.

The approach enhances security in unsafe language environments.

Implementation on basic RISC processors is feasible and effective.

Abstract

Memory corruption vulnerabilities are endemic to unsafe languages, such as C, and they can even be found in safe languages that themselves are implemented in unsafe languages or linked with libraries implemented in unsafe languages. Robust compilation mitigates the threat of linking with memory-unsafe libraries. The source language is a C-like language, enriched with a notion of a component which encapsulates data and code, exposing functionality through well-defined interfaces. Robust compilation defines what security properties a component still has, even, if one or more components are compromised. The main contribution of this work is to demonstrate that the compartmentalization necessary for a compiler that has the robust compilation property can be realized on a basic RISC processor using software fault isolation.