Morello Style Guide

Architecture and Technology Group© 2021 Arm

Vision and Mission
Vision:•Morello is a research and prototyping program to determine if Morello prototype architectureis viable to create more secure hardware architecture for processors of the future.

Mission:• To create prototype hardware, the Morello Board, as a real-world test platform for theMorello prototype architecture developed by Arm, based on the University of Cambridge’s CHERI
protection model. A broad set of industry and academic partners will assess the security benefitsof foundational new technologies.
Description• Morello is a five-year research program (launched in 2019) that, if successful, could radically
update the security foundations of the digital computing infrastructure that underpins the entire
economy and could be implemented in future digital devices worldwide. It focuses on new waysof designing CPU architecture that will make processors more robust in the future and able toprevent the most prevalent security breaches.
• Morello is led by Arm and includes key partners: UKRI (funding body), CUCL (developers ofthe CHERI technology), University of Edinburgh, and Linaro.
2© 2021 Arm

Usage Rules

Morello must be written with acapital ‘M’ both in a title andthroughout a body of text.

3© 2021 Arm

Morello, Arm Morello or Arm
Morello Program can be usedinterchangeably to refer to theproject. Arm Morello must be usedin the first instance and Morello canbe used subsequently.

Morello is not an acronym –only the M should be capitalized.

Usage Rules

4

Correct Use

Incorrect Use

Morello

MORELLO
morello

Arm Morello Program

ARM MORELLO program
Arm morello program
ARM Morello

Digital Security by Design (DSbD)

digital security by design

Capability Hardware Enhanced RISC Instructions (CHERI)

CherryChericheri

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)

Ukri
Uk research and innovation

Innovate UKInnovateuk
innovate uk

Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund (ISCF)

Iscf
Industrial strategy challenge fundMorello evaluation board

MEB
Morello Evaluation Board

Morello software or Morello open-source software or Morello OSSCHERI software (this is a different software on which the Morello SW is based)© 2021 Arm

Terminology

5

TermDefinition

Compartmentalization

Compartmentalization works to guarantee that if there is a security breach, it will be contained within one compartment, therefore
preventing the whole computing system from being compromised. Software that is constructed with fine-grained compartmentalization
could result in inherently more robust software that is resistant to attack.

CHERI (Capability Hardware EnhancedRISC Instructions)

CHERI extends conventional hardware Instruction-Set Architectures (ISAs) with new architectural features to enable fine-grained memory
protection and highly scalable software compartmentalization.

Digital Security by Design

A UK government funded program with the aim to help the UK digital computing infrastructure become more secure.

The Morello prototype architecture

Arm architecture specifications for the Morello project which is at a research stage.

Morello evaluation board

A prototype board developed by Arm using the Morello SoC, to distribute to partners for testing and research of the Morello prototype
architecture and capability hypothesis.

Morello SoC (System on Chip)

A prototype SoC developed by Arm to test the Morello architecture and software.

Arran

An internal Arm project name, not to be used externally.

Morello software or Morelloopen-source software or Morello OSS

Currently CUCL, Arm and Linaro are key contributors to the Morello software, but it is intended to be an open-source engagement.

© 2021 Arm

Approved Logos (White Logos Shownon Blue Background for Visibility)6© 2021 Arm

Morello Graphics
RGB
1237134

Approved Morello Diagram:
Scalable Compartmentalization

2341234R0G 193
B 222

R 50
G 205
B 229

R 102
G 218
B 235

R 154
G 230
B 242

© 2021 Arm

Morello Messaging
Standard Boilerplate Text

8•

Arm is leading a research program
called Morello, which could radicallychange the way we design andprogram processors in future, toenable better built-in security. This isfunded by the UK government’s
Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund(ISCF) Digital Security by Design(DSbD) program. The main output ofDSbD will be a technology platform
prototype called the Morelloevaluation board*.

•*UKRI refer to this as The DSbD
Technology Platform Prototype.

© 2021 Arm

Abbreviated
Boilerplate Text•

Morello focuses on new ways ofdesigning CPU architecture that will
make processors more robust infuture, and able to deter some typesof security breaches.

One Sentence Statement•

Arm is leading a research program
called Morello, which could radicallychange the way we design andprogram processors in future, toenable better built-in security.

Useful Terminology and Phrases
UKRI’s text:•Arm is leading a multimillion-pound project funded by the UK Government’s ISCF Digital Security byDesign (DSbD) programme, to build Morello, the DSbD Technology Platform Prototype. Morello will be
used to investigate radical changes to the way we design and program processors and enable better
built-in security. Focused on new ways of designing CPU architecture that will make processors morerobust in the future and able to deter some type of prevalent security breaches. A five-year research
program that, if successful, could be implemented in future digital devices worldwide.

Linaro’s text:•9Morello is a research program led by Arm in association with partners and funded by the UKRI as partof the UK government Digital Security by Design (DSbD) programme . It defines a new prototype
security architecture based on CHERI (Capability Hardware Enhanced RISC Instructions). A System onChip (SoC) implementation of the architecture will provide a DSbD technology platform prototype,enabling industry and academic partners to test real-world use cases and inform future development.

© 2021 ArmResources• Arm Morello Program Landing Page: www.arm.com/morello• Official Morello OSS Website: morello-project.org• UK Research and Innovation Website: ukri.org/our-work/our-main-funds/industrialstrategy-challenge-fund/artificial-intelligence-and-data-economy/digital-security-bydesign-challenge• University of Cambridge Computer Lab CHERI Webpage:cl.cam.ac.uk/research/security/ctsrd/cheri• Department of Computer Science and Technology: cst.cam.ac.uk• Digital Security by Design Webpage: dsbd.tech

10© 2021 Arm© 2021 Arm

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