Patent ID: 7779239

Claim:
A hardware apparatus comprising: a feature control unit of a processor to provide a user control setting during boot up of the hardware apparatus to control, in part, enabling or disabling of at least one processor hardware feature, wherein the at least one processor hardware feature is not enabled until the user control setting is effectuated, wherein the at least one processor hardware feature includes hardware within the processor to perform a function within the processor; a feature lock unit of the processor to prevent a change to the user control setting responsive to a lock signal, wherein the lock signal is de-asserted responsive to a reset signal during the boot up to enable the user control setting to be updated, and is asserted after a write strobe that allows the update to the user control setting and to thereafter prevent the change to the user control setting; a software feature selection unit of the processor to provide a software feature selection setting updated according to a software feature selection input received from software to control, in part, enabling or disabling of the at least one processor hardware feature, wherein the user control setting and the software feature selection setting are distinct; and a logic coupled to the software feature selection unit and the feature control unit and to generate a control signal to disable a first processor hardware feature if at least one of the user control setting and the software feature selection setting are indicative of the disabling, wherein the logic is to enable the first processor hardware feature only if the user control setting and the software feature selection setting are indicative of the enabling.