Intel's Atom C2xxx processors may just make like a banana and split

"System May Experience Inability to Boot or May Cease Operation" is not the errata note you want to read, but for those running devices powered by an Intel Avoton C2xxx family Atom processor it is something to pay attention to. The Low Pin Count bus clock may stop functioning permanently after the chip has been in service for a time, rendering the device non-functional. Intel had little to say about the issue when approached by The Register but did state that there is a board level workaround available to resolve the issue.

The Avoton famliy of chips were released in 2013 and were designed to compete against ARM's new low powered server chips. The flaw is likely responsible for the issues with Cisco routers that have been reported on recently; the chip can also be found in the Synology DS1815+ and some Dell server products. It will be interesting to see how Intel responds to this issue, they have a history of reluctance discussing flaws in their product's architecture.

"Intel's Atom C2000 processor family has a fault that effectively bricks devices, costing the company a significant amount of money to correct. But the semiconductor giant won't disclosed precisely how many chips are affected nor which products are at risk."