Hardware Timestamping

Cryptographically Attested Hardware Time

Hardware timestamping is the foundation of ROKO Network's temporal guarantees, providing tamper-proof nanosecond precision timestamps.

Hardware Architecture

Time Card Components

Implementation

Kernel Driver Interface

struct hw_timestamp {
        uint64_t seconds;
        uint32_t nanoseconds;
        uint32_t accuracy_ns;
        uint8_t signature[64];
    };

    int get_hardware_timestamp(struct hw_timestamp *ts) {
        // Read from time card registers
        ts->seconds = read_register(TIME_SECONDS_REG);
        ts->nanoseconds = read_register(TIME_NANOS_REG);
        ts->accuracy_ns = read_register(ACCURACY_REG);

        // Get hardware signature
        generate_hw_signature(ts);

        return 0;
    }

Attestation Process

def create_time_proof(transaction):
        # Get hardware timestamp
        hw_time = TimeCard.get_timestamp()

        # Create attestation
        attestation = {
            'timestamp': hw_time.nanoseconds,
            'card_id': TimeCard.get_id(),
            'signature': TimeCard.sign(transaction.hash),
            'certificate': TimeCard.get_certificate()
        }

        return attestation

Security Features

• Tamper Detection: Physical intrusion sensors
• Secure Boot: Verified firmware only
• HSM Integration: Private key protection
• Attestation Chain: Traceable to root of trust

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Hardware Trust: Every ROKO timestamp is cryptographically signed by tamper-resistant hardware.