Microsoft is already fixing the big chip bug — here are the Windows PCs that will be most affected

CEO of Microsoft Satya Nadella AP

• Microsoft has begun publishing a fix for a widely reported security flaw in Intel, AMD and ARM processors, reports The Verge.
• The patch started coming out to Windows 10 users on Wednesday. Microsoft will release patches for Windows 7 and Windows 8 on Tuesday.
• Patches will force some PCs to take a hit on their performance.
• Windows PCs equipped with Intel's "Skylake" processor family will be the least affected, but older PCs may suffer a significant drop in performance.

The security vulnerability of the processor that has the abuzz tech world is already fixed for Windows computers - but the fix does not completely solve the problem, and now it is only available to those who are running the latest version of the operating system.

The security issue affects Intel, AMD and ARM processors. It has been widely reported that the resolution of this problem could force most PCs to experience significant performance losses.

Microsoft has started distributing a patch for the Windows 10 computer vulnerability on Wednesday afternoon. He plans to release patches for Windows 7 and Windows 8 on Tuesday, according to The Verge.

But these fixes for Windows are only half the battle. Processor manufacturers will need to publish their own updates to completely remove the security issue. For its part, Intel is expected to begin publishing its patches next week, said the company's CEO, Brian Krzanich, on CNBC Wednesday afternoon.

Vulnerability fixes will have different effects on PCs, depending on the vintage of their processors. PCs with processors based on the Intel architecture Skylake two and a half years or more will not see a reduction in performance "significant", reports The Verge, citing sources close to the thinking of Microsoft. But PCs with older processors might see a noticeable slowdown in their processor speeds.

Intel CEO Brian Krzanich

The apparent reason for the slowdown is the "speculative execution" security vulnerability, a key method in how the "kernel" or kernel of Windows and other operating systems interact with processors. "Speculative execution" has been a cornerstone of the Intel processor architecture since 1995, affecting hundreds of millions of chips.

In the right circumstances, Intel says, a bad actor could exploit the flaw and gain access to otherwise protected and secure data. Solving the problem requires the use of computing power to virtually isolate aspects of the processor core. Hijacking some of the computing power of the processor means that it is not available for the operating system.

Intel indicates that the actual performance affected by the patches will be "workload dependent," which means it will depend on the type of applications you use on your computer.

Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment.