Performance, cost, and effectiveness of verifying academic paper replication packages via Intel TDX

Abstract

Replication packages are a collection of files and data that allows other researchers to reproduce the results reported in an academic paper. It is a core feature that establishes integrity within the modern world of research, prominently in economics. As such, recreating these packages requires a secure, confidential, and regulated environment that can efficiently handle varying sizes of data. We explore the efficiency and cost effectiveness of recreating academic replication packages within a TDX (Trust Domain Extension), which are isolated virtual machines that protect the confidentiality of its contents. Of the 27 replication packages recreated within a TDX, 19 were successful. The average cost of successful replications was $1.30 with an average run time of 2 hours and 10 minutes, with most cases producing accurate results. Running replication packages within TDX provides authenticity and security benefits with the issue of certain cases failing due to software limitations. However, given the current cost, runtime, and rate of success, it can be assumed that with further development in software, running replication packages within TDX’s can be plausible.

(Replication packages were recreated in TDX by a group)