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P4 is a high-level language for programming protocol-independent packet processing. It has been defined in order to enable easy programmability of network data plane processing agnostic to underlying technology, e.g. ASIC, CPU or FPGA. We present a new concept of Firmware as a Service that allows to generate FPGA firmware based on P4 description through a user-friendly web interface called Netcope P4. The process is totally transparent and automatic for the user.

Since designing in an HDL (hardware description language) is a non-trivial task not only from the point of view of expert hardware knowledge, but also because of complex development tools that are not easy to utilize. We took a different direction. We make the process of firmware generation totally transparent for our users and provide a web interface to input a P4 sources and download firmware bitstreams. In other words, a user doesn't need to know HDL to program Netcope Smart NICs. The user puts in P4 code, sees if it checks and they have firmware with the desired functions in no time.

Netcope P4 is an all around efficient solution. Firmware architecture independent on HDL expertise reduces expenses, automatic firmware generation saves time, and total flexibility of Netcope accelerators protects future investments.

Our online portal works as simple as any other online services like Gmail. After entering user’s login credentials, a list of tasks with their statuses appears. A new task is created by uploading the user’s P4 source codes. In the first phase, the user’s P4 source code is checked for correctness. In the case it does not pass this check, problem description is provided and the user can fix his or her code. If everything goes well, the synthesis begins automatically. As it takes some time, the user is notified when the task is finished and they are ready to download and use their firmware. Happy P4’ing!

FEATURES & BENEFITS

  • Programmable protocol stack
  • User-defined packet processing
  • No knowledge of HDL required
  • No Vivado license required
  • No synthesis tools and servers needed
  • Firmware as a Service
  • User-friendly online portal
  • Efficient P4 to VHDL compiler
  • Runs on Netcope FPGA Boards, or generates IP cores for integration with platform of your choice

USE CASES

  • In-band network telemetry
  • Network troubleshooting and fine-tuning
  • Customizing header fields for hash-based distribution over CPU cores
  • Stripping and inserting headers of encapsulation protocols
  • Hardware repurposing for extended lifetime cycle
  • Many more are yet to be discovered, as P4 is still an emerging technology

Category

Dev Tools Networking Performance & Availability Security Virtualization

Red Hat Certifications

This product has been certified to run on the following Red Hat products and technologies:

Target Product Level
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Self-Certified