Abstract: Techniques are provided for hash-based routing table management in a distributed network switch. A frame having a source address and a destination address is received by a switch module having bridge elements and a routing table divided into slices of buckets, each slice having a respective property and including one or more buckets. If a routing entry for the source address is found in a first slice of a first set of buckets of the routing table responsive to a lookup request for the source address, and the property of the first slice satisfies a replication condition, then the routing entry is replicated to a second set of buckets of the routing table.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for cached routing table management in a distributed network switch. A frame having a source address and a destination address is received. If no routing entry for the source address is found in a routing table of a switch module in the distributed network switch, then routing information is determined for the source address and a routing entry is generated. The routing table is modified to include the routing entry, based on a set of hash functions. Upon accessing the generated routing entry in the modified routing table responsive to a subsequent lookup request for the source address, the set of caches is modified to include the generated routing entry.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for hash-based routing table management in a distributed network switch. A frame having a source address and a destination address is received by a switch module having bridge elements and a routing table divided into slices of buckets, each slice having a respective property and including one or more buckets. If a routing entry for the source address is found in a first slice of a first set of buckets of the routing table responsive to a lookup request for the source address, and the property of the first slice satisfies a replication condition, then the routing entry is replicated to a second set of buckets of the routing table.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for hash-based routing table management in a distributed network switch. A frame having a source address and a destination address is received. If no routing entry for the source address is found in a routing table of a switch module in the distributed network switch, where the routing table is divided into slices of buckets, then routing information is determined for the source address and a routing entry is generated. The routing table is modified to include the routing entry and based on a set of hash functions and properties of the slices.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for hash-based routing table management in a distributed network switch. A frame having a source address and a destination address is received. If no routing entry for the source address is found in a routing table of a switch module in the distributed network switch, routing information is determined for the source address and a routing entry is generated. The routing table is modified to include the routing entry and based on a set of hash functions.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for hash-based routing table management in a distributed network switch. A frame having a source address and a destination address is received. If no routing entry for the source address is found in a routing table of a switch module in the distributed network switch, where the routing table is divided into slices of buckets, then routing information is determined for the source address and a routing entry is generated. The routing table is modified to include the routing entry and based on a set of hash functions and properties of the slices.

Abstract: Systems and methods to communicate data frames are provided. A particular apparatus may include a first adapter having a first queue configured to store a data frame associated with a first priority. The adapter is configured to generate a first priority pause frame. A distributed virtual bridge may be coupled to the first adapter. The distributed virtual bridge may include an integrated switch router and a first transport layer module configured to provide a frame-based interface to the integrated switch router. The transport layer module may include a first buffer associated with the first priority. A first bridge element of the distributed virtual bridge may be coupled to the first adapter queue and to the first transport layer module. The first bridge element is configured to receive the first priority pause frame from the adapter and to communicate an interrupt signal to the first transport layer module to interrupt delivery of the data frame to the first queue.

Abstract: Systems and methods to forward data frames are provided. A particular method may include receiving a data frame at a distributed virtual bridge. The distributed virtual bridge includes a first bridge element coupled to a first server computer and a second bridge element coupled to the first bridge element and to a second server computer. The distributed virtual bridge further includes a controlling bridge coupled to the first bridge element and to the second bridge element. The controlling bridge includes a global forwarding table. The data frame is forwarded from the first bridge element to the second bridge element of the distributed virtual bridge using address data associated with the data frame. A logical network associated with the frame may additionally be used to forward the data frame.

Abstract: A network processor includes first communication protocol ports that each support ‘M’ minimum size packet data path traffic on ‘N’ lanes at ‘S’ Gigabits per second (Gbps) and traffic with different communication protocol units on ‘n’ additional lanes at ‘s’ Gbps. The first communication protocol ports support access to an external coprocessor using parsing logic located in each of the first communication protocol ports. The parsing logic, during a parsing period, is configured to send a request to the external coprocessor at reception of a ‘M’ size packet and to receive a response from the external coprocessor. The parsing logic sends a request maximum ‘m’ size byte word to the external coprocessor on one of the additional lanes and receives a response maximum ‘m’ size byte word from the external coprocessor on the one of the additional lanes while complying with the equation N×S/M=<n×s/m.

Abstract: A host Ethernet adapter (HEA) and method of managing network communications is provided. The HEA includes a host interface configured for communication with a multi-core processor over a processor bus. The host interface comprises a receive processing element including a receive processor, a receive buffer and a scheduler for dispatching packets from the receive buffer to the receive processor; a send processing element including a send processor and a send buffer; and a completion queue scheduler (CQS) for dispatching completion queue elements (CQE) from the head of the completion queue (CQ) to threads of the multi-core processor in a network node mode.

Abstract: Systems and methods to forward data frames are provided. A particular apparatus may include a plurality of server computers and a distributed virtual bridge. The distributed virtual bridge may include a plurality of bridge elements coupled to the plurality of server computers and configured to forward a data frame between the plurality of server computers. The plurality of bridge elements may further be configured to automatically learn address data associated with the data frame. A controlling bridge may be coupled to the plurality of bridge elements. The controlling bridge may include a global forwarding table that is automatically updated to include the address data and is accessible to the plurality of bridge elements.

Abstract: The invention provides a method for adding specific hardware on both receive and transmit sides that will hide to the software most of the effort related to buffer and pointers management. At initialization, a set of pointers and buffers is provided by software, in quantity large enough to support expected traffic. A Send Queue Replenisher (SQR) and Receive Queue Replenisher (RQR) hide RQ and SQ management to software. RQR and SQR fully monitor pointers queues and perform recirculation of pointers from transmit side to receive side.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for packet routing in a distributed network switch. The distributed network switch includes multiple switch modules operatively connected to one another, and each switch module includes multiple bridge elements and a management controller. In one embodiment, a shared interface routing (SIR) framework is provided that includes an analysis and bifurcation layer, at least one packet interface, and an analysis assist layer. A packet is received over a first logical network and via a physical port, the packet being destined for at least a first application executing on the management controller. The analysis assist layer analyzes the packet to determine a reason code to assign to the packet. The analysis and bifurcation layer then analyzes the packet based at least in part on the reason code.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for routing table synchronization for a distributed network switch. In one embodiment, a first frame having a source address and a destination address is received. If no routing entry for the source address is found in a routing table of a first switch module, routing information is determined for the source address and a routing entry is generated. An indication is sent to a second switch module, to request a routing entry for the source address to be generated in the second switch module, based on the routing information.

Abstract: A mechanism is provided for merging in a network processor results from a parser and results from an external coprocessor providing processing support requested by said parser. The mechanism enqueues in a result queue both parser results needing to be merged with a coprocessor result and parser results which have no need to be merged with a coprocessor result. An additional queue is used to enqueue the addresses of the result queue where the parser results are stored. The result from the coprocessor is received in a simple response register. The coprocessor result is read by the result queue management logic from the response register and merged to the corresponding incomplete parser result read in the result queue at the address enqueued in the additional queue.

Abstract: An assignment constraint matrix is used in assigning work, such as data packets, from a plurality of sources, such as data queues in a network processing device, to a plurality of sinks, such as processor threads in the network processing device. The assignment constraint matrix is implemented as a plurality of qualifier matrixes adapted to operate simultaneously in parallel. Each of the plurality of qualifier matrixes is adapted to determine sources in a subset of supported sources that are qualified to provide work to a set of sinks based on assignment constraints. The determination of qualified sources may be based sink availability information that may be provided for a set of sinks on a single chip or distributed on multiple chips.

Abstract: A method, a system, and a computer program product is disclosed for identifying a quality of service (QoS) classification of a packet in a network by a network processor. The method comprising: providing a table wherein a priority value with a maximum of N values is used as an index into the table to retrieve a QoS classification having a maximum of M values with M less than N; receiving a data packet in a stream of data packets; extracting at least two priority indicator values from the packet; converting the at least two priority indicator values into a priority value; utilizing the priority value as an index into the table; extracting the entry in the table corresponding to the priority value as the QoS classification of the packet; and utilizing the QoS classification for subsequent processing of the data packet.

Abstract: A synchronization optimized queuing method and device to minimize software/hardware interaction in network interface hardware during an end-of-initiative process, including network adapter queue implementations for network interface hardware for optimized communication in a computer system. An end-of-initiative procedure to ensure that the network interface hardware has received an interrupt enable and to recheck the interrupt queue is unnecessary in the present invention.

Abstract: A network node that forwards traffic of a converged network received from a source end node receives a second message addressed to the network node, but intended for the source end node. The second message includes at least a portion of a first message originated by the source end node and previously forwarded by the network node. The network node extracts from the first message a source identifier of the source end node in a first communication protocol and determines by reference to a data structure a destination address of the second message in a second communication protocol. The network node modifies the second message to include the destination address and forwards the second message toward the source end node in accordance with the destination address.

Abstract: A network node that forwards traffic of a converged network received from a source end node receives a second message addressed to the network node, but intended for the source end node. The second message includes at least a portion of a first message originated by the source end node and previously forwarded by the network node. The network node extracts from the first message a source identifier of the source end node in a first communication protocol and determines by reference to a data structure a destination address of the second message in a second communication protocol. The network node modifies the second message to include the destination address and forwards the second message toward the source end node in accordance with the destination address.