Abstract: An example system comprises a plurality of servers comprising respective network interface cards (NICs) connected by physical links in a physical topology, wherein each NIC of the plurality of NICs comprises an embedded switch and a processing unit coupled to the embedded switch; and an edge services controller configured to program the processing unit of a network interface card of the plurality of network interface cards to: receive, at a first network interface of the NIC, a data packet from a physical device; based on the data packet being received at the first network interface, modify the data packet to generate a modified data packet; and output the modified data packet to the physical device via a second network interface of the NIC.

Abstract: An example method comprises, receiving resource availability values from the plurality of Network Interface Cards (NICs); determining a data path for data packets of a flow transported using a protocol from a source NIC to a destination NIC via a NIC set that comprises at least one NIC, wherein: the plurality of NICs comprises the source NIC, the destination NIC, and the NIC set, and determining the data path comprises selecting the NIC set based on the resource availability values; and transmitting, to the source NIC and to each NIC in the NIC set, data path data to cause the source NIC and each NIC in the NIC set to identify the data packets of the flow using an identifier of the protocol and to transmit the data packets of the flow from the source NIC to the destination NIC via the data path.

Abstract: A system comprises an edge services controller configured to: compute, based on a physical topology of physical links that connect a plurality of network interface cards (NICs) that comprise embedded switches and processing units coupled to the embedded switches, a virtual topology comprising a strict subset of the physical links; and program the virtual topology into the respective processing units of the NICs to cause the processing units of the NICs to send data packets via physical links in the strict subset of the physical links.

Abstract: A system is configured to compute a latency between a first computing device and a second computing device. The system includes a network interface card (NIC) of a first computing device. The NIC includes a set of interfaces configured to receive one or more packets and send one or more packets. The processing unit is configured to identify information indicative of a forward packet, compute, based on a first time corresponding to the forward packet and a second time corresponding to a reverse packet associated with the forward packet, a latency between the first computing device and a second computing device, wherein the second computing device includes a destination of the forward packet and a source of the reverse packet, and output information indicative of the latency between the first computing device and the second computing device.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a novel method for adjusting a path for a packet flow from a source machine to a destination machine in a network. The method of some embodiments identifies a condition at a first forwarding element along a first path traversed by the packet flow through the network. The first path traverses through a hardware, second forwarding element before the first forwarding element. In some embodiments, the second forwarding element includes a programmable data plane circuit. The method, in some embodiments, uses an application programming interface (API) of the programmable data plane circuit to provide a set of parameters to the data plane circuit that cause the data plane circuit to forego selecting the first path to forward the packets of the packet flow to the destination machine and instead to select a second path, not traversing the first forwarding element, to the destination machine.

Abstract: Some embodiments of the invention provide a novel method of performing network slice-based operations on a data message at a hardware forwarding element (HFE) in a network. For a received data message flow, the method has the HFE identify a network slice associated with the received data message flow. This network slice in some embodiments is associated with a set of operations to be performed on the data message by several network elements, including one or more machines executing on one or more computers in the network. Once the network slice is identified, the method has the HFE process the data message flow based on a rule that applies to data messages associated with the identified slice.

Abstract: An example first server host includes processor circuitry to: connect a virtual network interface card (vNIC) of the first server host to a first physical network interface card (pNIC) and a second pNIC of the first server host; establish an inter-switch link between first and second switches, the first switch and the first server host in a first network fabric, the second switch and a second server host in a second network fabric; and cause transmission of a first and second network packets from the vNIC of the first server host, the first and second network packets to be delivered to the second server host via the inter-switch link, the first network packet to be transmitted via the first pNIC when utilization of the first pNIC does not satisfy a threshold, the second network packet to be transmitted via the second pNIC when the utilization satisfies the threshold.

Abstract: A disclosed example of managing a network includes a packet receiver to receive a packet at a second switch from a first switch via an inter-switch link between the first and second switches; a packet analyzer to determine whether the packet includes a load-based teaming (LBT) egress control value; a packet transmitter to handle the packet according to an LBT policy when the packet analyzer determines the packet does not include the LBT egress control value; and a packet modifier to terminate the packet at the second switch when the packet analyzer determines the packet does include the LBT egress control value.

Abstract: Example methods and systems for pre-validation of network configuration are disclosed. One example may comprise: detecting a request for network configuration to be implemented in a physical network environment; and identifying a set of physical network elements associated with the network configuration. The method may further comprise emulating the set of physical network elements to determine a physical network behaviour caused by the network configuration; and assessing validity of the network configuration based on the physical network behaviour. The set of physical network elements may be emulated using (a) multiple first physical network element emulators and (b) a second physical network element emulator that aggregates the multiple first physical network element emulators.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus, systems, and articles of manufacture to improve packet flow among virtualized servers are disclosed. An example apparatus includes memory, and hardware to execute instructions to generate a load balance list identifying first ones of virtualized network resources having respective values of a utilization status parameter that satisfy a first threshold, in response to at least a number of the first virtualized network resources not satisfying a load balance list threshold, update the load balance list to additionally identify second ones of the virtualized network resources, the second ones of the virtualized network resources having respective values of the utilization status parameter that satisfy a second threshold, the first threshold different from the second threshold, and adjust a policy of a physical hardware resource corresponding to one or more of the virtualized network resources based on the load balance list.

Abstract: Some embodiments of the invention provide a novel method of performing network slice-based operations on a data message at a hardware forwarding element (HFE) in a network. For a received data message flow, the method has the HFE identify a network slice associated with the received data message flow. This network slice in some embodiments is associated with a set of operations to be performed on the data message by several network elements, including one or more machines executing on one or more computers in the network. Once the network slice is identified, the method has the HFE process the data message flow based on a rule that applies to data messages associated with the identified slice.

Abstract: An example apparatus to manage network resources includes a link aggregator to: aggregate a first plurality of physical network interface cards to create a first link aggregated group, the first link aggregated group corresponding to a first virtual network interface card; and aggregate a second plurality of physical network interface cards to create a second link aggregated group, the second link aggregated group corresponding to a second virtual network interface card; and a link manager to: connect the first link aggregated group between a first distributed virtual port and a first top-of-rack switch; connect the second link aggregated group between a second distributed virtual port and a second top-of-rack switch; and remove an invalid connection between the first plurality of physical network interface cards and the second top-of-rack switch.

Abstract: Some embodiments of the invention provide a novel method of performing network slice-based operations on a data message at a hardware forwarding element (HFE) in a network. For a received data message flow, the method has the HFE identify a network slice associated with the received data message flow. This network slice in some embodiments is associated with a set of operations to be performed on the data message by several network elements, including one or more machines executing on one or more computers in the network. Once the network slice is identified, the method has the HFE process the data message flow based on a rule that applies to data messages associated with the identified slice.

Abstract: The disclosure provides an approach for managing an application workload on a computer system that includes data centers. The application workload includes first application instances running on a first data center and second application instances running on a second data center. The method comprises collecting usage data of first application instances, usage data of second application instances, and combining the collected data. The method further comprises evaluating the combined data to determine low health in least one application instance, and restarting the at least one application instance or creating a new application instance. The method further comprises evaluating the combined data to determine whether to change size of the application workload, and in which data center to place a second new application instance if increasing size. The method further comprises contacting a component of the chosen data center to place the second new application instance within a local host machine.

Abstract: Some embodiments provide a novel method for adjusting a path for a packet flow from a source machine to a destination machine in a network. The method of some embodiments identifies a condition at a first forwarding element along a first path traversed by the packet flow through the network. The first path traverses through a hardware, second forwarding element before the first forwarding element. In some embodiments, the second forwarding element includes a programmable data plane circuit. The method, in some embodiments, uses an application programming interface (API) of the programmable data plane circuit to provide a set of parameters to the data plane circuit that cause the data plane circuit to forego selecting the first path to forward the packets of the packet flow to the destination machine and instead to select a second path, not traversing the first forwarding element, to the destination machine.

Abstract: Some embodiments of the invention provide a novel method of performing network slice-based operations on a data message at a hardware forwarding element (HFE) in a network. For a received data message flow, the method has the HFE identify a network slice associated with the received data message flow. This network slice in some embodiments is associated with a set of operations to be performed on the data message by several network elements, including one or more machines executing on one or more computers in the network. Once the network slice is identified, the method has the HFE process the data message flow based on a rule that applies to data messages associated with the identified slice.

Abstract: An example apparatus to manage network resources includes a load balancing detector to determine to reassign first and second network fabrics; and a network fabric configurator to, in response to the detecting to reassign the first and second network fabrics, configuring a virtual network distributed switch to: assign the first network fabric to ones of the first applications previously assigned to the second network fabric; and assign the second network fabric to the second application.

Abstract: The disclosure herein describes a virtual extensible local area network (VXLAN) gateway. During operation, the VXLAN gateway receives, from a physical host, an Ethernet packet destined for a virtual machine residing in a remote layer-2 network broadcast domain that is different from a local layer-2 network broadcast domain where the physical host resides. The VXLAN gateway then determines a VXLAN identifier for the received Ethernet packet. The VXLAN gateway further encapsulates the Ethernet packet with the virtual extensible local area network identifier and an Internet Protocol (IP) header, and forwards the encapsulated packet to an IP network, thereby allowing the packet to be transported to the virtual machine via the IP network and allowing the remote layer-2 network broadcast domain and the local layer-2 network broadcast domain to be part of a common layer-2 broadcast domain.

Abstract: Example methods and systems for pre-validation of network configuration are disclosed. One example may comprise: detecting a request for network configuration to be implemented in a physical network environment; and identifying a set of physical network elements associated with the network configuration. The method may further comprise emulating the set of physical network elements to determine a physical network behaviour caused by the network configuration; and assessing validity of the network configuration based on the physical network behaviour. The set of physical network elements may be emulated using (a) multiple first physical network element emulators and (b) a second physical network element emulator that aggregates the multiple first physical network element emulators.

Abstract: A disclosed example includes: a resource utilization analyzer to determine 1) first workloads of a first workload type deployed in a first server room in a data center, and 2) second workloads of a second workload type deployed in the first server room; a workload authorizer to determine that first virtual machines executing the first workloads and second virtual machines executing the second workloads cause a first server rack to generate an amount of heat; and a migrator to migrate the first virtual machines from the first server rack of the first server room to a second server rack of a second server room in the data center to reduce a temperature in the first server room based on the amount of heat, the migrator to migrate the first virtual machines to the second server rack without migrating the second virtual machines to the second server rack.