The success of server virtualization has been nothing short of revolutionary. This success inspired a similar transformation in the networking industry. The goal was to replicate how server virtualization reduced costs and improved agility. The result of this innovation is NFV (Network Function Virtualization) — the next big thing in networking.
NFV virtualizes various network functions such as Routing, Firewall, IPS, IDS, DHCP, and DNS, enabling Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to reduce costs and increase agility. Traditionally, these functions were built on custom hardware — expensive, inflexible, and vendor locked-in.
Imagine moving your hardware-based firewall functionality into a virtual machine — and just like that, you’ve reduced costs using COTS hardware and improved agility by deploying or moving virtualized network functions instantly when needed.
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However, the biggest challenge in the VM form factor is achieving the same packet processing performance as dedicated, customized hardware. This is where DPDK (Data Plane Development Kit) becomes critical. DPDK is a set of libraries that moves packet processing from kernel space to user space, eliminating costly context switches.
The library uses highly optimized CPU instructions, reducing the number of cycles needed for packet processing. This improves performance and frees CPU resources for other critical workloads.
DPDK was open-sourced by Intel and includes several optimized components:
- Memory Manager
- Buffer Manager
- Flow Classification
- Poll Mode Drivers
Several Linux-based network functions are already DPDK-enabled and have demonstrated up to 10x performance improvements.
Learn more about DPDK at dpdk.org.
For more information, email: marketing@calsoftinc.com
Nitin Singhvi | Calsoft Inc.
Calsoft NFV Expertise
Calsoft has deep expertise in various NFV tools and technologies. We assist networking ISVs with the design, development, deployment, testing, and support of NFV-based solutions.
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