Reconfigurable hardware for software-defined networks
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Software-Defined Networking (SDN) enables change and innovation within the network. SDN moves the control plane into software independent of the data plane. By doing so, it allows network operators to modify network behavior through software changes alone. The controller and switches interact via a standardized interface, such as OpenFlow. Unfortunately, OpenFlow and current hardware switches have several important limitations: i) current switches support only a fixed set of header types; ii) current switches contain a fixed set of tables, of fixed size, in a fixed order; and iii) OpenFlow provides a limited set of actions to modify packets. In this work, I introduce the Reconfigurable Match Tables (RMT) model. RMT is a RISC-inspired switch abstraction that brings considerable flexibility to the data plane. With RMT, a programmer can define new headers for the switch to process; they can specify the number, size, arrangement, and inputs of tables, subject only to an overall resource limit; and finally, they can define new actions to apply to packets, constructed from a minimal set of action primitives. RMT enables the data plane to change without requiring the replacement of hardware. To demonstrate RMT's feasibility, I describe the design of an RMT switch chip with 64 x 10 Gb/s ports. The design contains a programmable packet parser, 32 reconfigurable match stages, and over 7,000 action processing units. A comparison with traditional switch designs reveals that area and power costs are less than 15%. As part of the design, I investigate the design of packet parsers in detail. These are critical components of any network device, yet little has been published about their design and the trade-offs of design choices. I analyze the trade-offs and present design principles for fixed and programmable parsers.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Form | electronic; electronic resource; remote |
| Extent | 1 online resource. |
| Publication date | 2013 |
| Issuance | monographic |
| Language | English |
Creators/Contributors
| Associated with | Gibb, Glen | |
|---|---|---|
| Associated with | Stanford University, Department of Electrical Engineering. | |
| Primary advisor | McKeown, Nick | |
| Thesis advisor | McKeown, Nick | |
| Thesis advisor | Horowitz, Mark (Mark Alan) | |
| Thesis advisor | Varghese, George, 1960- | |
| Advisor | Horowitz, Mark (Mark Alan) | |
| Advisor | Varghese, George, 1960- |
Subjects
| Genre | Theses |
|---|
Bibliographic information
| Statement of responsibility | Glen Gibb. |
|---|---|
| Note | Submitted to the Department of Electrical Engineering. |
| Thesis | Thesis (Ph.D.)--Stanford University, 2013. |
| Location | electronic resource |
Access conditions
- Copyright
- © 2013 by Glen Raymond Gibb
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