Achieving Gigabit Performance on Programmable Ethernet Network Interface Cards
Wallace Wadge · 2001
The shift from Fast Ethernet (100Mbit/s) to Gigabit Ethernet (1000Mbit/s) did not result in the expected ten-fold increase in bandwidth at the application level. In this dissertation we make use of programmable Ethernet network cards running at gigabit speeds to identify present bottlenecks. Furthermore, we investigate the performance of the PCI bus and the throughput "on-the-line" when using di#erent frame sizes. The PCI bus was identified as a major bottleneck. We also propose two new techniques aimed at boosting application performance to near-gigabit levels whilst maintaining full compatibility with existing systems. The proposed techniques were implemented and yielded an 80% point-to-point transfer rate benefit whilst utilizing the existing Ethernet standard framework.