Prioritized Handling of Incoming Packets by a Network Interface Controller

• US 20130315237A1
• Filed: 05/28/2012
• Published: 11/28/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/28/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mellanox Technologies Limited (NVIDIA Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mellanox Technologies Limited (NVIDIA Corporation)
• Inventors: Kagan, Michael, Bloch, Noam
• Granted Patent: US 9,871,734 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/389
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/30 with priority control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2408 for supporting different services, e.g. a differentiated services [DiffServ] type of service
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2441 relying on flow classification, e.g. using integrated services [IntServ]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services independent of the application payload and not provided for in the other groups of this subclass networks security protocols H04L9/40; wireless communication networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/321 Interlayer communication protocols or service data unit [SDU] definitions; Interfaces between layers

Abstract

A network interface controller includes a host interface, which is configured to be coupled to a host processor having a host memory. A network interface is configured to receive data packets from a network, each data packet including a header, which includes header fields, and a payload including data. Packet processing circuitry is configured to process one or more of the header fields and at least a part of the data and to select, responsively at least to the one or more of the header fields, a location in the host memory. The circuitry writes the data to the selected location and upon determining that the processed data satisfies a predefined criterion, asserts an interrupt on the host processor so as to cause the host processor to read the data from the selected location in the host memory.

Claims

1. A network interface controller, comprising:

a host interface, which is configured to be coupled to a host processor having a host memory;

a network interface, which is configured to receive data packets from a network, each data packet comprising a header comprising header fields and a payload comprising data; and

packet processing circuitry, which is configured to process one or more of the header fields and at least a part of the data;

to select, responsively at least to the one or more of the header fields, a location in the host memory;

to write the data to the selected location; and

upon determining that the processed data satisfies a predefined criterion, to assert an interrupt on the host processor so as to cause the host processor to read the data from the selected location in the host memory.

2. The controller according to claim 1, wherein the packet processing circuitry is configured to accept a definition of the criterion from a process running on the host processor in an unprotected user mode.

3. The controller according to claim 2, wherein the definition of the criterion is stored in a transport context that is read and used by the packet processing circuitry in processing the received data packets that are associated with a specified transport service instance.

4. The controller according to claim 1, wherein the data that are processed by the circuitry with respect to satisfying the predefined criterion comprise unstructured data.

5. The controller according to claim 1, wherein the predefined criterion specifies a pattern of symbols, such that the processing circuitry asserts the interrupt when the processed data contains a match to the pattern.

6. The controller according to claim 1, wherein the packet processing circuitry is configured, when the processed data satisfies the predefined criterion, to write an event to an event queue in the host memory, wherein asserting the interrupt causes the host processor to read and service the event by reading the data from the selected location.

7. A network interface controller, comprising:

a host interface, which is configured to be coupled to a host processor having a host memory, which stores multiple queues containing queue elements for controlling interactions between the host processor and the network interface controller;

a network interface, which is configured to receive data packets from a network, each data packet comprising a header comprising header fields and a payload comprising data; and

packet processing circuitry, which is configured to process one or more of the header fields and at least a part of the data;

to select, responsively at least to the one or more of the header fields, a location in the host memory;

to write the data to the selected location;

to select a queue in the host memory depending on whether the processed data satisfies a predefined criterion; and

to access an element in the selected queue so as to cause the host processor to read the data from the selected location in the host memory.

8. The controller according to claim 7, wherein the packet processing circuitry is configured, when the processed data satisfies the predefined criterion, to write an event to an event queue in the host memory and to assert an interrupt, which causes the host processor to read and service the event by reading the data from the selected location.

9. The controller according to claim 7, wherein the packet processing circuitry is configured to write completion information to a plurality of completion queues in the host memory, and is configured, when the processed data satisfy the predefined criterion, to select a completion queue and to write the completion information to the selected completion queue.

10. The controller according to claim 9, wherein the data packets that are received from the network are associated with respective transport service instances, and wherein the packet processing circuitry is configured to assign the received data packets to respective receive queues in the host memory responsively to the associated transport service instances, and to assign the data packet to a receive queue that is associated with the selected completion queue when the processed data satisfy the predefined criterion.

11. The controller according to claim 7, wherein the data packets that are received from the network are associated with respective transport service instances, and wherein the processing circuitry is configured to assign the received data packets that are associated with a given transport service instance to a first receive queue when the processed data satisfy the predefined criterion, and to a different, second receive queue when the processed data do not satisfy the predefined criterion.

12. The controller according to claim 7, wherein the packet processing circuitry is configured to accept a definition of the criterion from a client process running on the host processor in an unprotected user mode.

13. The controller according to claim 12, wherein the queues have respective contexts that are read and used by the packet processing circuitry in processing the received data packets, wherein the contexts contain protection information that is written by a trusted process running on the host processor in a privileged mode, and wherein the packet processing circuitry is configured to carry out instructions submitted by the client process only after verifying that the instructions comply with the protection information.

14. A method for communication, comprising:

receiving data packets from a network in a network interface controller (NIC), which is coupled to a host processor having a host memory, each data packet comprising a header comprising header fields and a payload comprising data;

processing one or more of the header fields and at least a part of the data in the NIC so as to select, responsively at least to the one or more of the header fields, a location in the host memory;

writing the data from the NIC to the selected location; and

upon determining in the NIC that the processed data satisfies a predefined criterion, asserting an interrupt on the host processor so as to cause the host processor to read the data from the selected location in the host memory.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein asserting the interrupt comprises accepting a definition of the criterion from a process running on the host processor in an unprotected user mode.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein accepting the definition of the criterion comprises storing the definition in a transport context that is read and used by the NIC in processing the received data packets that are associated with a specified transport service instance.

17. The method according to claim 14, wherein processing at least the part of the data comprises applying the predefined criterion to unstructured data in the payload.

18. The method according to claim 14, wherein the predefined criterion specifies a pattern of symbols, and wherein asserting the interrupt comprises raising the interrupt when the processed data contains a match to the pattern.

19. The method according to claim 14, wherein asserting the interrupt comprises writing an event to an event queue in the host memory when the processed data satisfies the predefined criterion, so as to cause the host processor to read and service the event by reading the data from the selected location.

20. A method for communication, comprising:

receiving data packets from a network in a network interface controller (NIC), which is coupled to a host processor having a host memory, each data packet comprising a header comprising header fields and a payload comprising data;

maintaining in the host memory multiple queues containing queue elements for controlling interactions between the host processor and the network interface controller;

processing one or more of the header fields and at least a part of the data in the NIC so as to select, responsively at least to the one or more of the header fields, a location in the host memory;

writing the data from the NIC to the selected location;

selecting a queue in the host memory depending on whether the processed data satisfies a predefined criterion; and

accessing an element in the selected queue so as to cause the host processor to read the data from the selected location in the host memory.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein accessing the element comprises writing an event to an event queue in the host memory when the processed data satisfies the predefined criterion, so as to cause the host processor to read and service the event by reading the data from the selected location.

22. The method according to claim 20, wherein the NIC is configured to write completion information to a plurality of completion queues in the host memory, and wherein accessing the element comprises, when the processed data satisfy the predefined criterion, selecting a completion queue and writing the completion information to the selected completion queue.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the data packets that are received from the network are associated with respective transport service instances, and wherein selecting the queue comprises assigning the received data packets to respective receive queues in the host memory responsively to the associated transport service instances, and assigning the data packet to a receive queue that is associated with the selected completion queue when the processed data satisfies the predefined criterion.

24. The method according to claim 20, wherein the data packets that are received from the network are associated with respective transport service instances, and wherein selecting the queue comprises directing the received data packets that are associated with a given transport service instance to a first receive queue when the processed data satisfy the predefined criterion, and to a different, second receive queue when the processed data do not satisfy the predefined criterion.

25. The method according to claim 20, wherein selecting the queue comprises accepting a definition of the criterion from a client process running on the host processor in an unprotected user mode.

26. The method according to claim 25, wherein the queues have respective contexts that are read and used by the packet processing circuitry in processing the received data packets, wherein the contexts contain protection information that is written by a trusted process running on the host processor in a privileged mode, and wherein accessing the element comprises carrying out instructions submitted by the client process only after verifying that the instructions comply with the protection information.