freebsd router

[Matthew D. Fuller]

On Wed, Jan 11, 2006 at 07:22:15AM -0800 I heard the voice of
Danial Thom, and lo! it spake thus:
>
> You're basically limited in an MP environment to sucking the packet
> out of the ring and throwing it into a queue.

I can only presume you're being willfully silly.  An MP environment is
quite capable of grabbing the packet from an interface, and then
CONTINUING TO PROCESS IT while the other CPU grabs the next packet and
starts processing it.  You can process through to completion JUST as
easily on a MP system as you can on a UP system, except that you're
not blocking the next packet while you do it.  Furthermore, you've got
another CPU to do things like update the routing table and deal with
OTHER interrupts and kernel tasks at the same time.


> I can pass a million pps on freebsd 4.x, so perhaps your *hardware
> limit* has more to do with you or them not understanding the test?

I'll leave you to argue with the people writing the network subsystem
about their understanding of it.


> Funny that they don't mention packet loss, maybe they forgot to
> look?

Why, yes, in point of fact, they did (rather, the total lack of it),
which you'd know if you were following the discussions on the lists
specifically set up to talk about these things, rather than simply
puffing yourself up on an unrelated list.


*plonk*


-- 
Matthew Fuller     (MF4839)   |  fullermd at over-yonder.net
Systems/Network Administrator |  http://www.over-yonder.net/~fullermd/
           On the Internet, nobody can hear you scream.