TCP Offload

We live in the world run by technology and most importantly, Internet. With the advancement in
Ethernet from 10Mbit/s to 10Gbit/s, we have come a long way. Every now and then, there have
been upgrades in the networking world. Processor upgrades are having a hard time coping up with
it. It may be one of the major reasons why you are unable to utilise the maximum from your
Ethernet connections.
The world of TOE and why do you need it
The biggest obstacle in improving our networking speed is, TCP/IP offloading. Whenever there is
data to be received or sent, the traditional way is that the Network Interface card (NIC) interrupts
the CPU from its duties and the host CPU extracts the data from the network buffer and sends it to
the server memory to the application which requires it. When the data needs to be sent, the CPU
copies the data from the memory and sends it to the network buffer.
But what happens in the meantime is that,
The CPU is being interrupted from doing its main function processing instructions and
performing mathematical calculations. This reduces the performance of the host
enormously.
It takes approximately one hertz of CPU processing for every one bit per second of network
processing.
Additional functions like reassembling out-of-order packets, data saving and interrupts can
hamper the performance of the CPU, as it demands more time.
Processors are built for computing and so cannot cope up with the enormous network flow.
Also, it takes more time to process the TCP/IP data leading to I/O bottleneck in the network,
resulting in slow network.
Heres when TOE comes in.
TCP Offload engine or TOE takes up the whole TCP/IP offloading tasks from the host CPU, therefore
minimising the pressure on the CPU. So whenever data packets are received, TOE steps in and
carries out the functions instead of interrupting the CPU. It is especially used in high speed network
interfaces such as 10 gigabit Ethernet where the amount of data offloading is more. It is
incorporated either on a NIC or a host bus adapter (HBA).
How does it work?
TOE are embedded with specialised chips which recognises when data is available, later transmits it
from the network buffer to the server memory directly. When applications require small data
packets, the host CPU is not affected largely. But when the applications require large amount of data
packets, the CPUs processing time on both the TCCP/IP offload and overhead on running
applications becomes extremely slow.
Uses of TOE
TOE can be used by the consumer according to his needs. It solely depends on three factors
performance, scalability and flexibility. Performance and scalability can be improved by
implementing an ASIC (Application specific integrated circuit). The flexibility can improved by using a
processor based implementation.
TCP/ UDP offload can be utilised by using various ASIC based software. A Full TCP offload takes up all
the networking tasks from the host i.e. it not only processes the data, it also helps in connection
management and error handling.
Benefits of TOE
It helps Ethernet to explore new areas such as iSCSI storage area network (SANs) and high
performance network attached storage (NAS) application.
Initially, TOE was introduced for controlling low-network speed. It was used extensively in
the field of iSCSI storage area. iSCSI adds storage traffic to the LANs thereby increasing the
offload.
It helps guarantee sequence and deal with faults which needs especially in the case of iSCSI
data storage.
With the right TOE functions you can increase the throughput of your computer and improve
network speed.
Contact us:
http://intilop.com

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