Overview

The highly programmable nature of Intel IXP2XXX Network Processors allows developers to implement high-speed traffic management very efficiently on the network processor itself. This is a significant advantage since it eliminates the need for a separate traffic management device, bringing down the cost and power requirements of the overall solution. In addition, since the software on the network processor implements traffic management instead of fixed-function hardware, it is possible to customize the associated algorithms.

This chapter describes the design and implementation of various traffic management functions on processors in the IXP2XXX Product Line, including metering, marking, scheduling, shaping, buffer, and queue management. For each function, the chapter describes the challenges associated with a high-speed software implementation. It then describes how to use various features in the microengines to address these challenges and implement traffic management efficiently.