The invention provides a converged network interface card, a message coding method and a message transmission method thereof. The converged network interface card comprises a PCIE host interface processing module, a high speed network card core logic, a crossbar switch XBAR, an Ethernet network card core logic, an Ethernet message dicing/slicing module, a physical layer, a high speed network/Ethernet message conversion module EoH, and a high speed network/Ethernet configurable network port. The invention supports customized high speed interconnection interface and a standard Ethernet interface on a set of network hardware, and supports three working modes on a set of physical hardware (high speed network mode, Ethernet mode and EoH mode transmitting Ethernet messages over the high speed network), implements seamless compatibility between the high speed network/Ethernet, and flexibly supports multimode applications such as scientific computing and cloud computing.

Examples described herein relate to an apparatus including at least one memory and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one memory, the at least one processor to: allocate a scheduler to an egress port and based on unavailability of an egress port, allocate the scheduler to a second egress port to cause any packet allocated to a transmit queue associated with the scheduler to be transmitted using the second egress port. In some examples, a system receives a packet at a port on a network interface, associates a port group with the packet, determines a receive queue for the packet, and copies the packet to the determined receive queue. The port group can be adjusted to remove the port or to add a second port.

A network device includes a rate measurement circuit that is configured to measure respective egress rates at which respective data is being transmitted via respective ports associated with the network device. A marking ratio determination circuit is configured to select respective marking ratios based on respective measured egress rates, the marking ratios for marking packets to be transmitted via the respective ports to indicate respective levels of congestion corresponding to the respective ports. Different marking ratios correspond to different measured egress rates. A packet editor circuit is configured to mark selected packets to be transmitted via respective ports according to the respective selected marking ratios. The respective selected marking ratios indicate to other communication devices that respective network paths via which the selected packets travelled experienced congestion, and the respective marking ratios indicate respective levels of congestion.

A packet group processor of a network device defines groups of packets among packets that are being processed by the network device, each of at least some of the groups of packets defining a respective group of at least two different packets. Each group includes one or more packets to be transmitted via a respective same network interface. A transmit processor makes a single transmit decision that a particular group of at least two packets is to be transmitted via a corresponding network interface, and in response to the single transmit decision, transfers the particular group of at least two packets to the corresponding network interface for transmission.

Switches for performing packet switching and associated methods are provided. An example switch includes an ingress port for receiving a packet. The switch includes a plurality of egress ports for discharging the packet from the switch. The switch includes a plurality of egress queues with each egress queue associated with one of the plurality of egress ports. The switch includes a control plane configured to determine a descriptor associated with a packet, determine a first egress port from which to discharge the at least one packet and to transmit the descriptor to an egress queue associated with the first egress port. The switch includes a descriptor crossbar configured to transmit the descriptor from the egress queue to a second egress port of the plurality of egress ports. The switch includes a packet crossbar configured to transmit the at least one packet from the ingress port to the second egress port.

A first node of a packet switched network transmits at least one flow of protocol data units of a network to at least one output context of one of a plurality of second nodes of the network. The first node includes X virtual output queues (VOQs). The first node receives, from at least one of the second nodes, at least one fair rate record. Each fair rate record corresponds to a particular second node output context and describes a recommended rate of flow to the particular output context. The first node allocates up to X of the VOQs among flows corresponding to i) currently allocated VOQs, and ii) the flows corresponding to the received fair rate records. The first node operates each allocated VOQ according to the corresponding recommended rate of flow until a deallocation condition obtains for the each allocated VOQ.

A hardware module comprises at least a first ingress buffer and a second ingress buffer, where the second ingress buffer holds data packets from a plurality of source components. To ensure fairness between one or more sources providing data to the first ingress buffer and the plurality of sources providing data to the second ingress buffer, processing circuitry examines source identifiers in packets held in the second ingress buffer and selects between the buffers so as to arbitrate between the sources. In some embodiments, the examination of the source identifiers provides statistics for a weighted round robin between the ingress buffers. In other embodiments, the source identifier of whichever packet is currently at the head of the second ingress buffer is used to perform a simple round robin between the sources.

In an example embodiment a data transmission device for transmitting data packets comprises at least one receive interface configured to receive data packets from a respective data source; a respective receive buffer configured to buffer the data packets received via the respective receive interface; a transfer device configured to transfer the data packets from the respective receive buffer to a transmit buffer, the transmit buffer selected for the respective data packet from a plurality of existing transmit buffers; and a respective transmit interface configured to transmit the data packets stored in the respective transmit buffer to a receiving device, wherein the transfer device is configured to transfer the respective data packet from the respective receive buffer into the selected transmit buffer only when an enable condition exists, the enable condition being based on a fill level of one of the transmit buffers other than the selected transmit buffer.

A switch is provided for routing packets in an interconnection network. The switch includes a plurality of egress ports to transmit packets. The switch also includes one or more ingress ports to receive packets. The switch also includes a port and bandwidth capacity circuit configured to obtain (i) port capacity for a plurality of egress ports of the switch, and (ii) bandwidth capacity for transmitting packets to a destination. The switch also includes a network capacity circuit configured to compute network capacity, for transmitting packets to the destination, via the plurality of egress ports, based on a function of the port capacity and the bandwidth capacity. The switch also includes a routing circuit configured to route one or more packets received via one or more ingress ports of the switch, to the destination, via the plurality of egress ports, based on the network capacity.

A switch is provided for routing packets in an interconnection network. The switch includes egress ports to transmit packets, and ingress ports to receive packets. The switch also includes a buffer capacity circuit configured to obtain local buffer capacity for buffers configured to buffer packets transmitted via the switch. The switch also includes a telemetry circuit configured to receive telemetry flow control units from next switches coupled to the switch. Each telemetry flow control unit corresponds to buffer capacity at a respective next switch. The switch also includes a network capacity circuit configured to compute network capacity for transmitting packets to a destination based on the telemetry flow control units and the local buffer capacity. The switch also includes a routing circuit configured to receive packets via the ingress ports, and route the packets to the destination, via the egress ports, with bandwidth proportional to the network capacity.