Network Systems Design Using Network Processors: Intel 2XXX Version [Hardcover]

Douglas E. Comer (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0131872869 | ISBN-13: 978-0131872868 | Publication Date: June 18, 2005

Assuming no knowledge of industry jargon, this book describes the design of network systems such as routers, bridges, switches, firewalls, and other equipment used in the Internet. It considers the functionality required for protocol processing, and explains how the functionality has been implemented on a range of hardware architectures. The author focuses on network processor technology, a recent development that has become one of the standard tools used by designers. This book explores network processors and surveys network processor architectures, explains design complexity, covers architectural approaches and gives examples of commercial network processors that follow each approach, and uses the Intel IXP 2xxx series of network processors as a detailed example. For network and web designers, implementers, and administrators, and for anyone interested in how the Internet works.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 600 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall (June 18, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0131872869
• ISBN-13: 978-0131872868
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 7.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,254,275 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars promising designs, November 14, 2005

By 

W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Network Systems Design Using Network Processors: Intel 2XXX Version (Hardcover)

In this book, Comer specialises to the design of network processor chips. He explains why these have arisen in importance in recent years, due to ever increasing network traffic, and the need to process this as quickly as possible.

The chips described in the text are RISC designs, and fall between CISCs and ASICs, in terms of cost and other metrics. ASIC designs for network processing tend to take too long (2 years!) to design. The RISC network processors can be as fast as ASICs. They have a minimal set of instructions, that are capable of handling various protocols very quickly.

The text covers many aspects of the design. Like scaling issues of bandwidth. This can be increased, for accessing memory that is off-chip. But a cost is the increased interconnect area needed on the processor chip. The text also mentions the ironic point that unlike general purpose CPUs, increasing the cache has little benefit here. A cache is best suited when given data is repeatedly looked up by the CPU. But a network processor often just analyses a packet and pushes it out. The heavier the network traffic, the greater the chance that packets come and go everywhere on the network. So even less use for a cache.

Comer gives considerable detail in the case study of the Intel network processor. Useful for you to glean how Intel implemented many of the ideas in the text.

All the chapters are reasonably short. Each could be envisaged as mapping to one or two lectures. Something to consider if you are a lecturer needing a text on this subject.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars the software on CD has problem, December 14, 2005

By 

eric zhu5121 "eric zhu5121" (Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Network Systems Design Using Network Processors: Intel 2XXX Version (Hardcover)

this book is a good book, but the software CD is a garbage.
as it said it should include the ixa software sdk kit, but inside, there is only a firmware kit, and can't be installed at all, it requires the software sdk kit 4.1.
what a hell! So I have to rate it 3.