Intel Microarchitecture and 10 gigabit Ethernet Transforming the Data Center

Figure 4 compares network throughput scalability for an Intel Xeon
processor 5500 series-based server with an adapter based on the
Intel 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller versus a server based
on the previous generation Intel® Xeon® processor and previous
generation Intel 10 Gigabit Ethernet controller.
Notice in particular that throughput on the older platform does
not scale beyond two 10GbE ports and approximately 17 Gbps. This is
due primarily to memory bandwidth limitations. Conversely, the Intel Xeon
5500 series processor-based server’s architecture allows it to scale
up to four 10GbE ports and roughly 50 Gbps. This level of throughput
scalability is needed to support emerging high-bandwidth applications
in today’s evolving virtualized data centers.
New 10 Gigabit Controller
The Intel 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller is Intel’s third-
generation 10GbE controller and builds on Intel’s more than 25 years
of experience building quality Ethernet products. This new controller
takes advantage of the architectural improvements of the Intel
Xeon processor 5500 series-based platforms and aids data center
transformation by delivering the bandwidth and features needed
to provide a reliable, unified 10GbE network connection.
Outstanding Performance
Broad operating system support, including Microsoft Windows*,
Linux*, and VMware ESX*, and thorough compatibility testing
with leading switch vendors, provides ease of installation and
configuration. The Intel 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller also
includes performance-improving features designed for multicore
processors for exceptional performance. MSI-X and Receive-Side
Scaling (RSS) use the multiple hardware queues in the controller to
load-balance interrupts and I/O data processing across multiple cores.
Intel® Ethernet Flow Director is a new feature that lowers latency and
improves CPU utilization by distributing TCP flows to CPU cores.
Best for I/O Virtualization
The Intel 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller includes Intel®
Virtualization Technology for Connectivity (Intel® VT-c) to deliver
outstanding I/O performance in virtualized environments. Intel VT-c
includes hardware optimizations that help reduce I/O bottlenecks and
improve server performance. Intel VT-c consists of two components:
Virtual Machine Device Queues (VMDq) and Virtual Machine Direct
Connect (VMDc). VMDq improves data processing by offloading the
network traffic sorting and queuing functionality from the Virtual
Machine Monitor (VMM) to the Ethernet controller. VMDc provides
direct connectivity to VMs to provide near-native performance and
greater VM scalability. VMDc also enables VM migration between
physical servers, providing greater flexibility and mobility.
Storage over Ethernet Optimizations
The Intel 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller supports iSCSI, NAS
and FCoE to carry storage traffic over Ethernet. In order to meet
SAN requirements for guaranteed packet delivery, the Intel 82599
10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller implements Data Center Bridging,
a set of industry standards that delivers end-to-end congestion
notification and quality of service throughout the network. The Intel
82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller also accelerates iSCSI traffic
by implementing key stateless offloads such as TCP Segmentation
Offload and Receive-Side Coalescing. It also supports the trusted,
native iSCSI initiators in Microsoft, Linux, and VMware operating
systems and provides a robust iSCSI remote boot implementation.
Further, the controller delivers a high-performance FCoE solution
that offloads the main data paths for I/O read and write commands
to improve throughput. The Intel 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet
Controller also greatly reduces CPU processing on FCoE receive
traffic by eliminating a data copy through Direct Data placement
implementation.
As the world leader in silicon innovation, Intel is refining and
developing technologies, products, and initiatives that will
continually transform the data center.
1 2 3 4
Number of Ports
Intel® Xeon® processor 5300 series-based server
and Intel® 82598 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller
Intel® Xeon® processor 5500 series-based server
and Intel® 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller
60000
50000
40000
30000
20000
10000
0
Figure 4. The Intel® Xeon® processor 5500 series-based server and
Intel 82599 10 Gigabit Ethernet Controller scale superbly across
multiple 10GbE ports as compared to the previous generation
server and 10GbE controller.
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White Paper: Intel® Microarchitecture and 10 Gigabit Ethernet Transforming the Data Center