Workstation Network Interfaces for 10 Gbps and Beyond

78684 The near-term requirements of scientific visualization and collaboration software, as well as the anticipated demands of multimedia end-users, argue for dramatic advances in workstation throughput. In particular, desktop network interfaces must accommodate the bandwidth available on current and future high performance networks. To meet these next-generation networking goals, this project will implement a high-speed data path suitable for workstation throughputs of 10 gigabits per second and beyond. To accomplish this goal an industry-standard, high-speed interfaces will be incorporated into a modified workstation architecture, and a rapid-execution protocol stack will be integrated with a middleware solution. Phase 1 will test the feasibility of the modified system architecture with regard to both performance and compatibility. A network interface controller prototype and evaluation platform, including drivers, middleware, and a high-speed bus, will be developed. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: The system should greatly enhance tera-scale collaboration for real-time distributed processing. This approach should scale well from local- to wide-area networks, making it ideal for high-performance LANs and SANs, grid computing applications, and wide-area ultra-high-speed networks.