📚 Main Topics

1. Introduction to Protocol H

   • A new transport protocol aimed at improving throughput and reducing latency in data centers.
   • Designed to perform better than TCP under high load conditions.

2. Challenges with Throughput

   • Difficulty in achieving competitive throughput with TCP due to hardware support advantages that TCP has (e.g., TCP Segmentation Offload (TSO) and Receive Side Scaling (RSS)).
   • The need for customizations to network interface cards (NICs) to support Protocol H.

3. Using TCP Frames for Protocol H

   • The speaker proposes using TCP frames or "H packets" to leverage existing hardware support.
   • Discusses the implementation of TCP-like headers in Protocol H to facilitate this.

4. Technical Implementation Details

   • Segmentation OffloadExplanation of how large packets are split into smaller segments and how headers are managed.
   • Packet HandlingStrategies for intercepting TCP packets and redirecting them to Protocol H.
   • Identifying H PacketsMethods to distinguish H packets from regular TCP packets using unique header values.

5. Concerns and Risks

   • Potential unintended consequences of modifying socket protocol fields.
   • The risk of network devices rejecting packets that do not conform to standard TCP behavior.

6. Discussion and Feedback

   • The speaker seeks input on the viability of this approach and alternative methods to achieve similar goals without modifying TCP.

✨ Key Takeaways

• Protocol H aims to improve performance in data centersbut faces significant challenges due to the entrenched nature of TCP and its hardware support.
• Using TCP framesis a proposed solution to leverage existing infrastructure, but it raises concerns about compatibility and network behavior.
• Community feedback is crucialfor refining the approach and exploring alternative solutions.

🧠 Lessons Learned

• Innovation in networking protocolsoften requires navigating existing standards and hardware limitations.
• Collaboration and feedbackfrom the community can help identify potential pitfalls and improve protocol design.
• Understanding the underlying hardwareand its capabilities is essential for developing new protocols that can compete with established ones like TCP.