IF_NTB(4)

💖 if_ntb(4) — Virtual Ethernet interface for Non-Transparent Bridges 💖

okay so bestie, this is the if_ntb(4) page from the Kernel Interfaces Manual, and we’re gonna get you comfy with it. No cap. 💅

✨ NAME ✨

if_ntb — Virtual Ethernet interface for Non-Transparent Bridges

🎀 SYNOPSIS 🎀

To compile this driver into your kernel, place the following lines in your kernel configuration file:

device ntb
device ntb_transport
device if_ntb

Or, to load the driver as a module at boot, place the following line in loader.conf(5):

if_ntb_load="YES"

The following tunables are settable from the loader(8):

• hw.if_ntb.num_queues — Limits maximal number of queues per interface. Default is unlimited.

💅 DESCRIPTION 💅

The if_ntb driver attaches on top of the ntb_transport(4) driver to utilize one or more of its packet queues to create a virtual Ethernet network interface between the systems. Typical MTU for the interface is about 64KB to reduce overhead. Default MAC address for the interface is randomly generated.

The if_ntb driver does not implement any real hardware offload, but since the PCIe link is protected by CRC32, in some situations it may be possible to save some CPU cycles by enabling fake checksum offload on both link sides via setting the rxcsum and txcsum interface options. It’s giving “fake it till you make it,” but for checksums. 😭

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

ntb_transport(4)

👑 AUTHORS 👑

The if_ntb driver was developed by Intel and originally written by Carl Delsey <carl@FreeBSD.org>. Later improvements were done by Conrad E. Meyer <cem@FreeBSD.org> and Alexander Motin <mav@FreeBSD.org>.

💀 BUGS 💀

Linux supports only one queue per interface, so manual configuration may be required for compatibility. fr fr, heads up. 🫶

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mwah 💋 — Debian, September 2, 2017 ✨