Intel® vCMTS Reference Dataplane

This is a reference implementation of a virtualized cable modem termination system (vCMTS), an edge access network function for cable access networks. Standardized through the distributed access architecture (DAA) for DOCSIS, vCMTS is essentially a Layer-2 router that converts traffic between IP and DOCSIS networks to deliver cable broadband to cable modems in subscriber homes. It usually resides in a cable network headend that is analogous to a telecommunications central office. 

The Intel® vCMTS Reference Dataplane is optimized for high-performance packet processing on Intel® architecture and may be deployed on a network functions virtualization (NFV) platform. The key purpose of this reference implementation is to characterize the packet-processing performance and power consumption of a vCMTS on Intel® Xeon® platforms.

Latest Download

v21.10.0

Adapted for deployment on the Bare Metal Reference Architecture (BMRA).

 

Installation Guide

Release Notes

Intel vCMTS Reference Dataplane on BMRA

Intel has developed a DOCSIS MAC dataplane pipeline that is based on DOCSIS 3.1 specifications (MULPI, DEPI, UEPI and SEC) and the DPDK* packet-processing framework. This development provides a tool for characterizing vCMTS dataplane packet-processing performance and power consumption on Intel Xeon platforms. An overview of the upstream and downstream DOCSIS MAC dataplane is shown in the following image.

The download package provided enables installation of a vCMTS reference dataplane runtime environment consisting of a:

  • vCMTS dataplane node
  • Traffic generation node

Both node deployments are based on the Bare Metal Reference Architecture (BMRA) for containers from Intel. These nodes run containerized vCMTS and Pktgen applications respectively, orchestrated by Kubernetes*.

Platform Overview

Kubernetes, an open-source container manager, orchestrates the entire platform. It automates the deployment, scaling, and operational functions associated with application containers. Plug-ins from Intel for Kubernetes are used for the following infrastructure management functions:

  • Manage CPU cores 
  • Assign SR-IOV interfaces for NICs and Intel® QuickAssist Technology devices 

This container manager and the other platform components are deployed using Ansible* playbooks provided by BMRA from Intel.

On the vCMTS dataplane node:

  • Multiple pods host DOCSIS MAC upstream and downstream from dataplane processing applications (based on DPDK) for individual cable service groups, with configurable numbers of subscribers per service-group.
  • Upstream scheduler pods can be optionally configured to characterize scheduling of upstream traffic for service groups.
  • A DOCSIS control plane is simulated through a JSON file containing subscriber cable modem information. 

On the traffic generation node:

  • Pods host traffic generation instances that are based on Pktgen and DPDK. They simulate upstream and downstream traffic into corresponding vCMTS dataplane instances.

Telemetry functions also run in pods under Kubernetes. The open-source collectd daemon gathers a comprehensive set of vCMTS dataplane statistics and platform key performance indicators (KPI). A Grafana* dashboard is provided for visualization of these metrics via Prometheus*. The reference platform also contains a power manager that reduces power consumption of CPU cores during quiet network periods.

A Dynamic Device Profile (DDP) sample application demonstrates how the DDP, flow director, and RSS features of the Intel® Ethernet Network Adapter 800 can be used to enable optimum steering of DOCSIS MAC upstream and downstream traffic to Rx (receive) software threads.

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