Fast Path Framework

Problem

VPN and edge packet forwarding needed higher throughput with lower per-packet overhead. A classic copy-heavy path and static RX/TX binding limited scale across multi-site deployments.

How it works

• A dedicated fast-path engine processes packets with reduced copying between stages.
• Multi-threaded workers handle receive and transmit with dynamic RX/TX interface management as topology changes.
• IPsec tunnels are integrated in the path so encrypted traffic stays on the accelerated pipeline.
• Load-balancing spreads flows across available paths/workers to improve utilization and reliability.

What I built / owned

• Engineered the multi-threaded, reduced-copy packet processing framework.
• Implemented dynamic RX/TX interface management for changing edge/POP topologies.
• Integrated IPsec and load-balancing behavior into the fast path.

Impact

Improved system reliability and reduced latency, with throughput gains of up to ~30% across multi-site deployments.

Tech

C/C++ · AF_PACKET / packet I/O · IPsec · Multi-threading · Linux networking