DOCA Documentation v2.7.0
1.0

NVIDIA DOCA PCC Application Guide

This document provides a DOCA PCC implementation on top of NVIDIA® BlueField® networking p latform .

Programmable Congestion Control (PCC) allows users to design and implement their own congestion control (CC) algorithm, giving them the flexibility to work out an optimal solution to handle congestion in their clusters. On BlueField-3 networking p latforms , PCC is provided as a component of DOCA.

The application leverages the DOCA PCC API to provide users the flexibility to manage allocation of DPA resources according to their requirements.

Typical DOCA application includes App running on host/Arm and App running on DPA. Developers are advised to use the host/Arm application with minimal changes and focus on developing their algorithm and integrating it into the DPA application.

sys-design-version-2-modificationdate-1709680527063-api-v2.png

DOCA PCC application consists of two parts:

  • Host/Arm app is the control plane. It is responsible for allocating all resources and handover to the DPA app initially, then destroying everything when the DPA app finishes its operation. The host app must always be alive to stay in control while the device app is working.

  • Device/DPA app is the data plane. It is mainly for reaction point CC event handler. When the first thread is activated, DPA App initialization is done in the DOCA PCC library by calling the algorithm initialization function implemented by the user in the app. Moreover, the user algorithm execution function is called when a CC event arrives. The user algorithm takes event data as input and performs a calculation using per-flow context and replies with updated rate value and a flag to sent RTT request.

    Info

    The device/DPA app is as well capable of functioning as a telemetry program for notification point NIC operations, which users can configure as a runtime option.

The host/Arm application sends a command to the BlueField platform firmware when allocating or destroying resources. CC events are generated by the BlueField platform hardware automatically when sending data or receiving ACK/NACK/CNP/RTT packets, then the device application handles these events by calling the user algorithm. After the DPA application replies to hardware, handling of current event is done and the next event can arrive.

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/opt/mellanox/doca/applications/pcc/ ├── host │ ├── pcc.c │ ├── pcc_core.c │ └── pcc_core.h └── device ├── rp     │  ├── algo     │    │ ├── rtt_template.h       │  │ ├── rtt_template_algo_params.h       │  │ ├── rtt_template_ctxt.h       │  │ └── rtt_template.c       │   └── pcc_rp_dev.c └── np_nic_telemetry     └── pcc_np_nic_telemetry_dev.c

The main content of the reference DOCA PCC application files are the following:

  • host/pcc.c – entry point to entire application

  • host/pcc_core.c – host functions to initialize and destroy the PCC application resources, parsers for PCC command line parameters

  • device/rp/pcc_rp_dev.c – callbacks for user CC algorithm initialization, user CC algorithm calculation, algorithm parameter change notification

  • device/rp/algo/* – user CC algorithm reference template. Put user algorithm code here.

  • device/np_nic_telemetry/pcc_np_nic_telemetry_dev.c – callback for user notification point handling, implemented as a NIC telemetry program to observe RX counters

This application leverages the following DOCA library:

Refer to its respective programming guide for more information.

  • NVIDIA BlueField-3 Platform is required

  • Firmware 32.38.1000 and higher

  • MFT 4.25 and higher

Info

Please refer to the NVIDIA DOCA Installation Guide for Linux for details on how to install BlueField-related software.

The installation of DOCA's reference applications contains the sources of the applications, alongside the matching compilation instructions. This allows for compiling the applications "as-is" and provides the ability to modify the sources, then compile a new version of the application.

Tip

For more information about the applications as well as development and compilation tips, refer to the DOCA Applications page.

The sources of the application can be found under the application's directory: /opt/mellanox/doca/applications/pcc/.

Compiling All Applications

All DOCA applications are defined under a single meson project. So, by default, the compilation includes all of them.

To build all the applications together, run:

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cd /opt/mellanox/doca/applications/ meson /tmp/build ninja -C /tmp/build

Info

doca_pcc is created under /tmp/build/pcc/.


Compiling Only the Current Application

To directly build only the PCC application:

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cd /opt/mellanox/doca/applications/ meson /tmp/build -Denable_all_applications=false -Denable_pcc=true ninja -C /tmp/build

Info

doca_pcc is created under /tmp/build/pcc/.

Alternatively, one can set the desired flags in the meson_options.txt file instead of providing them in the compilation command line:

  1. Edit the following flags in /opt/mellanox/doca/applications/meson_options.txt:

    • Set enable_all_applications to false

    • Set enable_pcc to true

  2. Run the following compilation commands :

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    cd /opt/mellanox/doca/applications/ meson /tmp/build ninja -C /tmp/build

    Info

    doca_pcc is created under /tmp/build/pcc/.

Compilation Options

The application offers specific compilation flags which one can set for a desired behavior in the device/DPA program.

In the meson_options.txt file, one can find the following options:

  • enable_pcc_application_tx_counter_sampling: set to trueto use TX counters sampled at runtime in the reaction point CC handling algorithm.

  • enable_pcc_application_np_rx_rate: set to trueto use RX counters received from notification point in the reaction point CC handling algorithm.

Troubleshooting

Refer to the NVIDIA DOCA Troubleshooting Guide for any issue encountered with the compilation of the application.

Prerequisites

Enable USER_PROGRAMMABLE_CC in mlxconfig:

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mlxconfig -y -d /dev/mst/mt41692_pciconf0 set USER_PROGRAMMABLE_CC=1

Perform a BlueField system reboot for the mlxconfig settings to take effect.

Application Execution

The PCC application is provided in source form. Therefore, a compilation is required before the application can be executed.

  1. Application usage instructions:

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    Usage: doca_pcc [DOCA Flags] [Program Flags]   DOCA Flags: -h, --help Print a help synopsis -v, --version Print program version information -l, --log-level Set the (numeric) log level for the program <10=DISABLE, 20=CRITICAL, 30=ERROR, 40=WARNING, 50=INFO, 60=DEBUG, 70=TRACE> --sdk-log-level Set the SDK (numeric) log level for the program <10=DISABLE, 20=CRITICAL, 30=ERROR, 40=WARNING, 50=INFO, 60=DEBUG, 70=TRACE> -j, --json <path> Parse all command flags from an input json file   Program Flags: -d, --device <IB device names>       IB device name that supports PCC (mandatory).  -np-nt, --np-nic-telemetry <PCC Notification Point NIC Telemetry> Flag to indicate running as a Notification Point NIC Telemetry (optional). By default the flag is set to false.  -t, --threads <pcc-threads-list> A list of the PCC threads numbers to be chosen for the DOCA PCC context to run on (optional). Must be provided as a string, such that the number are separated by a space. -w, --wait-time <PCC wait time> The duration of the DOCA PCC wait (optional), can provide negative values which means infinity. If not provided then -1 will be chosen. -p, --probe-packet-format <PCC probe-packet format> The probe packet format of the DOCA PCC (optional). Available values for each type: CCMAD-0, IFA1-1, IFA2-2. By default format is set to CCMAD. -r-handler, --remote-sw-handler <CCMAD remote SW handler> CCMAD remote SW handler flag (optional). If not provided then false will be chosen.  -gns, --global-namespace <IFA2 global namespace> The IFA2 probe packet global namespace (optional). If not provided then 0XF will be chosen.  -gns-ignore_mask, --global-namespace-ignore-mask <IFA2 global namespace ignore mask> The IFA2 probe packet global namespace ignore mask (optional). If not provided then 0 will be chosen.  -gns-ignore_val, --global-namespace-ignore-value <IFA2 global namespace ignore value> The IFA2 probe packet global namespace ignore value (optional). If not provided then 0 will be chosen. -f, --coredump-file <PCC coredump file> A pathname to the file to write coredump data in case of unrecoverable error on the device (optional). Must be provided as a string. -i, --port-id <Physical port ID> The physical port ID of the device running the application (optional). If not provided then ID 0 will be chosen.

    Info

    This usage printout can be printed to the command line using the -h (or --help) options:

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    ./doca_pcc -h

    Info

    For additional information, refer to section "Command Line Flags".

  2. CLI example for running the application on the BlueField Platform or the host:

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    ./doca_pcc -d mlx5_0

    Note

    The IB device identifier (mlx5_0) should match the identifier of the desired IB device.

  3. The application also supports a JSON-based deployment mode, in which all command-line arguments are provided through a JSON file:

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    ./doca_pcc --json [json_file]

    For example:

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    ./doca_pcc --json ./pcc_params.json

    Note

    Before execution, ensure that the used JSON file contains the correct configuration parameters, and especially the PCIe addresses necessary for the deployment.

Command Line Flags

Flag Type

Short Flag

Long Flag/JSON Key

Description

JSON Content

General flags

h

help

Prints a help synopsis

N/A

v

version

Prints program version information

N/A

l

log-level

Sets the log level for the program:

  • DISABLE=10

  • CRITICAL=20

  • ERROR=30

  • WARNING=40

  • INFO=50

  • DEBUG=60

  • TRACE=70

    Info

    The application uses a unique logging implementation that makes use of DOCA's logging levels.

N/A

N/A

sdk-log-level

Sets the log level for the program:

  • DISABLE=10

  • CRITICAL=20

  • ERROR=30

  • WARNING=40

  • INFO=50

  • DEBUG=60

  • TRACE=70

N/A

j

json

Parse all command flags from an input JSON file

N/A

Program flags

d

device

IB device name that supports PCC

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"device": ""

np-nt

np-nic-telemetry

(Optional) Flag to indicate running as a Notification Point NIC Telemetry.

The DOCA PCC application can also run as a Notification Point NIC telemetry program, instead of a Reaction point that runs the CC algorithm. If the user uses this flag, the application will load a program to run on the DPA to sample RX NIC counters and send them in response packet.

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"np-nic-telemetry": false

t

threads

(Optional) A list of the PCC EU indexes to be chosen for the DOCA PCC event handler threads to run on. Must be provided as a string, such that the numbers are separated by a space.

The placement of the PCC threads per core can be controlled using the EU indexes. Utilizing a large number of EUs, while limiting the number of threads per core, gives the best event handling rate and lowest event latency.

The last EU is used for communication with the BlueField Platform while all others are for data path CC event handling.

Note

If np-nic-telemetry option is chosen by the user, a different set of threads will be chosen as default list.

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"pcc-threads": "176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183  184 185 186 187 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199  200 201 202 203 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215  216 217 218 219 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231  232 233 234 235 240"

w

wait-time

(Optional) In seconds, the duration of the DOCA PCC wait. Negative values mean infinity.

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"wait-time": -1

p

probe-packet-format

(Optional) The probe packet format of the DOCA PCC (optional). Available values for each type: CCMAD-0, IFA1-1, IFA2-2. By default, format is set to CCMAD.

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"probe-packet-format": 0

r-handler

remote-sw-handler

(Optional) CCMAD remote SW handler flag. Relevant for reaction point contexts. This flag indicates whether the expected CCMAD probe packet responses are generated by a remote DOCA notification point process or not.

Note

If using other probe types than CCMAD, probe packet responses are always expected to be generated from a remote DOCA notification point process.

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"remote-sw-handler": false

gns

global-namespace

(Optional) The IFA2 probe packet global namespace

Info

Relevant for reaction point contexts.

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"global-namespace": 0xF

gns-ignore-mask

global-namespace-ignore-mask

(Optional) The IFA2 probe packet global namespace ignore mask

Info

Relevant for notification point contexts.

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"global-namespace-ignore-mask": 0

gns-ignore-val

global-namespace-ignore-value

(Optional) The IFA2 probe packet global namespace ignore value

Info

Relevant for notification point contexts.

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"global-namespace-ignore-value": 0

f

coredump-file

(Optional) A pathname to the file to write core dump data if an unrecoverable error occurs on the device

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"coredump-file": "/tmp/doca_pcc_coredump.txt"

i

port-id

(Optional) The physical port ID of the device running the application

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"port-id": 0

Info

Refer to DOCA Arg Parser for more information regarding the supported flags and execution modes.


Troubleshooting

Refer to the NVIDIA DOCA Troubleshooting Guide for any issue encountered with the installation or execution of the DOCA applications.

This section lists the application's configuration flow, explaining the different DOCA function calls and wrappers.

  1. Parse application argument.

    1. Initialize arg parser resources and register DOCA general parameters.

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      doca_argp_init();

    2. Register PCC application parameters.

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      register_pcc_params();

    3. Parse the arguments.

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      doca_argp_start();

      1. Parse DOCA flags.

      2. Parse DOCA PCC parameters.

  2. PCC initialization.

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    pcc_init();

    1. Open DOCA device that supports PCC.

    2. Create DOCA PCC context.

    3. Configure affinity of threads handling CC events.

  3. Start DOCA PCC.

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    doca_pcc_start();

    1. Create PCC process and other resources.

    2. Trigger initialization of PCC on device.

    3. Register the PCC in the BlueField Platform hardware so CC events can be generated and an event handler can be triggered.

  4. Process state monitor loop.

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    doca_pcc_get_process_state(); doca_pcc_wait();

    1. Get the state of the process:

      State

      Description

      DOCA_PCC_PS_ACTIVE = 0

      The process handles CC events (only one process is active at a given time)

      DOCA_PCC_PS_STANDBY = 1

      The process is in standby mode (another process is already ACTIVE)

      DOCA_PCC_PS_DEACTIVATED = 2

      The process has been deactivated by the BlueField Platform firmware and should be destroyed

      DOCA_PCC_PS_ERROR = 3

      The process is in error state and should be destroyed

    2. Wait on process events from the device.

  5. PCC destroy.

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    doca_pcc_destroy();

    1. Destroy PCC resources. The process stops handling PCC events.

    2. Close DOCA device.

  6. Arg parser destroy.

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    doca_argp_destroy()

The Port Programmable Congestion Control (PPCC) register allows the user to configure and read PCC algorithms and their parameters/counters.

It supports the following functionalities:

  • Enabling different algorithms on different ports

  • Querying information of both algorithms and tunable parameters/counters

  • Changing algorithm parameters without compiling and reburning user image

  • Querying or clearing programmable counters

Usage

The PPCC register can be accessed using a string similar to the following:

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sudo mlxreg -d /dev/mst/mt41692_pciconf0 -y --get --op "cmd_type=0" --reg_name PPCC --indexes "local_port=1,pnat=0,lp_msb=0,algo_slot=0,algo_param_index=0" sudo mlxreg -d /dev/mst/mt41692_pciconf0 -y --set "cmd_type=1" --reg_name PPCC --indexes "local_port=1,pnat=0,lp_msb=0,algo_slot=0,algo_param_index=0"

Where you must:

  • Set the cmd_type and the indexes

  • Give values for algo_slot, algo_param_index

  • Keep local_port=1, pnat=0, lp_msb=0

  • Keep doca_pcc application running

cmd_type

Description

Method

Index

Input (in --set)

Output

0x0

Get algorithm info

Get

algo_slot

N/A

  • Value – 32-bit algo_num or 0 if no algo is available at this index

  • Text – algorithm description

  • sl_bitmask_support – indicates whether the device supports sl_bitmask logic

0x1

Enable algorithm

Set

sl_bitmask

trace_en

counter_en

N/A

0x2

Disable algorithm

Set

N/A

N/A

0x3

Get algorithm enabling status

Get

N/A

  • Value:

    • 0 – disabled

    • 1 – enabled

  • sl_bitmask – this field allows to apply to specific SLs based on the bitmask

  • sl_bitmask_support – indicates whether the device supports sl_bitmask logic

0x4

Get number of parameters

Get

N/A

  • Value – num of params of algo

0x5

Get parameter information

Get

algo_slot

algo_param_index

N/A

  • param_value1 – default value of param

  • param_value2 – min value of param

  • param_value3 – max value of param

  • prm –

    • 0: read-only

    • 1: read-write

    • 2: read-only but may be cleared using the "get and clear" command

0x6

Get parameter value

Get

N/A

  • Value – param value

0x7

Get and clear parameter

Get

N/A

  • Value – param value

0x8

Set parameter value

Set

Parameter value

N/A

0xA

Bulk get parameters

Get

algo_slot

N/A

  • text_length – param num x 4 bytes

  • text[0]…text[n] – param values

0xB

Bulk set parameters

Set

text_length - param num x 4

text[0]…text[n] - param values

N/A

0xC

Bulk get counters

Get

N/A

  • text_length – counter num x 4 bytes

  • text[0]…text[n] – counter values

0xD

Bulk get and clear counters

Get

N/A

  • text_length – counter num x 4 bytes

  • text[0]…text[n] – counter values

0xE

Get number of counters

Get

N/A

  • Value – num of counters of algo

0xF

Get counter information

Get

algo_slot

algo_param_index

N/A

  • param_value3 – max value of parameter

  • prm –

    • 0: read-only

    • 1: read-write

    • 2: read-only but may be cleared via "get & clear" command

0x10

Get algorithm info array

Get

N/A

N/A

  • text_length – algo slot initialized x 4 bytes

  • text[0]…text[n] – 32-bit algo_num or 0 if no algorithm is available at this slot index


Internal Default Algorithm

The internal default algorithm is used when enhanced connection establishment (ECE) negotiation fails. It is mainly used for backward compatibility and can be disabled using "force mode". Otherwise, users may change doca_pcc_dev_user_algo() in the device app to run a specific algorithm without considering the algorithm negotiation.

The force mode command is per port:

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sudo mlxreg -d /dev/mst/mt41692_pciconf0 -y --get --op "cmd_type=2" --reg_name PPCC --indexes "local_port=1,pnat=0,lp_msb=0,algo_slot=15,algo_param_index=0" sudo mlxreg -d /dev/mst/mt41692_pciconf0.1 -y --get --op "cmd_type=2" --reg_name PPCC --indexes "local_port=1,pnat=0,lp_msb=0,algo_slot=15,algo_param_index=0"


Counters

Counters are shared on the port and are only enabled on one algo_slot per port. The following command enables the counters while enabling the algorithm according to the algo_slot:

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sudo mlxreg -d /dev/mst/mt41692_pciconf0 -y --set "cmd_type=1,counter_en=1" --reg_name PPCC --indexes "local_port=1,pnat=0,lp_msb=0,algo_slot=0,algo_param_index=0"

After counters are enabled on the algo_slot, they can be queried using cmd_type 0xC or 0xD.

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sudo mlxreg -d /dev/mst/mt41692_pciconf0 -y --get --op "cmd_type=12" --reg_name PPCC --indexes "local_port=1,pnat=0,lp_msb=0,algo_slot=0,algo_param_index=0" sudo mlxreg -d /dev/mst/mt41692_pciconf0 -y --get --op "cmd_type=13" --reg_name PPCC --indexes "local_port=1,pnat=0,lp_msb=0,algo_slot=0,algo_param_index=0"


  • /opt/mellanox/doca/applications/pcc/

  • /opt/mellanox/doca/applications/pcc/pcc_params.json

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