Configuration File
The controller service has an optional JSON format configuration file which allows users to customize several parameters. The configuration file should be defined on the DPU at /opt/mellanox/mlnx_virtnet/virtnet.conf. This file is read every time the controller starts.
Controller systemd service should be restarted when there is configuration file change. Dynamic change of virtnet.conf is not supported.
|
Parameter |
Default Value |
Type |
Description |
|
ib_dev_p0 |
mlx5_0 |
String |
RDMA device (e.g., mlx5_0) used to create SF on port 0. This port is the EMU manager when is_lag is 0. |
|
ib_dev_p1 |
mlx5_1 |
String |
RDMA device (e.g., mlx5_1) used to create SF on port 1 |
|
ib_dev_for_static_pf |
mlx5_0 |
String |
The RDMA device (e.g., mlx5_0) which the static virtio PF is created on |
|
ib_dev_lag |
Null |
String |
RDMA LAG device (e.g., mlx5_bond_0) used to create SF on LAG. Default value is mlx5_bond_0. This port is EMU manager when is_lag is 1. ib_dev_lag and ib_dev_p0/ib_dev_p1 cannot be configured simultaneously. |
|
mac_base |
Null |
String |
Base MAC address for static PFs. MACs are automatically assigned with the following pattern: pf_mac→pf_0, pf_mac+1→pf_1, etc. Note
Controller does not validate the MAC address (other than its length). The user must ensure the MAC is valid and unique.
|
|
features |
0 |
Number |
Virtio spec-defined feature bits for static PFs. Note
If unsure, leave features out of the JSON file and a default value is automatically assigned. The default value is determined dynamically when controller starts. Refer to the "Feature Bits" page for more information.
|
|
is_lag |
0 |
Number |
Specifies whether LAG is used Note
If LAG is used, make sure to use the correct IB dev for static PF
|
|
single_port |
0 |
Number |
Specifies whether the DPU is a single port device. It is mutually exclusive with is_lag. |
|
recovery |
1 |
Number |
Specifies whether recovery is enabled. If unspecified, recovery is enabled by default. To disable it, set recovery to 0. Refer to the "Recovery" page for the items which are recovered and more information. |
|
sf_pool_percent |
0 |
Number |
Determines the initial SF pool size as the percentage of PF_TOTAL_SF of mlxconfig. Valid range: [0, 100]. For instance, if the value is 5, an SF pool with 5% of PF_TOTAL_SF is created. 0 indicates that no SF pool is reserved beforehand (default). Note
PF_TOTAL_SF is shared by all applications. The user must ensure that the percent request is guaranteed, or else the controller would not be able to reserve the requested SFs resulting in failure.
|
|
sf_pool_force_destroy |
0 |
Number |
Specifies whether to destroy the SF pool. When set to 1, the controller destroys the SF pool when stopped/restarted (and the SF pool is recreated if sf_pool_percent is not 0 when starting). Otherwise, it does not. Default value is 0. |
|
packed_vq |
0 |
Number |
Specifies whether packed VQ mode is enabled. If unspecified, packed VQ is disabled by default. To enable, set packed_vq to 1. For VQ types, refer to the "Virt Queue Types" page. |
|
mrg_rxbuf |
0 |
Number |
When enabled, the mergeable buffers feature is negotiated with the host driver. This feature allows the guest driver to use multiple RX descriptor chains to receive a single receive packet, hence increase bandwidth. |
|
dpa_core_start |
0 |
Number |
Specifies the start DPA core for virtnet application. Valid only for NVIDIA® BlueField®-3 and up. Value must be greater than 0 and less than 11. Together with dpa_core_end, dpa_core_start defines how many DPA cores are used for the virtio-net data plane. Note
This is advanced options when there are multiple DPA applications running at the same time. Regular user should keep this option as default.
|
|
dpa_core_end |
10 |
Number |
Specifies the end DPA core for virtnet application. Valid only for BlueField-3 and up. Value must be greater than dpa_core_start and less than 11. |
Validate the JSON format of the config file, especially the syntax and symbols (e.g., "").
Configuring LAG on Dual Port BlueField
To run virtio-net-controller in LAG mode, it is required to have both the BlueField and controller configured.
To configure BlueField in LAG mode, refer to "Link Aggregation" page in NVIDIA BlueField BSP documentation.
Run:
{
"ib_dev_lag": "mlx5_bond_0",
"ib_dev_for_static_pf": "mlx5_bond_0",
"is_lag": 1,
}
It is required to restart virtio-net-controller service after creating/destroying LAG.
Configuring Static PF on Dual Port BlueField
The following configures all static PFs to use mlx5_0 (port 0) as the data path device in a non-LAG configuration, and the default MAC and features for the PF:
{
"ib_dev_p0": "mlx5_0",
"ib_dev_p1": "mlx5_1",
"ib_dev_for_static_pf": "mlx5_0",
"is_lag": 0,
"static_pf": {
"mac_base": "08:11:22:33:44:55",
"features": "0x230047082b"
}
}