PluriBus NPSI

Network Processing Forum Streaming Interface Core

Features:

  • NPF-compliant Streaming Interface with run-time selectable NPE-Framer, NPE-NPE, and NPE-Fabric modes.

  • Fully synchronous design, exceeds: 1.3 Gb/s (650 MHz DDR)

  • Internal user interface with a 64- or 128-bit data bus in each direction

  • Out-of-band packet signaling with SOP, EOP, Mod, and Err on User Interface.

  • Start Of Packet (SOP) data to MSB alignment function.

  • Handles continuous back-to-back End Of Packets (EOP) (2N + 1-byte packets) with shared control words1

  • DIP-4 Parity generation/checking1

  • Extended Address Data Burst without Address Data Words (ADW)

  • Status channel framing and DIP-2 generation and checking.

  • Automatic generation and handling of Link Level flow control (Data Ready (DR)) (NPE-Fabric)

  • Automatic generation and handling Status Not Ready (SNR) (NPE-Fabric)

  • Loss of Data Synchronization (LODS) and Loss of Status Synchronization (LOSS) detection and generation

  • Protocol checking and rejection and reporting of illegal control/data word sequences

  • Training Sequence generation and detection

  • Static and dynamic timing alignment

  • Hitless Bandwidth Provisioning

Test Bench Features:

Rx/Sink Direction:

  • Automatic NPSI Control word generation according to packet signaling in source data files.

  • Programmable data rate per channel

  • Clock to data skew insertion and relative bit skewing in fractions of a bit time

  • Clock jitter insertion

  • Programmable data packing with idle control word insertion between bursts or shared control word generation

  • DIP-4 and DIP-2 error insertion

Tx/Source Direction:

  • Control word decoding

  • Per-channel Virtual FIFOs with programmable depth and thresholds to generate flow control to core

  • DIP-4 and DIP-2 checking

Standards Compliance:

  • NPF Streaming Interface

  • OIF SPI-4 Phase 2

  • Saturn Group (PMC-Sierra) POS-PHY L4

Additional Information:

Description

The Network Processing Forum’s (NPF) Streaming Interface (NPSI) supports the connection of pairs of network processing devices such as Physical Layer devices (framers, mappers, and Ethernet MACs), network processing elements (NPE), and switch fabrics through three types of interfaces: Framer-NPE, NPE-NPE, and NPE-Fabric. Modelware’s PluriBus NPSI Foundation core is built on our proven SPI-4.2 technology, and fully supports the framer, NPE, and switch fabric modes of operation. Modelware’s NPSI core enables customers to bring NPF-compliant Products to market faster while ensuring interoperability with other standard Products.

On the user’s side, the NPSI core interfaces to single- or multi-channel user logic through one FIFO subsystem for each direction. The NPSI Sink section stores data received for a particular channel in a single FIFO along with the port address information that is decoded from the Address and Payload Control Words preceding the data burst. The NPSI Source section reads the port number and packet data from the source FIFO and transmits them on the NPSI interface.

The core also passes decoded per-channel user FIFO status (framer and NPE modes) or flow control messages (switch fabric mode) between the NPSI interface and the user’s application in both directions. The NPSI Sink section transmits the FIFO status or flow control information provided by the user’s circuitry. The NPSI Source section receives the far-end FIFO status or flow control messages and makes them available for reading by the user’s application.