This lecture aims to provide a brief introduction to the InfiniBandג¢ architecture and programming using RDMA verbs. InfiniBand is an open standard, used in HPC (supercomputing) and data center environments for high performance connectivity.
This standard defines a complete fabric architecture, from the physical layer all the way to the programming API. The programming API, also known as RDMA verbs, allows for transparent memory operations over the network, transport layer offloading, and a complete kernel bypass.
In this lecture we will also describe the intricate relationship between InfiniBand and open source projects. We will review the basics of the RDMA verbs, correlate the InfiniBand world to the Ethernet-TCP/IP-sockets world, and show a full data flow over this technology. Finally, we will show how RDMA verbs are also available for Ethernet networks through a standard called RoCE.
See also http://www.rdmamojo.com/, a technical site about RDMA technology.