In-Network Compute: Considered Armed and Dangerous

Abstract

Programmable data planes promise unprecedented flexibility and innovation. But enormous management issues arise when these programmable data-planes, and the in-network compute functionality they enable, are deployed within production networks. In this paper, we present an overview of these management challenges, then explore the limitations of existing management techniques. Finally, we propose a system, Harmony, that encapsulates new abstractions and primitives to address these problems.