Google has announced the launch of a new data transmission technology called Falcon, which is designed to increase the throughput and effectiveness of data transmission in existing standard networks. Falcon is being included in the Open Compute project, which focuses on the joint development of open specifications for data center equipment.
Falcon is presented as the next generation Ethernet, specifically designed for use in data centers. It aims to provide high performance, low delays, flexibility, and expansion capabilities. The first support for Falcon will be provided in network accelerators of the Intel IPU E2000 series.
To achieve minimal delays in high-speed Ethernet networks, Falcon utilizes a combination of three principles: accurate measurement of delays, hardware traffic control, and quick and accurate retransmission of packets. The protocol also supports the use of multiple channels and compounds for increased efficiency.
Falcon includes several technologies, such as carousel for traffic control, SNAP for network subsystems, swift for reloading in data centers, rack-tlp for package loss determination, plb for load balancing, csig for telemetric information exchange, and psp for traffic encryption.
In addition to supporting top-level protocols like RDMA and NVM Express, Falcon also allows for the addition of support for other protocols. The protocol is divided into three levels: comparison with top-level protocols, transaction level, and package delivery level, ensuring efficient data flow management and reliable transfer.