Packets at Line Rate: How to Actually Use AF_XDP

About 5 months ago I decided to create my own (minimal) TCP/IP implementation in user space. After spending some time looking over my options, I decided that I would build it atop AF_XDP sockets. They offer amazing performance, are very well supported, and unlike certain other options (DPDK) they don’t take ownership of the NIC in a way that is disruptive to other processes. The fact that it would also give me a chance to learn a bit more about eBPF was just the cherry on top.