rrBox: Remote dynamically reconfigurable middlebox using NetFPGA

This paper presents a remote dynamically reconfigurable middlebox using NetFPGA 10G development board. The packet forwading algorithm in this middlebox can be updated remotely through the 1Gbps Ethernet connection without a host computer. The proposed architecture uses a customized reconfiguration controller and the Internal Configuration Access Port (ICAP) available in the reconfigurable device. Functional update is important to patch design flaws and bugs, to optimize design performance, and to cope with the changing of execution unit´s functional requirement. Based on the experimental result, the implemented middlebox achieved roughly 352Mbps reconfiguration throughput.