Alan Braithwaite

Senior Project Implementation

CSU Chico

Spring 2013

This repository is an implementation of OpenFlow on the NetFPGA for my senior project in Computer Engineering at CSU Chico.

A little bit about OpenFlow from their site:

OpenFlow enables networks to evolve, by giving a remote controller the power to modify the behavior of network devices, through a well-defined "forwarding instruction set". The growing OpenFlow ecosystem now includes routers, switches, virtual switches, and access points from a range of vendors.

I chose this project because I wanted to know more about OpenFlow and because I've developed a vast interest in network technologies since I started at Chico. I will be designing my project according to the OpenFlow Switch Specification 1.0.0 (pdf). The goal of the project is to design and implement a fully functional OpenFlow enabled switch that can be integrated with a controller.

Doing something with networking seemed out of the question for me at first, but then I heard about the NetFPGA. The NetFPGA is a platform that allows for quick development of experimental network processing architecture and provides the means to do it simply. Additionally, it has some pretty great documentation on their site.