Objective

The objective of this tutorial is to introduce researchers, engineers and students to the state-of-the-art in network processor (NP) research and design. In support of this objective, the tutorial will be structured to achieve the following goals:

* To provide a technical and historical context for network processors

* To survey current network processor products and platforms from a research and development perspective

* To survey recent NP research along with a selection of research and development challenges

* To provide resources and tips for funding and bootstrapping NP research and development

Tentative Agenda

The tutorial will consist of approximately five parts, as indicated in the following preliminary topic outline:

Part 1: NP History and Timeline
Part 2: Design Issues and Challenges
Part 3: Products and Platforms
Part 4: NP Research: People, Projects and Forums
Part 5: Resources for NP R&D

Additionally, the following materials will be provided on the day of the
tutorial:

*       Annotated bibliography of NP research
*       Selection of NP IDEs running on laptops for trial

Tutorial Organizers:

Patrick Crowley
http://www.cs.washington.edu/homes/pcrowley
(pcrowley AT cs.washington.edu)
University of Washington

Patrick Crowley is currently a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Washington. Before arriving in Seattle, he earned a B.A. degree, summa cum laude, from Illinois Wesleyan University where he studied Mathematics, Physics and Computer Science. Crowley's research interests are in the area of computer systems architecture, with a present focus on the design and analysis of programmable packet processing systems. He is an active participant in the architecture research community and a reviewer for several conferences (ASPLOS, ISCA) and journals (IEEE TOCS). He was an organizer and member of the program committee of the HPCA8 Workshop on Network Processors (2002). He is co-editor of the book `Network Processor Design: Issues and Practices, Volume I' available from Morgan Kaufmann Publishers in September, 2002. Upon completing his Ph.D.,Crowley intends to pursue a university research and teaching career.

Raj Yavatkar
Cheif Software Architect, Intel Exchange Architecture
Intel Corporation