local UDP broadcast performance

0
votes

I have a distributed application that should analyse large data flows in real time.

The application consist of

  1. A master system which collect the data from an external device
  2. Some slaves systems which analyse the data sent by the master system

All computers are connected directly with gigabit connectivity using just one switch.

Is it possible to achieve (near) gigabit bandwith UDP broadcast using a standard gigabit switch? Does using MAC or IP level broadcast change anything?

One related question is do I have to care about reliability and packet ordering when connected locally?

2
udpbroadcastmulticast
UDP is not reliable protocol. You have to care about lost packets. - Fumu 7
Yes, but can we can assume that it is close to reliable in a controlled local environment? - DurandA

2 Answers

0
votes

No, using broadcast won't work, since most network switches intentionally rate limit broadcast traffic to prevent packet storms from saturating the network.

NB: IP broadcast on ethernet also implies using MAC-level broadcast, i.e. IP broadcast packets get encapsulated inside Ethernet broadcast frames.

0
votes

Do I have to care about reliability and packet ordering when connected locally?

Yes, you do have to care about reliability when connected locally. By default, UDP is not a reliable protocol. Also, with regards to packet ordering: you should analyse the requirements of your application before you make a decision. This is an important step because the mechanisms used for ordering introduce an extra overhead. Hence, the time spent of investigating this issue might pay off in avoiding this overhead.