As we ramp up towards one of the premiere online tech events — in one of the most extraordinary years of a lifetime — I would like to shine a spotlight on what is being planned around NSX performance during this year’s virtual conference to help you get the most out of the event. VMWorld 2020 is right around the corner — and for the first time in two decades, it’s free! So, Register Now if you haven’t done so already!

NSX Performance Thus Far

Over the years, we’ve looked at the NSX performance numbers with and without hardware-level features, such as Geneve Offload and Geneve Rx Filters, that are key to optimal performance. If these topics are new to you, I would encourage reading up on the performance section of the NSX-T Reference Design Guide for a working knowledge of NSX-T performance before attending this year’s NSX-T Performance Session at VMworld.

NSX-T Performance Session at VMworld 2020

Given the virtual format of this year’s NSX-T Performance Session, I’ve decided to take a slightly different approach. Not only will I share performance numbers, but I’ll also demonstrate how different hardware-level features influence performance, and I’ll discuss feature and tuning considerations such as:

  • MTU: Those of you following these sessions over the years, should already be aware that the use of larger MTUs is an easy way to maximize throughput on any NIC. But by how much?  And does it help with anything else?
  • Geneve Offload: This is one of those key parameters that you hear a lot about. But does it really help with performance?
  • Geneve Rx Filters / RSS: What’s the deal with RSS and Geneve Rx Filters? Why do you need these when your NIC already supports Geneve Offload?
  • Dual TEP, 100G NICs, IXIA & SSL-Offload:  We’ll take a look at advantages of going with a single TEP vs. a dual TEP and I’ll share the performance advantages of going with a dual TEP design.

Even though this year has thrown numerous challenges at us, it is turning out to be one of the most exciting years, because we are finally getting to showcase 100G NICs. Not one — but two! Curious what 100Gbps could provide on the compute front? Join us to find out!

NSX-T Resources

If you are new to NSX performance topics, I would recommend checking out the following resources in advance of the NSX-T Performance Session so you can get the most out of the conference session. If you don’t have time, no worries, I will spend the first 10 mins of the session making sure everyone is up to speed on what will be covered in the session.

Performance Considerations – eBook

Apart from the above resources, we have just released a free eBook on performance considerations.  This eBook details the various tuning parameters, benefits, and the areas where they would be applicable.  Check out this eBook on NSX Tech Zone:  VMware NSX-T Data Center – Performance Considerations on Intel Platform

How to Connect

This blog will be your best way connect and reach out to me, both during and after VMworld, with any questions, requests, and suggestions.