Review of "A 50-Gb/s IP Router"

Did you like this paper? Why?
No, because a lot of their design it is based on the CPU, that allow them to achieve that performance, also at the end of their paper they present an incomplete implementation of their idea.
It is true that based on the experiments results they have we can assume they will achieve the desirable performance when they finish the router.

What problem is this paper solving?
They are demonstrating how could be implemented the forwarding engine mainly based on the Alpha 21164 Processor that they mention it is a good solution for their needs. Also they are using a good idea for the allocator algorithm that looks more fare than previous approaches and also it is possible to implement.


What are the strengths of this paper?
I like how they simplify the design of the router backplane compared to McKeown, I guess the most important strengths of the paper its that could be feasible to use an specialized Processor for solve a lot  of the problems related to the backplane.


What are the main weaknesses in the paper?
The allocator algorithm it is not convincing me that will improve a lot the fairness of the system. Could be interesting getting some performance results.


What would you do differently? Are there assumptions you disagree with? Do you see ideas for future work or improving the solution proposed?
I would complete the implementation for having results mention that they are working with the complete implementation of their prototype, and also compare their approach to others routes performance.