[4217] in linux-net channel archive
Re: sk_buff <-> mbuf
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Alan Cox)
Wed Aug 28 12:01:50 1996
From: Alan Cox <alan@cymru.net>
To: Kris.Boulez@rug.ac.be (Kris Boulez)
Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 15:28:00 +0100 (BST)
Cc: linux-net@vger.rutgers.edu
In-Reply-To: <Pine.3.89.9608281546.A19536-0100000@bionmr1.rug.ac.be> from "Kris Boulez" at Aug 28, 96 03:58:36 pm
> The authors talk constantly about 'mbuf' (memory buffer) this
> seems to be replaced in the linux code by 'sk_buff'. Is this just a
> synonym or is this fundamentally different ? Is there a paper which
They serve the same basic aim - to keep network data in a consistent and
fast to manipulate form. sk_buff's are linear while BSD mbufs form
chains. sk-buffs are pulled fro the main memory pool, mbufs are
preallocated.
> describes the differences in the linux networking with respect to the
> original Net/3 code ? Are these differences small/big ?
Quite large. The whole basis of BSD is chains of buffers the basis of
Linux is linear buffers and copy/checksum.
The linux networking code is partly documented on the KHG
http://www.redhat.com:8080/
Im writing more on this at the moment
Alan
