General System Tuning for the NCA

In addition to setting the NCA parameters, you can do some general system tuning to benefit NCA performance. If you are using gigabit Ethernet (ge driver), you should set the interface in interrupt mode for better results.

For example, a system with 4 Gbytes of memory that is booted under 64-bit kernel should have the following parameters set in the /etc/system file. Use pagesize to determine your system's page size.

set sq_max_size=0
set ge:ge_intr_mode=1
set nca:nca_conn_hash_size=82500
set nca:nca_conn_req_max_q=100000
set nca:nca_conn_req_max_q0=100000
set nca:nca_ppmax=393216
set nca:nca_vpmax=393216

sq_max_size

Description

Sets the depth of the syncq (number of messages) before a destination STREAMS queue generates a QFULL message.

Default

10000 messages

Range

0 (unlimited) to MAXINT

Dynamic?

No

When to Change

When NCA is running on a system with a lot of memory, increase this parameter to allow drivers to queue more packets of data. If a server is under heavy load, increase this parameter so that modules and drivers can process more data without dropping packets or getting backlogged.

Solaris 8 and later releases – Do not set this parameter to 0 on production systems. If you need to change this parameter, gradually increase this value, and monitor the system.

Solaris 7 and earlier releases – Do not set this parameter to 0 on production systems. If you need to change this parameter, gradually increase this value to a maximum of 100, and monitor the system.

Commitment Level

Unstable

Change History

For information, see sq_max_size (Solaris 9 12/02 Release).

ge:ge_intr_mode

Description

Enables the ge driver to send packets directly to the upper communication layers rather than queue the packets

Default

0 (queue packets to upper layers)

Range

0 (enable) or 1 (disable)

Dynamic?

No

When to Change

When NCA is enabled, set this parameter to 1 so that the packet is delivered to NCA in interrupt mode for faster processing.

Commitment Level

Unstable