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Hardware Acceleration

FortiGate 3500F and 3501F fast path architecture

FortiGate 3500F and 3501F fast path architecture

The FortiGate 3500F and 3501F each include three NP7 processors (NP#0, NP#1, and NP#2). All front panel data interfaces (1 to 36) connect to the NP7 processors over the integrated switch fabric. So all supported traffic passing between any two data interfaces can be offloaded.

The FortiGate 3500F and 3501F models feature the following front panel interfaces:

  • Two 10 GigE Copper (MGMT1 and MGMT2, not connected to the NP7 processors).
  • Eight 10/25 GigE SFP+/SFP28 (HA1, HA2, 1 to 6), the HA interfaces are not connected to the NP7 processors.
  • Twenty-four 10/25 GigE SFP+/SFP28 (7 to 30).
  • Six 40/100 GigE QSFP28 (31 to 36).

The FortiGate 3500F and 3501F each include three NP7 processors. All front panel data interfaces and the NP7 processors connect to the integrated switch fabric (ISF). All data traffic passes from the data interfaces through the ISF to the NP7 processors. All supported traffic passing between any two data interfaces can be offloaded by the NP7 processors. Data traffic processed by the CPU takes a dedicated data path through the ISF and an NP7 processor to the CPU.

The MGMT interfaces are not connected to the NP7 processors. Management traffic passes to the CPU over a dedicated management path that is separate from the data path. You can also dedicate separate CPU resources for management traffic to further isolate management processing from data processing (see Dedicated management CPU).

The HA interfaces are also not connected to the NP7 processors. To help provide better HA stability and resiliency, HA traffic uses a dedicated physical control path that provides HA control traffic separation from data traffic processing.

The separation of management and HA traffic from data traffic keeps management and HA traffic from affecting the stability and performance of data traffic processing.

You can use the following command to display the FortiGate 3500F and 3501F NP7 configuration. The command output shows a that all three NP7s are connected to all interfaces.

diagnose npu np7 port-list
Front Panel Port:
Name     Max_speed(Mbps) Dflt_speed(Mbps) NP_group        Switch_id SW_port_id SW_port_name 
-------- --------------- ---------------  --------------- --------- ---------- ------------ 
port1    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         23         xe2          
port2    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         24         xe3          
port3    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         29         xe4          
port4    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         30         xe5          
port5    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         31         xe6          
port6    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         32         xe7          
port7    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         33         xe8          
port8    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         34         xe9          
port9    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         35         xe10         
port10   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         36         xe11         
port11   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         41         xe12         
port12   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         42         xe13         
port13   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         43         xe14         
port14   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         44         xe15         
port15   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         49         xe16         
port16   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         50         xe17         
port17   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         51         xe18         
port18   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         52         xe19         
port19   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         61         xe24         
port20   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         62         xe25         
port21   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         63         xe26         
port22   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         64         xe27         
port23   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         57         xe20         
port24   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         58         xe21         
port25   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         59         xe22         
port26   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         60         xe23         
port27   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         71         xe29         
port28   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         72         xe30         
port29   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         73         xe31         
port30   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         74         xe32     
port31   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         79         ce4          
port32   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         67         ce3          
port33   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         95         ce6          
port34   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         87         ce5          
port35   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         123        ce10         
port36   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         99         ce7          
-------- --------------- ---------------  --------------- --------- ---------- ------------ 

NP Port:
Name   Switch_id SW_port_id SW_port_name 
------ --------- ---------- ------------ 
np0_0  0         5          ce1          
np0_1  0         13         ce2          
np1_0  0         127        ce11         
np1_1  0         1          ce0          
np2_0  0         107        ce8          
np2_1  0         115        ce9          
------ --------- ---------- ------------ 
* Max_speed: Maximum speed, Dflt_speed: Default speed
* SW_port_id: Switch port ID, SW_port_name: Switch port name

The command output also shows the maximum and default speeds of each interface.

The integrated switch fabric distributes sessions from the data interfaces to the NP7 processors. The three NP7 processors have a bandwidth capacity of 200Gigabit x 3 = 600 Gigabit. If all interfaces were operating at their maximum bandwidth, the NP7 processors would not be able to offload all the traffic. You can use NPU port mapping to control how sessions are distributed to NP7 processors.

You can add LAGs to improve performance. For details, see Increasing NP7 offloading capacity using link aggregation groups (LAGs).

The FortiGate-3500F and 3501F can be licensed for hyperscale firewall support, see the Hyperscale Firewall Guide.

Configuring NPU port mapping

The default FortiGate-3500F and 3501F port mapping configuration results in sessions passing from front panel data interfaces to the integrated switch fabric. The integrated switch fabric distributes these sessions among the NP7 processors. Each NP7 processor is connected to the switch fabric with a LAG that consists of two 100-Gigabitinterfaces. The integrated switch fabric distributes sessions to the LAGs and each LAG distributes sessions between the two interfaces connected to the NP7 processor.

You can use NPU port mapping to override how data network interface sessions are distributed to each NP7 processor. For example, you can sent up NPU port mapping to send all traffic from a front panel data interface to a specific NP7 processor LAG or even to just one of the interfaces in that LAG.

Use the following command to configure NPU port mapping:

config system npu

config port-npu-map

edit <interface-name>

set npu-group-index <index>

end

<interface-name> the name of a front panel data interface.

<index> select different values of <index> to change how sessions from the selected front panel data interface are handled by the integrated switch fabric. The list of available <index> options depends on the NP7 configuration of your FortGate. For the FortiGate-3500F or 3501F <index> can be 0 to 6. Use the ? to see the effect of each <index> value.

Here are some examples of <index> values for the FortiGate-3500F and 3501F:

  • 0, assign the front panel data interface to NP#0-1, the default. Sessions from the front panel data interface are distributed among all three NP7 LAGs.
  • 2, assign the front panel data interface to the LAG connected to NP#1. Sessions from the front panel data interface are sent to the LAG connected to NP#1.

<index> select different values of <index> to change how sessions from the selected front panel data interface are handled by the integrated switch fabric. The list of available <index> options depends on the NP7 configuration of your FortGate. For the FortiGate-3500F or 3501F <index> can be:

  • 0: NP#0-2, distribute sessions from the front panel data interface among all three NP7 LAGs.

  • 1: NP#0, send sessions from the front panel data interface to the LAG connected to NP#0.

  • 2: NP#1, send sessions from the front panel data interface to the LAG connected to NP#1.

  • 3: NP#2, send sessions from the front panel data interface to the LAG connected to NP#2.

  • 4: NP#0-1, distribute sessions from the front panel data interface between the LAG connected to NP#0 and the LAG connected to NP#1.

  • 5: NP#1-2, distribute sessions from the front panel data interface between the LAG connected to NP#1 and the LAG connected to NP#2.

  • 6: NP#0-link0, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np0_0, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#0.

  • 7: NP#0-link1, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np0_0, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#0.

  • 8: NP#1-link0, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np1_0, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#1.

  • 9: NP#1-link1, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np1_1, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#1.

  • 10: NP#2-link0, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np2_0, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#2.

  • 11: NP#2-link1, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np2_1, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#2.

For example, use the following syntax to assign the FortiGate-3500F port21 and port22 interfaces to NP#1 and port23 and port24 interfaces to NP#2:

config system npu

config port-npu-map

edit port21

set npu-group-index 2

next

edit port22

set npu-group-index 2

next

edit port23

set npu-group-index 3

next

edit port24

set npu-group-index 3

end

end

You can use the diagnose npu np7 port-list command to see the current NPU port map configuration. While the FortiGate-3500F or 3501F is processing traffic, you can use the diagnose npu np7 cgmac-stats <npu-id> command to show how traffic is distributed to the NP7 links.

For example, after making the changes described in the example, the NP_group column of the diagnose npu np7 port-list command output for port21 to port 24 shows the new mapping:

diagnose npu np7 port-list
Front Panel Port:
Name   Max_speed(Mbps) Dflt_speed(Mbps) NP_group        Switch_id SW_port_id SW_port_name 
------ --------------- ---------------  --------------- --------- ---------- ------------  
.          
.          
.          
port21 100000          100000           NP#1            0         75         ce9          
port22 100000          100000           NP#1            0         71         ce8          
port23 100000          100000           NP#2            0         83         ce11         
port24 100000          100000           NP#2            0         79         ce10          
.
.
.

FortiGate 3500F and 3501F fast path architecture

The FortiGate 3500F and 3501F each include three NP7 processors (NP#0, NP#1, and NP#2). All front panel data interfaces (1 to 36) connect to the NP7 processors over the integrated switch fabric. So all supported traffic passing between any two data interfaces can be offloaded.

The FortiGate 3500F and 3501F models feature the following front panel interfaces:

  • Two 10 GigE Copper (MGMT1 and MGMT2, not connected to the NP7 processors).
  • Eight 10/25 GigE SFP+/SFP28 (HA1, HA2, 1 to 6), the HA interfaces are not connected to the NP7 processors.
  • Twenty-four 10/25 GigE SFP+/SFP28 (7 to 30).
  • Six 40/100 GigE QSFP28 (31 to 36).

The FortiGate 3500F and 3501F each include three NP7 processors. All front panel data interfaces and the NP7 processors connect to the integrated switch fabric (ISF). All data traffic passes from the data interfaces through the ISF to the NP7 processors. All supported traffic passing between any two data interfaces can be offloaded by the NP7 processors. Data traffic processed by the CPU takes a dedicated data path through the ISF and an NP7 processor to the CPU.

The MGMT interfaces are not connected to the NP7 processors. Management traffic passes to the CPU over a dedicated management path that is separate from the data path. You can also dedicate separate CPU resources for management traffic to further isolate management processing from data processing (see Dedicated management CPU).

The HA interfaces are also not connected to the NP7 processors. To help provide better HA stability and resiliency, HA traffic uses a dedicated physical control path that provides HA control traffic separation from data traffic processing.

The separation of management and HA traffic from data traffic keeps management and HA traffic from affecting the stability and performance of data traffic processing.

You can use the following command to display the FortiGate 3500F and 3501F NP7 configuration. The command output shows a that all three NP7s are connected to all interfaces.

diagnose npu np7 port-list
Front Panel Port:
Name     Max_speed(Mbps) Dflt_speed(Mbps) NP_group        Switch_id SW_port_id SW_port_name 
-------- --------------- ---------------  --------------- --------- ---------- ------------ 
port1    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         23         xe2          
port2    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         24         xe3          
port3    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         29         xe4          
port4    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         30         xe5          
port5    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         31         xe6          
port6    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         32         xe7          
port7    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         33         xe8          
port8    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         34         xe9          
port9    25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         35         xe10         
port10   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         36         xe11         
port11   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         41         xe12         
port12   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         42         xe13         
port13   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         43         xe14         
port14   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         44         xe15         
port15   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         49         xe16         
port16   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         50         xe17         
port17   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         51         xe18         
port18   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         52         xe19         
port19   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         61         xe24         
port20   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         62         xe25         
port21   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         63         xe26         
port22   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         64         xe27         
port23   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         57         xe20         
port24   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         58         xe21         
port25   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         59         xe22         
port26   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         60         xe23         
port27   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         71         xe29         
port28   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         72         xe30         
port29   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         73         xe31         
port30   25000           10000            NP#0-2          0         74         xe32     
port31   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         79         ce4          
port32   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         67         ce3          
port33   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         95         ce6          
port34   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         87         ce5          
port35   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         123        ce10         
port36   100000          100000           NP#0-2          0         99         ce7          
-------- --------------- ---------------  --------------- --------- ---------- ------------ 

NP Port:
Name   Switch_id SW_port_id SW_port_name 
------ --------- ---------- ------------ 
np0_0  0         5          ce1          
np0_1  0         13         ce2          
np1_0  0         127        ce11         
np1_1  0         1          ce0          
np2_0  0         107        ce8          
np2_1  0         115        ce9          
------ --------- ---------- ------------ 
* Max_speed: Maximum speed, Dflt_speed: Default speed
* SW_port_id: Switch port ID, SW_port_name: Switch port name

The command output also shows the maximum and default speeds of each interface.

The integrated switch fabric distributes sessions from the data interfaces to the NP7 processors. The three NP7 processors have a bandwidth capacity of 200Gigabit x 3 = 600 Gigabit. If all interfaces were operating at their maximum bandwidth, the NP7 processors would not be able to offload all the traffic. You can use NPU port mapping to control how sessions are distributed to NP7 processors.

You can add LAGs to improve performance. For details, see Increasing NP7 offloading capacity using link aggregation groups (LAGs).

The FortiGate-3500F and 3501F can be licensed for hyperscale firewall support, see the Hyperscale Firewall Guide.

Configuring NPU port mapping

The default FortiGate-3500F and 3501F port mapping configuration results in sessions passing from front panel data interfaces to the integrated switch fabric. The integrated switch fabric distributes these sessions among the NP7 processors. Each NP7 processor is connected to the switch fabric with a LAG that consists of two 100-Gigabitinterfaces. The integrated switch fabric distributes sessions to the LAGs and each LAG distributes sessions between the two interfaces connected to the NP7 processor.

You can use NPU port mapping to override how data network interface sessions are distributed to each NP7 processor. For example, you can sent up NPU port mapping to send all traffic from a front panel data interface to a specific NP7 processor LAG or even to just one of the interfaces in that LAG.

Use the following command to configure NPU port mapping:

config system npu

config port-npu-map

edit <interface-name>

set npu-group-index <index>

end

<interface-name> the name of a front panel data interface.

<index> select different values of <index> to change how sessions from the selected front panel data interface are handled by the integrated switch fabric. The list of available <index> options depends on the NP7 configuration of your FortGate. For the FortiGate-3500F or 3501F <index> can be 0 to 6. Use the ? to see the effect of each <index> value.

Here are some examples of <index> values for the FortiGate-3500F and 3501F:

  • 0, assign the front panel data interface to NP#0-1, the default. Sessions from the front panel data interface are distributed among all three NP7 LAGs.
  • 2, assign the front panel data interface to the LAG connected to NP#1. Sessions from the front panel data interface are sent to the LAG connected to NP#1.

<index> select different values of <index> to change how sessions from the selected front panel data interface are handled by the integrated switch fabric. The list of available <index> options depends on the NP7 configuration of your FortGate. For the FortiGate-3500F or 3501F <index> can be:

  • 0: NP#0-2, distribute sessions from the front panel data interface among all three NP7 LAGs.

  • 1: NP#0, send sessions from the front panel data interface to the LAG connected to NP#0.

  • 2: NP#1, send sessions from the front panel data interface to the LAG connected to NP#1.

  • 3: NP#2, send sessions from the front panel data interface to the LAG connected to NP#2.

  • 4: NP#0-1, distribute sessions from the front panel data interface between the LAG connected to NP#0 and the LAG connected to NP#1.

  • 5: NP#1-2, distribute sessions from the front panel data interface between the LAG connected to NP#1 and the LAG connected to NP#2.

  • 6: NP#0-link0, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np0_0, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#0.

  • 7: NP#0-link1, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np0_0, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#0.

  • 8: NP#1-link0, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np1_0, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#1.

  • 9: NP#1-link1, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np1_1, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#1.

  • 10: NP#2-link0, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np2_0, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#2.

  • 11: NP#2-link1, send sessions from the front panel data interface to np2_1, which is one of the interfaces connected to NP#2.

For example, use the following syntax to assign the FortiGate-3500F port21 and port22 interfaces to NP#1 and port23 and port24 interfaces to NP#2:

config system npu

config port-npu-map

edit port21

set npu-group-index 2

next

edit port22

set npu-group-index 2

next

edit port23

set npu-group-index 3

next

edit port24

set npu-group-index 3

end

end

You can use the diagnose npu np7 port-list command to see the current NPU port map configuration. While the FortiGate-3500F or 3501F is processing traffic, you can use the diagnose npu np7 cgmac-stats <npu-id> command to show how traffic is distributed to the NP7 links.

For example, after making the changes described in the example, the NP_group column of the diagnose npu np7 port-list command output for port21 to port 24 shows the new mapping:

diagnose npu np7 port-list
Front Panel Port:
Name   Max_speed(Mbps) Dflt_speed(Mbps) NP_group        Switch_id SW_port_id SW_port_name 
------ --------------- ---------------  --------------- --------- ---------- ------------  
.          
.          
.          
port21 100000          100000           NP#1            0         75         ce9          
port22 100000          100000           NP#1            0         71         ce8          
port23 100000          100000           NP#2            0         83         ce11         
port24 100000          100000           NP#2            0         79         ce10          
.
.
.