P4 Programming Training in Dublin, Ireland

The P4 Programming course is designed for network engineers, software developers, and researchers who want to master data plane programmability using the P4 language. This course covers the fundamentals of P4, writing P4 programs, debugging, testing, and deploying programmable networks.

This course covers:

• Introduction to Programmable Data Planes and P4

• P4 Language Syntax and Semantics

• Packet Processing and Header Manipulation

• Developing Custom Network Functions Using P4

• Testing, Debugging, and Optimizing P4 Programs

• P4 Use Cases: Load Balancing, Traffic Monitoring, Security, and SDN Integration

Course Agenda

Introduction to P4 and Programmable Data Planes

• Why do we need P4?

• Comparison with traditional networking

• P4 language design and architecture

• Overview of P4 target platforms (BMv2, Tofino, NetFPGA)

P4 Language Basics

• P4 program structure

• Defining header types and parsers

• Tables, actions, and control flow

• Writing a simple P4 program

Packet Processing with P4

• Header parsing and modification

• Table-based packet forwarding

• Writing and executing P4 pipeline stages

• Match-action pipeline design principles

Advanced P4 Features

• Stateful packet processing with registers and counters

• Metadata and intrinsic fields

• Implementing custom checksum computations

• Dynamic packet manipulation techniques

Debugging and Testing P4 Programs

• Using p4c (P4 compiler) for syntax checking

• Testing P4 programs in BMv2 (Behavioral Model v2)

• Debugging with P4Runtime and control plane integration

• Common errors and troubleshooting methods

P4 and SDN Integration

• Integrating P4 with SDN controllers (ONOS, P4Runtime)

• Using P4 with OpenFlow and gNMI

• Dynamic rule updates using control plane APIs

• Performance optimization strategies

Use Cases & Real-World Applications

• Load balancing using P4

• DDoS detection and mitigation

• Network telemetry and monitoring

• Custom firewall implementation

Hands-on Labs