The sheer number of new nodes coming online is creating massive security challenges as networking infrastructure struggles to keep up with the processing requirements. One approach to mitigate the rising security challenge is the idea of installing a co-processor paired with a traditional off-the-shelf server to handle specialized processing loads, such as security.

Netronome Systems, Inc. is a company specializing in just that. “We see a significant trend in terms of the role of a coprocessor to the x86 or evolving ARM-based servers, and the workloads are shifting rapidly,” said Sujal Das (pictured), chief strategy and marketing officer at Netronome Systems. “With the need for higher performance, more efficiency in the server, you need coprocessors. … So we make, essentially, coprocessors that accelerate networking.”

Das spoke with host Stu Miniman (@stu) and guest host John Troyer (@jtroyer) of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s mobile livestreaming studio, during this year’s OpenStack Summit in Boston, Massachusetts, to discuss the benefits of a distributed approach to security. (* Disclosure below.)

A distributed approach to security

One of the primary use cases Netronome is targeting with its coprocessor technology is bringing security workloads directly onto a server in a model known as distributed security.

“The number of users is going to scale so rapidly and the amount of attacks that could be proliferated from these kind of devices is going to be so high that people are looking at moving DDoS from the perimeter of the network to each server,” Das said.

He continued to explain the benefits of performing security tasks at the security level by leveraging coprocessors.

“So when you move security into the server, the processing requirements go up. Typically with all security processing, it’s a lot of what’s called flow processing or match-action processing, and those are typically not suitable for a general purpose server like the ARM or x86, but that’s where you need specialized co-processors,” Das said.

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of OpenStack Summit 2017 Boston. (* Disclosure: Netronome Systems Inc. sponsors some OpenStack Summit segments on SiliconANGLE Media’s theCUBE. Neither Netronome Systems nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SilionANGLE