Limited-State TCP (1996)

First used: 1996

Definition

A hardware TCP state machine implemented in Xilinx FPGA at iReady Corporation in 1996 using hand-wrapped connections. Maintained only the minimal state necessary for TCP protocol compliance while offloading most state management to hardware registers — distinct from fully stateless TCP in that it retains enough state for reliable delivery, but far less than a conventional software TCP stack. Predecessor to iReady's silicon TCP product line, acquired by NVIDIA in 2001.

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