Zero-Copy References versus Copies

Episode 10 – zerocopy with Joshua Liebow-Feeser.

A conversation with Joshua Liebow-Feeser, the developer behind netstack3 and the creator of zerocopy, a crate that makes zero-cost memory manipulation effortless. Originally built for Fuchsia, zerocopy is now used by over 400 crates on crates.io, with nearly 300 million downloads.

We explore the origins of Fuchsia, the creation and purpose of zerocopy, how it works, and why you might want to use it. And of course, we get to know Joshua and his journey so far.

Learn more:

• https://model-checking.github.io/kani/ — Kani verifier
• https://github.com/rust-lang/rust/issues/99571 — Safe Transmute tracking issue
• https://github.com/rust-lang/unsafe-code-guidelines — Unsafe Code Guidelines WG
• https://docs.rs/zerocopy/latest/zerocopy/ — ZeroCopy documentation
• https://docs.rs/zerocopy-derive/latest/zerocopy_derive/ — ZeroCopy derive macros
• https://fuchsia.dev/fuchsia-src/get-started/learn/intro/architecture — Fuchsia networking architecture
• https://docs.kernel.org/networking/scaling.html — Scaling in the Linux Networking Stack
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFejpH_tAHM — dotGo 2015 - Rob Pike - Simplicity is Complicated

Rama

If you like this podcast you might also like our modular network framework in Rust: https://ramaproxy.org

Chapters

• 00:00 Intro
• 00:39 Introduction to Joshua Liebow-Feeser
• 01:34 Joshua's Journey into Software Development
• 11:41 The Origins of Netstack 3
• 17:21 The Philosophy Behind Netstack 3
• 23:03 The Role of Rust in Networking
• 42:57 The Concept and Development of ZeroCopy
• 53:10 Understanding Zero Copy and Its Constraints
• 55:11 Exploring Memory Management in Networking
• 59:23 Challenges with Variable Length Data Formats
• 01:04:20 Async Programming and Its Implications
• 01:11:13 Performance Considerations in Networking
• 01:16:50 Ambition in Software Design and API Simplicity
• 01:32:13 The Future of Networking and Rust's Role
• 01:42:42 Outro

Netstack.FM

• More information: https://netstack.fm/#episode-10
• Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/29EetaSYCD
• Reach out to us: hello@netstack.fm

Music for this episode was composed by Dj Mailbox. Listen to his music at https://on.soundcloud.com/4MRyPSNj8FZoVGpytj.