Hi
Packet processing in Mikrotik is done by Software or dedicated ASIC ?
Abhishek
1st.
but by “firmware” to be exact(despite you can call “software” anything, from CPU microcode to really complex solutions.
p.s.
number of devices, Really using ASIC for something meaningful ALONE, quite limited aswell as their usage.
and such side of them, despite advertisements, had more drawbacks, than positive sides/elements.
To actually answer the quesions:
Some functions are performed on the ASIC (like “/interface ethernet switch” menu), but most functions are implemented in software.
Do note that MikroTik has fast-path, so a lot of the stuff is actually handled by device drivers and the Linux kernel directly.
Hi
Thanks for your replies.
To be very specific, we have very recently deployed 3 CCR Routers in our network as hotspots each passing 300-350 Mbps of average bandwidth with 1200 to 1500 online susbcribers. Our policies are multi-rated. Average CPU percentage is 35%.
I am not sure , if the above statistics are optimum, but I have seen CPU % is directly proportional to the amount of bandwidth is passes and whenever I switch-on the Firewall module ( connection tracking ) . If the packet processing for firewall module can be offloaded from CPU to some auxiliary co-processor somehow, then we can save drastic amount of energy from the router.
This is just a commercial viewpoint , technical pros and cons can be highlighted by the Gurus only.
Abhishek
amounts of silicon and power wasted to implement “in transistors” essential for networking “hostspots” in firmware codes(routing, nat-ing, ips and etc -relevant stuff all the same), considered ridiculous, compare to more versatile/all-around. use of them during chips design.
but its matter of times too, not so near, but it eventually happen with networking SoC.
even intel start enjoy moving stuff from microcode to silicon with notable benefits, so its only depend on time/moment, where its become both tehcnically and economically reasonably enough.
Please note that mikrotik doesn’t design the chips but uses available standard chips from their manufacturers. If you have any idea how to improve their chips send it to them.
or better - create you company and start sell such chips to mikrotik 
there was hungreds fabless design companies in semicon. but so far - nothing really IMPRESSIVE for networking, yet, sadly.
Tilera chips was great, but initialy made toward different usage (check “The Angstrom Project” in google and DARPA goals bout “exascale” and other HPC ambition) and thus, fine-tuned a bit differently.