Article ID: 000034907 Content Type: Product Information & Documentation Last Reviewed: 07/23/2021

Are IEEE1588/PTP and PRP Solely Software Protocols, and is Ethernet Switch IC Needed to Support these two Protocols?

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Summary

Info on Ethernet IEEE1588 (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering) PTP (Precision Time Protocol) and PRP (Parallel Redundancy Protocol)

Description

Are IEEE1588/PTP and PRP solely software protocols? Is Ethernet switch IC needed to support these two protocols? The confusion is whether PTP and PRP are hardware- or software-dependent.

Resolution

Based on the IEEE1588/PTP FAQ(Frequently Asked Questions) document, the IEEE1588 works without special hardware, but not as accurately.

For the rest of the details, go to Question 3 of the IEEE1588 FAQ.

Based on Parallel Redundancy Protocol, PRP can be implemented in software.

Additional information

Customer plans to implement a new project designing an Ethernet switch card. For this implementation, there is a requirement for PTP and PRP protocols in the module.

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