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?

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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