Netmap
Netmap is a high-performance packet I/O framework for Linux and FreeBSD that provides direct access to network interface card (NIC) hardware for fast packet processing. It bypasses the kernel's standard network stack to enable applications to send and receive packets at line rates with minimal overhead. This makes it ideal for network monitoring, packet filtering, and custom protocol implementations.
Developers should learn Netmap when building applications that require high-speed packet processing, such as network intrusion detection systems (IDS), traffic analyzers, or software-defined networking (SDN) components. It is particularly useful in scenarios where traditional socket-based networking introduces too much latency or overhead, such as in real-time network monitoring or high-frequency trading systems.