Patent ID: 7567567

Claim:
A network system, comprising: a plurality of processing entities configured to execute a plurality of threads; an interconnect device coupled to the plurality of processing entities; a memory system coupled to the interconnect device and the plurality of processing entities; a network interface unit coupled to the plurality of processing entities and the memory system via the interconnect device; wherein the network interface unit is separate from the plurality of processing entities and is separate from the memory system; the network interface unit including: a memory access module, the memory access module including a plurality of parallel memory access channels, a packet classifier, the packet classifier providing a flexible association between packets and the plurality of processing entities via the plurality of memory access channels; wherein for each of a plurality of network packets received by the network interface unit, the packet classifier directs the packet to an assigned partition of a plurality of partitions, wherein each partition includes a dedicated one of the plurality of parallel memory access channels and a dedicated one of the plurality of threads, wherein each network packet is received by the network interface unit from a network external to the network system.