Authors: P4 Language Design Working Group Co-Chairs – Nate Foster & Mihai Budiu
The P4 Language Design Working Group is pleased to announce the release of version 1.2.4 of the P4 Language Specification. The new specification document is available in HTML and PDF form on the specifications page on the P4 website. Changes in P4_16 version 1.2.4 include list types; header, header stack, and struct expressions; control-plane modifiable table entries; and numerous clarifications and minor fixes to the language constructs and type systems. These changes are designed to support emerging uses for P4 on programmable NICs and software targets, as well as traditional uses for P4 on programmable switches and as a specification language for fixed-function devices. Fore more details about the release, check out slides from the recent P4 Workshop.
The development of the P4 language is a community effort — the language evolves through an open and community-driven process. We are grateful to all of the members of the P4 community who contributed ideas, draft text, and supporting source code to this version of the language. And we welcome contributions to future versions of the language. To get involved, join us at a future meeting of the P4 Language Design Working Group, which meets monthly on Zoom, typically on the first Monday of the month. See the P4 Working Group calendar for further details.