BlueField DPUs on county edge nodes must be ready before DOCA services go live. What BCM-focused step should precede DOCA bring-up?
Select an answer to reveal the explanation.
Short Explanation
DOCA services need a networked DPU they can actually see—get BCM’s DPU network settings straight on those county edge nodes first. Hiding DPUs from BCM or pretending host GPUs are DPUs just postpones a failed bring-up. USB Ethernet is not a BlueField plan.
Full Explanation
Before DOCA services go live on county edge nodes, BCM-focused prep must ensure BlueField DPU network settings are configured and visible through BCM for those municipal edge nodes. DOCA workloads on the DPU-Arm side assume networking posture is managed and observable; skipping that leaves services unable to bind, offload, or be operated by civic ops. Skipping all DPU networking and installing DOCA only on host GPUs misunderstands the architecture—DOCA targets the DPU environment, not a GPU substitute install path. Unpairing DPUs from BCM so they remain invisible to ops removes the management path required for consistent edge bring-up and incident response across the county. Replacing BlueField cards with consumer USB Ethernet adapters abandons DPU offload entirely and cannot host the intended DOCA services. Exam caveat: host networking and DPU networking are related but distinct—confirm the DPU side specifically in BCM before declaring DOCA ready for production. Operational check: verify each county edge node’s DPU appears in BCM with expected network settings, validate link/addressing on the DPU interfaces, then proceed with DOCA service deployment and a health probe that proves DPU-path connectivity.