Resumen
The history of the network front-end (NFE) processor, best known as a TCP offload engine (or TOE), extends back to the Arpanet interface message processor and possibly before. This article will not attempt to discern whether the NFE is a heavenly gift or a manifestation of evil incarnate. Rather, it will follow its evolution starting from a pure host-based implementation of a network stack and then moving the network stack farther from that initial position, observing the issues that arise. The goal is to offer insight into the trade-offs that influence the location choice for network stack software in a larger systems context. As such, it is an attempt to prevent old mistakes from being reinvented while harvesting as much clean grain as possible.