/doca-rmax

license: Apache-2.0
name: doca-rmax
description: >
  DOCA Rivermax (doca_rmax) receive streams for timing-precise media over
  IP (SMPTE ST 2110 video / audio, market data, scientific feeds) on a
  target BlueField DPU (DOCA Rivermax apps run only there), once the
  Rivermax libraries and license are installed; getting them is doca-setup /
  doca-public-knowledge-map territory. Trigger on "ST 2110 receive isn't
  getting frames", "sub-microsecond jitter on my media receiver",
  "NOT_SUPPORTED from doca_rmax_init", "no recv events after stream
  start", or "license check failing on a media receiver", even without
  naming Rivermax. Covers doca_rmax_in_stream sessions, the SDK + license
  precondition check, doca_rmax_get_*_supported capability queries,
  pairing with doca-eth queues and doca-flow steering, and DOCA_ERROR_*
  from Rivermax calls. Refuse and route elsewhere for programming the
  underlying queue (doca-eth), steering rules (doca-flow), PTP / clock
  sync (doca-firefly), or best-effort packet I/O.
metadata:
  author: NVIDIA <doca-feedback@nvidia.com>
  kind: library
  doca_version: "3.5"
  tags:
    - doca
    - rmax
    - rivermax
compatibility: >
  Requires DOCA SDK at /opt/mellanox/doca on Linux (Ubuntu 22.04/24.04
  or RHEL/SLES) on the target BlueField DPU (DOCA Rivermax apps run only
  there), with `doca-sdk-rmax` from the DOCA repo AND a separately
  obtained Rivermax license readable by the user. Reads
  the local install via `pkg-config doca-rmax`; route Rivermax SDK
  install/license questions to the public Rivermax guide. The validation
  steps require a live DOCA install.

DOCA Rivermax

Examples

• **"ST 2110 receive isn't getting frames."** — this is in

scope after Rivermax SDK + license are already present.

• **"How do I obtain / install the Rivermax SDK and its license?"** —

out of scope for this skill. Say so, give no install or licensing steps, and route: DOCA packages to `doca-setup/SKILL.md`, the Rivermax SDK + license to the public DOCA Rivermax guide via `doca-public-knowledge-map/SKILL.md`. Come back here once both are present.

• **"NOT_SUPPORTED from doca_rmax_init."** — run the

`doca_rmax_get_*_supported` queries before changing stream setup.

Instructions

Follow Loading order below. Open the tasks companion for configure / stream / debug. Open the capabilities companion for Rivermax preconditions. Do not open every companion file.

**Where to start:** This skill assumes DOCA is already installed on the target BlueField DPU (DOCA Rivermax apps run only on the target DPU), **AND** that the Rivermax libraries (`doca-sdk-rmax` / `libdoca-sdk-rmax-dev` from the DOCA repo) are installed with a valid Rivermax license present on the DPU. The agent's FIRST action on any Rivermax question is to confirm both — without the Rivermax libraries + license, `doca-rmax` cannot function regardless of how clean the DOCA-side code is, and this is the #1 first-app confusion (the Rivermax license, and the driver per the Rivermax SDK page, are obtained separately from DOCA). Open the tasks companion if the user wants to *do* something (configure / build / modify / run / test / debug); open the capabilities companion when the question is *what can DOCA Rivermax express* on this version + this Rivermax install. If the user has not installed DOCA yet, route to `doca-setup/SKILL.md` first; for the Rivermax SDK + license install itself, route to the public DOCA Rivermax guide (slug `DOCA-Rivermax`) via `doca-public-knowledge-map/SKILL.md`. If the user is asking *"how do I get packets to land on my Rivermax input stream at all"*, the answer is layered: `doca-rmax` is the *Rivermax integration* surface, `doca-eth/SKILL.md` is the *queue* surface that carries the packets, and `doca-flow/SKILL.md` is the *steering* surface that directs them.

Example questions this skill answers well

The CLASSES of DOCA Rivermax questions this skill is built to answer, each with one worked example. The agent should treat the *class* as the load-bearing piece — the worked example is a single instance.

• **"Can I even use `doca-rmax` on this host?"** — worked

example: *"the public docs mention `doca-rmax`; is it usable without doing anything else?"*. Answered by the Rivermax-SDK + license precondition rule in

Safety policy

• the env-prep checklist in

configure step 1, which

routes the install-side question to the public Rivermax guide via `doca-public-knowledge-map/SKILL.md` and refuses to recommend a fallback to `doca-eth` alone that would silently lose the timing properties.

• **"How do I set up a SMPTE ST 2110 video receive stream?"** —

worked example: *"line up an inbound Rivermax stream on a representor of a BlueField port for first-run testing"*. Answered by the per-stream object lifecycle in

configure +

Capabilities and modes

input stream capability table.

• **"Which `doca_rmax_get_*_supported` query do I have to call before

picking a PTP clock or hardware packet-placement order?"** — worked example: *"can this device + this Rivermax install use ST 2110-20 sequence-number placement?"*. Answered by the capability-query rule in

Capabilities and modes

• step 3 in

configure.

• **"My stream is set up but no packets arrive — why?"** —

worked example: *"the Rivermax stream object started cleanly but no recv events fire"*. Answered by the precondition matrix in

Safety policy

• the env-prep checklist in

configure step 1, which

routes the steering side to `doca-flow/SKILL.md`, the queue side to `doca-eth/SKILL.md`, and the license side back to the Rivermax-side precondition.

• **"Is this Rivermax integration capability available on my

device + my installed DOCA + my Rivermax SDK?"** — worked example: *"does this device + this Rivermax version advertise the PTP clock or placement mode I need"*. Answered by the capability-query rule in

Capabilities and modes

• the