General
IP fragmentation and path MTU discovery are more complex in practice than many networking experts assume. The article introduces fragquiz as a learning tool, details a novel parallel PMTU probing algorithm, and discusses real-world testing challenges, including ICMP behavior, OS differences, and VPN implications, highlighting why reliable PMTUD remains critical for VPNs, IPv6, and overall network reliability.
Development
The article introduces safe-gc, a Rust garbage collector implemented with zero unsafe code. It explains the API (Gc<T>, Root<T>, Trace) and the architecture (Heap, Arena, RootSet), and discusses design trade-offs, including a look at a copying collector and reasons for choosing a mark-and-sweep approach for heterogeneous objects. It emphasizes safety benefits of avoiding unsafe blocks and outlines potential footguns and safeguards.