linux-drivers/
drivers/net/ethernet/hisilicon/hns3/hns3pf

HiSilicon HNS3 PF Ethernet controller (Kunpeng/HIP08 25/100GbE)

The physical-function half of HiSilicon's HNS3 network engine, a 25/100 Gbps Ethernet controller integrated into Huawei's HIP08 and later Kunpeng server SoCs and the TaiShan 200 server line. It powers the on-board NICs that handle host networking on these ARM-based enterprise servers.

keep conf=0.90 deploy=medium replacement=none subsystem=net category=networking-ethernet
90%

recommendation

It should stay in the kernel because the hardware is still being sold in 2025 on Huawei's Kunpeng/TaiShan server platforms, and upstream activity is healthy: netdev bug-fix and cleanup patches were posted as recently as October 2025, the driver has dedicated devlink documentation, and there is no replacement driver for the same silicon. This is an actively maintained driver for current-generation hardware.

repository signals

21 files
28,238 source lines
318 commits, 5y
+12,283 / −8,167 lines added / removed, 5y
47 authors, 5y
monthly commits · 2021-04-21 → 2026-04-21 · 318 total · active in 51/61 months
2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2021-04: 4 commits · +13 −3 2021-05: 34 commits · +2,225 −1,196 2021-06: 17 commits · +1,530 −141 2021-07: 6 commits · +225 −13 2021-08: 26 commits · +1,443 −757 2021-09: 20 commits · +206 −129 2021-10: 19 commits · +457 −269 2021-11: 16 commits · +333 −295 2021-12: 23 commits · +483 −1,126 2022-01: 6 commits · +135 −993 2022-02: 2 commits · +17 −7 2022-03: 8 commits · +152 −37 2022-04: 6 commits · +25 −13 2022-05: 4 commits · +142 −86 2022-06: 5 commits · +84 −36 2022-07: 0 commits · +0 −0 2022-08: 4 commits · +75 −28 2022-09: 9 commits · +777 −212 2022-10: 0 commits · +0 −0 2022-11: 5 commits · +17 −29 2022-12: 2 commits · +155 −55 2023-01: 2 commits · +3 −1 2023-02: 0 commits · +0 −0 2023-03: 2 commits · +152 −5 2023-04: 0 commits · +0 −0 2023-05: 1 commit · +16 −8 2023-06: 3 commits · +46 −41 2023-07: 4 commits · +88 −20 2023-08: 8 commits · +784 −641 2023-09: 5 commits · +27 −27 2023-10: 2 commits · +210 −89 2023-11: 3 commits · +25 −8 2023-12: 1 commit · +14 −7 2024-01: 0 commits · +0 −0 2024-02: 0 commits · +0 −0 2024-03: 8 commits · +75 −23 2024-04: 5 commits · +1,326 −654 2024-05: 8 commits · +42 −34 2024-06: 1 commit · +16 −5 2024-07: 1 commit · +2 −2 2024-08: 5 commits · +71 −55 2024-09: 1 commit · +0 −4 2024-10: 4 commits · +44 −13 2024-11: 2 commits · +33 −74 2024-12: 0 commits · +0 −0 2025-01: 5 commits · +46 −13 2025-02: 1 commit · +1 −1 2025-03: 2 commits · +41 −41 2025-04: 2 commits · +8 −7 2025-05: 1 commit · +1 −1 2025-06: 5 commits · +33 −33 2025-07: 8 commits · +588 −854 2025-08: 1 commit · +2 −2 2025-09: 1 commit · +2 −1 2025-10: 2 commits · +36 −32 2025-11: 0 commits · +0 −0 2025-12: 2 commits · +5 −2 2026-01: 4 commits · +17 −9 2026-02: 2 commits · +35 −35 2026-03: 0 commits · +0 −0 2026-04: 0 commits · +0 −0

sources

  1. spinics.net

    October 23, 2025 netdev thread shows active HNS3 bug-fix review traffic, indicating ongoing upstream maintenance rather than removal.

  2. spinics.net

    June 2025 net-next patch series covers cleanup touching hns3pf files, showing continued development activity.

  3. cateee.net

    LKDDb maps CONFIG_HNS3_HCLGE to hns3pf/hclge_main.c, lists Huawei PCI IDs, and says the driver is present through 7.0-rc+HEAD for HIP08 and later SoCs.

  4. kernel.org

    Kernel documentation has dedicated hns3 devlink support documentation, consistent with a maintained, featureful in-tree driver.

  5. info.support.huawei.com

    Huawei TaiShan 200 server documentation, updated in 2025, still describes 25GE/100GE Ethernet FlexIO options on current Kunpeng server platforms, supporting ongoing new deployments.

codex reasoning notes (technical)

Real driver directory. `web.search_query` on lore/kernel terms found active 2025 HNS3 bug-fix and cleanup threads on spinics mirrors, and lore-targeted searches found no removal/deprecation discussion. `exec_command` local `git log` also showed many 2024-2026 touches in this directory. LKDDb and kernel.org pages were obtained via `web.search_query` and confirm the driver remains in current kernels for HIP08/upcoming SoCs. Huawei support documentation found via `web.search_query` shows 25GE/100GE Ethernet options on 2025-updated Kunpeng/TaiShan hardware, so this is not legacy-only hardware. No natural upstream replacement driver exists for the same devices, so recommendation is keep.