Rocker emulated network switch (QEMU/Red Hat virtual device)
A virtual Ethernet switch device emulated by QEMU under Red Hat's vendor ID (PCI 1b36:0006), used since the mid-2010s as a development and testing target for Linux's switchdev offload framework. It was never a physical product sold to end users; it exists so kernel and networking developers can exercise hardware-switch-style features inside virtual machines.
recommendation
Worth keeping but documenting its niche, because Rocker is a QEMU-emulated switch rather than real silicon and its Kconfig still marks it as experimental. Stable-tree fixes were still landing as recently as February 2026, and no other driver covers the same virtual-switch testing role, so removing it would take away a useful development target. The right move is to label it clearly as a virtual/test device so users don't mistake it for hardware support.
repository signals
sources
- lore.kernel.org
Rocker code was still receiving upstream-stable carried fixes in February 2026, so the driver is maintained rather than abandoned.
- qemu.org
Rocker is a QEMU-documented switch device interface, indicating its main surviving use is virtual/emulated rather than newly sold physical hardware.
- qemu.eu
Vendor/device IDs in the 1b36 range are assigned for QEMU virtual devices; the driver matches Red Hat/QEMU PCI ID 1b36:0006.
- cateee.net
LKDDb maps CONFIG_ROCKER to Red Hat PCI device 1b36:0006 and shows the driver still present in current kernel series.
codex reasoning notes (technical)
Local shell inspection (`sed`/`rg`) showed `PCI_VDEVICE(REDHAT, PCI_DEVICE_ID_REDHAT_ROCKER)` and Kconfig still marks ROCKER as EXPERIMENTAL. `lore_file_timeline` on `drivers/net/ethernet/rocker/rocker_main.c` returned a February 6, 2026 stable hit, which argues against deprecation/removal. Web search returned QEMU's Rocker register guide and QEMU PCI ID documentation, supporting that this is effectively a virtual test/development switch device, not a 2025 retail hardware family. No direct replacement driver cleanly covers the same emulated-switch niche, so removal would drop a still-maintained virtual target; annotate as legacy/virtual-only rather than deprecate.