QUIC Protocol

Plugin Type: Protocol Source Location: plugins/protocols/client_server/quic/

Overview

The QUIC Protocol plugin implements the QUIC (Quick UDP Internet Connections) transport layer protocol within the PANTHER framework. QUIC provides encrypted, multiplexed connections between endpoints with reduced connection establishment latency. This plugin supports testing different QUIC protocol versions (RFC 9000, Draft 29, Draft 27), conformance testing, performance benchmarking, and security analysis.

Configuration Options

protocol:
  name: "quic"
  version: "rfc9000"         # QUIC version (rfc9000, draft29, draft27)
  role: "server"             # Role (server or client)
  target: "client_service"   # Optional target service name

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
name	string	Yes	"QUIC"	Protocol name
version	enum	No	"rfc9000"	QUIC version (rfc9000, draft29, draft27)
role	enum	No	"server"	Protocol role (server, client)
target	string	No	None	Target service name
protocol_type	enum	No	"client_server"	Protocol type

Usage Example

tests:
  - name: "QUIC Server Test"
    network_environment:
      type: "docker_compose"
    services:
      quic_server:
        name: "quic_server"
        timeout: 100
        implementation:
          name: "picoquic"
          type: "iut"
        protocol:
          name: "quic"
          version: "rfc9000"
          role: "server"
      quic_client:
        name: "quic_client"
        timeout: 100
        implementation:
          name: "picoquic"
          type: "iut"
        protocol:
          name: "quic"
          version: "rfc9000"
          role: "client"
          target: "quic_server"

Integration

• Works with all QUIC IUT service plugins (picoquic, aioquic, quiche, quinn, lsquic, mvfst, quic-go, quant)
• Requires network environments that support UDP traffic (docker_compose, shadow_ns)
• Depends on certificate management tools for TLS handshake configuration
• Supports interoperability testing across different QUIC implementations

Troubleshooting

Issue	Solution
TLS handshake failures	Check certificate validity and configuration
Connection establishment timeouts	Verify UDP connectivity between endpoints
Version negotiation issues	Ensure both endpoints support the configured version
Performance issues	Check for network congestion and adjust buffer sizes