Single lookup entry for symmetric flows

A method comprising:

• receiving, at a port, a packet as part of a bidirectional flow between communication entities, the packet including a packet header;
• generating, by a field chooser, a lookup key based on the address information and the selected recipe;
• employing the lookup key to obtain switching information for the packet from a lookup table, the lookup table storing a single entry of switching information for the bidirectional flow;
• obtaining one or more actions for the packet from an action table based on the selected recipe;
• and
• switching the packet by executing the actions obtained from the action table.

A network interface card comprising:

• a port to communicate a bi-directional flow between a local communication entity and a remote communication entity via a communication link by receiving a packet including a packet header and
• circuitry to:
• process a packet header from a packet in a bi-directional flow, wherein the bi-directional flow comprises communications traversing a same network path in opposite directions,
• access an entry based on address information and a direction of the packet within the bi-directional flow, wherein the entry is to specify an action for the packet to indicate handling instructions, and
• second circuitry coupled to the communication pipeline to switch the packet by executing the actions obtained from the action table.