System and method for computing a blind checksum in a host ethernet adapter (HEA)

A computer readable medium encoded with computer-executable programming instructions for computing a blind checksum in a host Ethernet adapter (HEA), the programming instructions comprising:

• receiving a packet in the HEA;
• determining whether the packet is in Internet protocol version four (IPv4) packet having an IP header;
• computing by the HEA, if the packet is not in Ipv4, the checksum of the packet;
• determining, if the packet is in IPv4, whether the packet is in transmission control protocol (TCP) or user datagram protocol (UDP);
• parsing the packet for a source address and a destination address;
• building the pseudo-header with the source address and the destination address;
• giving the pseudo-header a length of the product of the IP header length field in the IPv4 Header with the number four, subtracted from the “Total Length” field in the IP header;
• attaching, if the packet is in Ipv4 and not in either of TCP or UDP, the pseudo-header to the packet;
• and
• computing by the HEA, if the packet is in Ipv4 and not in either of TCP or UDP, the checksum of the packet based on the pseudo-header and the IPv4standard.