SR-IOV (Single Root Input/Output Virtualization) is what would best satisfy the requirements of low-latency, near-native performance of a physical NIC and data protection between VMs for multiple network I/O-intensive VMs. SR-IOV is a technology that allows a physical NIC to be partitioned into multiple virtual NICs that can be assigned to different VMs. SR-IOV can provide the following benefits:
Low-latency: SR-IOV can reduce latency by bypassing the hypervisor and allowing direct communication between the VMs and the physical NIC, without any overhead or interference.
Near-native performance: SR-IOV can provide near-native performance by allowing the VMs to use the full capacity and functionality of the physical NIC, without any emulation or translation.
Data protection: SR-IOV can provide data protection by isolating and securing the network traffic between the VMs and the physical NIC, without any exposure or leakage.