Patent · US Expired

Method and apparatus for achieving transparent redundancy at a hierarchical boundary

US7269132B1 · kind B1 · utility

89Cited by
7References
33Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateJun 17, 2002
Grant dateSep 11, 2007
Priority date
Expiry dateAug 9, 2025

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH04L41/0663
  • WIPO fieldDigital communication
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

Transparent redundancy may be achieved at a MPLS-MPLS hierarchical boundary or a BMA-MPLS hierarchical boundary by utilizing local repair mechanisms extant in each domain to select automatically the same boundary network devices as the primary and secondary boundary network devices. In the MPLS domain, two LERs advertise the ability to forward traffic to a phantom LER and map all traffic originated into that domain as having been on a path originating at the phantom LER. This will cause the LERs to appear as being one hop away from the phantom LER, causing MPLS to assume the real LERs are part of a LSP terminating at the phantom LER. MPLS local repair will thus establish one of the LERs as the primary LER and the other LER as the secondary LER. In an Ethernet domain, each boundary network device is treated analogously to a router in the VRRP scheme for routers.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.