Method and system for intelligently forwarding multicast packets
US7389359B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 19, 2001 |
| Grant date | Jun 17, 2008 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 23, 2024 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L12/1886
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A routing system utilizes a layer 2 switch interconnecting several routers to intelligently forward multicast packets throughout an internet exchange carrying multicast content. The layer 2 switch performs protocol snooping to extract a lookup key that is based on network layer protocol information. The lookup key is uniquely formulated to support either shared or explicit source distribution trees. The lookup key is used to query a forwarding memory that returns an outgoing port index. The outgoing port index points to one or more outgoing ports that are eligible to receive the multicast packet. The outgoing ports are also connected to the neighboring device(s) that are designated to receive the multicast packet. The routing system also supports real time maintenance and updating of the forwarding memory based on the periodic exchange of control messages. The routing system is configured to support PIM routers operating in PIM SM or PIM SSM modes. However, the routing system can also support other multicast protocols and/or standards.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.