Patent · US Active

Graceful shutdown of network resources in data networks

US7457248B1 · kind B1 · utility

24Cited by
9References
42Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateFeb 10, 2004
Grant dateNov 25, 2008
Priority date
Expiry dateNov 25, 2026

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH04W48/08
  • WIPO fieldDigital communication
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A technique gracefully shuts down network resources, such as nodes, interfaces and protocols, in a data network in a manner that minimizes network disruption. The technique may be used with both connectionless and connection-oriented networking systems. A node gracefully shuts down a network resource associated with the node by i) notifying other nodes in the network that the resource is being gracefully shutdown, ii) waiting for a condition to occur, and iii) when the condition occurs, shutting down the resource. The condition may include the expiration of a predetermined amount of time and/or monitoring the resource to determine if the resource has reached a certain level of activity. In response to receiving a notification that a resource is being gracefully shutdown, a node takes action to reroute traffic around the resource. If no alternative route is available, the node may continue to route traffic to the resource until it is shut down.

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