MAC address synchronization for multi-homing with multichassis link aggregation
US8787149B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Feb 24, 2012 |
| Grant date | Jul 22, 2014 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 6, 2032 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L45/245
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
In general, techniques are described for using a light-weight protocol to synchronize layer two (L2) addresses that identify routable traffic to multiple L3 devices, such as PE routers, that cooperatively employ an active-active redundancy configuration using a multi-chassis LAG to provide an L2 network with redundant connectivity. In one example, a network device establishes a multi-chassis LAG with a peer network device to provide redundant connectivity to a layer three (L3) network. A synchronization module of the network device receives a synchronization message that specifies an L2 address of the peer network device. When the network device receives an L2 packet data unit (PDU) from the L2 network, a routing instance of the network device routes an L3 packet encapsulated therein when the PDU has an L2 destination address that matches the L2 address of the peer network device.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.