Software defined network controller, service function chaining system and trace tracking method

• US 10,129,127 B2
• Filed: 02/08/2017
• Issued: 11/13/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2017
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nanning Fugui Precision Industrial Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Nanning Fugui Precision Industrial Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Lin, Shih-Neng
• Primary Examiner(s): Ambaye, Mewale
• Application Number:
  US15/427,230
• Publication Number:
  US 20180227209A1
• Time in Patent Office: 643 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/604 Address structures or formats
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/659 Internet protocol version 6 [IPv6] addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/045 for graphical visualisation of monitoring data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/06 Generation of reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/20 the monitoring system or the monitored elements being virtualised, abstracted or software-defined entities, e.g. SDN or NFV
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/0377 for service chaining
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/24 Multipath
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/28 using route fault recovery
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/306 Route determination based on the nature of the carried application
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/38 Flow based routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/42 Centralised routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/54 Organization of routing tables
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/64 using an overlay routing layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/70 Routing based on monitoring results
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/251 between different IP versions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/256 NAT traversal

Abstract

In a service function chaining (SFC) system, which comprises an SFC module and a software defined network (SDN) controller, the SDN controller generates a trace packet. The trace packet is classified by the SFC module, the SDN controller comprises a trace managing module, and the trace managing module determines whether equal cost multipath (ECMP) arrangement exists according to the classified trace packet. The trace managing module creates duplicate trace packet flow but keeps only one trace packet at next link in the chaining when that the ECMP arrangement is determined to exist in one SFF. Trace managing module creates normal and dropped trace packet flows and keeps only one trace packet at next link when existence of ECMP in different service function forwarders is determined. Thus, a client can identify failed trace through the trace packet upon trace failure. An SDN controller and trace tracking method are also provided.

Claims

1. A service function chaining system comprising:

a service function chaining (SFC) module having;

a classifier;

a service function (SF) having at least one SF; and

a service function forwarder (SFF) having at least one SFF; and

a software defined network (SDN) controller in communication with the SFC module through network connections, the SDN controller having a trace managing module;

wherein the SDN controller is configured to;

generate a trace packet when receiving a trace request is triggered by a client; and

send the trace packet to the SFC module;

wherein the trace packet is classified by the classifier and is sent to the SDN controller;

wherein the classified trace packet is transmitted to the SF or next hop SFF after passing through a first hop SFF;

wherein the trace managing module determines whether equal cost multipath (ECMP) arrangement exists according to the classified trace packet;

wherein the trace managing module creates a duplicate trace packet flow and keeps only one trace packet at next hop when the ECMP arrangement is determined to exist in one particular SFF;

wherein the trace managing module creates a normal trace packet flow and a dropped trace packet flow, and keeps only one trace packet at next hop when the ECMP arrangement is determined to exist in different service function forwarders.

2. The service function chaining system of claim 1, wherein the SDN controller further comprises a report managing module, wherein the trace managing module creates a report trace packet flow when the ECMP arrangement is determined to exist, generates a trace report, and sends the trace report to the report managing module through the trace packet flow.

3. The service function chaining system of claim 2, wherein the report managing module collects the trace report and records data of the trace report to an aggregate trace table.

4. The service function chaining system of claim 3, wherein the data of the aggregate trace table comprises an identification of the service function path (SFP), an identification of the trace packet, an internet protocol (IP) address of the service function forwarder (SFF), an IP address of the service function (SF), a state of the SF or SFP, and a hop of the SFF.

5. The service function chaining system of claim 3, wherein the report managing module generates an SFC trace graph according to the aggregate trace table, data of the SFC trace graph comprises an identification of the service function path (SFP), an identification of the trace packet, an internet protocol (IP) address of the service function forwarder (SFF), an IP address of the service function (SF), and a state of the SF or SFP.

6. The service function chaining system of claim 2, wherein the report managing module copies a network service header (NSH) of the trace packet to the trace report through the service function forwarder, an NSH of the trace report comprises version information, protocol information, ECMP information, an identification of the trace packet, a state of the SF, a reserved bit, and a trace index.

7. The service function chaining system of claim 1, wherein the trace packet comprises an NSH, the NSH of the trace packet comprises ECMP information, an identification of the trace packet, a state of the SF, a reserved bit, and a trace index.

8. The service function chaining system of claim 1, wherein the SDN controller further comprises a topology calculating module, the topology calculating module provides a forwarding policy table by calculating, the SFF stores the forwarding policy table, the trace managing module is configured to analyze the forwarding policy table of the SFF, the trace managing module determines the ECMP arrangement exists according to data of the forwarding policy table when the SFF is determined to exist in one particular SF.

9. An SDN controller communicated with a service function chaining (SFC) module through network connections, and comprising:

a trace managing module; and

a report managing module;

wherein the SFC module comprising;

a classifier;

a service function (SF) having at least one SF; and

a service function forwarder (SFF) having at least one SFF, the least one SFF in communication with the at least one SF through the network connections;

wherein the classifier communicates with a first hop SFF through the network connection;

wherein the SDN controller is configured to;

generate a trace packet when receiving a trace request triggered by a client; and

send the trace packet to the SFC module;

wherein the trace packet is classified by the classifier and is sent to the SDN controller;

wherein the classified trace packet is transmitted to the SF or next hop SFF after passing through the first hop SFF;

wherein the trace managing module determines whether equal cost multipath (ECMP) arrangement exists according to the classified trace packet;

wherein the trace managing module creates a duplicate trace packet flow and a report trace packet flow, and keeps only one trace packet at next hop when the ECMP arrangement is determined to exist in one particular SFF;

wherein the trace managing module creates a normal trace packet flow, dropped trace packet flow, and a report trace packet flow, and keeps only one trace packet at next hop, when the ECMP arrangement is determined to exist in different service function forwarders;

wherein the report managing module collects the trace report and records the data of the trace report to an aggregate trace table.

10. The SDN controller of claim 9, wherein the data of the aggregate trace table comprises an identification of the service function path (SFP), an identification of the trace packet, an internet protocol (IP) address of the service function forwarder (SFF), an IP address of the service function (SF), a state of the SF or SFP, and a hop of the SFF.

11. The SDN controller of claim 9, wherein the report managing module generates an SFC trace graph according to the aggregate trace table, the data of the SFC trace graph comprises an identification of the service function path (SFP), an identification of the trace packet, an internet protocol (IP) address of the service function forwarder (SFF), an IP address of the service function (SF), and a state of the SF or SFP.

12. The SDN controller of claim 9, wherein the report managing module copies an NSH of the trace packet to the trace report through the service function forwarder, an NSH of the trace report comprises ECMP information, an identification of the trace packet, a state of the SF, a reserved bit, and a trace index.

13. A trace tracking method comprising:

generating one trace packet after receiving a trace request from a client;

sending the trace packet to an SFC module;

classifying the trace packet;

sending the classified trace packet to a trace managing module of an SDN controller;

determining whether an ECMP arrangement exists in a service function chaining;

creating a duplicate trace packet flow to keep only one trace packet at next hop when determining the ECMP arrangement exists in one particular service function forwarder of the service function chaining; and

creating a normal trace packet flow and a dropped trace packet flow to keep only one trace packet at next hop when determining the ECMP arrangement exists in different service function forwarders of the service function chaining.

14. The trace tracking method of claim 13, wherein the step of determining whether the ECMP arrangement exists in the service function chaining comprising:

analyzing a forwarding policy table of the service function forwarder; and

obtaining the ECMP when the particular SF communicates with the service function forwarders.

15. The trace tracking method of claim 13, further comprising:

creating a trace report and sending the trace report to the report managing module through the trace report flow, when determining the ECMP arrangement exists in the particular service function forwarder; and

creating a trace report and sending the trace report to the report managing module through the trace report flow, when determining the ECMP arrangement exists in different service function forwarders.

16. The trace tracking method of claim 15, wherein after the step of creating the trace report and sending the trace report to the report managing module comprises:

collecting all trace reports; and

recording data of the trace report to an aggregate trace table.

17. The trace tracking method of claim 16, wherein after the step of recording the data of the trace report to the aggregate trace table comprises a step of generating an SFC trace graph according to the aggregate trace table.

18. The trace tracking method of claim 15, wherein after the step of creating the trace report and sending the trace report to the report managing module comprises:

sending one trace packet request to the SF; and

determining whether the SF replies to the SFF.

19. The trace tracking method of claim 18, wherein after the step of sending one trace packet request to the SF comprises:

marking a state of the SFF in the trace report to be a failed state when determining the SF does not reply to the SFF; and

copying an NSH of the trace packet to the trace report through the service function forwarder.

20. The trace tracking method of claim 19, wherein the NSH of the trace report comprises ECMP information, an identification of the trace packet, a state of the SF, a reserved bit, and a trace index.