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Shared communications network employing virtual-private-network identifiers

  • US 20030016672A1
  • Filed: 09/19/2002
  • Published: 01/23/2003
  • Est. Priority Date: 01/19/1999
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A router in a communications system comprising:

  • A) means for coupling said router to a set of customer nodes so divided into at least first and second customer node subsets, said customer node subsets having no routing adjacency between nodes, and said first customer-node subset including a target node associated with a target network address;

    B) means for coupling said router to a set of outside nodes separate from said customer nodes, at least one of the outside nodes being an outside edge router;

    C) means for coupling said router to a set of provider nodes, said router functioning essentially as one of a plurality of provider edge routers;

    D) means for forming a virtual private network with said customer communications nodes having associated internal and external VPN IDs and said provider nodes associated with said customer nodes, said router and said plurality of provider edge routers forming routing adjacencies with at least one node in every one of the customer node subsets, denominated a customer edge router;

    E) means for receiving reachability messages that advertise a network-address range that includes the target network address from at least one said customer edge router to said router;

    F) means for making routing decisions based on the contents of said reachability messages, wherein;

    i) when said router that receives from a customer node in said first customer node subset a reachability message that advertises a network-address range that includes the target network address, it sends a reachability message that advertises the combination of the internal VPN ID and that network-address range to each other provider edge router that forms a provider-customer channel with the set of customer communications nodes;

    ii) when said router that receives from a provider node a reachability message that advertises a network-address range that includes the target network address, it sends a reachability message that advertises the combination of the external VPN ID and that network-address range to at least one provider edge router associated with the set of outside nodes;

    iii) when said router associated with the set of customer nodes receives from a provider router a reachability message that advertises the combination of a network-address range and the internal VPN ID associated with the set of customer nodes, it sends to one said customer edge router with which it forms a customer-provider channel a reachability message that advertises that network-address range; and

    iv) when said router associated with the set of outside nodes receives from a provider router a reachability message that advertises the combination of a network-address range and the external VPN ID associated with the set of customer nodes, it sends to at least one said customer edge router with which it forms a provider-exterior channel a reachability message that advertises that network-address range.

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