Communication device

• US 20050286503A1
• Filed: 06/23/2005
• Published: 12/29/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Oda, Sotaro, Kitada, Atsushi
• Granted Patent: US 8,488,569 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2859 Point-to-point connection between the data network and the subscribers encapsulation H04L12/4633; virtual LANs H04L12/4641; routing of packets H04L45/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2898 Subscriber equipments DSL modems H04M11/062; cable modems H04L12/2801
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/622 Layer-2 addresses, e.g. medium access control [MAC] addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/10 of different types
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/2596 Translation of addresses of the same type other than IP, e.g. translation from MAC to MAC addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/45 Network directories; Name-to-address mapping
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/50 Address allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/162 at the data link layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/146 Markers for unambiguous identification of a particular session, e.g. session cookie or URL-encoding

Abstract

A communication device of the present invention performs communication over a network where a session is identified based on a source address set in a frame. The communication device comprises an interface unit for connecting to the network, a management unit for managing a plurality of addresses, a request unit for transmitting a frame including a session establishment request to an authenticator system provided on the network through said interface unit, and an address setting unit for setting one of the plurality of addresses managed by said management unit as a source address of the frame including the session establishment request.

Claims

1. A communication device which performs communication over a network where a session is identified based on a source address set in a frame, comprising:

an interface unit for connecting to the network;

a management unit for managing a plurality of addresses;

a request unit for transmitting a frame including a session establishment request to an authenticator system provided on the network through said interface unit; and

an address setting unit for setting one of the plurality of addresses managed by said management unit as a source address of the frame including the session establishment request.

2. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein

said management unit, when a session requested using the session establishment request is authorized by the authenticator system, manages a communication condition specified in the session establishment request corresponding to the address set in the frame including the session establishment request.

3. The communication device according to claim 2, further comprising:

an analysis unit for analyzing contents of the transmission frame; and

a selection unit for searching communication condition managed by said management unit using analysis result of said analysis unit, and for selecting an address corresponding to the search result,

wherein said address setting unit sets the address selected by said selection unit as the source address of the transmission frame.

4. The communication device according to claim 2, wherein

a source IP address is used as the communication condition.

5. The communication device according to claim 2, wherein

a port number is used as the communication condition.

6. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein

each of the plurality of the addresses managed by said management unit is MAC address.

7. A communication device which performs communication over a network where a session is identified based on a source address set in a frame, comprising:

a physical port connecting to the network;

a plurality of logical ports to which distinct addresses are assigned;

an analysis unit for analyzing contents of the transmission frame, and

a selection unit for selecting one of the plurality of logical ports based on the result of said analysis unit, wherein

said logical port selected by the selection unit sets the address assigned to the logical port as a source address of the transmission frame, and transmits the transmission frame to the network through said physical port.

8. The communication device according to claim 7, further comprising a management unit for managing corresponding relations between a session authorized by an authenticator system provided on the network and a plurality of the logical ports, wherein

said selection unit selects a logical port according to the corresponding relations managed by said management unit.

9. The communication device according to claim 7, further comprising:

a request unit for transmitting a frame including a session establishment request specifying a source IP address to be used to an authenticator system provided on the network through an arbitrary logical port among said plurality of the logical ports; and

a management unit for managing corresponding relations between the logical port used for transmitting the frame including the session establishment request and the source IP address specified in the session establishment request, wherein

said analysis unit detects the source IP address of the transmission frame, and said selection unit selects the logical port corresponding to the source IP address detected by said analysis unit referring to said management unit.

10. The communication device according to claim 7, further comprising:

a request unit for transmitting a frame including a session establishment request specifying a port number to be used to an authenticator system provided on the network through an arbitrary logical port among said plurality of the logical ports; and

a management unit for managing corresponding relations between the logical port used for transmitting the frame including the session establishment request and the port number specified in the session establishment request, wherein

said analysis unit detects the port number of the transmission frame, and said selection unit selects the logical port corresponding to the port number detected by said analysis unit referring to said management unit.

11. The communication device according to claim 7, wherein

distinct MAC address is assigned to each of the plurality of the logical ports.

12. The communication device according to claim 7, wherein the user authentication is performed according to IEEE802.1x in the network.

13. A session establishment method in a network where a session is identified based on a source address of a frame, comprising:

selecting, in a communication device in which a plurality of MAC addresses are assigned, one of the plurality of the MAC addresses;

setting the selected MAC address as a source address of a frame including a session establishment request;

transmitting the frame to an authenticator system provided on the network through the network interface of the communication device;

determining, in the authenticator system, whether or not the session establishment request is authorized; and

generating, in the communication device, a session corresponding to the selected MAC address when the session establishment request is authorized.

14. A communication method in a network where a session is identified based on a source address of a frame, comprising:

analyzing contents of a transmission frame;

selecting a logical port corresponding to the analysis result among a plurality of logical ports, to each of which distinct MAC address being assigned;

setting, in the selected logical port, the MAC address assigned to the logical port as a source address of the transmission frame; and

transmitting the transmission frame to the network through a network interface.