System and method for PE-node protection
First Claim
1. A method for rerouting selected types of network traffic in a computer network, the method comprising:
- detecting a node or link failure at a first edge device in the computer network;
rerouting a data packet addressed to the first edge device to a second edge device in the computer network;
determining, at the second edge device, whether the rerouted data packet corresponds to at least one of the selected types of network traffic; and
forwarding the rerouted packet at the second edge device, in response to determining that the rerouted data packet corresponds to at least one of the selected types of network traffic.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A novel fast reroute (FRR) technique is provided for quickly and efficiently rerouting selected types of network traffic in response to a node or link failure at the edge of a computer network. According to the technique, the network includes first and second edge devices that function as “FRR mates,” such that network traffic originally destined for one FRR mate may be quickly rerouted to the other without having to wait for conventional network convergence. When an edge device receives rerouted packets originally destined for its FRR mate, the device responds by forwarding only those rerouted packets matching the selected traffic types; rerouted packets that do not match the selected traffic types are dropped or otherwise discarded. The first and second edge devices may be statically configured as FRR mates, e.g., by a network administrator, or they may be configured to automatically detect their compatibility as FRR mates.
179 Citations
21 Claims
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1. A method for rerouting selected types of network traffic in a computer network, the method comprising:
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detecting a node or link failure at a first edge device in the computer network;
rerouting a data packet addressed to the first edge device to a second edge device in the computer network;
determining, at the second edge device, whether the rerouted data packet corresponds to at least one of the selected types of network traffic; and
forwarding the rerouted packet at the second edge device, in response to determining that the rerouted data packet corresponds to at least one of the selected types of network traffic. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A network device configured to reroute selected types of network traffic in a computer network, the network device comprising:
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a processor;
a network interface adapted to receive a data packet from the computer network;
a memory adapted to store instructions which are executable by the processor, the instructions instructing the processor to perform the steps of;
determining whether the received data packet contains a predetermined label value, the predetermined label value indicating that the data packet has been rerouted to the network device by another network device in the computer network;
determining, in response to determining that the received data packet contains the predetermined label value, whether the received data packet corresponds to a selected type of network traffic; and
forwarding the received data packet to its next-hop destination only if the data packet is determined to correspond to a selected type of network traffic. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12)
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13. A network device configured to reroute network traffic in a computer network, the network device comprising:
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a processor;
a network interface adapted to receive a data packet from the computer network;
a memory adapted to store instructions which are executable by the processor, the instructions instructing the processor to perform the steps of;
determining whether the received data packet is addressed to a neighboring edge device in the computer network;
determining, in response to determining that the received data packet is addressed to the neighboring edge device, whether the neighboring edge device is unavailable; and
incorporating, in response to determining that the neighboring edge device is unavailable, a predetermined label value into the received data packet, the predetermined label value indicating that the received data packet will be rerouted to an edge device configured to function as a fast reroute (FRR) mate for the unavailable neighboring network device. - View Dependent Claims (14, 20)
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15. A computer network for rerouting selected types of network traffic, the computer network comprising:
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means for detecting a node or link failure at a first edge device in the computer network;
means for rerouting a data packet addressed to the first edge device to a second edge device in the computer network;
means for determining, at the second edge device, whether the rerouted data packet corresponds to at least one of the selected types of network traffic; and
means for forwarding the rerouted packet at the second edge device, in response to determining that the rerouted data packet corresponds to at least one of the selected types of network traffic. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19)
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21. A computer-readable medium storing instructions for execution on a processor for the practice of a method of rerouting selected types of network traffic in a computer network, the method comprising:
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detecting a node or link failure at a first edge device in the computer network;
rerouting a data packet addressed to the first edge device to a second edge device in the computer network;
determining, at the second edge device, whether the rerouted data packet corresponds to at least one of the selected types of network traffic; and
forwarding the rerouted packet at the second edge device, in response to determining that the rerouted data packet corresponds to at least one of the selected types of network traffic.
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Specification