METHODS, DEVICES AND SYSTEMS WITH IMPROVED ZONE MERGE OPERATION BY CACHING PRIOR MERGE OPERATION RESULTS

• US 20090316606A1
• Filed: 08/21/2009
• Published: 12/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: LIN, YI, POUDYAL, SUNDAR, HU, JAMES, WARMENHOVEN, ERIC ANDRE
• Granted Patent: US 8,107,398 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/255
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/357 Fibre channel switches
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/65 Re-configuration of fast packet switches
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/1301 Optical transmission, optical switches
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13103 Memory
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13109 Initializing, personal profile
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/1338 Inter-exchange connection
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0062 Provisions for network management
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/54533 Configuration data, translation, passwords, databases

Abstract

Methods, devices and systems for improved zone merge operations are disclosed. Two connected switches are arbitrated as an initiator and a receiver. The merge operation is initiated only by the initiator on an initiator/receiver inter-switch link. The initiator may initiate a merge request and the receiver may perform the computation of the difference between the old and the new zone. Either the whole configuration or only the differences are communicated between the switches. The merges may be done on a connected switch basis, not on a connected port basis. Only the principle ports in the principle inter-switch-link perform the merge operation. All the remaining ports, i.e. the non-principle ports, adopt the merge result of the principle ports. The zone information may also be cached on each switch such that merge calculations need not be performed again when a merge operation with the same configuration occurs in the future.

Claims

1. A method for performing merge operations in a network having at least two switches, the method comprising:

connecting a first switch with a first configuration and a first checksum to a second switch with a second configuration and a second checksum;

performing a merge operation resulting in a third configuration and a third checksum;

storing the first configuration on both the first and second switches;

storing the second configuration on both the first and second switches; and

storing the third configuration on both the first and second switches.