MULTICAST PACKET FORWARDING METHOD, APPARATUS AND MULTICAST SYSTEM

• US 20100142529A1
• Filed: 02/09/2010
• Published: 06/10/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/28/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: HUANG, Yong, ZHA, Min
• Application Number:
  US12/702,877
• Publication Number:
  US 20100142529A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/390
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/18 for broadcast or conference , e.g. multicast

Abstract

A multicast packet forwarding method is applied to forward multicast packets from an ingress node to egress nodes of a multicast group in a network domain, and at least one network node in the multicast network domain performs the following steps. A multicast packet of a multicast group is received. Node information about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach is determined, in which the egress nodes that need to be reached include the egress nodes successfully joining in the multicast group. The node information about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach is added in the multicast packet. The multicast packet carrying the node information about the egress nodes is sent out. A multicast packet forwarding apparatus and a multicast system are also provided.

Claims

1. A multicast packet forwarding method executed by at least one network node in a multicast network domain for forwarding multicast packets from an ingress node to egress nodes of a multicast group in the network domain the method including:

receiving a multicast packet of a multicast group;

determining node information about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach, wherein the egress nodes that need to be reached comprise the egress nodes successfully joining in the multicast group;

adding the node information, about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach, into the multicast packet; and

sending the multicast packet carrying the node information about the egress nodes.

2. The multicast packet forwarding method according to claim 1, wherein the information about the border node in the network domain is an identifier, and the identifiers of every two border nodes are orthogonal, determining node information about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach comprises:

performing an AND operation on a mask corresponding one adjacent downstream network node and the information about the egress nodes of the multicast group carried in the multicast packet.

3. The multicast packet forwarding method according to claim 2, wherein one of the following:

the mask corresponding one adjacent downstream network node is a result obtained by performing an OR operation on the identifiers of all the egress nodes; and

the mask corresponding one adjacent downstream network node is generated according to unicast routes.

4. The multicast packet forwarding method according to claim 1, wherein the information about the border node in the network domain is an identifier, and the identifiers of every two border nodes are orthogonal, the node information about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach is a label obtained by performing an OR operation on the identifiers of the egress nodes.

5. The multicast packet forwarding method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

receiving a request for joining in the multicast group sent by a network node; and

obtaining the information about the border nodes successfully joining in the multicast group.

6. The multicast packet forwarding method according to claim 1, wherein the node information, about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach and determined by the network node, is node information about a second egress node, and the determining, by the network node, the node information about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach comprises one of the following:

if the received multicast packet of the multicast group carries node information, about a first egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach and determined by an upstream network node of the network node, determining, by the network node, the node information about a second egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach, according to the node information, carried in the received multicast packet and about a first egress node that needs to be reached, and border nodes information corresponding to downstream network nodes adjacent to the network node;

determining, by the network node, the node information, about a second egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach, according to node information, pre-configured locally in the network node and about all the egress nodes of the multicast group downstream the network node; and

directly determining, by the network node, the node information about a second egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach, according to node information, provided by other network entities and about all the egress nodes of the multicast group downstream the network node.

7. The multicast packet forwarding method according to claim 6, wherein the determining, by the network node, the node information about a second egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach, according to the node information, carried in the received multicast packet and about a first egress node that needs to be reached, and the pre-configured information about the border nodes corresponding to the network node specifically comprises:

if the node information about a first egress node is a first information set that comprises the node information about the egress nodes, wherein the node information about the border nodes corresponding to the network node is a second information set that comprises the node information about the border nodes, comparing, by the network node, the information in the two information sets, and if the node information about one border node in the second information set is consistent with the node information about the egress nodes in the first information set, determining that the information about the border node is the node information about a second egress node; and

if the node information about a first egress node carried in the multicast packet is a result obtained after performing an operation on the node information about the egress nodes, wherein the information about the border nodes corresponding to the downstream network nodes adjacent to the network node is a result obtained after performing an operation on the node information about the border nodes, performing operations on the two results to determine the node information about a second egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach.

8. The multicast packet forwarding method according to claim 1, wherein before the forwarding the multicast packet, the method further comprises:

adding the information about all the egress nodes of the multicast group downstream the network node in the multicast packet.

9. A multicast packet forwarding apparatus in a network node within a network domain, comprising:

a multicast packet receiving unit, adapted to receive a multicast packet of a multicast group;

an information determination unit, adapted to determine node information about egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach, wherein the egress nodes that need to be reached comprise the egress nodes successfully joining in the multicast group; and

a multicast packet forwarding unit, adapted to add, according to the information, determined by the information determination unit and about all the egress nodes that are downstream nodes of the network node and that the multicast packet needs to reach, the node information about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach, into the multicast packet, and send the multicast packet carrying the node information about the egress nodes.

10. The multicast packet forwarding apparatus according to claim 9, wherein:

the information about the border node in the network domain is an identifier, and the identifiers of every two border nodes are orthogonal; and

the information determination unit is adapted to perform an AND operation on a mask corresponding one adjacent downstream network node and the information about the egress nodes of the multicast group carried in the multicast packet.

11. The multicast packet forwarding apparatus according to claim 10, wherein one of the following:

the mask corresponding one adjacent downstream network node is a result obtained by performing an OR operation on the identifiers of all the egress nodes; and

the mask corresponding one adjacent downstream network node is generated according to unicast routes.

12. The multicast packet forwarding method according to claim 9, wherein the information about the border node in the network domain is an identifier, and the identifiers of every two border nodes are orthogonal, the node information about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach is a label obtained by performing an OR operation on the identifiers of the egress nodes.

13. The multicast packet forwarding apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the determining, by the information determination unit, that the node information about the egress nodes that the multicast packet needs to reach is node information about a second egress node comprises one of the following:

if the received multicast packet of the multicast group carries node information, about a first egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach and determined by an upstream network node of the network node, determining, by the network node, the node information about a second egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach, according to the node information, carried in the received multicast packet and about a first egress node that needs to be reached and, and border nodes information corresponding to downstream network nodes adjacent to the network node;

determining, by the network node, the node information about a second egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach, according to node information, pre-configured locally in the network node and about all the egress nodes of the multicast group downstream the network node; and

directly determining, by the network node, the node information about a second egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach, according to node information, provided by other network entities and about all the egress nodes of the multicast group downstream the network node.

14. The multicast packet forwarding apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the determining, by the information determination unit, the node information about a second egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach, according to the node information, carried in the received multicast packet and about a first egress node that needs to be reached, and a pre-configured information about the border nodes corresponding to the network node specifically comprises:

if the node information about a first egress node is a first information set that comprises the node information about the egress nodes, and the node information about the border nodes corresponding to the network node is a second information set that comprises the node information about the border nodes, comparing, by the network node, the information in the two information sets; and

if the node information about one border node in the second information set is consistent with the node information about the egress nodes in the first information set, determining that the information about the border node is the node information about a second egress node; and

if the node information about a first egress node carried in the multicast packet is a result obtained after performing an operation on the node information about the egress nodes, and the information about the border nodes corresponding to the downstream network nodes adjacent to the network node is a result obtained after performing an operation on the node information about the border nodes, performing operations on the two results to determine the node information about a second egress node that the multicast packet needs to reach.

15. A multicast system, comprising:

an ingress node, adapted to receive a multicast packet, determine information about all egress nodes of the multicast packet in a network domain, and forward the multicast packet according to the information about all the egress nodes in the network domain;

intermediate nodes, adapted to receive the multicast packet sent by the ingress node or the adjacent upstream intermediate nodes, determine the information, about all the egress nodes of the multicast packet that are downstream nodes of the intermediate nodes and that the multicast packet needs to reach, and forward the multicast packet according to the information about all the egress nodes of the multicast packet that are downstream nodes of the intermediate nodes and that the multicast packet needs to reach; and

the egress nodes, adapted to receive the multicast packet sent by the adjacent upstream intermediate nodes.