SYNCHRONIZATION OF MULTICAST INFORMATION USING INCREMENTAL UPDATES
First Claim
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1. A method comprising:
- operating a first processor of a network device in an active mode, the first processor performing a set of multicast routing-related functions in the active mode;
operating a second processor of the network device in a standby mode, the second processor not performing the set of multicast routing-related functions in the standby mode;
maintaining, by the first processor, first multicast information used by the first processor for performing the set of multicast routing-related functions, the first multicast information comprising a set of entries, each entry comprising a plurality of fields;
maintaining, by a second processor, second multicast information comprising a set of entries, each entry comprising a plurality of fields;
communicating update information to the second processor, the update information comprising information indicative of a change to be made to a set of fields of an entry in the second multicast information, wherein a number of fields included in the set of fields is less than the plurality of fields;
determining, based upon the update information, an entry in the second multicast information corresponding to the first entry in the first multicast information; and
updating the first set of fields in the first entry in the second multicast information based upon the update information.
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Abstract
Techniques that enable a network device such as a router to provide multicast routing services without interruption, even in the event of a switchover. An incremental updates technique is used to synchronize multicast information maintained by a first processor and multicast information maintained by a second processor. The first processor may be a management processor operating in active mode in a network device and the second processor may be a management processor operating in standby mode in the network device. The second processor may also be a processor on a linecard of the network device.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method comprising:
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operating a first processor of a network device in an active mode, the first processor performing a set of multicast routing-related functions in the active mode; operating a second processor of the network device in a standby mode, the second processor not performing the set of multicast routing-related functions in the standby mode; maintaining, by the first processor, first multicast information used by the first processor for performing the set of multicast routing-related functions, the first multicast information comprising a set of entries, each entry comprising a plurality of fields; maintaining, by a second processor, second multicast information comprising a set of entries, each entry comprising a plurality of fields; communicating update information to the second processor, the update information comprising information indicative of a change to be made to a set of fields of an entry in the second multicast information, wherein a number of fields included in the set of fields is less than the plurality of fields; determining, based upon the update information, an entry in the second multicast information corresponding to the first entry in the first multicast information; and updating the first set of fields in the first entry in the second multicast information based upon the update information. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A method comprising:
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operating a first processor of a network device in an active mode, the first processor performing a set of multicast routing-related functions in the active mode; operating a second processor of the network device in a standby mode, the second processor not performing the set of multicast routing-related functions in the standby mode; maintaining, by the first processor, first multicast information used by the first processor for performing the set of multicast routing-related functions, the first multicast information comprising a set of entries, each entry comprising a plurality of fields; maintaining, by the second processor, second multicast information comprising a set of entries, each entry comprising a plurality of fields; determining a first set of opcodes associated with a first entry in the first multicast information, each opcode indicative of a change to be made to the second multicast information; and determining, based upon the first set of opcodes, a second set of opcodes to be associated with the first entry in the first multicast information instead of the first set of opcodes, wherein a number of opcodes in the second set of opcodes is less than a number of opcodes in the first set of opcodes; and communicating a message to the second processor based upon the second set of opcodes. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A system comprising:
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a first processor configured to operate in an active mode, the first processor configured to perform a set of multicast routing-related functions in the active mode; and a second processor configured to operate in a standby mode when the first processor is operating in the active mode, the second processor configured to not perform the set of multicast routing-related functions in the standby mode; wherein the first processor is configured to; maintain first multicast information used by the first processor for performing the set of multicast routing-related functions, the first multicast information comprising a set of entries, each entry comprising a plurality of fields; communicating update information to the second processor, the update information comprising information indicative of a change to be made to a set of fields of an entry in the second multicast information, wherein a number of fields included in the set of fields is less than the plurality of fields; wherein the second processor is configured to; maintain second multicast information comprising a set of entries, each entry comprising a plurality of fields; determine, based upon the update information, a first entry in the second multicast information corresponding to the first entry in the first multicast information; and update the first set of fields in the first entry in the second multicast information based upon the update information. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19)
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20. A system comprising:
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a first processor configured to operate in an active mode, the first processor configured to perform a set of multicast routing-related functions in the active mode, the first processor configured to maintain first multicast information used by the first processor for performing the set of multicast routing-related functions, the first multicast information comprising a set of entries, each entry comprising a plurality of fields; and a second processor configured to operate in a standby mode when the first processor is operating in the active mode, the second processor configured to not perform the set of multicast routing-related functions in the standby mode, the second processor configured to maintain second multicast information comprising a set of entries, each entry comprising a plurality of fields; wherein the first processor is configured to; determine a first set of opcodes associated with a first entry in the first multicast information, each opcode indicative of a change to be made to the second multicast information; and determine, based upon the first set of opcodes, a second set of opcodes to be associated with the first entry in the first multicast information, wherein a number of opcodes in the second set of opcodes is less than a number of opcodes in the first set of opcodes; and communicate a message to the second processor based upon the second set of opcodes. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification