Method and Apparatus for Policy Based Routing in Information Centric Networking Based Home Networks

• US 20140173076A1
• Filed: 12/31/2012
• Published: 06/19/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Futurewei Technologies Incorporated (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Futurewei Technologies Incorporated (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Ravindran, Ravishankar, Wang, Guo-Qiang, Zhang, Xinwen, Chakraborti, Asit, Biswas, Trisha
• Granted Patent: US 9,769,034 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/6418 Hybrid transport
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5058 Service discovery by the service manager
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/306 Route determination based on the nature of the carried application
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/63 Routing a service request depending on the request content or context

Abstract

A network node, comprising a receiver configured to receive a request for a service, wherein the request comprises a hierarchically structured name comprising a root and a suffix, a data storage component comprising a network synchronized policy rule associated with a service name root, wherein the network synchronized policy rule is applied to any request for a service whose name comprises a root matching the service name root, and a processor coupled to the receiver and to the data storage component, wherein the processor is configured to apply the network synchronized policy rule to the request, wherein the processor is configured to synchronize service definitions and service policies with other nodes in a network based on the name of the service, and wherein the network synchronized policy rule is synchronized with the other nodes in the network using name-based routing.

Claims

1. A network node, comprising:

a receiver configured to receive a request for a service, wherein the request comprises a hierarchically structured name comprising a root and a suffix;

a data storage component comprising a network synchronized policy rule associated with a service name root, wherein the network synchronized policy rule is applied to any request for a service whose name comprises a root matching the service name root;

a processor coupled to the receiver and to the data storage component, wherein the processor is configured to apply the network synchronized policy rule to the request, wherein the processor is configured to synchronize service definitions and service policies with other nodes in a network based on the name of the service, and wherein the network synchronized policy rule is synchronized with the other nodes in the network using name-based routing; and

a transmitter coupled to the processor and configured to forward the request to a next network node when instructed by the processor.

2. The network node of claim 1, wherein the hierarchical structured name comprises a first level identifying a reachability scope of a service, a second level identifying a name of the service, third level identifying a type of device to distinguish between heterogeneous devices, a fourth level identifying a type of content, and a fifth level providing service primitives, wherein the root comprises at least the first level and the suffix comprises at least the fifth level.

3. The network node of claim 1, wherein the hierarchical structured name corresponds to a plurality of different contextual properties, wherein the different contextual properties comprise at least one of a first level indicating whether a service is globally reachable or locally reachable, a second level identifying a name of the service, a third level identifying a device type, a fourth level identifying a content class, a fifth level identifying access privileges, and a sixth level indicating a service application programming interface (API) attribute.

4. The network node of claim 1, wherein the data storage component comprises a forwarding information base (FIB) comprising a plurality of entries, and wherein each entry comprises a hierarchical service name field, a user accessibility field, an action flag field, a policy field, and a next hop field.

5. The network node of claim 4, wherein the processor is further configured to instruct the transmitter to forward the request only when the request meets a policy requirement in the policy field indicated by the action flag field.

6. The network node of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to refrain from applying the policy when the request comprises a pass flag indicating that the packet passed the policy requirements applied in another network node.

7. The network node of claim 1 further comprising a policy based routing service (PBRS) configured to commit forwarding information based (FIB) entries with a policy flag and an action.

8. The network node of claim 7 further comprising a service management system configured to manage a database of local and remote services and learn services from the PBRS.

9. The network node of claim 7, wherein the network node comprises an internet service provider (ISP) managed provider gateway and the PBRS comprises a virtual PBRS (V-PBRS), wherein the V-PBRS is configured to interact with a home PBRS (H-PBRS) to connect a service request from the Internet to a home domain service in a home domain or to connect a service request from the home domain to an Internet service.

10. The network node of claim 1, wherein the network node comprises an enterprise gateway configured to enforce enterprise policies based on a hierarchical naming convention.

11. The network node of claim 1 further comprising a name based firewall that is configured to ensure that only valid interests pass from a home domain to the Internet and ensure that only valid interests pass from the Internet to the home domain.

12. The network node of claim 9, the name based firewall is configurable at any level of the service based naming hierarchy.

13. The network node of claim 7, wherein the network node comprises a home gateway (HGw) and the PBRS comprises a H-PBRS, and wherein the HGw is configured to receive a new service composed on a management interface, combine the policies of the new service with existing policies, and expose the new services through interaction of the H-PBRS with a V-PBRS in a provider gateway and with a PBRS in an internal network node.

14. The network node of claim 1 further comprising a service proxy that is configured to act as a service management system (SMS) for devices that lack sufficient resources to implement the SMS.

15. A method in an information centric networking (ICN) network node for discovering a service, comprising:

synchronizing at a processor service definitions and service policies with other nodes in the ICN, wherein synchronizing comprises applying name-based networking principles, and wherein the service policy rules are synchronized with the other nodes in the network using name-based routing;

receiving at a receiver a service interest from a network device, wherein the service interest comprises a hierarchically structured name comprising a root and a suffix;

applying with the processor an ICN synchronized policy rule associated with a service root to the service interest based on root matching the service root; and

instructing at the processor a transmitter to forward the interest to a next network node when the processor determines that the service interest passes the ICN synchronized policy.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising marking the service interest to indicate that the service interest passed the policy before forwarding the service interest, wherein marking the service interest indicates to the next network node to refrain from applying the policy.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

determining with the processor whether a service producing node for the service resides outside a home domain; and

instructing with the processor the transmitter to forward the service interest to a provider gateway when the service resides outside the home domain.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

determining an identity of a service requester, wherein the policy applied is determined at least in part based on the identity of the service requester, wherein a first service requester identity corresponds to a first policy and a second service requester identity corresponds to a second policy.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the service device is an ICN router, wherein the service interest is marked to indicate that the policy has been applied to the service interest, and wherein the method further comprises refraining from applying the policy to the service interest.

20. In an information centric networking (ICN) network node in an ICN based network, a computer program product executable by a processor, the computer program product comprising computer executable instructions stored on a non-transitory computer readable medium that when executed by the processor cause the ICN network node to perform the following:

synchronize service definitions and service policies with other nodes in the ICN, wherein synchronizing comprises applying name-based networking principles, and wherein the service policy rules are synchronized with the other nodes in the network using name-based routing;

receive a service interest from a network device, wherein the service interest comprises a hierarchically structured name comprising a root and a suffix;

apply an ICN synchronized policy rule associated with a service root to the service interest based on root matching the service root; and

instruct a transmitter to forward the interest to a next network node when the processor determines that the service interest passes the ICN synchronized policy.