METHOD AND GATEWAY DEVICE FOR MANAGING ADDRESS RESOURCE

• US 20140362870A1
• Filed: 08/21/2014
• Published: 12/11/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/23/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• 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, Niu, Lehong, Liu, Shucheng
• Granted Patent: US 9,591,034 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/437
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2859 Point-to-point connection between the data network and the subscribers encapsulation H04L12/4633; virtual LANs H04L12/4641; routing of packets H04L45/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4633 Interconnection of networks using encapsulation techniques, e.g. tunneling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4662 wherein a VLAN tag represents a service instance, e.g. I-SID in PBB
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/103 across network layers, e.g. resolution of network layer into physical layer addresses or address resolution protocol [ARP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5014 using dynamic host configuration protocol [DHCP] or bootstrap protocol [BOOTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5061 Pools of addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/102 Gateways arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways, H04L12/66

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention disclose a method and a gateway device for managing an address resource, which relate to the field of Internet technologies and can maximally reduce horizontal traffic between gateway devices, thereby improving system performance. The method in the present invention includes: sending an address delegation request message to a management gateway device in a same gateway group, where the management gateway device is configured to manage an address pool(s) or an address in an address pool; receiving a response message sent by the management gateway device, where the response message includes a delegated address, and the delegated address is an address in the address pool(s) managed by the management gateway device; acquiring the delegated address in the response message; and allocating an address in the delegated address to a user terminal in a same user group. The present invention is used for managing the address resource.

Claims

1. A method for managing an address resource, comprising:

sending an address delegation request message to a management gateway device in a same gateway group, wherein the management gateway device is configured to manage an address pool(s) or an address in an address pool;

receiving a response message sent by the management gateway device, wherein the response message comprises a delegated address, and the delegated address is an address in the address pool(s) managed by the management gateway device;

acquiring the delegated address in the response message; and

allocating an address in the delegated address to a user terminal in a same user group.

2. The method for managing an address resource according to claim 1, wherein the address delegation request message comprises information about the number of addresses, and when a non-delegated address pool does not exist in the address pool(s) managed by the management gateway device, the delegated address comprises addresses whose number is specified by the information about the number of addresses.

3. The method for managing an address resource according to claim 1, wherein when a non-delegated address pool exists in the address pool(s) managed by the management gateway device, the delegated address is an address in an address pool, the address pool is one of all address pools managed by the management gateway device, the address in the address pool is used for allocation to the user terminal in the same user group, and the method comprises:

sending the address delegation request message to the management gateway device in the same gateway group;

receiving a response message that is sent by the management gateway device and comprises one address pool;

acquiring the address pool in the response message; and

allocating an address in the address pool to the user terminal in the same user group.

4. The method for managing an address resource according to claim 1, wherein the address delegation request message further comprises user group identifier information, so that the management gateway device records, according to the user group identifier information, correspondence between the delegated address and a user group specified by the user group identifier information.

5. The method for managing an address resource according to claim 3, wherein the allocating an address in the address pool to the user terminal in the same user group is:

acquiring, from all address pools delegated by the management gateway device to a gateway device, an address pool that has the largest number of addresses, wherein the gateway device receives the response message; and

allocating an address in the delegated address pool that has the largest number of addresses to the user terminal in the user group.

6. The method for managing an address resource according to claim 3, wherein the response message further comprises a virtual MAC address, and the method further comprises:

acquiring the virtual MAC address in the response message; and

using the virtual MAC address in the response message as a MAC address of a gateway device, wherein the gateway device acquires the virtual MAC address.

7. The method for managing an address resource according to claim 6, wherein after the receiving a response message sent by the management gateway device, the method further comprises:

sending a backup message to a second gateway device in the same gateway group, wherein the backup message comprises the address pool and the virtual MAC address so that the second gateway device acquires the address pool according to the backup message and uses the virtual MAC address as a MAC address of a gateway device corresponding to the address pool, and the second gateway device is any other gateway device in the same gateway group as the gateway device.

8. A gateway device for managing an address resource, comprising:

a sender, configured to send an address delegation request message to a management gateway device in a same gateway group, wherein the management gateway device is configured to manage an address pool(s) or an address in an address pool;

a receiver, configured to receive a response message sent by the management gateway device, wherein the response message comprises a delegated address, and the delegated address is an address in the address pool(s) managed by the management gateway device;

an address acquiring module, configured to acquire the delegated address in the response message; and

an allocation module, configured to allocate an address in the delegated address to a user terminal in a same user group.

9. The gateway device for managing an address resource according to claim 8, wherein the address delegation request message comprises information about the number of addresses, and when a non-delegated address pool does not exist in the address pool(s) managed by the management gateway device, the delegated address comprises addresses whose number is specified by the information about the number of addresses.

10. The gateway device for managing an address resource according to claim 8, wherein when a non-delegated address pool exists in the address pool(s) managed by the management gateway device, the delegated address is an address in an address pool, the address pool is one of all address pools managed by the management gateway device, the address in the address pool is used for allocation to the user terminal in the same user group;

the receiver is configured to receive a response message that is sent by the management gateway device and comprises one address pool;

the address acquiring module is an address pool acquiring module and configured to acquire the address pool in the response message; and

the allocation module is configured to allocate an address in the address pool comprised in the response message to the user terminal in the same user group.

11. The gateway device for managing an address resource according to claim 8, wherein the address delegation request message further comprises user group identifier information, so that the management gateway device records, according to the user group identifier information, correspondence between the delegated address and a user group specified by the user group identifier information.

12. The gateway device for managing an address resource according to claim 10, wherein the allocation module is configured to:

acquire, from all address pools delegated by the management gateway device to the gateway device, an address pool that has the largest number of addresses, and preferentially allocate an address in the delegated address pool that has the largest number of addresses to the user terminal in the user group.

13. The gateway device for managing an address resource according to claim 10, wherein the response message further comprises a virtual MAC address, and the gateway device further comprises:

a virtual address acquiring module, configured to acquire the virtual MAC address in the response message; and

a virtual address determining module, configured to use the virtual MAC address in the response message as a MAC address of the gateway device.

14. The gateway device for managing an address resource according to claim 13, wherein the gateway device further comprises:

a backup message sender, configured to send a backup message to a second gateway device in the same gateway group, wherein the backup message comprises the address pool and the virtual MAC address so that the second gateway device acquires the address pool according to the backup message and uses the virtual MAC address as a MAC address of a gateway device corresponding to the address pool, and the second gateway device is any other gateway device in the same gateway group as the gateway device.