Packet switching resource management within nodes

• US 5,425,021 A
• Filed: 01/28/1993
• Issued: 06/13/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Guerin, Roch, Derby, Jeffrey H., Kaplan, Marc A., Peters, Marcia L., Dudley, John G., Potter, Kenneth H. Jr., Drake, John E. Jr., Marin, Gerald A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hsu, Alpus
• Application Number:
  US08/010,136
• Time in Patent Office: 866 Days
• Field of Search: 370/16, 370/54, 370/60, 370/85.13, 370/85.14, 370/94.1, 370/94.3, 340/825.02, 340/825.5, 340/825.51, 340/825.52, 340/826, 340/827
• US Class Current: 370/408
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5632 Bandwidth allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/102 using shared medium, e.g. bus or ring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/107 using shared medium
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/1553 Interconnection of ATM switching modules, e.g. ATM switching fabrics
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/25 Routing or path finding in a switch fabric
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/256 Routing or path finding in ATM switching fabrics
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/3009 Header conversion, routing tables or routing tags
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/555 Error detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 11/0478 Provisions for broadband connections

Abstract

Method and apparatus for making limited internal-node communication facilities externally visible in a packet switching network. Internal-node communication facilities are called intranode links, can include any cable, channel, bus, etc. over which data passes, and are used to connect the multiple subnodes within a given node. Each subnode contains a switching mechanism and routes packets to other nodes, subnodes, or user applications. Each node provides network control functions such as topology, directory, path selection, and bandwidth management which can manage intranode links in the same manner that internode links are currently managed.

Claims

1. A method, in a node in a packet switched communications network having two or more nodes and having one or more nodes containing subnodes, for creating a spanning tree which includes one or more intranode links, said method comprising the steps of:

determining, for each node having subnodes, which subnodes have external links that are to be part of said spanning tree;

determining, for each node having subnodes, the subnode within which a control point resides;

selecting in each node having subnodes, a set of intranode links to provide a connection path between the subnode in which the control point resides and the subnodes having external links;

programming said set of intranode links with a tree address, so that said set of intranode links is included in said spanning tree.

2. A method, in a receiving node, the receiving node having a control point and being part of a packet switched network, for sending an expanded information packet to a sending node during link activation, said method comprising the steps of:

creating a packet having a routing field and having a message field containing two or more automatic network routing (ANR) labels;

setting a final ANR label for said two or more ANR labels in said message field to specify the control point within said receiving node;

setting non-final ANR labels for the remaining ANR labels of said two or more ANR labels within said message field to specify intranode links between the subnodes of said receiving node; and

sending said expanded information packet to said sending node in order to communicate to said sending node an optimum intranode path to the control point of said receiving node.

3. Apparatus, in a receiving node, the receiving node having a control point and being part of a packet switched network, for sending an expanded information packet to a sending node during link activation, said apparatus comprising:

means for creating a packet having a routing field and having a message field containing two or more automatic network routing (ANR) labels;

means for setting a final ANR label for said two or more ANR labels in said message field to specify the control point within said receiving node;

means for setting non-final ANR labels for the remaining ANR labels of said two or more ANR labels within said message field to specify intranode links between the subnodes of said receiving node; and

means for sending said expanded information packet to said sending node in order to communicate to said sending node an optimum intranode path to the control point of said receiving node.