Method of maintaining PVC status packetized communication system

• US 5,539,734 A
• Filed: 07/21/1994
• Issued: 07/23/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 07/21/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Alcatel Canada Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Newbridge Networks Corporation (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Burwell, Wayne, Helmer, Darren
• Primary Examiner(s): Harvey, Jack B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Travis, John
• Application Number:
  US08/278,492
• Time in Patent Office: 733 Days
• Field of Search: 370/60, 370/60.1, 370/94.1, 370/95.2
• US Class Current: 370/410
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/387 for adaptation of different data processing systems to different peripheral devices, e.g. protocol converters for incompatible systems, open system
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 370/906 Fiber data distribution interface, FDDI

Abstract

A method of managing an interface to an internal message pipe, such as an FDDI bus, comprises sending a status enquiry message to request the status of each PVC having a DLCI in a specified range, receiving a subset status message containing sequence exchange numbers corresponding to the last status message sent out, updating the contents of a station'"'"'s PVC'"'"'s in response to the received subset status message, and propagating PVC status changes between entities on the pipe.

Claims

1. A method of managing an interface to an internal message pipe interconnecting communications entities in a packetized communications system wherein permanent virtual connections (PVCs) are established in said message pipe, said method comprising sending from a transmitting entity a subset status enquiry message to request the status of each PVC in the pipe having a DLCI (Data Link Connection Identifier) in a specified range, receiving a subset status message containing sequence exchange numbers corresponding to the last status message sent out, updating an entity'"'"'s PVC'"'"'s in response to said received subset status message, and propagating PVC status changes between the communicating entities on said pipe.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said entities are frame relay engines.

3. A method as claimed in claim 2, wherein said pipe is an FDDI bus.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said pipe is an ATM bus.

5. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said enquiry messages are sent over a DLCI 0 link.

6. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein more than one Asynchronous status IE is packed into each Asynchronous status message.