Dynamic IP addressing and quality of service assurance

• US 6,427,174 B1
• Filed: 11/12/1998
• Issued: 07/30/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Sitaraman, Aravind, Sthothra Bhasham, Sampath Kumar, Lou, Shuxian, Dos Santos, Maria Alice, Mann, Joseph F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Maung, Zarni
• Application Number:
  US09/191,150
• Time in Patent Office: 1,356 Days
• Field of Search: 709/213, 709/250, 709/214, 709/245, 709/215, 709/216, 709/217
• US Class Current: 709/245
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2856 Access arrangements, e.g. Internet access asynchronous transfer mode networks H04L12/5601; broadband local area networks H04L12/2801; optical access or distribution networks H04Q11/0067; access to open networks H04L12/5691; digital subscriber line end-user equipment and bit-level processing of data on a PSTN-based network H04M11/00; home network gateways H04L12/2834; wireless access networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2874 Processing of data for distribution to the subscribers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/15 in relation to multipoint traffic arrangements for broadcast or multicast in data networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/20 Traffic policing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/808 User-type aware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5061 Pools of addresses

Abstract

An address is allocated to a host device which is selected to obtain network access from any access point within a given communications system, while maintaining a network bandwidth management scheme that is consistently applied to a user'"'"'s network bandwidth usage regardless of the access point used by the user. This is accomplished using a communications network having a at least one access point coupled to a first router which is configured to forward packets at a forwarding rate based on a source address contained in each of the packets. A user profile is assigned to each subscriber belonging to an access point. Each user profile includes a pool identifier which corresponds to a forwarding rate used by the router for packets corresponding to the subscriber. If a subscriber attempts to log-on to an access point, a source address is selected using the address pool identifier, the source address is assigned to the subscriber, and each packet is forwarded at a forwarding rate based on the source address contained within each of the packets. The communications system may also include a global memory which contains all of the user profiles stored for the communications system. The global memory provides the pertinent user profile to any access point from which a subscriber seeks to obtain access when the subscriber does not have a user profile contained within the local memory of the access point, such as in the case of a roaming subscriber.

Claims

1. A method for allocating addresses to subscribers on a communications system having at least one router configured to forward packets transmitted by said subscribers at a minimum rate selected using an address contained in said packets, said method comprising:

assigning to a subscriber a user profile containing a pool ID;

initiating an access request process in response to an access request by said subscriber;

checking a local memory for said user profile;

assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said local memory; and

querying a global memory for said user profile if said user profile is not contained in said local memory, and assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said global memory.

2. A communication system comprising:

an access point;

a local memory holding user profiles of subscribers to the communication system, each user profile including at least a user ID and a pool ID, said local memory configured to provide a pool ID in response to a query from said access point identifying a user ID for which a user profile exists in said local memory;

a global memory holding user profiles of subscribers to the communication system, said global memory configured to provide a pool ID in response to a query from said access point identifying a user ID for which a user profile exists in said global memory; and

a plurality of address pools associated with said access point wherein a user is assigned an IP address from an IP address pool within said plurality of address pools, said address pool selected in response to said pool ID.

3. A communications system comprising:

an access point;

a local memory associated with said access point;

a global memory coupled to said local memory and responsive to storing a user profile corresponding to a subscriber and containing a pool ID;

a plurality of address pools accessible to said access point;

a forwarding device that forwards a packet sent by said subscriber according to a source address contained in the packet; and

wherein said global memory provides said pool ID to said local memory if said user profile is not contained in said local memory during an access attempt by said subscriber to the communications system through said access point, said pool ID used to select an IP address pool from said plurality of address pools.

4. A method for allocating addresses to network subscribers comprising:

assigning to a subscriber a user profile containing a pool ID;

initiating an access request process in response to an access request by said subscriber;

checking a local memory for said user profile;

assigning said subscriber an address from an address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said local memory;

querying a global memory for said user profile if said user profile is not contained I said local memory, and assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said global memory; and

forwarding packets transmitted by said subscriber at a minimum rate selected in response to said IP address.

5. A method for operating a network operations center coupled to a communications system having a router that forwards packets received from a client according to the source address of said packets, said method comprising:

receiving and storing a user profile having a pool identifier in a global memory, said pool identifier comprising an IP address pool; and

responding to a request for said user profile from a first local memory coupled to a protocol gateway by transmitting said user profile to said first local memory.

6. An apparatus for operating a network operations center coupled to a communications system having a router that forwards packets received from a client according to the source address of said packets, said apparatus comprising:

receiving and storing a user profile having a pool identifier in a global memory;

responding to a request for said user profile from a first local memory coupled to a protocol gateway by transmitting said user profile to said first local memory; and

responding to a request for said user profile from a second local memory coupled to a second protocol gateway by transmitting said user profile to said second local memory.

7. An apparatus for allocating addresses to subscribers on a communications system having at least one router configured to forward packets transmitted by said subscribers at a minimum rate selected using an address contained in said packets, said apparatus comprising:

means for assigning to a subscriber a user profile containing a pool ID;

means for initiating an access request process in response to an access request by said subscriber;

means for checking a local memory for said user profile;

means for assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said local memory; and

means for querying a global memory for said user profile if said user profile is not contained in said local memory, and assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said global memory.

8. A program storage device readable by a machine, embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform a method for allocating addresses to subscribers on a communications system having at least one router configured to forward packets transmitted by said subscribers at a minimum rate selected using an address contained in said packets, the method comprising:

assigning to a subscriber a user profile containing a pool ID;

initiating an access request process in response to an access request by said subscriber;

checking a local memory for said user profile;

assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said local memory; and

querying a global memory for said user profile if said user profile is not contained in said local memory, and assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said global memory.

9. An apparatus for allocating addresses to network subscribers, the apparatus comprising:

means for assigning to a subscriber a user profile containing a pool ID;

means for initiating an access request process in response to an access request by said subscriber;

means for checking a local memory for said user profile;

means for assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said local memory;

means for querying a global memory for said user profile if said user profile is not contained in said local memory, and assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said global memory; and

means for forwarding packets transmitted by said subscriber at a minimum rate selected in response to said IP address.

10. A program storage device readable by a machine, embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform a method for allocating addresses to network subscribers, the method comprising:

assigning to a subscriber a user profile containing a pool ID;

initiating an access request process in response to an access request by said subscriber;

checking a local memory for said user profile;

assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said local memory;

querying a global memory for said user profile if said user profile is not contained in said local memory, and assigning said subscriber an IP address from an IP address pool identified by said pool ID if said user profile is contained in said global memory; and

forwarding packets transmitted by said subscriber at a minimum rate selected in response to said IP address.

11. An apparatus for operating a network operations center coupled to a communications system having a router that forwards packets received from a client according to the source address of said packets, said apparatus comprising:

means for receiving and storing a user profile having a pool identifier in a global memory, said pool identifier comprising an IP address pool; and

means for responding to a request for said user profile from a first local memory coupled to a protocol gateway by transmitting said user profile to said first local memory.

12. An apparatus for operating a network operations center coupled to a communications system having a router that forwards packets received from a client according to the source address of said packets, said apparatus comprising:

means for receiving and storing a user profile having a pool identifier in a global memory;

means for responding to a request for said user profile from a first local memory coupled to a protocol gateway by transmitting said user profile to said first local memory; and

means for responding to a request for said user profile from a second local memory coupled to a second protocol gateway by transmitting said user profile to said second local memory.

13. A program storage device readable by a machine, embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform a method for operating a network operations center which is coupled to a communications system having a router that forwards packets received from a client according to the source address of said packets, the method comprising:

receiving and storing a user profile having a pool identifier in a global memory, said pool identifier comprising an IP address pool; and

responding to a request for said user profile from a first local memory coupled to a protocol gateway by transmitting said user profile to said first local memory.

14. A program storage device readable by a machine, embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform a method for operating a network operations center coupled to a communications system having a router that forwards packets received from a client according to the source address of said packets, the method comprising:

receiving and storing a user profile having a pool identifier in a global memory;

responding to a request for said user profile from a first local memory coupled to a protocol gateway by transmitting said user to profile to said first local memory; and

responding to a request for said user profile from a second local memory coupled to a second protocol gateway by transmitting said user profile to said second local memory.