Methods and apparatus for reducing frame overhead on local area networks

• US 7,010,613 B2
• Filed: 09/07/2001
• Issued: 03/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Connor, Patrick L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Najjar, Saleh
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, THU HA T
• Application Number:
  US09/948,186
• Publication Number:
  US 20030051045A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,642 Days
• Field of Search: 709/236, 709230-231, 709/232, 709/237, 709/238, 370470-476
• US Class Current: 709/236
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/161 Implementation details of TCP/IP or UDP/IP stack architecture; Specification of modified or new header fields
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/22 Parsing or analysis of headers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

Methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture for reducing frame overhead in communications on local area networks are disclosed herein. The frame overhead is reduced in communications on local area networks by removing unnecessary addressing information from frames prior to transmission on the network. Logical addressing information, such as an Internet protocol address, is utilized to determine the corresponding physical addressing information, such as an Ethernet media access control address, via an address resolution protocol. The physical addressing information is then incorporated into the frames, and the logical addressing information is removed (or not incorporated into the frame) to provide additional space to carry data, thereby increasing the data throughput of the network connection and potentially reducing the number of frames needed to transmit a given communication from a source to a destination within the network.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

generating a frame to communicate information on a local area network, the frame including a first header and a second header, the first header including a logical source address and a logical destination address;

identifying a physical source address and incorporating the physical source address into the second header;

correlating the logical destination address with a physical destination address and incorporating the physical destination address into the second header;

removing the logical source address and the logical destination address from the first header; and

transmitting the frame on the local area network.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first header comprises an Internet protocol header, and the logical source address and the logical destination address comprise Internet protocol addresses.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the second header comprises an Ethernet header, and the physical source address and the physical destination address comprise Ethernet hardware addresses.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein correlating the logical destination address with the physical destination address comprises executing an address resolution protocol.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein executing the address resolution protocol comprises comparing the logical destination address with one or more logical addresses stored in a memory, each of the one or more logical addresses stored in the memory having a corresponding physical address.

6. An article of manufacture, comprising:

a machine-readable medium that provides instructions, which, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to;

generate a frame to communicate information on a local area network, the frame including a first header and a second header, the first header including a logical source address and a logical destination address;

identify a physical source address;

incorporate the physical source address into the second header;

correlate the logical destination address with a physical destination address;

incorporate the physical destination address into the second header;

remove the logical source address and the logical destination address from the first header; and

transmit the frame on the local area network.

7. The article of manufacture of claim 6, wherein the first header comprises an Internet protocol header, and the logical source address and the logical destination address comprise Internet protocol addresses.

8. The article of manufacture of claim 6, wherein the second header comprises an Ethernet header, and the physical source address and the physical destination address comprise Ethernet hardware addresses.

9. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor;

a memory, coupled to the processor, to store a plurality of machine instructions; and

a communications interface, coupled to the processor, to enable the apparatus to connect to a local area network to receive and transmit frames via a communications link;

wherein execution of the machine instructions by the processor causes the apparatus to generate a frame to communicate information on the local area network, the frame including a first header and a second header, the first header including a logical source address and a logical destination address, to identify a physical source address, to incorporate the physical source address into the second header, to correlate the logical destination address with a physical destination address, to incorporate the physical destination address into the second header, to remove the logical source address and the logical destination address from the first header, and to transmit the frame on the local area network.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the first header comprises an Internet protocol header, and the logical source address and the logical destination address comprise Internet protocol addresses.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the second header comprises an Ethernet header, and the physical source address and the physical destination address comprise Ethernet hardware addresses.