Method and system for scaling network traffic managers
DCFirst Claim
1. A method for distributing flows of packets over a network having a plurality of network devices and a plurality of traffic managers, comprising:
- (a) receiving packets, each packet to be forwarded to one of the plurality of network devices through an intermediate traffic manager;
(b) if the packet includes a source address that is associated with a first set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a first traffic manager that is selected using a destination address of the packet, and(c) if the packet includes a destination address that is associated with a second set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a second traffic manager that is selected using a source address of the packet,wherein the first traffic manager and the second traffic manager are the same for each packet in a flow between two network devices.
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Abstract
A method and system for distributing network traffic to multiple traffic management devices. A distributor receives each packet from a network and may act as a layer 2 switch, a router, or distribute the packet to one of a group of traffic management devices. The distributor may receive packets from servers that the traffic management devices are managing communications to. When distributing packets to traffic management devices, information such as source and destination addresses may be used to determine which traffic management device each packet should be sent to. The distributor causes packets that are part of a flow to be delivered to the same traffic management device. Many configurations are possible for connecting the distributor to the traffic management devices, including connecting each traffic management device to a physical or virtual port on the distributor, connecting the traffic management devices to the distributor using a virtual local area network, and connecting the traffic management devices to a layer 2 switch.
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Citations
33 Claims
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1. A method for distributing flows of packets over a network having a plurality of network devices and a plurality of traffic managers, comprising:
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(a) receiving packets, each packet to be forwarded to one of the plurality of network devices through an intermediate traffic manager; (b) if the packet includes a source address that is associated with a first set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a first traffic manager that is selected using a destination address of the packet, and (c) if the packet includes a destination address that is associated with a second set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a second traffic manager that is selected using a source address of the packet, wherein the first traffic manager and the second traffic manager are the same for each packet in a flow between two network devices. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A distributor for distributing flows of packets over a network having a plurality of traffic managers, comprising:
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(a) a network interface that receives a packet to forward to a device coupled to the distributor; and (b) coupled to the network interface, at least one processor configured to perform actions, comprising; (i) when the packet includes a source address that is associated with a first set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a first traffic manager that is selected using a destination address of the packet, and (ii) when the packet includes a destination address that is associated with a second set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a second traffic manager that is selected using a source address of the packet, wherein the first traffic manager and the second traffic manager are the same for each packet in a flow between two network devices. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A switch chassis for distributing flows of packet of a network having a plurality of network devices, comprising:
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(a) a plurality of distributors that perform actions, including; (i) receiving a packet to forward to one of the plurality of network devices; (ii) if the packet includes a source address that is associated with a first set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a first traffic manager that is selected employing a destination address of the packet, and (iii) if the packet includes a destination address that is associated with a second set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a second traffic manager that is selected employing a source address of the packet, (b) at least one network interface associated with each of the distributors; (b) a plurality of traffic managers; (c) a switch fabric that provides a communication path between the traffic managers and the distributors; and (d) a set of configuration parameters that is shared by the plurality of distributors, wherein the first traffic manager and the second traffic manager are the same for each packet in a flow between two network devices.
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19. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for distributing flows of packets over a network including a plurality of network devices and a plurality of traffic managers, comprising:
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(a) receiving packets, each packet to be forwarded to one of the plurality of network devices through an intermediate traffic manager; (b) if the packet includes a source address that is associated with a first set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a first traffic manager that is selected using a destination address of the packet, and (c) if the packet includes a destination address that is associated with a second set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a second traffic manager that is selected using a source address of the packet, wherein the first traffic manager and the second traffic manager are the same for each packet in a flow between two devices.
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20. A system for distributing flows of communication, wherein a flow of communication includes a sequence of related packets, comprising:
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(a) a plurality of servers configured to respond to packets of information; (b) a plurality of traffic managers configured to direct packets to the plurality of servers; (c) a distributor that is coupled to the plurality of servers and the plurality of traffic managers, wherein the distributor is structured to receive each packet and forwards a packet to one of the plurality of traffic managers, wherein each packet includes a source address and a destination address, wherein the distributor is configured to perform actions, including; (i) if the packet includes a source address that is associated with a first set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a first traffic manager that is selected using a destination address of the packet, wherein the first traffic manager chooses a server to receive the packet, and (ii) if the packet includes a destination address that is associated with a second set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a second traffic manager that is selected using a source address of the packet, wherein the second traffic manager chooses a server to receive the packet, wherein the first traffic manager and the second traffic manager are the same for each packet in a flow between two devices. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22)
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23. A method of distributing flows of packets in a network with a plurality of traffic managers, comprising:
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(a) receiving a packet; (b) when the packet is received from a traffic manager, performing actions, including; (i) changing a first media access control (MAC) address of the packet to a second MAC address that is associated with at least one traffic manager; and (ii) forwarding the packet towards its destination; and (c) when the packet is received from a non-traffic manager facility, performing other actions, including; (i) performing a lookup on at least one of a source address and a destination address; (ii) when the destination address is located by the lookup, sending the packet to a first traffic manager using the source address; (iii) when the source address is located by the lookup, sending the packet to a second traffic manager using the destination address;
else(iv) routing the packet towards its destination. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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30. A method of distributing flows of packets in a network with a plurality of traffic managers, comprising:
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(a) receiving a packet including a source address and a destination address; (b) if the packet is received from one of the plurality of traffic managers, forwarding the packet towards its destination; (c) otherwise, performing actions, including; (i) searching a table for an action to perform depending on attributes of the source address of the packet and the destination address of the packet; and (ii) when the action is located in the table, performing the action, including at least one of; sending the packet to the destination address; hashing on the source address to obtain a first value and sending the packet to a first traffic manager associated with the value; hashing on the destination address to obtain a second value and sending the packet to a second traffic manager associated with the second value; and routing the packet towards its destination, wherein the first traffic manager and the second traffic manager are the same for each packet in a flow between two network devices. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32)
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33. An apparatus for distributing flows of packets in a network having a plurality of network devices and a plurality of traffic managers, comprising:
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(a) an interface that receives packets, each packet to be forwarded to one of the plurality of network devices through an intermediate traffic manager; (b) coupled to the interface, a mechanism that forwards each packet, wherein the forwarding mechanism performs actions, including; (i) if the packet includes a source address that is associated with a first set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a first traffic manager that is selected using a destination address of the packet, and (ii) if the packet includes a destination address that is associated with a second set of addresses, forwarding the packet to a second traffic manager that is selected using a source address of the packet, wherein the first traffic manager and the second traffic manager are the same for each packet in a flow between two network devices.
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Specification