System and method for improving network performance by controlling stub-routing behavior
First Claim
1. A system comprising:
- a distribution router further comprising;
a first module that characterizes additional routers connected to the distribution router as stub routers or non-stub routers and that provides a signal in response thereto, wherein a stub router is configured such that other routers do not send route queries to the stub router; and
a second module that selectively queries the non-stub routers for route information and that does not query the stub routers for the route information based on the signal, wherein the second module includes a selective peer-querying module, wherein the selective peer-querying module includes instructions for selectively unicasting or multicasting queries from the distribution router to non-stub routers, and wherein the selective peer-querying module further includes instructions for multicasting a first set of instructions to the additional routers that instruct the stub routers to ignore or discard one or more subsequent multicast queries.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method for enhancing the behavior of a network. In an illustrative embodiment, the network includes a distribution router and plural additional routers connected to the distribution router. The system includes a first module that is adapted to characterize the additional routers as stub routers or non-stub routers and then to provide a signal in response thereto. A second module selectively queries non-stub routers for route information and does not query stub routers for the route information. In a more specific embodiment, the second module includes a unicast module for selectively unicasting queries to the non-stub routers. A multicast module selectively multicasts queries to the non-stub routers via a modified conditional-receive algorithm.
16 Citations
16 Claims
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1. A system comprising:
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a distribution router further comprising; a first module that characterizes additional routers connected to the distribution router as stub routers or non-stub routers and that provides a signal in response thereto, wherein a stub router is configured such that other routers do not send route queries to the stub router; and a second module that selectively queries the non-stub routers for route information and that does not query the stub routers for the route information based on the signal, wherein the second module includes a selective peer-querying module, wherein the selective peer-querying module includes instructions for selectively unicasting or multicasting queries from the distribution router to non-stub routers, and wherein the selective peer-querying module further includes instructions for multicasting a first set of instructions to the additional routers that instruct the stub routers to ignore or discard one or more subsequent multicast queries. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A system comprising:
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first means for characterizing spoke routers in a network as stub routers or non-stub routers, wherein a stub router is configured such that other routers do not send route queries to the stub router, the spoke routers being connected to a distribution switch via a first interface, and providing a signal in response thereto; and second means for selectively enabling the interface to act as a hybrid stub and a non-stub interface based on the signal, wherein the second module includes a selective peer-querying module, wherein the selective peer-querying module includes instructions for selectively unicasting or multicasting route queries from a distribution router to the non-stub routers, and wherein the selective peer-querying module further includes instructions for multicasting a first set of instructions to the spoke routers that instruct the stub routers to ignore or discard one or more subsequent multicast route queries.
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14. An apparatus comprising:
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one or more processors; and a non-transitory machine-readable medium including instructions executable by the one or more processors for; characterizing connected routers in a network, which are connected to a distribution router via a first interface, as stub routers or non-stub routers, wherein a stub router is configured such that other routers do not send route queries to the stub router; selectively enabling the interface to act as a hybrid stub and a non-stub interface when the connected routers include both the stub routers and the non-stub routers; selectively unicasting or multicasting route queries from the distribution router to the non-stub routers; and multicasting a first set of instructions to the connected routers that instruct the stub routers to ignore or discard one or more subsequent multicast route queries.
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15. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium including instructions executable by a processor, the machine-readable storage medium comprising one or more instructions for:
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characterizing certain routers in a network, which are connected to a distribution via a first interface, as stub routers or non-stub routers, wherein a stub router is configured such that other routers do not send route queries to the stub router; selectively enabling the interface to act as a hybrid stub and a non-stub interface when the certain routers include both the stub routers and the non-stub routers; selectively unicasting or multicasting route queries from a distribution router to the non-stub routers; and multicasting a first set of instructions to the certain routers that instruct the stub routers to ignore or discard one or more subsequent multicast route queries.
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16. A method comprising:
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characterizing, by a computer, certain routers in a network, which are connected to a distribution via a first interface, as stub routers or non-stub routers, wherein a stub router is configured such that other routers do not send route queries to the stub router; selectively enabling the interface to act as a hybrid stub and a non-stub interface when the certain routers include both the stub routers and the non-stub routers; selectively unicasting or multicasting route queries from a distribution router to the non-stub routers; and multicasting a first set of instructions to the certain routers that instruct the stub routers to ignore or discard one or more subsequent multicast route queries.
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Specification