Converged network extension

• US 8,625,616 B2
• Filed: 04/29/2011
• Issued: 01/07/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avago Technologies International Sales Pte Limited (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Vobbilisetty, Suresh, Koganti, Phanidhar, Narayanasamy, Senthilkumar
• Primary Examiner(s): Hamza, Faruk
• Assistant Examiner(s): LO, DIANE LEE
• Application Number:
  US13/098,360
• Publication Number:
  US 20110280572A1
• Time in Patent Office: 984 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/401
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/1515 Non-blocking multistage, e.g. Clos
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/357 Fibre channel switches
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/65 Re-configuration of fast packet switches
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/70 Virtual switches

Abstract

One embodiment of the present invention provides a switch. The switch includes a first port configured to receive Transparent Interconnection of Lots of Links (TRILL) traffic; a second port configured to receive Fiber Channel (FC) traffic; and a third port configured to transmit received TRILL or FC traffic based on a Fiber Channel over IP (FCIP) protocol.

Claims

1. A switch, comprising:

Transparent Interconnection of Lots of Links (TRILL) management module operable to identify a TRILL routing bridge (RBridge) identifier in a first packet;

a Fibre Channel (FC) management module operable to identify an FC domain identifier in a second packet; and

a Fibre Channel over IP (FCIP) management module operable to;

indicate a virtual switch identifier associated with the switch as a source address for the first or second packet; and

initiate an FCIP tunnel operable to encapsulate the first and second packets.

2. The switch of claim 1,

wherein the TRILL management module is further operable to join the switch to an Ethernet fabric switch based on TRILL protocol.

3. The switch of claim 1, further comprising an address management module operable to obtain an address assigned to a local data center;

wherein the first, second, or both packets are from the local data center.

4. The switch of claim 3, wherein the address assigned to the local data center is a virtual routing bridge (RBridge) identifier.

5. The switch of claim 4, further comprising a header processing module operable to modify header of the first packet such that a source RBridge identifier field in the header includes the virtual RBridge identifier assigned to the local data center.

6. The switch of claim 4, further comprising a header processing module operable to modify header of the first packet such that a destination RBridge identifier field in the header includes a virtual RBridge identifier assigned to a remote data center, or a multicast root virtual RBridge identifier assigned to the remote data center.

7. The switch of claim 3, wherein the address management module is further operable to identify a virtual RBridge identifier assigned to a remote data center based on an inner destination media access control (MAC) address of an egress frame.

8. A method, comprising:

identifying a Transparent Interconnection of Lots of Links (TRILL) routing bridge (RBridge) identifier in a first packet;

identifying a Fibre Channel (FC) domain identifier in a second packet;

indicating a virtual switch identifier associated with a switch as a source address for the first or second packet; and

initiating a Fibre Channel over IP (FCIP) tunnel operable to encapsulate the first and second packets.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

joining an Ethernet fabric switch based on TRILL protocol.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising obtaining an address assigned to a local data center;

wherein the first, second, or both packets are from the local data center.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the address assigned to the local data center is a virtual RBridge identifier.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising modifying header of the first packet such that a source RBridge identifier field in the header includes the virtual RBridge identifier assigned to the local data center.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising modifying header of the first packet such that a destination RBridge identifier field in the header includes a virtual RBridge identifier assigned to a remote data center, or a multicast root virtual RBridge identifier assigned to the remote data center.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising identifying a virtual RBridge identifier assigned to a remote data center based on an inner destination media access control (MAC) address of an egress frame.

15. A computing system, comprising:

a processor;

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions which when executed by the processor causes the processor to perform a method, the method comprising;

identifying a Transparent Interconnection of Lots of Links (TRILL) routing bridge (RBridge) identifier in a first packet;

identifying a Fibre Channel (FC) domain identifier in a second packet

indicating a virtual switch identifier associated with a switch as a source address for the first or second packet; and

initiating a Fibre Channel over IP (FCIP) tunnel operable to encapsulate the first and second packets.

16. The computing system of claim 15,

wherein the method further comprises joining an Ethernet fabric switch based on TRILL protocol.

17. The computing system of claim 15, wherein the method further comprises obtaining an address assigned to a local data center;

and

wherein the first, second, or both packets are from the local data center.

18. The computing system of claim 17, wherein the address assigned to the local data center is a virtual RBridge identifier.

19. The computing system of claim 18, wherein the method further comprises modifying the header of the first packet such that a source RBridge identifier field in the header includes the virtual RBridge identifier assigned to the local data center.

20. The computing system of claim 18, wherein the method further comprises modifying the header of the first packet such that a destination RBridge identifier field in the header includes a virtual RBridge identifier assigned to a remote data center, or a multicast root virtual RBridge identifier assigned to the remote data center.

21. The computing system of claim 17, wherein the method further comprises identifying a virtual RBridge identifier assigned to a remote data center based on an inner destination media access control (MAC) address of an egress frame.