Method and systems for determining path of a virtual connection through a network

• US 8,948,049 B2
• Filed: 04/23/2012
• Issued: 02/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/19/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Riverbed Technology, LLC (Riverbed Technology Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Riverbed Technology Incorporated
• Inventors: Shaw, James Mark, Uppalli, Raghavendra B.
• Primary Examiner(s): MURPHY, RHONDA L
• Application Number:
  US13/454,034
• Publication Number:
  US 20120207058A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,016 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/254
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4633 Interconnection of networks using encapsulation techniques, e.g. tunneling
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/04 Interdomain routing, e.g. hierarchical routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/10 Routing in connection-oriented networks, e.g. X.25 or ATM

Abstract

Networks and devices may communicate with each other using virtual connections. In one embodiment, a computer-implemented model is generated and includes a representation of the path of a virtual connection. The path of a virtual connection, such as an IP tunnel, is traced between its source and destination. The physical connection corresponding to such IP tunnels are found by tracing through the device configuration and routing tables at routers in the network. The path between the source and destination devices is traced until the path is terminated at the destination device, or at an interface to an external network. If the path ends at an external network, the path is traced from the destination device toward the source device until a corresponding interface to the external network is reached.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a processing system, configuration data associated with devices in the network, the configuration data indicating how the devices have been configured;

storing the configuration data in a non-transitory computer-readable medium for subsequent processing by the processing system;

identifying, by the processing system, a virtual connection in the configuration data of a first endpoint from which data is communicated to a second endpoint;

determining, by the processing system, a path of the virtual connection based on identifying a hop along the path based on a search of link layer information in the configuration data and identifying a next hop along the path based on the link layer information; and

providing, by the processing system, a representation of the path of the virtual connection that indicates the hops in a computer-implemented model of the network for presentation on a display device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the configuration data comprises receiving network data.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the virtual connection comprises identifying a private Internet Protocol address for a virtual private network.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the virtual connection comprises identifying an asynchronous transfer mode virtual circuit.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the virtual connection comprises identifying a multi-protocol label switching label switch path.

6. A method comprising:

receiving, at a processing system, configuration data associated with devices in the network, the configuration data indicating how the devices have been configured;

storing the configuration data in a non-transitory computer-readable medium for subsequent processing by the processing system;

identifying, by the processing system, a virtual connection in the configuration data of a first endpoint from which data is communicated to a second endpoint;

determining, by the processing system, a path of the virtual connection based on identifying a hop along the path based on a search of link layer information in the configuration data and identifying a next hop along the path based on a search of network layer information in the configuration data; and

providing, by the processing system, a representation of the path of the virtual connection that indicates the hops in a computer-implemented model of the network for presentation on a display device.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein receiving the configuration data comprises receiving network data.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein identifying the virtual connection comprises identifying a private Internet Protocol address for a virtual private network.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein identifying the virtual connection comprises identifying an asynchronous transfer mode virtual circuit.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein identifying the virtual connection comprises identifying a multi-protocol label switching label switch path.

11. A method comprising:

receiving, at a processing system, configuration data associated with devices in the network, the configuration data indicating how the devices have been configured;

storing, by the processing system, the configuration data in a non-transitory computer-readable medium for subsequent processing by the processing system;

identifying, by the processing system, a virtual connection in the configuration data of a first endpoint from which data is communicated to a second endpoint;

determining, by the processing system, a path of the virtual connection based on identifying a hop along the path based on a search of link layer information in the configuration data and identifying a next hop along the path based on a search of virtual LAN data in the configuration data; and

providing, by the processing system, a representation of the path of the virtual connection that indicates the hops in a computer-implemented model of the network for presentation on a display device.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein receiving the configuration data comprises receiving network data.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein identifying the virtual connection comprises identifying a private Internet Protocol address for a virtual private network.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein identifying the virtual connection comprises identifying an asynchronous transfer mode virtual circuit.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein identifying the virtual connection comprises identifying a multi-protocol label switching label switch path.

16. A system comprising:

an input configured to receive configuration data associated with devices in the network, the configuration data indicating how the devices have been configured;

a non-transitory computer-readable medium that stores the configuration data for subsequent processing; and

a processor configured to;

identify a virtual connection in the configuration data of a first endpoint through which data is communicated to a second endpoint,

determine a path of the virtual connection based on a search of one or more layers of information that comprises a first search of link layer configuration data and a contingent second search of network layer configuration data based on the first search, and

output a representation of the path of the virtual connection that indicates the hops in a computer-implemented model of the network for presentation on a display device.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the input is configured to receive discovery protocol information.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the processor is configured to determine the path based on a search of one or more layers of information that comprises a contingent third search of virtual LAN data based on the second search.

19. A method comprising:

receiving configuration data associated with devices in the network, the configuration data indicating how the devices have been configured;

storing the configuration data in a non-transitory computer-readable medium for subsequent processing;

identifying a tunnel in the configuration data of a first endpoint from which encapsulated data is communicated to a second endpoint in the network;

determining a physical path of the tunnel based on an assumed bi-directional symmetry for the tunnel between the first and second endpoints and a search of one or more layers comprising a first search of link layer data in the configuration data to identify a connection from a first hop to a second hop along the physical path; and

a second search of network layer data in the configuration data when the first search fails to identify the connection from the first hop to the second hop; and

providing a representation of the path of the tunnel that indicates the hops in a computer-implemented model of the network for presentation on a display device.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein determining the physical path of the tunnel comprises determining respective interfaces used at endpoints of the tunnel.