Systems and methods of detecting and assigning IP addresses to devices with ARP requests

• US 9,246,871 B2
• Filed: 01/27/2015
• Issued: 01/26/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Accedian Networks Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Accedian Networks Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Robitaille, Claude, Lemieux, Guillaume
• Primary Examiner(s): Rinehart, Mark
• Assistant Examiner(s): ONAMUTI, GBEMILEKE J
• Application Number:
  US14/606,630
• Publication Number:
  US 20150142973A1
• Time in Patent Office: 364 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/663 Transport layer addresses, e.g. aspects of transmission control protocol [TCP] or user datagram protocol [UDP] ports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/02 Topology update or discovery
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/103 across network layers, e.g. resolution of network layer into physical layer addresses or address resolution protocol [ARP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5007 Internet protocol [IP] addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0236 Filtering by address, protocol, port number or service, e.g. IP-address or URL

Abstract

A method of discovering and assigning an IP address to a device to be discovered in a communication network having multiple interconnected nodes includes continuously monitoring, by the device to be discovered, the network for address resolution protocol (ARP) requests. The discoverer node transmits a number of ARP request to the network. The device to be discovered receives the number of ARP requests. The device to be discovered determines whether the number of ARP requests are unanswered by other devices in the network. The device to be discovered answers to the number of ARP requests with an ARP reply to claim an IP address associated with the number of ARP requests. The discoverer node and the device to be discovered exchange a pair of User Datagram Protocol (UDP) packets to complete the detection process.

Claims

1. A method of discovering and assigning an IP address to a device to be discovered in a communication network having multiple interconnected nodes, the method comprising:

continuously monitoring, by the device to be discovered, the network for address resolution protocol (ARP) requests;

transmitting, by a discoverer node to the network, a plurality of ARP requests associated with a selected first IP address;

receiving, by the device to be discovered, the plurality of ARP requests;

counting, by the device to be discovered, a number of received ARP requests;

determining, by the device to be discovered, whether the plurality of ARP requests are unanswered by other devices in the network;

answering, by the device to be discovered, the plurality of ARP Requests with an ARP reply to claim the selected first IP address associated with the plurality of ARP Requests; and

exchanging a pair of User Datagram Protocol (UDP) packets between the discoverer node and the device to be discovered.

2. A system for discovering and assigning an IP address to a device to be discovered in a communication network having multiple interconnected nodes, the system comprising:

a discoverer node coupled to a first processor to

transmit a plurality of Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) requests associated with a selected IP address to the network; and

the device to be discovered coupled to a second processor, wherein the device to be discovered continuously monitors the network for ARP requests, receives the plurality of ARP requests from the discoverer node, counts a number of received ARP requests and determines whether the plurality of ARP requests are unanswered by other devices in the network;

wherein the device to be discovered answers the plurality of ARP requests with an ARP reply to claim the selected IP address associated with the number of ARP requests and wherein the discoverer node and the device to be discovered exchange a pair of User Datagram Protocol (UDP) packets.