Distributed fabric architecture in a cloud computing environment

• US 9,292,351 B2
• Filed: 06/15/2012
• Issued: 03/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Degtiarov, Arkady M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chacko, Joe
• Application Number:
  US13/524,076
• Publication Number:
  US 20130339423A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,376 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5072 Grid computing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4641 Virtual LANs, VLANs, e.g. virtual private networks [VPN] LAN interconnection over a bridge based backbone H04L12/462; encapsulation techniques H04L12/4633; routing of packets H04L45/00; packet switches H04L49/00; virtual private networks for security H04L63/0272

Abstract

A device creates a local forwarding function in a virtual machine of a device associated with a cloud computing environment, where the local forwarding function local forwarding function connects the device with local devices associated with the cloud computing environment. The device creates a global forwarding function in the virtual machine, where the global forwarding function connects the device with global devices associated with other cloud computing environments. The device also creates, in the virtual machine, a virtual control plane that controls the local forwarding function and the global forwarding function. The device communicates, via the local forwarding function, first traffic with a particular local device of the local devices, and communicates, via the global forwarding function, second traffic with a particular global device of the global devices.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

establishing, by one or more hardware processors of a cloud device that is included in a cloud computing environment, a local forwarding function in a virtual machine of the cloud device,

the local forwarding function connecting the cloud device with one or more local devices associated with the cloud computing environment;

establishing, by the one or more hardware processors of the cloud device, a global forwarding function in the virtual machine of the cloud device, the global forwarding function connecting the cloud device with one or more global devices associated with one or more other cloud computing environments, the global forwarding function interconnecting the cloud computing environment and a particular cloud computing environment of the one or more other cloud computing environments, the cloud computing environment being dissimilar from the particular cloud computing environment, and the global forwarding function enabling a bridge for broadcast regions in the cloud computing environment and the particular cloud computing environment;

using, by the one or more hardware processors of the cloud device, the global forwarding function to create a mapping of local trunk ports, of the cloud computing environment, onto global trunk ports;

establishing, by the one or more hardware processors of the cloud device, a virtual control plane in the virtual machine of the cloud device,

the virtual control plane controlling the local forwarding function and the global forwarding function;

communicating, by the one or more hardware processors of the cloud device and via the local forwarding function of the cloud device, first traffic with a particular local device of the one or more local devices; and

communicating, by the one or more hardware processors of the cloud device and via the global forwarding function of the cloud device and based on the mapping of the local trunk ports onto the global trunk ports, second traffic with a particular global device of the one or more global devices.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the local forwarding function, third traffic from a client device or a data center device; and

processing the third traffic with the local forwarding function.

3. The method of claim 2, where the third traffic includes access traffic.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the global forwarding function, third traffic from a client device or a data center device; and

processing the third traffic with the global forwarding function.

5. The method of claim 1, where communicating the first traffic with the particular local device comprises:

receiving the first traffic from one of the one or more local devices;

modifying, via the local forwarding function, the first traffic to include a destination of the particular local device; and

providing the modified first traffic to the particular local device.

6. The method of claim 1, where communicating the second traffic with the particular global device comprises:

receiving the second traffic from one of the one or more global devices;

modifying, via the global forwarding function, the second traffic to include a destination of the particular global device; and

providing the modified second traffic to the particular global device.

7. The method of claim 1, where:

the first traffic includes local trunk traffic, and

the second traffic includes global trunk traffic.

8. A cloud device,

the cloud device being included in a cloud computing environment, and

the cloud device comprising:

a hardware processor to;

create a local forwarding function in a virtual machine of the cloud device, the local forwarding function connecting the cloud device with one or more local devices associated with the cloud computing environment;

create a global forwarding function in the virtual machine of the cloud device, the global forwarding function connecting the cloud device with one or more global devices associated with one or more other cloud computing environments, the global forwarding function interconnecting the cloud computing environment and a particular cloud computing environment of the one or more other cloud computing environments, the cloud computing environment being dissimilar from the particular cloud computing environment, and the global forwarding function enabling a bridge for broadcast regions in the cloud computing environment and the particular cloud computing environment;

use the global forwarding function to create a mapping of local trunk ports onto global trunk ports;

create a virtual control plane in the virtual machine of the cloud device, the virtual control plane controlling the local forwarding function and the global forwarding function,

communicate, via the local forwarding function, first traffic with a particular local device of the one or more local devices and

communicate, via the global forwarding function and based on the mapping of the local trunk ports onto the global trunk ports, second traffic with a particular global device of the one or more global devices.

9. The cloud device of claim 8, where the hardware processor is further to:

receive third traffic from a client device or a data center device, and

provide, via the local forwarding function, the third traffic to one or more applications being executed by the cloud device.

10. The cloud device of claim 9, where the third traffic includes access traffic.

11. The cloud device of claim 8, where the hardware processor is further to:

receive third traffic from a client device or a data center device, and

provide, via the global forwarding function, the third traffic to one or more applications being executed by the cloud device.

12. The cloud device of claim 8, where, when communicating the first traffic with the particular local device, the hardware processor is to:

receive the first traffic from one of the one or more local devices,

modify, via the local forwarding function, the first traffic to include a destination of the particular local device, and

provide the modified first traffic to the particular local device.

13. The cloud device of claim 8, where, when communicating the second traffic with the particular global device, the hardware processor is to:

receive the second traffic from one of the one or more global devices,

modify, via the global forwarding function, the second traffic to include a destination of the particular global device, and

provide the modified second traffic to the particular global device.

14. The cloud device of claim 8, where:

the first traffic includes local trunk traffic, and

the second traffic includes global trunk traffic.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions, the instructions comprising:

one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more hardware processors of a cloud device that is included in a cloud computing environment, cause the one or more hardware processors to;

establish a virtual end point in a virtual machine of the cloud device,

the virtual end point connecting the cloud device with one or more local devices associated with the cloud computing environment;

establish a virtual border element in the virtual machine of the cloud device, the virtual border element connecting the cloud device with one or more global devices associated with one or more other cloud computing environments, the virtual border element interconnecting the cloud computing environment and a particular cloud computing environment of the one or more other cloud computing environments, the cloud computing environment being dissimilar from the particular cloud computing environment, and the virtual border element providing a bridge for broadcast regions in the cloud computing environment and the particular cloud computing environment,

use the virtual border element to create a mapping of local trunk ports of the particular cloud computing environment onto global trunk ports;

establish a virtual control plane in the virtual machine of the cloud device,

the virtual control plane controlling the virtual end point and the virtual border element;

utilize the virtual end point to communicate first traffic with a particular local device of the one or more local devices, and

utilize, based on the mapping of the local trunk ports onto the global trunk ports, the virtual border element to communicate second traffic with a particular global device of the one or more global devices.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising:

one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more hardware processors of the cloud device, cause the one or more hardware processors to;

receive, by the virtual end point, third traffic from a client device or a data center device, and

process the third traffic with the virtual end point.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising:

one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more hardware processors of the cloud device, cause the one or more hardware processors to;

receive, by the virtual border element, third traffic from a client device or a data center device, and

process the third traffic with the virtual border element.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising:

one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more hardware processors of the cloud device, cause the one or more hardware processors to;

receive the first traffic from one of the one or more local devices,

modify, via the virtual end point, the first traffic to include a destination of the particular local device, and

provide the modified first traffic to the particular local device.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, further comprising:

one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more hardware processors of the cloud device, cause the one or more hardware processors to;

receive the second traffic from one of the one or more global devices,

modify, via the virtual border element, the second traffic to include a destination of the particular global device, and

provide the modified second traffic to the particular global device.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, where:

the first traffic includes local trunk traffic, and

the second traffic includes global trunk traffic.