SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR AN EXTRANET MULTICAST VIRTUAL PRIVATE NETWORK IN A VIRTUAL ROUTING AND FOWARDING BASED CUSTOMER EDGE DEVICE

• US 20140269700A1
• Filed: 03/12/2013
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Venkataswami, Balaji Venkat, Bhikkaji, Bhargav
• Granted Patent: US 9,197,426 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/390
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/18 for broadcast or conference , e.g. multicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1863 comprising mechanisms for improved reliability, e.g. status reports arrangements for detecting or preventing errors by carrying supervisory signal the return channel H04L1/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/16 Multipoint routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/54 Organization of routing tables
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/586 of virtual routers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/354 for supporting virtual local area networks [VLAN]

Abstract

An information handling system is provided. The information handling system includes a customer edge device coupled to a provider edge device. The customer edge device provides a default virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) instance that receives a multicast stream from the provider edge device. The information handling system also includes a plurality of host devices and a plurality of virtual local area networks (VLANs). Each of the VLANs includes at least one of the host devices and is assigned to a subscribing VRF instance, with each of the subscribing VRF instances subscribing to the default VRF instance in order to receive a copy of the multicast stream from the provider edge device. The single copy of the multicast stream is transmitted over the PE-CE link regardless of the number of subscribing VRFs.

Claims

1. A network device operating as a customer edge device, the network device comprising:

one or more processors in communication with the plurality of interfaces and a memory;

a plurality of forwarding tables stored in the memory; and

a plurality of virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) instances, each of the plurality of VRF instances being associated with one of the plurality of forwarding tables, the plurality of VRF instances including subscribing VRF instances and a default VRF instance, wherein a multicast stream received on the default VRF instance is replicated by the one or more processors and transmitted to each of the subscribing VRF instances.

2. The network device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors sends a protocol independent multicast (PIM) join request to a provider edge device for the default VRF instance to receive the multicast stream.

3. The network device of claim 1, wherein each of the subscribing VRF instances sends a PIM join request to receive a copy of the multicast stream from the default VRF instance.

4. The network device of claim 3, wherein the one of more processors receive the PIM join requests from the subscribing VRF instances, such that the PIM join requests are internal PIM join requests.

5. The network device of claim 1, wherein each of the subscribing VRF instances have links associated with at least one networked device at a site.

6. The network device of claim 1, further comprising an outgoing interface list stored in the memory, the outgoing interface list including a set of links associated with the subscribing VRF instances.

7. An information handling system comprising:

a customer edge device coupled to a provider edge device, the customer edge device providing a default virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) instance, the default VRF instance receiving a multicast stream from the provider edge device;

a plurality of customer-side networked devices; and

a plurality of virtual local area networks (VLANs), wherein each of the VLANs includes at least one of the customer-side networked devices and is assigned to a subscribing VRF instance, each of the subscribing VRF instances subscribing to the default VRF instance to receive a copy of the multicast stream.

8. The information handling system of claim 7, wherein the customer edge device replicates the multicast stream received on the default VRF instance for distribution to each subscribing VRF instance.

9. The information handling system of claim 7, wherein the customer edge device sends a protocol independent multicast (PIM) join request for the multicast stream to the provider edge device using the default VRF as a subscriber.

10. The information handling system of claim 7, wherein the subscribing VRF instances send a PIM join request within the customer edge device to request the multicast stream.

11. The information handling system of claim 7, wherein an incoming interface for the multicast stream is a link coupling the customer edge device to the provider edge device.

12. The information handling system of claim 7, wherein an outgoing interface list is stored in a memory on the customer edge device, the outgoing interface list including a set of VRF links for the subscribing VRF instances.

13. The information handling system of claim 7, wherein the provider edge device is located at an edge of a multiprotocol label switching network.

14. The information handling system of claim 7, wherein each VLAN is assigned to a customer.

15. A method for providing a multicast stream transmitted from a provider edge device to a customer edge device, the method comprising:

receiving the multicast stream at the provider edge device;

transmitting a single copy of the multicast stream from the provider edge device to the customer edge device;

receiving the single copy of the multicast stream on a default virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) instance; and

replicating the single copy of the multicast stream on the customer edge device to provide a replicated copy to each of a plurality of subscribing VRF instances.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein each of the plurality of subscribing VRF instances is assigned to one of a plurality of virtual local area networks (VLANs).

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising receiving a protocol independent multicast (PIM) join request from the customer edge device at the provider edge device, the PIM join request requesting to receive the multicast stream.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising receiving a PIM join requests from each of the subscribing VRF instances at the customer edge device, the PIM join request requesting to receive the multicast stream.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the customer edge device is part of an extranet multicast virtual private network (VPN).

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising building an outgoing interface list, the outgoing interface list having a set of VRF instance links including links associated with the subscribing VRF instances.