Systems and methods for enabling frontside stacking of switches
AssigneeCisco Technology, Inc.
InventorsLinda T. Cheng, Manpreet Singh Sandhu, Subrat Mohanty, Ali Ahmad Tareen, Ganesh Srinivasa Bhat, Jimit Maheta
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Abstract
Methods and systems for configuring a first switch for frontside networking. The method includes: discovering the capabilities of a second switch connected to the first switch, where the capabilities include frontside stacking; changing a port on the first switch connected to the second switch from a standard port to a frontside stacking port; discovering a topology of a network containing the first switch and the second switch; and creating a drop table having entries for at least the first switch and the second switch.
Claims19
A method comprising:
- discovering capabilities of a second switch connected to the first switch, where the capabilities include frontside stacking;
- changing a port on the first switch connected to the second switch from a standard port to a frontside stacking port;
- discovering a topology of a network containing the first switch and the second switch;
- and
- creating a drop table having entries for at least the first switch and the second switch, wherein the drop table comprises a first column comprising a list of a plurality of origin switches for a packet and at least one second column comprising a corresponding action for the packet at a current destination switch for a corresponding origin switch of the plurality of origin switches, and wherein the corresponding action comprises at least one of the following:
- a command to drop the packet and a command to forward the packet.
A system of switches arranges in a mesh topology, comprising:
- a first switch, a second switch, a third switch, and a fourth switch, wherein the first switch is connected to the second switch and the fourth switch, the second switch is further connected to the fourth switch and the third switch, and the third switch is further connected to the fourth switch, further wherein each connection is made using ports configured as frontside stacking ports;
- and
- a drop table configured to provide information about the relationship between each port on each switch and each other switch, wherein the drop table comprises a first column comprising a list of a plurality of origin switches for a packet and at least one second column comprising a corresponding action for the packet at a current destination switch for a corresponding origin switch of the plurality of origin switches, and wherein the corresponding action comprises at least one of the following:
- a command to drop the packet and a command to forward the packet.
A method comprising:
- performing a drop table check on the packet, wherein the drop table comprises a first column comprising a list of a plurality of origin switches for the packet and at least one second column comprising a corresponding action for the packet at a current destination switch for a corresponding origin switch of the plurality of origin switches, and wherein the corresponding action comprises at least one of the following:
- a command to drop the packet and a command to forward the packet;
- performing a déjà vu check on the packet;
- performing a source node check on the packet;
- and
- when the packet passes each of the checks, forwarding the packet from a first switch of the plurality of switches to a second switch of the plurality of switches.
A method for managing a frontside stacking port, comprising:
- placing the frontside stacking port of a first switch of a plurality of switches in a disconnected state upon startup;
- when a link up notification is received, placing the frontside stacking port in a pending state;
- when eligibility criteria are met;
- transitioning the front side stacking port from the pending state to a ready state;
- and
- populating the first switch with a drop table, wherein the drop table comprises a first column comprising a list of a plurality of origin switches for a packet and at least one second column comprising a corresponding action for the packet at a current destination switch for a corresponding origin switch of the plurality of origin switches, and wherein the corresponding action comprises at least one of the following:
- a command to drop the packet and a command to forward the packet.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.