US 11,777,846 B2Granted

Ultra reliable segment routing

AssigneeNokia Solutions and Networks Oy

InventorsThierry Van de Velde, Satish Kanugovi

Life of this patent

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Abstract

SR-enabled network nodes capable of replicating and recombining data packets in a manner that enables reliable, low-latency communications. In an example embodiment, a replicator node transmits to a combinator node multiple copies of a payload over different respective network paths, with the SR headers of the corresponding packets each having a replication segment identifier or a respective SID stack that includes the replication segment identifier. The combinator node delivers/forwards to the corresponding application/destination only the first-to-arrive payload copy and discards any subsequent payload copies based on the replication segment identifier. Some embodiments may beneficially reduce latency and packet loss concurrently and consistently. For example, packet loss may be reduced due to the transmission of multiple copies of the same payload over multiple network paths. Effective latency may be reduced due to the selection of the first-to-arrive payload copy for delivery/forwarding.

Claims9

Dependent claims

An apparatus comprising a first node that comprises packet-processing circuitry and a memory, the first node being configured to transmit to a second node a packet set of two or more egress packets in response to an ingress packet, each of the two or more egress packets being temporarily stored in the memory for being transmitted via a different respective network path connecting the first and second nodes;

and
wherein the packet-processing circuitry is configured to:
copy a payload of the ingress packet into each one of the two or more egress packets;
generate a replication segment identifier (RSID) identifying the packet set, wherein the RSID is generated based on the payload of the ingress packet;
and
for each individual one of the two or more egress packets, generate a respective packet header having a respective segment-identifier (SID) stack, the respective SID stack including at least a first segment-routing (SR) SID and the RSID, the first SR SID identifying a segment for the individual one of the two or more egress packets for reaching the second node, the RSID identifying a replication segment for determining whether or not to delete the individual one of the two or more egress packets at the second node, wherein:
for each ingress packet, the two or more egress packets have the same RSID;
and
the packet-processing circuitry is configured to adaptively change a length of the RSID in the egress packets for at least two different ingress packets.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 16/867,788Filed 6 May 2020
Published: US 2021/0352009 A111 Nov 2021
Granted: 3 Oct 2023
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification8 codes

H04L 45/50
Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks: using label swapping, e.g. multi-protocol label switch [MPLS]
H04L 69/14
Network arrangements, protocols or services independent of the application payload and not provided for in the other groups of this subclass:…
H04L 45/306
Route determination based on requested QoS: route determination based on the nature of the carried application
H04L 45/34
Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks: source routing