Fault recovery system and method for a communications network

A multi-domain communications network comprising:

• a plurality of network domains interconnected by inter-domain links, each of said network domains including first and second nodes interconnected by inter-node links;
• and
• a traffic path established between a source node and a destination node,
• the first node of each of said domains establishing first and second parallel transport paths on a first fault recovery layer to the second node of the domain and including a database for storing identities of said first and second parallel transport paths as a single virtual link as viewed from said source node, and accommodating said traffic path on a second fault recovery layer through the first transport path of the domain,
• the first and second nodes of each of said domains accommodating said traffic path in the second transport path of the domain when the first transport path of the domain is not working properly.

A fault recovery method for a communications network in which first and second nodes are interconnected by communication links, the method comprising the steps of:

• establishing first and second parallel transport paths on a first fault recovery layer between the first and second nodes;
• storing identities of said first and second parallel transport paths in a database as a single virtual link as viewed from a source node;
• establishing a traffic path between a source node and a destination node;
• accommodating said traffic path on a second fault recovery layer through said first transport path;
• and
• monitoring said first transport path, at said second node, and accommodating said traffic path on said second fault recovery layer through said second transport path when a failure is detected in said first path.

A fault recovery method for a multi-domain communications network, wherein the network comprises a plurality of network domains interconnected by inter-domain links and wherein each of the network domains includes first and second nodes interconnected by inter-node links, the method comprising the steps of:

• establishing, in each of said domains, first and second parallel transport paths on a first fault recovery layer from the first node to the second node;
• storing identities of said first and second parallel transport paths as a single virtual link in a database as viewed from said source node;
• establishing a traffic path between a source node and a destination node;
• accommodating said traffic path on a second fault recovery layer through the first transport path of the domain;
• and
• accommodating said traffic path on the second fault recovery layer through the second transport path of one of the domains when the first transport path of said one domain is not working properly.