Apparatus and method for performing an address resolution protocol function

An apparatus for performing an address resolution protocol (ARP) function on a packet, comprising:

• a route lookup engine that is arranged to receive the packet from a network and generate a route index for the packet;
• a directly connected node data store arranged to store media access control (MAC) addresses for directly connected nodes;
• an indirectly connected node data store arranged to store indirectly connected node MAC addresses;
• and
• an ARP engine that is coupled to the route lookup engine, the directly connected node data store and the indirectly connected node data store and is configured to perform the following actions:
• generate an ARP entry for the packet based on the route index;
• search the directly connected node data store and the indirectly connected node data store to determine if the ARP entry is resolved;
• determine if the ARP entry is unresolved based on the search of the directly connected node data store and the indirectly connected node data store, and when the ARP is not resolved:
• discard the packet;
• generate a new ARP entry;
• assist in resolving the new ARP entry;
• and
• locate a node on the network corresponding to the new ARP entry.