Method and apparatus for sending a packet from a source node to a destination node in the same broadcast domain

An intermediate layer coupled with layer two and layer three of a network protocol stack, the intermediate layer comprising:

• a data path processor to associate a packet to a traffic flow, and to send the packet via a selected communication path, wherein the traffic flow is directed from a source node to a destination node in a same broadcast domain;
• and
• a control block, communicatively coupled to the data path processor, further comprising:
• a neighbor discovery module to find reachable nodes connected to the source node;
• a path discovery module to find a first and a second communication path, wherein the source node is connected with the destination nod via the first and the second communication path;
• a policy engine module to select a criterion for the traffic flow, wherein the criterion is based on an attribute of a policy setting;
• a metric measurement module to measure the criterion for the first communication path and for the second communication path;
• and
• a path selection module to select between the first and second communication paths based on the measured criterion, and to assign the selected communication path to the associated traffic flow.

A computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon which, when executed in a source node, cause an intermediate layer coupled with layer two and layer three of a network protocol stack to perform the following steps:

• associating a packet with a traffic flow, the traffic flow directed from the source node to a destination node in a same broadcast domain, wherein the source node is connected with the destination node via a first and a second communication path;
• measuring a criterion for the first communication path and for the second communication path, wherein the criterion is based on an attribute of a policy setting;
• selecting between the first and second communication paths based on the measured criterion;
• assigning the selected communication path to the associated traffic flow;
• and
• sending the packet via the selected communication path.