# US 2010/0165986 A1 · Method and system for stp-aware subscriber management

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 2010/0165986 A1
- Document ID: US20100165986A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 12/347,530
- Filed: 2008-12-31
- Published: 2010-07-01
- Earliest claimed: 2008-12-31
- Assignees: Alcatel Lucent
- Inventors: Bashar Said Bou-Diab; John Coulter
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20100165986A1

## CPC

- H04L 12/2881: {IP/Ethernet DSLAM}
- H04L 12/42: Loop networks
- H04L 12/462: {LAN interconnection over a bridge based backbone}
- H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M)

## Abstract

A method and system for STP-aware subscriber management is disclosed for managing redundant access ports. The STP-aware system includes Access Loop Pairs which provide continuity of subscriber management information in the event of an access port failure. The STP-aware subscriber management system is particularly useful for overcoming the requirements for extra ports within Link Access Group configured access networks known in the art.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A system for providing subscriber management in an STP network, said system comprising:
a broadband switch having a plurality of Ethernet ports;
at least one DSLAM, having a pair of Ethernet ports connecting the at least one DSLAM to the broadband switch in a loop configuration;
said broadband switch and said at least one DSLAM operating under at least one of the set of protocols of Spanning Tree Protocol, Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol, and Multiple Spanning Tree Protocol; and
wherein said pair of Ethernet ports of said at least one DSLAM is configured into an access loop pair.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

A system as claimed in claim 1 wherein
Service Access Points are associated to the access loop pair.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

A system as claimed in claim 2 wherein
subscriber ingress queues, egress queues, ingress counters, egress counters, and anti-spoofing entries are associated to both ports of the access loop pair.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

A system as claimed in claim 3 wherein
said ingress counters and said egress counters are polled at the same time for both ports of the ALP; and
a switch control module contained in said broadband switch adds both ingress counters together, and likewise adds both egress counters together to generate subscriber counters.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein
said broadband switch is an Ethernet switch.

### Claim 6

A method for managing subscribers in an STP network having an Ethernet loop ring connection from a broadband switch to a plurality of DSLAMs wherein each DSLAM has a pair of Ethernet ports connecting the DSLAM to the Ethernet loop, said method comprising the steps of:
for each of said plurality of DSLAMs, configuring the Ethernet port connections into an access loop pair; and
associating Service Access Points to the access loop pair.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

A method as claimed in claim 6 comprising the further step of
instantiating subscriber ingress queues, egress queues, ingress counters, egress counters, and anti-spoofing entries to both ports of the access loop pair.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

A method as claimed in claim 7 comprising the further step of
polling said ingress counters and said egress counters at the same time for both ports of the ALP; and
adding both ingress counters together, and likewise adding both egress counters together to generate subscriber counters.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

A method as claimed in claim 8 comprising the further step of
forwarding said subscriber counters to a subscriber management information base.