Middlebox Control

A method of operating a communications network, the communications network comprising a plurality of middleboxes, at least one middlebox-identity-providing node and at least one middlebox control node, each of the middleboxes being connected to a plurality of entities in a respective one of a plurality of address realms of the communications network, the method comprising:

• (i) receiving a control message at the middlebox-identity-providing node in the communications network, said control message comprising information about one of the entities in the communications network;
• (ii) using the middlebox-identity-providing node to determine the identity of a first middlebox connected to said one of the entities in its respective one of the plurality of address realms;
• (iii) sending said identity to a middlebox control node in the communications network;
• and
• (iv) sending at least one middlebox control message from the middlebox control node to said first middlebox, said middlebox control node being located in a different address realm than that of said one of the entities;
• wherein the middlebox-identity-providing node is separate from the middlebox control node and is located in a control path from said one of the entities to the middlebox control node.