Routing apparatus and method for high-speed mesh connected local area network

A method of allocating a multiplicity shared system resources to received resource requests, the steps of the method comprising:

• receiving resource requests, each resource request including resource data denoting a subset of said multiplicity of shared system resources;
• wherein, in at least some of said received resource requests, said denoted subset comprises a plurality of said shared system resources;
• denoting a set of available resources, said set comprising the ones of said multiplicity of shared system resources which are available for allocation;
• storing received resource requests in the order in which said resource requests are received;
• comparing, in sequence, said stored resource requests with said set of available resources, and selecting the first one of said stored resource requests to match said set of available resources;
• whereby available resources are allocated to resource requests on a first come, first considered basis.

A routing apparatus for use in each of the switches of a mesh connected network, each switch having a multiplicity of input links for receiving data packets and a multiplicity of output links for transmitting data packets, said routing apparatus comprising:

• request receiving means for receiving routing requests;
• each said routing request denoting a subset of said multiplicity of output links for transmitting a corresponding data packet;
• wherein, in at least some of said received routing requests, said denoted subset comprises a plurality of said output links;
• availability means for denoting a set of said multiplicity of output links which are available for routing data packets;
• queue means coupled to said request receiving means for storing said routing request received by said request receiving means, said stored routing requests being stored in the order in which said routing requests are received by said request receiving means;
• selection means, coupled to queue means and said availability means, for comparing, in sequence, said routing requests with said set of available output links, and for selecting the first one of said routing requests to match said set of available output links;
• whereby available output links are allocated to routing requests on a first come, first considered basis.

A method of routing data packets by each of the switches of a mesh connected network, each switch having a multiplicity of input links for receiving data packets and a multiplicity of output links for transmitting data packets, the steps of the method comprising:

• receiving routing requests, each said routing request denoting a subset of said multiplicity of output links for transmitting a corresponding data packet;
• wherein, in at least some of said received routing requests, said denoted subset comprises a plurality of said output links;
• determining which of said multiplicity of output links which are available for routing data packets;
• storing received routing requests in the order in which said resource requests are received;
• comparing, in sequence, said routing requests with said output links determined to be available, and selecting the first one of said stored routing requests to match one of said available output links;
• whereby available output links are allocated to routing requests on a first come, first considered basis.