Bridge/router architecture for high performance scalable networking

An apparatus for interconnecting a plurality of networks through network interface systems having different degrees of protocol processing capability, comprising:

• a router processor having processing resources for managing multiprotocol routing of packets received from the plurality of networks, including protocol processing resources serving the different degrees of protocol processing capability in the network interface systems;
• a bus having a plurality of bus slots for network interface systems and coupled to the router processor providing a data path among the router processor and network interface systems connected in the bus slots;
• a bus communication system run in the router processor and network interface systems in the bus slots supporting flow of data-in-transit and control messages among the router processor and the bus slots across the bus;
• wherein the protocol processing resources provide centralized protocol processing for packets forwarded from a particular network interface system which receives a packet needing processing for a protocol not supported by the particular network interface system, and provide distributed protocol processing for protocols partially supported by network interface systems in response to requests from network interface systems.

An apparatus for interconnecting a plurality of networks, comprising:

• a backbone communication medium having a physical layer protocol;
• a central routing processor coupled to the backbone, including resources for making routing decisions according to a plurality of routed network protocols;
• a plurality of input/output modules coupled to the backbone and in communication with the central routing processor according to the physical layer protocol, the input/output modules having respective sets of physical network interfaces, the set for a given input/output module having one or more members;
• an interprocessor messaging system in a logical layer above the physical layer protocol executed in the central routing processor and in a set of one or more intelligent input/output modules within the plurality of input/output modules;
• and
• distributed protocol services executed over the interprocessor messaging system, including a distributed protocol module in at least one member of the set of intelligent input/output devices which makes routing decisions supported by the distributed protocol module according to a corresponding routed network protocol in the plurality of routed network protocols, and a distributed protocol module server in the central routing processor which in response to queries from the distributed protocol module makes routing decisions on behalf of the distributed protocol module according to the corresponding routed network protocol.