Micro-flow management
AssigneeCaspian Networks, Inc.
InventorLawrence G. Roberts
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
New switching technology relies upon state information for providing a previously unavailable degree of quality of service. In particular, by providing the ability to give service guarantees to uniquely identifiable sets of packets (“micro-flows”), different qualities of service can be offered for each transmission. The QoS associated with each micro-flow is characterized by a set of descriptors. These descriptors are communicated to each switch by the first packet of the micro-flow associated with the descriptors.
Claims54
A method for routing a micro-flow in a network comprising a plurality of network hops, the method comprising the steps of:
- receiving at a network hop a first data packet;
- establishing the first data packet as corresponding to a given micro flow;
- extracting a set of quality of service characteristics from the first data packet and retaining the set of quality of service characteristics in association with the given micro flow;
- receiving a second data packet;
- determining whether the second data packet corresponds to the given micro flow;
- and
- automatically associating the set of quality of service characteristics to the second data packet where it is determined that the second data packet corresponds to the given micro flow.
A line card for routing a micro-flow in a network comprising a plurality of network hops, the line card comprising the steps of:
- an interface, configured to receive at a network hop a first data packet and a second data packet;
- a micro flow classifier, in operative communication with the interface, configured to establish the first data packet as corresponding to a given micro flow, extract a set of quality of service characteristics from the first data packet;
- and
- a micro flow recognizer, in operative communication with the interface and the micro flow classifier, configured to retain the set of quality of service characteristics in association with the given micro flow, determine whether the second data packet corresponds to the given micro flow, and automatically associate the set of quality of service characteristics to the second data packet where it is determined that the second data packet corresponds to the given micro flow.
A apparatus for routing a micro-flow in a network comprising a plurality of network hops, the apparatus comprising the steps of:
- means for receiving at a network hop a first data packet and a second data packet;
- means for establishing the first data packet as corresponding to a given micro flow and extracting a set of quality of service characteristics from the first data packet;
- and
- means for determining whether the second data packet corresponds to the given micro flow by retaining the set of quality of service characteristics in association with the given micro flow, and automatically associating the set of quality of service characteristics to the second data packet where it is determined that the second data packet corresponds to the given micro flow.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.