Fast IP route lookup with configurable processor and compressed routing table

A method of looking up a route and processing a data packet in a communications network, the method comprising:

• receiving a data packet from the communications network;
• extracting an IP address from a header of the packet;
• obtaining a segment and an offset of the IP address;
• using the segment to index an entry of the first lookup table;
• computing a total number of ones in an bitmap of the indexed entry;
• when the total number of ones is in a given set of values, obtaining next hop and prefix information from the information storage portion of the entry;
• when the total number of ones is not in the given set of values,
• using the offset to index a bit in the bitmap of the indexed entry,
• determining a number of ones from the beginning of the bitmap to the indexed bit,
• using the number of ones to the indexed bit to index an entry in a second lookup table,
• checking a marker bit of the entry in the second lookup table,
• if the marker bit is zero, obtaining next hop information and prefix length information for the IP adds from the remaining bits of the entry in the second lookup table,
• if the maker bit is one,
• using the remaining bits of the entry in the second lookup table to index to a block of entries in a second data structure,
• within the block of entries in the second data structure, using the offset to index to a particular entry, and
• obtaining next hop and prefix length information from the indexed entry in the second data structure;
• and
• using the next hop and prefix length information to forward a packet associated with the IP address to another location on a communications network.

A method of updating a data structure suitable for use in a route lookup system in a communications network, the method comprising:

• receiving an IP route having an IP address component, prefix length component and next hop component;
• when the prefix length component has a value less than a first predetermined value,
• determining whether an entry of an NHPL table in the data structure needs to be updated based on values of the prefix length and next hop components, and
• updating the entry of the NHPL table based on the determination;
• when the prefix length component has a value greater than or equal to a second predetermined value,
• identifying an entry in the data structure which matches the prefix length and next hop information,
• determining whether the prefix length component in the address component is more specific than that stored in the entry, and whether the next hop component in the address component is different from a next hop component in the entry, and
• updating the entry based on the determination;
• and
• when the prefix length component is neither less than the first value nor greater than or equal to the second predetermined value,
• determining entries in the data structure matching the prefix length component,
• determining bits in a bitmap of the entries matching the prefix length component,
• for each matching bit, determining whether the prefix length component is more specific than prefix length information associated with that bit and whether the next hop component is different from next hop information associated with that bit, and
• updating an entry in the data structure corresponding to that based on the determination.