Communication apparatus and method for controlling the communication apparatus

#This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority of the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2009-192975, filed on Aug. 24, 2009, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

#The embodiments discussed herein are related to techniques for collecting statistical information, such as the number of received frames and the number of transmitted frames, in communication apparatuses that deal with frames and packets.

#In the following description, frames and packets will be considered synonymous and referred to as frames.

#FIG. 1 illustrates a network configuration.

#FIG. 2 illustrates an internal block configuration of a communication apparatus.

#FIG. 3 illustrates a configuration for a receiving process of a line interface unit in a related communication apparatus.

#In the following description, frames and packets will be considered synonymous and referred to as frames.

#In the figures, dimensions and/or proportions may be exaggerated for clarity of illustration. It will also be understood that when an element is referred to as being “connected to” another element, it may be directly connected or indirectly connected, i.e., intervening elements may also be present. Further, it will be understood that when an element is referred to as being “between” two elements, it may be the only element layer between the two elements, or one or more intervening elements may also be present.

#In the related communication apparatus, as illustrated in FIG. 3 and FIG. 6, statistical information, such as the number of received frames and the number of transmitted frames, is collected for each physical port or for each logical flow. However, problems arise when statistical information is collected for physical ports or logical flows that have been aggregated.