US 9,055,000 B1Granted

Distributed network subnet

AssigneeJuniper Networks, Inc.

InventorsKaushik Ghosh, Ramasamy Ramanathan, Anil Lohiya, Manoj Sharma, Shrinivasa Kini, Cunzhi Lu

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Abstract

In general, techniques for facilitating a distributed network (L3) subnet by which multiple independent control planes of network devices connected to physically separate L2 networks provide L2 reachability to/from a single L3 subnet. In some examples, a shared L2 network physically situated to connect a plurality of physically separate L2 networks “stitches” the L2 networks together within the respective, independent control planes of switches such that the control planes bridge L2 traffic for a single bridge domain for the separate L2 networks to the shared L2 network and visa-versa. Each of the independent control planes may be configured with a virtual IRB instance associated with the bridge domain and with a common network subnet. Each of the virtual IRBs provides a functionally similar routing interface for the single bridge domain for the separate L2 networks and allows the shared network subnet to be distributed among the independent control planes.

Claims34

Dependent claims

A method comprising:

establishing, within a first network device, a first virtual integrated routing and bridging (VIRB) interface that comprises a first routing interface for a first layer two (L2) bridge domain that provides L2 connectivity for a first network local to the first network device, wherein the first routing interface is associated with a network subnet for the first network;
establishing, within a second network device, a second VIRB interface that comprises a second routing interface for a second L2 bridge domain that provides L2 connectivity for a second network local to the second network device, wherein the second routing interface is associated with a network subnet for the second network, wherein the first network is not local to the second network device and the second network is not local to the first network device, wherein the network subnet for the first network and the network subnet for the second network comprise a distributed network subnet in which the network subnet for the first network and the network subnet for the second network comprise a common network subnet, and wherein the first VIRB interface and the second VIRB interface have a common gateway MAC address that identifies routable L2 traffic received by the first VIRB interface from the first L2 bridge domain or received by the second VIRB interface from the second L2 bridge domain;
receiving first L2 traffic with the first network device from the first L2 bridge domain and forwarding L3 traffic encapsulated by the first L2 traffic by the first routing interface when the first L2 traffic is destined for the common gateway MAC address;
and receiving second L2 traffic with the second network device from the second L2 bridge domain and forwarding L3 traffic encapsulated by the second L2 traffic by the second routing interface when the second L2 traffic is destined for the common gateway MAC address.

1 more element

A network device comprising:

a control unit comprising a processor;
a virtual integrated routing and bridging (VIRB) interface of the control unit that comprises a routing interface for a layer two (L2) bridge domain that provides L2 connectivity for a network local to the network device, wherein the routing interface is associated with a distributed network subnet for the network;
one or more control processes of the control unit to receive a VIRB MAC message comprising a VIRB MAC address from a central allocator and install the VIRB MAC address as a gateway MAC address for the VIRB interface, wherein the VIRB interface and a VIRB interface of a remote network device have a common gateway MAC address that identifies routable L2 traffic received by the VIRB interface from the L2 bridge domain, and wherein the network device and the remote network device co-own the distributed network subnet, wherein the VIRB interface receives L2 traffic from the L2 bridge domain and forwards L3 traffic encapsulated by the L2 traffic on the routing interface when the L2 traffic is destined for the common gateway MAC address.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 13/717,533Filed 17 Dec 2012
Granted: 9 Jun 2015
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification7 codes

H04L 45/66
Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks: layer 2 routing, e.g. in Ethernet based MAN's
H04L 45/50
Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks: using label swapping, e.g. multi-protocol label switch [MPLS]
H04L 45/74
Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks: address processing for routing
H04L 45/76
Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks: routing in software-defined topologies, e.g. routing between virtual machines