Cisco Technology, Inc.

Barry Raveendran Greene

Kenneth Durazzo

Paul M Quinn

Andrew George Harvey

Robert E Gleichauf

Richard Mandfred Pruss

Frederick Juergens Baker

Satish K Gannu

Saravanakumar Rajendran

Darrel Jay Lewis

Dean Cheng

In one embodiment, an apparatus can include a service broker configured to: (i) register a service classifier, and to provide context information to the service classifier; and (ii) register a plurality of service nodes. The service broker can also receive capability and service requests from the service classifier. Further, the context information can include a service header, a reachability indication, and an encapsulation, where the service header and the encapsulation may be attached or related to a packet in the service classifier. In addition, the service classifier can use this information to redirect the packet to a first service node.

Service insertion architecture

A system for selectively applying a service to a packet in a network. In a specific embodiment, the system includes a mechanism for encoding service information in a network-compatible packet header and providing encoded data in response thereto. In a more specific embodiment, the network-compatible header includes a Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) header, a Generic Route Encapsulation (GRE) header, and/or a Layer-2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) header.

System and method for selectively applying a service to a network packet using a preexisting packet header

Growing community of inventors

Cupertino, CA, United States of America

Barry Raveendran Greene