Cisco Technology, Inc.

Fang Yang

Ijsbrand Wijnands

Xiaorong Wang

Yuefeng Jiang

Lianxiang Wang

Yicheng Liu

Gaofeng Tao

Xiaopu Zhang

Yuchen Zhou

Yibin Yang

Liqin Dong

Chia Alex Tsai

Christian Cassar

Isidoros Kouvelas

Kathy Xia Ke

Jeffrey Cai

Weng Hong Chan

Methods and network devices are disclosed for multicast traffic steering in a communications network. In one embodiment, a method includes receiving, at a node in a network, a multicast message comprising an incoming message bit array and a tree identifier value. The embodiment further includes selecting a bit indexed forwarding table stored at the node and corresponding to the tree identifier value, accessing within the selected forwarding table an entry corresponding to an intended destination node for the message, and forwarding, to a neighboring node identified in the accessed entry, a copy of the message comprising a forwarded message bit array in place of the incoming message bit array. An embodiment of a network device includes one or more network interfaces and a processor adapted to perform steps of the method.

Multicast traffic steering using tree identity in bit indexed explicit replication (BIER)

A network device may receive a request seeking a location identifier for an endpoint identifier from a first router. The network device may determine that the endpoint identifier belongs to a dynamic endpoint identifier range associated with a plurality of routers. The request may be forwarded to the plurality of routers to discover a host having the endpoint identifier and a notification may be received from one of the plurality of routers reporting discovery of the host having the endpoint identifier. The network device may send an identifier of the one of the plurality of routers which reports discovery of the host to the first router as the location identifier for the endpoint identifier.

Pro-active mechanism to detect LISP movable silent host

Methods and network devices are disclosed for multicast traffic steering in a communications network. In one embodiment, a method includes generating a first tree connecting a source node for a multicast flow through a communications network to each of multiple destination nodes for the multicast flow. The communications network is configured to forward a multicast message based on bit values in a message bit array carried by the message, and the first tree comprises a first set of unicast paths from the source node to the destination nodes. The method further includes allocating a first tree identifier to the first tree and communicating the first tree identifier and associated forwarding information to each of multiple forwarding nodes within the communications network. An embodiment of a network device includes a processor operably coupled to one or more network interfaces and adapted to perform steps of the method.

Methods and network devices are disclosed for internet protocol (IP) based encapsulation in bit indexed explicit replication (BIER) forwarding. In one embodiment, a method includes receiving a multicast message comprising an inner IP header, an intervening header, and an outer IP header. The embodiment further includes accessing a message bit array stored in the intervening header, retrieving an IP address from an entry in a bit indexed forwarding table, replacing an IP destination address in the outer IP header of a copy of the multicast message with the retrieved IP address, and sending the copy of the multicast message toward a second node in the network, where the retrieved IP address is assigned to the second node. An embodiment of a network device includes a processor operably coupled to a plurality of storage locations and to one or more network interfaces and adapted to perform steps of the method.

Internet protocol based encapsulation for bit indexed explicit replication (BIER)

In one embodiment, a method includes receiving a packet from a host at a first hop router in a network site, the first hop router in communication with a core network and operable to encapsulate packets received from the host for transmission to a remote network site, setting a status for the host in a table at the first hop router as active, starting a timer for the host at the first hop router, transmitting a probe message from the first hop router to the host if a packet is not received at the first hop router from the host before the timer expires, updating the status of the host at the table based on whether a response message is received from the host, and using the host status to detect host migration. An apparatus and logic are also disclosed herein.

Proactive detection of host status in a communications network

Techniques provided herein use aggregate endpoints in a virtual overlay network. In general, aggregate endpoints operate as a single receiving entity for certain packets/frames sent between different physical proximities of the virtual overlay network.

Scalable network virtualization with aggregate endpoints

In one embodiment, a method includes discovering at a first edge device in a first network that a multicast source has moved from the first network to a second network, the first edge device in communication through a core network with a plurality of edge devices belonging to a multicast group comprising the multicast source, transmitting from the first edge device to a second edge device in the second network, a join request for the multicast group comprising the multicast source at the second network, receiving multicast traffic for the multicast group at the first edge device on a transient multicast tree extending from the second edge device to the plurality of edge devices, and forwarding the multicast traffic to the plurality of edge devices. An apparatus and logic are also disclosed herein.

Growing community of inventors

Shanghai, China

Fang Yang