Nortel Networks Corporation

Ciena Corporation

Rockstar Consortium US LP

Geoffrey Mattson

Robert Pluim

Simon Bryden

Marcel Wiget

Michael Tate

Simon David Bryden

Simon David Blyden

A Multicast-Enabled Address Resolution Protocol (ME-ARP) is disclosed. This ME-ARP allows the building of independent IP based Virtual Private LAN segments (VPLS) over a multicast enabled IP backbone using stateless tunnels and optimal VPLS traffic forwarding. Each VPLS has an associated IP subnet which is completely independent from other VPLS or the underlying IP backbone itself. Each Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) device needs only to be configured with a VPLS identifier and its serving IP subnet per VPLS designated interface.

Multicast-enabled address resolution protocol (ME-ARP)

Multi-case enabled address resolution protocol

A platform is connected over a synchronous network using a GFP encapsulation scheme to a provider device having a first Ethernet interface with a customer device, said platform being arranged for exchanging tagged frames including a virtual LAN identifier (VID) with a service unit over a second Ethernet interface. If an error condition is detected at a GFP port of the platform, a correspondence is retrieved between said GFP port and a VID and a deregistration message including said VID is forwarded to the service unit. If an error condition is detected at the second Ethernet interface responsive to reception of a deregistration message including a VID from the service unit, a correspondence is retrieved between said VID and a GFP port and said deregistration message is forwarded through said GFP port to the provider device in a GFP error message. When several Ethernet interfaces concentrated by a bridge face the provider device, another VID is taken into account in the correspondence retrieving.

Signaling methods for telecommunicaton system for exchanging frames over ethernet interfaces and devices for implementing such methods

Multi-cast enabled address resolution protocol (ME-ARP)

A virtual private network (VPN) service is provided through a shared network infrastructure, with customer edge (CE) devices each having a provider edge (PE) interface having a single layer 3 address in the VPN. An address resolution request message is transmitted by a first CE device on plural layer 2 virtual circuits of its PE interface. The address resolution request message including the layer 3 address allocated to a second CE device of the VPN. In response to reception of such request message at the second CE device, an address resolution response message is returned to the first CE device. In response to reception of this response message, the first CE device maps the layer 3 address allocated to the second CE device to a virtual LAN identifier of the layer 2 virtual circuit on which the response message is received.

Address resolution method for a virtual private network, and customer edge device for implementing the method

A system, device, and method for allocating virtual circuits in a communication network allocates a virtual circuit for a particular device, establishes a tunnel for communicating with a second device, and maps the virtual circuit to the tunnel based upon an address resolution request received over either the virtual circuit or the tunnel. Protocol messages received over the virtual circuit are forwarded over the corresponding tunnel. Protocol messages received over the tunnal are forwarded over the corresponding virtual circuit.

System, device, and method for allocating virtual circuits in a communication network

Growing community of inventors

Antibes, France

Geoffrey Mattson