Bay Networks, Inc.

Nortel Networks Corporation

Bay Networks Group, Inc.

Ilan Raab

Ravi Manghirmalani

David Stevens

Robert W Smith

Sri Reddy

Ai-Lan Chang

Paul Zeldin

Edward G Richardson

Anat Faigon

Guruprasad S Hadagali

Lynne Marie Izbicki

Ofer Doitel

Gilbert D Ho

Allan Thomson

Suk-Lin Tsang

Robert Magnus Romero

Nam N Nguyen

Girish Kotmire

A method and apparatus for communicating information. In particular, a method of communicating data between a plurality of applications, comprising the following steps. A first list is encoded. The first encoded list includes a first set of data objects. Each of the data objects includes data to be communicated. Next, the first encoded list is transmitted to a first of the plurality of applications and decoded for the first application. The first application accesses a first subset of data objects from the first encoded list. The first subset of data objects does not necessarily include all data objects in the first set of data objects. Next, the first application generates a second encoded list, where the second encoded list corresponds to the first encoded list. Then, the first application causes the second encoded list to be transmitted to a second application and decoded for the second application. The second application then accesses a second subset of data objects corresponding to the second encoded list, the second subset of data objects not necessarily including the same data objects in the first subset of data objects. The first application and the second of the plurality of applications exchange data type information for the second subset of data objects corresponding to the second encoded list.

Method and apparatus for data communication

A method and apparatus for monitoring the performance of a dedicated communications medium in a switched data networking environment wherein a probe having a bypass circuit allows promiscuous monitoring of all traffic between a switch and a network device, such as a file server, in either direction, and in full duplex mode. Additionally, the bypass circuit eliminates the requirement for a separate repeater between the switch and the network device.

Method and apparatus for monitoring a dedicated communications medium in

A method and apparatus for correlating faults in a networking system. A database of fault rules is maintained along with and associated probable causes, and possible solutions for determining the occurrence of faults defined by the fault rules. The fault rules include a fault identifier, an occurrence threshold specifying a minimum number of occurrences of fault events in the networking system in order to identify the fault, and a time threshold in which the occurrences of the fault events must occur in order to correlate the fault. Occurrences of fault events in the networking system are detected and correlated by determining matched fault rules which match the fault events and generating a fault report upon determining that a number of occurrences for the matched fault rules within the time threshold is greater than or equal to the occurrence threshold for the matched fault rules.

Network fault correlation

A method for determining the topology of a mixed-media network is provided. According to the method, the network is divided into communities of devices that support a common topology mechanism ('spheres'). On each sphere, one or more sphere topology agents generate and accumulate topology data for the devices on the sphere using the topology mechanism that is supported by the devices within the sphere. A global topology agent collects the topology data for each sphere from the various sphere agents and assembles the data to determine the global topology of the mixed-media network. The global topology agent begins by collecting data from a current sphere and identifies additional spheres based on data stored in boundary devices within the current sphere. The global topology agent then repeats the same process with the additional spheres until topology data has been collected from all of the spheres in the mixed-media network.

Method for determining the topology of a mixed-media network

A networking system and automatic method in a networking system comprising at least one switching device and a plurality of at least one end-station interconnected with the at least one switching device, wherein the at least one switching device and at least one end-station are interconnected in a topology. A configuration device is included which has a configuration modification detection circuit for detecting the modification of the topology. A configuration policy maintenance circuit is provided for storing policies related to reconfiguring the at least one switching device upon the modification of the topology. A policy evaluation circuit is provided for determining which at least one end-station and ports should be grouped together upon the detection of the modification of the topology in a first manner. A reconfiguration circuit is provided for reconfiguring the at least one switching device in the first network to enable at least one end-station and ports to be grouped together in the first manner. Virtual local area networks may be created/extended/deleted during the reconfiguration to provide networking services to the at least one end-station.

Method and apparatus for automatically configuring a network device to

A computer-implemented method and apparatus for determining a topology of a network. Signals are received from all source hubs in the network, wherein each of the signals contains connection information for the source hubs including destination hubs to which the source hubs are coupled, and a corresponding connection port on the source hubs through which the destination hubs are coupled. The connection information is processed by locating all unitary connections in the connection information and iteratively performing certain steps until there are no more unitary connections in the connection information. Subsequently, if the connection information is not empty and there are additional unitary connections in the connection information, then the foregoing steps are repeated until there are or more unitary connections or the processed connection information is empty. The resolved connection information is then stored for a complete topology. This above topology method and apparatus is also useful in circumstances where certain source hubs are non-responsive to requests for connection information, that is, they are either malfunctioning or are hubs of an unknown or unsupported type. The connection information may be further processed to determine such non-responsive hubs and insert references to unsupported devices in the processed connection information to show these non-responsive devices in the topology.

Network topology determination by dissecting unitary connections and

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Sunnyvale, CA, United States of America

Ilan Raab