Cisco Technology, Inc.

Packetfabric, LLC

Jiri Chaloupka

Patrice Brissette

Tarek Saad

Mei Zhang

Luc Andre Burdet

Karen Cadora

Thierry Couture

David Delano Ward

Robert Stephen Rodgers

Yuri Tsier

Kenneth Gray

Suresh Doddagaddavalli Basavarajappa

Vijay Umakant Wagle

Hadee Akhand

Bart Van De Velde

Suresh Basavarajappa

Techniques for a head-end node in one or more network autonomous systems to utilize a protocol to instantiate services on tail-end nodes. The head-end node can use a service request mechanism that is enabled by the protocol to request service instantiation on the tail-end node without a network operator having to manually configure the tail-end node, or even having access to the tail-end node. Additionally, the protocol may provide mechanisms to define handling attributes for traffic of the service (e.g., quality of service (QoS) attributes, Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU) settings, etc.), service acknowledgement mechanisms for the head-end node to determine that the service was instantiated on the tail-end node, and so forth. In this way, a head-end node can be used to instantiate a service on a tail-end node without a network operator having to have direct access to the tail-end node to manually configure the tail-end node.

Source-provisioned services infrastructure

Techniques for devices in autonomous systems to utilize a protocol, such as a Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), to signal intent to instantiate services for establishing connections between the devices. For instance, first device(s) in a first autonomous system (AS) may determine to establish a connection with a second AS. The first device(s) may encode a service key into an Internet Protocol (IP) address where the service key indicates a service that is to be provisioned on second device(s) in the second AS. The first device(s) system may then advertise the IP address host-route using BGP, and the second device(s) may receive the BGP advertisement. The second device(s) may decode the service key from the IP address, and provision the service to establish the connection between the autonomous systems. Thus, the devices in may leverage existing protocols to signal intent to instantiate services and establish connections between autonomous systems.

Signaling intent to establish connections between autonomous systems

A method, network device, and computer program product for network traffic diversion are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method according to the present disclosure includes receiving a frame at a core edge node that is a member of a redundancy group (where the frame comprises network address information and a packet), and determining whether a link is affected by a network failure. The frame was sourced by a remote core edge node that is not a member of the redundancy group, and the network address information indicates that the packet is to be forwarded via the link. In response to the link being affected by the network failure, the method further includes generating a modified frame and forwarding the modified frame to another core edge node. The generating comprises including a redirect label in the modified frame. The another core edge node is another member of the redundancy group.

Method and system for network traffic diversion

In one embodiment, associated differential processing of decapsulated packets is performed using Service Function Instances (SFIs) identified by Service Function Values (SFVs) derived from their encapsulating transport packets. By using different SFVs associated with different processing policies within a same processing context, one embodiment performs differential processing of streams of packets (arriving in transport packets) as identified by the particular SFV obtained from each particular transport packet. In other words, the processing policy identifies processing performed on the corresponding decapsulated original packet, not processing of the transport packet. Thus, if the original packet is an Internet Protocol (IP) packet, the SFI identifies Layer 3 processing that is performed on the original IP packet. Additionally, one embodiment uses a route advertising protocol (e.g., Border Gateway Protocol) to distribute associations between different SFVs and different addresses in a processing context (e.g., VRF).

Differential processing of packets using service function instances identified by service function values in packets

A method, network device, and computer program product for network traffic diversion are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method according to the present disclosure includes receiving a frame at a core edge node that is a member of a redundancy group (where the frame comprises network address information and a packet), and determining whether a link (to which the core edge node is communicatively coupled) is affected by a network failure. The frame was sourced by a remote core edge node that is not a member of the redundancy group, and the network address information indicates that the packet is to be forwarded via the link. In response to the link being affected by the network failure, the method further includes generating a modified frame and forwarding the modified frame to another core edge node. The generating comprises including a redirect label in the modified frame. The another core edge node is another member of the redundancy group.

Growing community of inventors

San Jose, CA, United States of America

Jiri Chaloupka