Northern Telecom Limited

Philip K Edholm

Alan S Chapman

Jeffrey T Gullicksen

Gregory M Bernstein

Kenneth Gullicksen

Methods and apparatus for accelerating a router in a communications network are described. In one embodiment, a router accelerator includes a forwarding table for associatively storing a destination address and a next hop address. If a destination address of a packet matches a destination address in the forwarding table, then logic forwards the packet to a next hop. A router may be coupled to at least one network port through the router accelerator. In another approach, the network includes at least one host and at least one router. The host has at least one routing table for associatively storing a second-level destination address, a second-level next hop address and a first-level next hop address. A router accelerator includes redirect logic for storing the second-level destination address in a second-level next hop address entry in the at least one host routing table. This causes the host to request a first-level next hop address corresponding to the second-level destination address. An accelerator table responds to the host's request with the bound first-level next hop address. In another approach employing host routing tables, a router accelerator includes request logic for requesting from the router a second-level next hop address in response to the first-level next hop address. Redirect logic stores the second-level next hop address in a second-level next hop address entry in the at least one host routing table. This causes the host to request a first-level next hop address corresponding to the second-level next hop address.

Method and apparatus for accelerating OSI layer 3 routers

A configurable connection fabric between a switching fabric and a backplane allows any of the ports of the backplane to be connected to any of the ports of the switching fabric. The connection fabric receives bandwidth load requirements from modules connected to the backplane and uses these load requirements to determine the number of ports required to make a particular connection.

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Fremont, CA, United States of America

Philip K Edholm