Dell Products Inc.

Rabah S Hamdi

Saikrishna M Kotha

Cuong T Nguyen

Christopher Stephen Petrick

Joseph Burton Farrell

Bradley John Booth

Srinivasa Rao Nagalla

Charles Terrence Perusse, Jr

Snigdhendu Mukhopadhyay

Wenjing Chu

Gaurav Chawla

Robert L Winter

Hendrich M Hernandez

Kevin Allen Hughes

Andrew Blake Berry

Benny Thottakkara

An information handling system for managing a network includes a first stackable network switch, a second stackable network switch, and a hardware switching management controller. The first stackable network switch includes a first configuration setting to enable the first stackable network switch to operate in a switch stack. The first configuration setting is accessible via an OpenFlow protocol. The second stackable network switch includes a second configuration setting to enable the second stackable network switch to operate in the switch stack. The second configuration setting is accessible via the OpenFlow protocol. The hardware switching management controller includes an OpenFlow stacking manager configured to set the first configuration setting and the second configuration setting such that the switch stack includes the first and second stackable network switches.

System and method to configure, manage, and monitor stacking of Ethernet devices in a software defined network

A Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN)-enabled remote switch management system includes a management device having a management device WWAN communication subsystem that is configured to transmit management commands from the management device through a WWAN. The WWAN-enabled remote switch management system also includes a switch device having a chassis. A switch device wired communication subsystem is located in the chassis, coupled to a Local Area Network (LAN), and is not coupled to the Internet. A switch device WWAN communication subsystem is located in the chassis and is configured to receive management commands from the management device through the WWAN. A switch management engine is located in the chassis, coupled to the switch device WWAN communication subsystem, and is configured to receive the management commands from the switch device WWAN communication subsystem, and execute the management commands to perform a management action on the switch device.

WWAN-enabled remote switch management system

System and method to configure, manage, and monitor stacking of ethernet devices in a software defined network

An application-policy-based SDN controller system includes a first device running a first application, and a second device. Each of the first device and the second device are coupled to a SDN network via one of a plurality of networking devices in the SDN network. A first virtual application-policy-based SDN controller determines a first application communication flow path through the SDN network for first application communications that are between the first device and the second device and that involve the first application. The first virtual application-policy-based SDN controller then provides at least one application-policy-based flow rule to a first subset of the plurality of networking devices that are included in the first application communication flow path. The at least one application-policy-based flow rule causes the first subset of the plurality of networking devices to transmit the first application communications such that the first application communications satisfy at least one network property.

Application-policy-based virtual SDN controller system

A centralized network management system includes a wireless controller system and a plurality of access points that are coupled together through a network. Each of the plurality of access points is configured to receive wireless traffic from user devices and determine whether flow session rules are available for the wireless traffic. If so, wireless traffic received by an access point that is part of a flow session is modified by that access point according to at least one flow session rule that was received from the wireless controller system and that is associated with the flow session to which that wireless traffic belongs. That modified wireless traffic is translated to modified wired traffic by the access point, and the access point then perform an action on the modified wired traffic according to the at least one flow session rule associated with the flow session.

Centralized wireless network management system

An access controller is coupled to a plurality of physical access points. The access controller is operable to create a plurality of virtual access controllers that are each coupled to the plurality of physical access points. The access controller then creates a different virtual access point for each of the plurality of virtual access controllers, and associates the virtual access point of each virtual access controller with each of the plurality of physical access points coupled to that virtual access controller. The access controller then provides a plurality of different wireless subnetworks through each of the plurality of physical access points, with each virtual access controller providing one of the different wireless subnetworks using the virtual access point associated with each of the plurality of physical access points coupled to that virtual access controller.

Virtual wireless networking

A power allocation system includes a manager provided on a network controller. An agent is provided on a line module coupled to the network controller. The agent is operable to detect a connection of a powered device to a port on the line module and communicate that to the manager. The manager then classifies the powered device and provides a first power to the powered device through the port from a global power budget according to the classification. At least one of the manager and agent then monitor the power consumption of the powered device subsequent to providing the first power, and a second power is provided to the powered device through the port from the global power budget according to the monitoring, wherein the second power is different from the first power.

Power over ethernet dynamic power allocation system

A network switch includes a plurality of internal ports, a plurality of external ports, an event handler, an action engine, and an event processor. The event handler detects an event and, in response, assembles a construct that includes event parameters. The action engine uses the construct to generate an event syntax. The event processor executes the event syntax to automatically configure the communication between the plurality of internal ports and the plurality of external ports. A first event may include the connection of a cable to a first external port and result in each of the plurality of internal ports communicating with the first external port. A second event may include the connection of a cable to a second external port and result in a first subset of internal ports communicating with the first external port and a second subset of internal ports communicating with the second external port.

Event driven network system

A network flow management system includes controllers that are each coupled to a subset of switch devices, and a flow management server system that is coupled to each of the controllers. The flow management server system collects first-level flow information for the switch devices from the controllers, and filters and structures the first-level flow information to generate second-level flow information. The flow management server system then analyzes the second-level flow information based on current flow operation policies that are configured to cause the switch devices to perform first flow operations and, in response, determines flow operation policy changes. The flow management server system then distributes updated flow operation policies that includes the flow operation policy changes to each of the controllers, where the updated flow operation policies cause the switch devices to perform second flow operation that are different than the first flow operations.

Network flow management system

An Ethernet/Fiber Channel conversion system includes a chassis having a first end and a second end that is located opposite the chassis from the first end. An Ethernet interface is located on the first end and is configured to directly mate with an Ethernet port on an Ethernet device. A Fiber Channel interface is located on the second end. An Ethernet/Fiber Channel conversion engine is housed in the chassis and configured to receive Ethernet protocol signals through the Ethernet interface, convert the Ethernet protocol signals to Fiber Channel protocol signals, and send the Fiber Channel protocol signals through the Fiber Channel interface. The Ethernet/Fiber Channel conversion engine is also configured to receive Fiber channel protocol signals from the Fiber Channel IHS through the Fiber Channel interface, convert the Fiber channel protocol signals to Ethernet protocol signals, and send the Ethernet protocol signals through the Ethernet interface.

Protocol conversion system

A converged infrastructure management system includes a first converged infrastructure system chassis housing a backplane. A plurality of managed devices are connected to the backplane and include at least one compute device, at least one network device, and at least one storage device. A management device is connected to the backplane and includes a display and an input device that are accessible on an outer surface of the management device. The management device includes a management engine that is configured to retrieve management information from any of the plurality of managed devices through the backplane and display the management information that was retrieved on the display. The management engine is also configured to receive instructions through the input device and, in response, modify the management information that is displayed and send the management information that has been modified through the backplane to the management device associated with that management information.

Converged infrastructure local management system

An access point IHS group controller failover system includes a first access point IHS group controller that controls a first access point IHS group that includes plurality of access point IHSs. Following a failure of the first access point IHS group controller, the first access point IHS broadcasts a first access point IHS identifier to a first subset of the plurality of access point IHSs. The first access point IHS then registers the first subset of the plurality of access point IHSs as members of a second access point IHS group, and controls at least some functions of the second access point IHS group. When the first access point IHS detects activity from the first access point IHS group controller, it instructs the first subset of the plurality of access point IHSs in the second access point IHS group to reconnect to the first access point IHS group controller.

Access point controller failover system

A flow-based network switching system includes a memory having a flow table and a packet processor coupled to the memory. The packet processor includes a user-programmable flow-based rule storage that includes a plurality of flow-based rules. A flow-based handler and session manager in the packet processor is operable to retrieve application layer metadata from a first packet received over a network, determine a first flow session associated with the first packet using the application layer metadata from the first packet and the flow table, and retrieve at least one of the plurality of flow-based rules from the programmable flow-based rule storage using the application layer metadata from the first packet. A flow-based rule processing engine in the packet processor is operable to apply the at least one flow-based rule to the first packet. Packets with applied flow-based rules are forwarded through the network.

Flow-based network switching system

An information handling system is provided herein. The information handling system includes a controlling bridge having a plurality of bridge ports and at least one port extender coupled to one of the bridge ports of the controlling bridge to form an extended bridge. The port extender has a plurality of extension ports. The information handling system further includes an access point coupled to the port extender such that a wireless association between the access point and one or more stations appears as a logical bridge port to the controlling bridge and to an access controller system. The access point has a wireless transceiver to communication with the one or more stations. Associated methods are provided herein for providing wireless network access to a local area network.

Systems and methods for integrating wireless local area networks on extended bridges

A power distribution system includes a manager provided on a network controller and an agent provided on a line module. The manager is operable to receive a configuration for a port on the line module. A connection to the port is then detected by the agent and communicated to the manager. At least one of the manager and the agent determines that the connection is for a powered device that is operable to receive power and data through the port. The manager then classifies the powered device. If the manager determines that the classification of the powered device corresponds to the configuration of the port, the manager provides power to the powered device through the port according to an allocation for the powered device from a global power budget.

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Spring, TX, United States of America

Rabah S Hamdi