Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Steven Victor Balls

Matthew Ian Ronald Williams

Abhishek Pandey

Daniel Thomas O'brien

A method performed by a packet processor comprises retrieving a first prefix length for a first lookup stage and a shorter second prefix length for a second lookup stage. The packet processor can receive instructions to program an action entry. The length of the action entry prefix is compared to the first prefix and second prefix length. If it is determined that the length of the action entry prefix is shorter than the second prefix length, the second prefix length is selected as an expanded prefix length. If it is determined that the length of the action entry prefix is longer than the second prefix length and shorter than the first prefix length, then the first prefix length is selected as the expanded prefix length. Expanded action entries are generated with expanded prefixes of the expanded prefix length and stored at the lookup stage associated with the expanded prefix length.

Prefix length expansion in packet processors

A networking router process, by a hardware data plane, a first incoming packet by matching the packet with a routing table of the hardware data plane. A software data plane processes a second incoming packet by matching the packet with a routing table of the software data plane. In response to the processing of the first incoming packet by the hardware data plane failing, subsequently processing, by the software data plane, the first incoming packet by matching the packet with the routing table of the software data plane. The method comprises delivering, from the software and hardware data plane, network traffic flow information to a flow analyzer. The flow analyzer analyzes the network traffic flow information and updates at least one of the routing tables based at least on the analyzed network traffic flow information.

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Enfield, United Kingdom

Steven Victor Balls