Newbridge Networks Corporation

Troy W Manary

William Ross McEachern

Stephen J Williams

There is provided a method and apparatus for the prioritization, multiple queuing and selective processing of PVC management frames by a Frame Relay message processing device. The device had an input port for receiving the messages. It also provides a number of message queues for storing and retrieving the received messages, each of the queues respectively corresponding to one of a number of response priority levels which vary from highest priority to lowest priority. Each of the response priority levels is assigned to a number of message classes associated with predetermined link management processes for communicating the status of message relay links among networking devices. The message processing device has a first processor for determining the message class associated with each of the received messages and for allocating each of the messages to a corresponding one of the queues based upon the response priority level assigned to the determined message class. A second processor is provided for retrieving each of the messages from the queues, and an output port is provided for dispatching the retrieved messages.

Growing community of inventors

Nepean, Canada

Troy W Manary