Avaya Technology LLC

Victor Medrano

Richard Alan Windhausen

Richard D Miller

Michael A Smith

Billy G Fuller

Donald G Koch

Disclosed is a way of enhancing capabilities of an interface, such as a communications bus ( ), while retaining backwards compatibility of the interface. The bus has a plurality of signal lines ( ) including critical control signal lines. Legacy devices ( ) present a legacy interface to each other over the bus by communicating with each other via a legacy protocol ( ) over the bus. Critical control signals of the legacy protocol are conveyed by the critical control signal lines. New devices ( ) present an enhanced interface to each other over the same bus by communicating with each other via an enhanced protocol ( ) over the bus. Control signals of the enhanced protocol are conveyed by signal lines other than the critical control signal lines for the legacy protocol, so that the critical control signal lines remain idle or invalid for the legacy protocol. The new devices signal to each other an intent to use the enhanced protocol by sending a signal on a signal line ( ) that is not used by the legacy protocol. The new devices preferably can communicate on the bus via either protocol, and thus can communicate not only with each other but also with the legacy devices.

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Thornton, CO, United States of America

Victor Medrano