The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 15, 2008
Filed:
Jan. 21, 2005
Atsuko Higashitaniguchi, Yokohama, JP;
Hiroshi Kinoshita, Yokohama, JP;
Satsuki Norimatsu, Yokohama, JP;
Atsuko Higashitaniguchi, Yokohama, JP;
Hiroshi Kinoshita, Yokohama, JP;
Satsuki Norimatsu, Yokohama, JP;
Fujitsu Limited, Kawasaki, JP;
Abstract
In a network providing a wide-area LAN service which allows communications to be performed between user networks () via a carrier network (), edge switches () each comprise: a tentative learning registration means () which, when a packet whose source MAC address and receiving port are not yet learned is received from the carrier network, registers the source MAC address and the receiving port in a tentatively learned state; a learned state changing means () which changes the learned state of the destination MAC address of a packet received from an associated one of the user networks to a permanently learned state; and a permanent learning registration means which, when a packet whose destination MAC address is registered in a learned state is received from the carrier network, registers the source MAC address and receiving port of the packet received from the carrier network in a permanently learned state. The invention thus provides a MAC address learning apparatus that improves the hit rate in a MAC address learning table maintained in each of the edge switches () provided in a wide-area VLAN carrier network.