X Channel to Zone in Zone Routing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016277282-A1
Application number	US-201615060243-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Mar 3, 2016
Priority date	Mar 18, 2015
Publication date	Sep 22, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

An apparatus for zone routing comprising a transmitter coupled to one or more communication nodes in a network, wherein the communication nodes correspond to less than all edge nodes of the network, a receiver coupled to the communication nodes, and a processor coupled to the transmitter and the receiver, wherein the processor is configured to compute a first path for a label-switched path (LSP) through the network, wherein the first path extends from an ingress node of the edge nodes to an egress node of the edge nodes, obtain a second path that traverses through a first communication node of the communication nodes available to the egress node, and send, via the transmitter, a first LSP creation request message to the first communication node requesting creation of the LSP along the first path.

First claim

What is claimed:

1 . An apparatus for zone routing, comprising:
a transmitter coupled to one or more communication nodes in a network, wherein the communication nodes correspond to less than all edge nodes of the network; a receiver coupled to the communication nodes; and a processor coupled to the transmitter and the receiver, wherein the processor is configured to:
compute a first path through the network for a label switched path (LSP), wherein the first path extends from an ingress node of the edge nodes to an egress node of the edge nodes;
obtain a second path that traverses through a first communication node of the communication nodes available to the egress node; and
send, via the transmitter, a first LSP creation request message to the first communication node requesting creation of the LSP along the first path.

2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first communication node is one of the edge nodes of the network.

3 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first communication node is an internal node of the network.

4 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to receive an LSP creation response message from a second communication node of the communication nodes, wherein the communication nodes available have third paths from the ingress node of the LSP, wherein the second communication node has a shortest third path from the ingress node, and wherein the LSP creation response message indicates a creation status of the LSP along the first path.

5 . The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the processor is further configured to:
obtain a global identifier (ID) for identifying the LSP, wherein the LSP creation request message comprises the global ID; send, via the transmitter, an LSP deletion request message to the first communication node requesting deletion of the LSP from the network, wherein the LSP deletion request message comprises the global ID; and receive, via the receiver, an LSP deletion response message from the second communication node indicating a deletion status of the LSP along the first path.

6 . The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the second communication node and the first communication node correspond to a same node in the network.

7 . The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a memory coupled to the processor and configured to store a routing information base (RIB) identifying one of the communication nodes available as a next-hop node for each of a plurality of fourth paths to nodes in the network, wherein the plurality of fourth paths comprises the second path, and wherein the processor is further configured to:
determine that the second path is a shortest path among the plurality of fourth paths to the egress node according to the RIB; and select the first communication node according to the shortest path determined from the RIB.

8 . A network element (NE) in a zone routing network, comprising:
a memory configured to store a routing information base (RIB) identifying a first next-hop node for a first path in the network to reach a network controller of the network via a first communication node in the network, wherein the first communication node is directly associated with the network controller; a receiver configured to receive a first label-switched path (LSP) creation request message requesting creation of a first LSP through the network, wherein the first LSP creation request message indicates an ingress node of the first LSP; a processor coupled to the memory and the receiver, wherein the processor is configured to determine that the NE corresponds to the ingress node of the first LSP; and a transmitter coupled to the processor and configured to send a first LSP creation response message towards the network controller via the first communication node according to the first path to indicate a creation status of the first LSP.

9 . The NE of claim 8 , wherein the memory is further configured to store a forwarding information base (FIB) comprising forwarding instructions, wherein the first LSP creation request message is received from a next downstream node along the first LSP, wherein the first LSP creation request message further indicates a global identifier (ID) identifying the first LSP, a local label associated with the first LSP, and an address of the network controller, and wherein the processor is further configured to:
generate a FIB entry according to the local label; and generate the first LSP creation response message according to the global ID and the address of the network controller.

10 . The NE of claim 9 , wherein the receiver is further configured to receive an LSP deletion request message from the next downstream node requesting deletion of the first LSP, wherein the processor is further configured to delete the FIB entry in response to the LSP deletion request message, and wherein the transmitter is further configured to send an LSP deletion response message towards the network controller via the first communication node according to the first path to indicate a deletion status of the first LSP.

11 . The NE of claim 8 , wherein the memory is further configured to store a forwarding information base (FIB) comprising forwarding instructions, wherein the receiver is further configured to receive a second LSP creation request message from the first communication node requesting creation of a second LSP through the network, wherein the second LSP creation request message indicates a global identifier (ID) of the second LSP and an egress node of the second LSP, wherein the processor is further configured to:
determine that the NE corresponds to the egress node of the second LSP; allocate a local label for the second LSP; generate a FIB entry according to the local label; and generate a third LSP creation request message according to the second LSP creation request message and the local label, and wherein the transmitter is further configured to send the third LSP creation request message to a next upstream node along the second LSP in response to the second LSP creation request message.

12 . The NE of claim 11 , wherein the receiver is further configured to receive a first LSP deletion request message from the first communication node requesting deletion of the second LSP, wherein the processor is further configured to:
delete the FIB entry; release the local label; and generate a second LSP deletion request message according to the first LSP deletion request message and the local label, and wherein the transmitter is further configured to send the second LSP deletion request message to the next upstream node in response to the first LSP deletion request message.

13 . The NE of claim 8 , wherein the receiver is further configured to receive a second LSP creation response message from another NE, wherein the second LSP creation response message is associated with a second LSP, and wherein the transmitter is further configured to:
send a first acknowledgement to the another NE; and send a third LSP creation response message to the first next-hop node according to the second LSP creation response message, wherein the third LSP creation response message comprises a same content as the second LSP creation response message.

14 . The NE of claim 8 , wherein the receiver is further configured to receive a first LSP deletion response message from another NE, wherein the first LSP deletion response message is associated with a second LSP, and wherein the transmitter is further configured to:
send a first acknowledgement to the another NE; and send a second LSP deletion response message to the first next-h

Assignees

• Futurewei Technologies Inc

Inventors

• Chen Huaimo
• Li Renwei

Classifications

• H04L45/121

  by minimising delays · CPC title

• H04L45/42

  Centralised routing · CPC title

• H04L45/122 Primary

  by minimising distances, e.g. by selecting a route with minimum of number of hops · CPC title

• H04L45/50

  using label swapping, e.g. multi-protocol label switch [MPLS] · CPC title