Logical multicasting in overlay networks

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016285641-A1
Application number	US-201514667861-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Mar 25, 2015
Priority date	Mar 25, 2015
Publication date	Sep 29, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

For logical multicasting in overlay networks, at a data processing system, an original unicast packet is received from a first component in a first computing node in an overlay network. To cause multicasting in the overlay network the received original unicast packet was unicast by the first computing node only to the data processing system, and a multicast data structure for the overlay network is maintained only by the data processing system, the multicast data structure containing information of each receiver that is configured to receive unicast packets during logical multicasting in the overlay network. From a set of subscriber receivers in the multicast data structure, a subset of the subscriber receivers is selected. A copy of the original unicast packet is unicast to each subscriber receiver in the subset.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method for logical multicasting in overlay networks, the method comprising:
receiving, at a data processing system, an original unicast packet from a first component in a first computing node in an overlay network, wherein the received original unicast packet was unicast by the first computing node only to the data processing system, and wherein a multicast data structure for the overlay network is maintained only by the data processing system, the multicast data structure containing information of each receiver that is configured to receive unicast packets during logical multicasting in the overlay network; selecting, from a set of subscriber receivers in the multicast data structure, a subset of the subscriber receivers; and unicasting a copy of the received original unicast packet to each subscriber receiver in the subset.

2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
evaluating a policy to determine whether the first component is associated with a subscriber receiver in the multicast data structure; and adding, responsive to the evaluating being negative, the first component as a subscriber receiver in the multicast data structure.

3 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
evaluating a policy to determine whether the first component is allowed to multicast in the overlay network, wherein the selecting is responsive to the evaluating being affirmative.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the subset includes at least one subscriber receiver excluding the first component.

5 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving, at the data processing system, from a second component in a second computing node in the overlay network, a request to receive multicast packets in the overlay network; joining, responsive to a policy allowing the second component to be joined, the second component as a subscriber receiver in the multicast data structure; and setting, corresponding to the second component, a privilege value in the multicast data structure, wherein the privilege value is indicative of an ability of the second component to send data for multicasting in the overlay network.

6 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving, at the data processing system, from a second component in a second computing node in the overlay network, a request to join the multicast data structure; rejecting, responsive to a policy disallowing the second component from being joined, the request; and notifying the second component about the request being rejected.

7 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
receiving, at the data processing system, from a second component in a second computing node in the overlay network, a request to stop receiving multicast packets in the overlay network; and removing, responsive to a policy allowing the second component to be removed, the second component as a subscriber receiver from the multicast data structure.

8 . The method of claim 7 , further comprising:
determining, at the data processing system, whether the multicast data structure contains any remaining subscriber receivers after the removing of the second component; and notifying, responsive to no subscriber receivers remaining in the multicast data structure after the removing of the second component, a set of senders in the overlay network that the multicast data structure is empty.

9 . The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
causing, responsive to the notifying, a sender in the set of senders to block a request to multicast a packet from a virtual machine (VM) that communicates with the sender.

10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first component comprises a virtual switch, further comprising:
configuring the first component, to determine whether any local VM other than a first VM at the first computing node is configured to receive multicast packets in the overlay network, wherein the first VM sends a packet to the first component causing the original unicast packet to be unicast to the data processing system; and forwarding, responsive to at least one local VM other than the first VM at the first computing node being configured to receive multicast packets in the overlay network, the packet to the at least one local VM.

11 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first component comprises a virtual switch, further comprising:
configuring the first component to receive, from a first VM operating at the first computing node, a request to receive multicast packets in the overlay network; and causing the first component to send to the data processing system a join request, wherein the join request is usable at the data processing system to add the first VM as a subscriber receiver in the multicast data structure.

12 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first component comprises a virtual switch, further comprising:
configuring the first component to receive, from a first VM operating at the first computing node, a request to stop receiving multicast packets in the overlay network; and causing, responsive to the first VM being a subscriber receiver, the first component to send to the data processing system a leave request, wherein the leave request is usable at the MSC to remove the first VM as the subscriber receiver from the multicast data structure.

13 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
configuring a second component in a second computing node to receive, from a second VM operating at the second computing node, a request to stop receiving multicast packets in the overlay network; configuring the second component to determine whether any local VM other than the second VM in the second computing node is configured to receive multicast packets in the overlay network; and causing, responsive to at least one local VM in the second computing node remaining configured to receive multicast packets, the second component to modify a status of the second VM, wherein the modified status of the second VM prevents the second component from sending to the second VM a logically multicast packet received by the second component.

14 . A method for logical multicasting in overlay networks, the method comprising:
receiving at a first time, at a first component of a first computing node in an overlay network, from a first virtual machine (VM) operating at the first computing node, a request to receive multicast packets in the overlay network, wherein a multicast data structure for the overlay network is maintained only by a data processing system, and wherein the multicast data structure contains information of each receiver that is configured to receive unicast packets during logical multicasting in the overlay network; and sending a join request to the data processing system, wherein the join request is usable at the data processing system to add the first VM as a subscriber receiver in a multicast data structure.

15 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising:
receiving, from a second VM operating at the first computing node, a request to stop receiving multicast packets in the overlay network; and modifying at the first component, responsive to determining that the first VM remains configured to receive multicast packets in the overlay network, a status of the second VM, wherein the modified status of the second VM prevents the first component from sending to the second VM a logically multicast packet received by the first component.

16 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising:
receiving at a second time, from the first VM, a request to stop receiving multicast packets in the overlay net

Assignees

• IBM

Inventors

• He Jing
• Lu Jing
• Yao Jun

Classifications

• H04L12/184

  with heterogeneous receivers, e.g. layered multicast · CPC title

• H04L45/586

  of virtual routers · CPC title

• H04L12/4641

  Virtual LANs, VLANs, e.g. virtual private networks [VPN] (LAN interconnection over a bridge based backbone H04L12/462; encapsulation techniques H04L12/4633; routing of packets H04L45/00; packet switches H04L49/00; virtual private networks for security H04L63/0272) · CPC title

• H04L45/64

  using an overlay routing layer · CPC title

• H04L45/16

  Multipoint routing · CPC title