Communication system, control device, node, processing rule setting method and program

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9577920-B2
Application number	US-201514945117-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 18, 2015
Priority date	Oct 15, 2010
Publication date	Feb 21, 2017
Grant date	Feb 21, 2017

Abstract

A communication system includes a plurality of nodes each including a packet processor that processes a packet in accordance with a packet handling operation(s) when the packet is received, the packet handling operation(s) correlating a processing to be applied to the packet with a matching rule that identifies the packet to which the processing is to be applied, and a control device that calculates a packet forwarding path in response to a request to set the packet handling operation from any one of the nodes; the control device setting a plurality of the packet handling operations that implement the packet forwarding path for the node(s) on the packet forwarding path and recording the packet handling operations in correlation with one another, the control device inquiring at the node(s) on the packet forwarding path about a setting state(s) of the packet handling operation(s).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A control apparatus comprising:
a memory configured to store program instructions; and
a processor configured to execute the program instructions to:
send a first instruction to set a first packet processing rule to a first switch apparatus which has a second processing rule;
detect a failure of setting the first packet processing rule to the first switch apparatus;
identify, in response to detecting the failure, a flow corresponding to the second processing rule;
identify a second switch apparatus based on the flow;
send a second instruction to set the second switch apparatus to a previous state corresponding to the second processing rule; wherein the processor is further configured to execute the program instructions to:
identify, in response to detecting the failure, a flow identifier and a transaction identifier; and
identify, based on the flow identifier and the transaction identifier, the second switch apparatus.

2. The control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the program instructions to:
send a request for a status of the first switch apparatus; and
detect the failure based on a reply to the request.

3. The control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the program instructions to:
send the first instruction to a first cluster control apparatus which controls the first switch apparatus; and
send the second instruction to a second cluster control apparatus which controls the second switch apparatus.

4. The control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the program instructions to receive a success notice of setting the previous state to the second switch apparatus.

5. The control apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the program instructions, after receiving the success notice, to send a request for a status of the second switch apparatus.

6. The control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the failure is detected when no response is returned during a predetermined period of time.

7. The control apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the second processing rule remains set for the first switch apparatus when the failure of setting the first packet processing rule to the first switch apparatus is detected.

8. A network system, comprising:
a plurality of switch apparatuses including a first switch apparatus and a second switch apparatus that each process a packet in accordance with a packet processing rule; and
a control apparatus, comprising:
a memory configured to store program instructions; and
a processor configured to execute the program instructions to:
send a first instruction to set a first packet processing rule to a first switch apparatus which has a second processing rule;
detect a failure of setting the first packet processing rule to the first switch apparatus;
identify, in response to detecting the failure, a flow corresponding to the second processing rule;
identify a second switch apparatus based on the flow;
send a second instruction to set the second switch apparatus to a previous state corresponding to the second processing rule in the first switch; wherein the processor is further configured to execute the program instructions to:
identify, in response to detecting the failure, a flow identifier and a transaction identifier; and
identify, based on the flow identifier and the transaction identifier, the second switch apparatus.

9. The network system according to claim 8 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the program instructions to:
send a request for a status of the first switch apparatus; and
detect the failure based on a reply to the request.

10. The network system according to claim 8 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the program instructions to:
send the first instruction to a first cluster control apparatus which controls the first switch apparatus; and
send the second instruction to a second cluster control apparatus which controls the second switch apparatus.

11. The network system according to claim 8 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the program instructions to receive a success notice of setting the previous state to the second switch apparatus.

12. The network system according to claim 11 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the program instructions, after receiving the success notice, to send a request for a status of the second switch apparatus.

13. The network system according to claim 8 , wherein the failure is detected when no response is returned during a predetermined period of time.

14. The network system according to claim 8 , wherein the second processing rule remains set for the first switch apparatus when the failure of setting the first packet processing rule to the first switch apparatus is detected.

15. A communication method, comprising:
sending a first instruction to set a first packet processing rule to a first switch apparatus which has a second processing rule;
detecting a failure of setting the first packet processing rule to the first switch apparatus;
identifying, in response to detecting the failure, a flow corresponding to the second processing rule;
identifying a second switch apparatus based on the flow;
sending a second instruction to set the second switch apparatus to a previous state corresponding to the second processing rule in the first switch; wherein the method further comprises:
identifying, in response to detecting the failure, a flow identifier and a transaction identifier; and
identifying, based on the flow identifier and the transaction identifier, the second switch apparatus.

16. The communication method according to claim 15 , further comprising:
sending a request for a status of the first switch apparatus; and
detecting the failure based on a reply to the request.

17. The communication method according to claim 15 , further comprising:
sending the first instruction to a first cluster control apparatus which controls the first switch apparatus; and
sending the second instruction to a second cluster control apparatus which controls the second switch apparatus.

18. The communication method according to claim 15 , further comprising receiving a success notice of setting the previous state to the second switch apparatus.

19. The communication method according to claim 18 , further comprising, after receiving the success notice, sending a request for a status of the second switch apparatus.

20. The communication method according to claim 15 , wherein the failure is detected when no response is returned during a predetermined period of time.

21. The communication method according to claim 15 , wherein the second processing rule remains set for the first switch apparatus when the failure of setting the first packet processing rule to the first switch apparatus is detected.

22. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructions readable and executable by a processor to cause the processor to execute the method according to claim 15 .

Assignees

• Nec Corp

Inventors

• Yamato Junichi
• Hama Takayuki

Classifications

• H04L41/0654

  using network fault recovery (ring fault isolation or reconfiguration in loop networks without recovery actions by a network management system H04L12/437) · CPC title

• H04L41/06

  Management of faults, events, alarms or notifications · CPC title

• H04L45/38

  Flow based routing · CPC title

• H04L41/0863

  by rolling back to previous configuration versions · CPC title

• H04L1/1628

  List acknowledgements, i.e. the acknowledgement message consisting of a list of identifiers, e.g. of sequence numbers (H04L1/1614 takes precedence) · CPC title