Topological Location Discovery in Ethernet Networks

Abstract

A topology aware entity, such as an OSS (Operations Support System), an NMS (Network Management System) or an RM (Resource Manager), associated with an Ethernet network is configured to execute a method for topological location discovery of nodes that are added to the network. According to the method, the topology aware entity receives (step 30) a notification about a new node that has been added to the network. Then, the topology aware entity causes (step 31) an existing node to initiate a path discovery to the new node using an Ethernet Connectivity and Fault Management, CFM, protocol, such as IEE 802.1 ag or ITU-T Y.1731. The topology aware entity receives (step 32) the resulting path data from the existing node and identifies (step 33), based on the path data, a topological position of the new node in the Ethernet network. The method may be embodied as program instructions stored on a computer-readable medium.

Description

technical field

[0001] The present invention generally relates to the discovery, configuration and provisioning of network devices in Ethernet networks. More specifically (but not by way of limitation), the present invention is directed to a technique for automatic topological location discovery of network devices joining an Ethernet network. Background technique

[0002] Ethernet is a widely used family of frame-based computer networking technologies for local area networks (LANs). It defines multiple cabling and signaling standards for the physical layer of the OSI networking model, relying on network access and common addressing formats at the Media Access Control (MAC) layer / data link layer. Ethernet is standardized by the organization IEEE, currently under IEEE802.

[0003] Ethernet-based networks expand beyond traditional geographic boundaries, and the number of users grows rapidly. Consequently, there has also been a significant increase in the number of network de...

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