A multicast traffic forwarding apparatus, method, device and medium

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of cloud platform, and particularly relates to a multicast traffic forwarding device, method, equipment and medium, a multicast control module communicates with a second virtual network card and a fourth virtual network card respectively, and is used for configuring a bridge establishment and a connection management process to a first forwarding virtual machine and a second forwarding virtual machine, so as to establish a communication tunnel. The first forwarding virtual machine transmits multicast traffic based on a first virtual network card and a first device deployed in a virtual private cloud network. The communication tunnel is used to realize the transmission of multicast traffic between the first forwarding virtual machine and the second forwarding virtual machine. The second forwarding virtual machine realizes the transmission of multicast traffic between the first forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel; and transmits multicast traffic based on a third virtual network card and a cloud platform core switch. The cloud platform core switch transmits multicast traffic with a second device outside the cloud platform. Two forwarding virtual machines are deployed on the cloud platform, and the routing and forwarding of multicast traffic in the cloud and outside the cloud are realized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of cloud platform technology, and in particular to a multicast traffic forwarding device, method, equipment, and medium. Background Technology

[0002] Multicast is a network communication method that allows a sender to send data to multiple receivers simultaneously. In multicast communication, data packets only need to be copied multiple times and then transmitted over the network to each multicast member, instead of each receiver needing to receive a separate copy of the data packet as in unicast.

[0003] Multicast technology, by improving transmission efficiency and saving network resources, meets the needs of modern network applications and plays an important role in many fields. However, current cloud computing platforms based on cloud computing software (OpenStack) do not have a network service component (Netron) that supports Layer 3 routing and forwarding of multicast traffic. When the multicast source is deployed in a Virtual Private Cloud (VPC), which may belong to various network types, multicast traffic within the VPC cannot be routed to the outside of the cloud through the virtual gateway. This severely restricts the application scenarios and business scope of the cloud platform and greatly reduces the user experience of the cloud platform.

[0004] It is evident that how to enable cloud platforms to route and forward multicast traffic both within and outside the cloud is a problem that needs to be solved by those skilled in the art. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide a multicast traffic forwarding device, method, equipment, and medium that can solve the problem that cloud platforms do not have routing and forwarding functions for multicast traffic within and outside the cloud.

[0006] To address the aforementioned technical problems, this invention provides a multicast traffic forwarding device, comprising a first forwarding virtual machine deployed within a virtual private cloud network, a second forwarding virtual machine deployed within a first virtual local area network (VLAN), a multicast control module deployed within a control network, and a cloud platform core switch; the first forwarding virtual machine is equipped with a first virtual network interface card (NIC) and a second virtual NIC; the second forwarding virtual machine is equipped with a third virtual NIC and a fourth virtual NIC; wherein, both the first virtual NIC and the third virtual NIC are configured with an Internet Protocol (IP) address belonging to the first VLAN;

[0007] The multicast control module communicates with the second virtual network card and the fourth virtual network card respectively, and is used to configure the bridge establishment and connection management process for the first forwarding virtual machine and the second forwarding virtual machine, so as to establish a communication tunnel between the first forwarding virtual machine and the second forwarding virtual machine.

[0008] The first forwarding virtual machine is used to transmit multicast traffic between the first virtual network interface card and the first device deployed within the virtual private cloud network; and to transmit multicast traffic with the second forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel.

[0009] The second forwarding virtual machine is used to transmit multicast traffic with the first forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel; and to transmit multicast traffic with the cloud platform core switch based on the third virtual network interface card.

[0010] The cloud platform core switch is used to transmit multicast traffic with a second device deployed in a second virtual local area network (VLAN); wherein, the second VLAN is a VLAN outside the cloud platform.

[0011] On the one hand, the first device is a multicast source device; on the other hand, the second device is a multicast receiver device.

[0012] The first virtual network interface card (NIC) is used to receive multicast traffic sent by the multicast source device; and to transmit the multicast traffic to the third virtual NIC of the second forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel.

[0013] The third virtual network interface card is used to perform source address translation on the received multicast traffic and transmit the multicast traffic after source address translation to the cloud platform core switch.

[0014] The cloud platform core switch is used to receive multicast traffic with the source address converted from the third virtual network card, and to perform Layer 3 routing on the multicast traffic with the source address converted to the multicast receiving device.

[0015] On one hand, the third virtual network interface card is used to decapsulate the multicast traffic according to the multicast routing protocol to obtain the source address contained in the multicast traffic; and to switch the source address to the Internet Protocol address of the third virtual network interface card.

[0016] On the one hand, the first device is a multicast receiving device; the second device is a multicast source device;

[0017] The cloud platform core switch is used to complete the registration of the multicast receiving device according to the Internet Group Management Protocol (IMP) message sent by the multicast receiving device; receive the multicast message transmitted by the multicast source device; and send the multicast message to the second forwarding virtual machine according to the IMP.

[0018] The second forwarding virtual machine is used to transmit the multicast message to the first forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel when the multicast message is received;

[0019] The first forwarding virtual machine is used to forward the multicast message to the multicast receiving device upon receiving the multicast message.

[0020] On one hand, the first forwarding virtual machine is used to receive Internet Group Management Protocol (IMP) messages sent by the multicast receiving device; and to transmit the IMP messages to the second forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel.

[0021] The second forwarding virtual machine is used to, upon receiving the Internet Group Management Protocol (IMP) message, modify the source address of the IMP message to the Internet Protocol address of the third virtual network interface card (NIC) to obtain the modified IMP message; and send the modified IMP message to the cloud platform core switch.

[0022] The cloud platform core switch is used to receive modified Internet Group Management Protocol (IMP) messages and to complete the registration of the multicast receiving devices based on the modified IMP messages.

[0023] On one hand, the multicast control module is used to configure the first bridge establishment and connection management process for the second virtual network interface card; and to configure the second bridge establishment and connection management process for the fourth virtual network interface card.

[0024] The first forwarding virtual machine is used to construct a first virtual bridge and create a first virtual network port according to the first bridge establishment and connection management process, so as to enable itself to have multicast forwarding function; and to establish a general routing encapsulation tunnel for communication with the second forwarding virtual machine;

[0025] The second forwarding virtual machine is used to construct a second virtual bridge and create a second virtual network port according to the second bridge establishment and connection management process, so that it has multicast forwarding function and network address translation function; and to establish a general routing encapsulation tunnel for communication with the first forwarding virtual machine.

[0026] On one hand, the multicast control module is used to obtain the operating status and network configuration of the first forwarding virtual machine through the second virtual network card, and create a first bridge establishment and connection management process based on the operating status and network configuration of the first forwarding virtual machine; and to obtain the operating status and network configuration of the second forwarding virtual machine through the fourth virtual network card, and create a second bridge establishment and connection management process based on the operating status and network configuration of the second forwarding virtual machine.

[0027] This invention also provides a multicast traffic forwarding method, applicable to the aforementioned multicast traffic forwarding device, the method comprising:

[0028] Multicast traffic is transmitted between the first virtual network interface card of the first forwarding virtual machine and the first device deployed within the virtual private cloud network;

[0029] Multicast traffic is transmitted through an internal communication tunnel; wherein, the communication tunnel is established by the multicast control module configuring the bridge establishment and connection management process for the second virtual network card of the first forwarding virtual machine and the fourth virtual network card of the second forwarding virtual machine respectively.

[0030] The third virtual network interface card based on the second forwarding virtual machine transmits multicast traffic to the cloud platform core switch, so as to facilitate the transmission of multicast traffic between the cloud platform core switch and the second device deployed in the second virtual LAN; wherein, the second virtual LAN is a virtual LAN outside the cloud platform.

[0031] This invention also provides a multicast traffic forwarding device, comprising:

[0032] Memory, used to store computer programs;

[0033] A processor for executing the computer program to implement the steps of the multicast traffic forwarding method described above.

[0034] This invention also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the multicast traffic forwarding method described above.

[0035] This invention also provides a computer program product, including a computer program / instruction, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the multicast traffic forwarding method described above.

[0036] As can be seen from the above technical solution, the multicast traffic forwarding device includes a first forwarding virtual machine deployed within a virtual private cloud network (VPN), a second forwarding virtual machine deployed within a first virtual local area network (VLAN), a multicast control module deployed within a control network, and a cloud platform core switch. The first forwarding virtual machine is equipped with a first virtual network interface card (NIC) and a second virtual NIC; the second forwarding virtual machine is equipped with a third virtual NIC and a fourth virtual NIC. Both the first and third virtual NICs are configured with Internet Protocol (IP) addresses belonging to the first VLAN. The multicast control module communicates with the second and fourth virtual NICs respectively to configure bridge establishment and connection management processes for the first and second forwarding virtual machines, enabling the establishment of a communication tunnel between them. The first forwarding virtual machine can transmit multicast traffic to the first device deployed within the VPN based on the first virtual NIC. Multicast traffic transmission with the second forwarding virtual machine is achieved through the communication tunnel. The second forwarding virtual machine transmits multicast traffic to the first forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel; and transmits multicast traffic to the cloud platform core switch based on the third virtual NIC. The cloud platform core switch transmits multicast traffic to a second device deployed within a second virtual local area network (VLAN). This second VLAN is located outside the cloud platform. The beneficial effect of this invention is that two forwarding virtual machines (VMs) are deployed on the cloud platform. The first forwarding VM is deployed within a virtual private cloud network (VPN), while the second forwarding VM is deployed within the first VLAN containing the Internet Protocol (IP) address. Both VMs are configured with IIP addresses to enable communication with the multicast control module. The multicast control module establishes a communication tunnel between the two VMs by configuring bridge establishment and connection management processes for both VMs, enabling them to forward multicast traffic. The cloud platform core switch supports multicast routing protocols, allowing it to correctly transmit multicast traffic to the second device outside the cloud platform, thus achieving multicast traffic routing and forwarding both within and outside the cloud. This invention offers a simple deployment method, requiring no modification or secondary development of the existing network architecture; multicast routing and forwarding functionality is achieved simply by deploying functional forwarding VMs. Attached Figure Description

[0037] To more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0038] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of a multicast traffic forwarding device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0039] Figure 2A network architecture diagram of a multicast traffic forwarding device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0040] Figure 3 A flowchart of multicast traffic forwarding provided by an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the multicast source is located in a cloud center;

[0041] Figure 4 A flowchart of multicast traffic forwarding for a multicast receiver located in a cloud center is provided as an embodiment of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 5 A flowchart of a multicast traffic forwarding method provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 6 This is a structural diagram of a multicast traffic forwarding device provided in an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0044] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0045] The terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, in the specification and accompanying drawings of this invention are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that includes a series of steps or units is not limited to the steps or units listed, but may include steps or units not listed.

[0046] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present invention, the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0047] Multicast technology allows one or more multicast sources (senders) to send a single multicast data packet to multiple multicast receivers. Its key feature is that in multicast communication, the multicast source only needs to send one data packet, and the Layer 3 destination address of this data packet is the multicast address. All multicast receivers in a multicast group receive the same copy of the data, and only members within the multicast group can receive this data; other hosts on the network cannot receive it.

[0048] Multicast technology is widely used in scenarios where the same data needs to be transmitted to multiple receivers simultaneously, such as online video conferencing, live streaming, IPTV, distance education, telemedicine, internet radio, and real-time audio / video conferencing. In these applications, multicast effectively reduces network bandwidth usage, improves data transmission efficiency, and reduces server and network load. Multicast reduces data redundancy in the network because the same data only needs to be transmitted once and then shared by multiple receivers. Since multicast reduces the repeated transmission of data packets, it effectively saves network bandwidth and reduces server load, meeting the demands of modern network applications for high-efficiency data transmission.

[0049] When multicast traffic involves transmission across two broadcast domains, a three-layer routing and forwarding function is required. However, the current cloud platform environment based on OpenStack does not support the three-layer routing and forwarding function for multicast traffic, which prevents multicast traffic from being routed outside the cloud.

[0050] Therefore, embodiments of the present invention provide a multicast traffic forwarding device, method, equipment, and medium. By creating two multicast traffic forwarding virtual machines and then configuring them through a multicast control module, the cloud platform is equipped with the function of routing and forwarding multicast traffic both inside and outside the cloud.

[0051] Next, a multicast traffic forwarding device provided by an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail. Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of a multicast traffic forwarding device provided in an embodiment of the present invention. The device includes a first forwarding virtual machine 11 deployed in a virtual private cloud network, a second forwarding virtual machine 12 deployed in a first virtual local area network, a multicast control module 13 deployed in a control network, and a cloud platform core switch 14. The first forwarding virtual machine 11 is equipped with a first virtual network interface card (NIC) and a second virtual NIC. The second forwarding virtual machine 12 is equipped with a third virtual NIC and a fourth virtual NIC. The first virtual NIC and the third virtual NIC are both configured with Internet Protocol (IP) addresses belonging to the first virtual local area network.

[0052] In this embodiment of the invention, the second virtual network card and the fourth virtual network card can be deployed in the control network to which the multicast control module 13 belongs, so that the multicast control module 13 can communicate with the first forwarding virtual machine 11 through the second virtual network card, and the multicast control module 13 can communicate with the second forwarding virtual machine 12 through the fourth virtual network card.

[0053] The multicast control module 13 communicates with the second virtual network card and the fourth virtual network card respectively to configure the bridge establishment and connection management process (Open vSwitch, OVS) for the first forwarding virtual machine 11 and the second forwarding virtual machine 12, so that a communication tunnel can be established between the first forwarding virtual machine 11 and the second forwarding virtual machine 12.

[0054] The first forwarding virtual machine 11 is used to transmit multicast traffic between the first virtual network card and the first device deployed in the Virtual Private Cloud (VPC); and to transmit multicast traffic with the second forwarding virtual machine 12 through a communication tunnel.

[0055] The second forwarding virtual machine 12 is used to transmit multicast traffic with the first forwarding virtual machine 11 through a communication tunnel; and to transmit multicast traffic based on the third virtual network card and the cloud platform core switch 14.

[0056] The cloud platform core switch 14 is used to transmit multicast traffic with the second device deployed in the second virtual local area network (VLAN); wherein, the second VLAN is a VLAN outside the cloud platform.

[0057] The first Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) to which the second forwarding virtual machine 12 belongs can be a network opened by the cloud platform. The second VLAN to which the second device belongs belongs to a network outside the cloud platform.

[0058] Regarding the establishment process of the communication tunnel, the multicast control module 13 can configure the first bridge establishment and connection management process to the second virtual network card and configure the second bridge establishment and connection management process to the fourth virtual network card.

[0059] The first forwarding virtual machine 11, according to the first bridge establishment and connection management process, constructs a first virtual bridge and creates a first virtual network interface to enable itself to have multicast forwarding capabilities; it also establishes a Generic Routing Encapsulation (GRE) tunnel for communication with the second forwarding virtual machine 12. The second forwarding virtual machine 12, according to the second bridge establishment and connection management process, constructs a second virtual bridge and creates a second virtual network interface to enable itself to have multicast forwarding capabilities and Network Address Translation (NAT) capabilities; it also establishes a Generic Routing Encapsulation tunnel for communication with the first forwarding virtual machine 11.

[0060] In practical applications, the multicast control module 13 can obtain the running status and network configuration of the first forwarding virtual machine 11 through the second virtual network card, and create a first bridge establishment and connection management process based on the running status and network configuration of the first forwarding virtual machine 11; and obtain the running status and network configuration of the second forwarding virtual machine 12 through the fourth virtual network card, and create a second bridge establishment and connection management process based on the running status and network configuration of the second forwarding virtual machine 12.

[0061] In this embodiment of the invention, the device transmitting multicast traffic can be a multicast source device or a multicast receiver device. Figure 2 This is a network architecture diagram of a multicast traffic forwarding device provided in an embodiment of the present invention. The VPC multicast control module can send control messages to the first forwarding virtual machine (multicast-gw1) and the second forwarding virtual machine (multicast-gw2) and install the OVS program on the first forwarding virtual machine and the second forwarding virtual machine to establish a communication tunnel. Figure 2 The first forwarding virtual machine and the second forwarding virtual machine can transmit multicast traffic through the established communication tunnel. The second forwarding virtual machine communicates with the cloud platform core switch and can transmit multicast traffic to the cloud platform core switch.

[0062] Based on communication requirements, the cloud platform core switch 14 is configured with the multicast routing protocol (Protocol Independent Multicast Sparse Mode, PIM-SM) and the interior gateway protocol (Open Shortest Path First, OSPF) to ensure unicast route reachability, loop-free operation within the autonomous system, normal reverse path checks, and proper PIM protocol operation. It is worth noting that multiple Layer 3 routing devices may exist on the physical link between the multicast receiver and the cloud platform core switch 14; all of these devices must enable both OSPF and PIM-SM protocols to ensure route reachability.

[0063] In this embodiment of the invention, the multicast traffic may contain User Datagram Protocol (UDP) messages or Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) messages. UDP is unidirectional traffic; ICMP is bidirectional traffic and includes return traffic.

[0064] The multicast traffic forwarding device mainly includes the first forwarding virtual machine (multicast-gw1) in the VPC; the second forwarding virtual machine (multicast-gw2) in the VLAN physical network (the network to which the floating IP belongs); the VPC multicast control module; and the cloud platform core switch.

[0065] In practical applications, a multicast-gw1 virtual machine can be created within the VPC, and a multicast-gw2 virtual machine can be created within the network to which the floating IP belongs. Two virtual network interfaces (NICs) are inserted into multicast-gw1: a first virtual NIC (port1) and a second virtual NIC (port2). Port1 belongs to the VPC network; opening the security group on port1 facilitates the reception and forwarding of multicast traffic. Port2 belongs to the control network and is used to communicate with the VPC multicast control module. A floating IP address (IPv4 address) is configured for port1 of the multicast-gw1 virtual machine, with the IP address being FIP1.

[0066] Two virtual network interfaces (NICs) are inserted into multicasts-gw2: a third virtual NIC (port3) and a fourth virtual NIC (port4). Port3 belongs to the VLAN physical network of the floating IP subnet, and its IPv4 address is FIP2. Opening the security group on port3 facilitates the reception and forwarding of multicast traffic. Port4 belongs to the control network and is used for communication with the VPC multicast control module.

[0067] The multicast-gw1 virtual machine is pre-installed with the OVS program. The VPC multicast control module communicates with port 2 of the multicast-gw1 virtual machine via the control network. The VPC multicast control module configures the OVS process to build a virtual bridge and create virtual ports, enabling the multicast-gw1 virtual machine to have multicast forwarding capabilities. Simultaneously, a GRE tunnel is established between the multicast-gw1 and multicast-gw2 virtual machines. The multicast-gw2 virtual machine is also pre-installed with the OVS program. The VPC multicast control module communicates with port 4 of the multicast-gw2 virtual machine via the control network. The VPC multicast control module configures the OVS process to build a virtual bridge and create virtual ports, enabling the multicast-gw2 virtual machine to have multicast forwarding and Network Address Translation (NAT) functions. Simultaneously, a GRE tunnel is established between the multicast-gw1 and multicast-gw2 virtual machines.

[0068] Based on the actual usage of the cloud platform, the following two application scenarios will be introduced. Scenario 1: The multicast source device is inside the VPC, and the multicast receiving device is outside the cloud platform. Scenario 2: The multicast receiving device is inside the VPC, and the multicast source device is outside the cloud platform.

[0069] Taking the first scenario as an example, the first device is a multicast source device; the second device is a multicast receiver device. The first virtual network interface card in the first forwarding virtual machine 11 receives the multicast traffic sent by the multicast source device; and transmits the multicast traffic to the third virtual network interface card of the second forwarding virtual machine 12 through the communication tunnel.

[0070] The third virtual network interface card (NIC) is used to perform source address translation on received multicast traffic and transmit the multicast traffic with the translated source address to the cloud platform core switch 14. In practical applications, the third virtual NIC can decapsulate multicast traffic according to the multicast routing protocol to obtain the source address contained in the multicast traffic; and switch the source address to the Internet Protocol address of the third virtual NIC.

[0071] The cloud platform core switch 14 is used to receive multicast traffic with the source address converted from the third virtual network card, and to perform Layer 3 routing on the multicast traffic with the source address converted to the multicast receiving device.

[0072] For ease of description, the multicast source device can be simply referred to as the multicast source, and the multicast receiving device can be referred to as the multicast receiver. Figure 3 This invention provides a flowchart for multicast traffic forwarding from a multicast source located within a cloud center. A first forwarding virtual machine (VM) is deployed in a Virtual Private Cloud (VPN), a second forwarding VM is deployed in a first Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN), and the multicast receiver is deployed in a second VM. The second VM belongs to an external cloud network. During multicast traffic transmission, the multicast source can transmit multicast traffic to the first forwarding VM. The first forwarding VM transmits the multicast traffic to the second forwarding VM via a communication tunnel. The second forwarding VM needs to convert the source address carried in the multicast traffic to its own address and then transmit the multicast traffic with the converted source address to the cloud platform core switch. The cloud platform core switch enables the PIM-SM and OSPF protocols, allowing for Layer 3 routing forwarding of the multicast traffic until it reaches the multicast receiver.

[0073] Figure 3 Taking four multicast receivers as an example, one rail transit multicast router connects two multicast receivers, and the four multicast receivers are designated as multicast receiver 1, multicast receiver 2, multicast receiver 3, and multicast receiver 4. The cloud platform core switch can communicate with multiple multicast receivers through the rail transit multicast router, and simultaneously transmit multicast traffic to multiple multicast receivers.

[0074] Taking the second scenario as an example, the first device is a multicast receiving device; the second device is a multicast source device. When the first device is a multicast receiving device, it needs to register with the cloud platform core switch for multicast groups. The cloud platform core switch 14 completes the registration of the multicast receiving device based on the Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) message sent by the multicast receiving device; receives the multicast messages transmitted by the multicast source device; and sends the multicast messages to the second forwarding virtual machine 12 according to the Internet Group Management Protocol.

[0075] The second forwarding virtual machine 12 is used to transmit the multicast message to the first forwarding virtual machine 11 through a communication tunnel upon receiving the multicast message. The first forwarding virtual machine 11 is used to forward the multicast message to the multicast receiving device upon receiving the multicast message.

[0076] In practical applications, to register a multicast group, the multicast receiver first sends an IGMP message. After receiving the IGMP message from the multicast receiving device, the first forwarding virtual machine 11 can transmit the IGMP message to the second forwarding virtual machine 12 via a communication tunnel. Upon receiving the IGMP message, the second forwarding virtual machine 12 modifies the source address of the IGMP message to the Internet Protocol address of the third virtual network interface card (IPC card) to obtain the modified IGMP message. In this embodiment, the IPC address of the third virtual network interface card of the second forwarding virtual machine 12 is FIP2; therefore, the modified IGMP message carries the FIP2 address.

[0077] The second forwarding virtual machine 12 sends the modified IGMP message to the cloud platform core switch 14. The cloud platform core switch 14 receives the modified IGMP message and completes the registration of the multicast receiving device based on the modified IGMP message.

[0078] Figure 4 This invention provides a flowchart of multicast traffic forwarding for a multicast receiver located within a cloud center. A first forwarding virtual machine (VM) is deployed in a Virtual Private Cloud (VPN), a second forwarding VM is deployed in a first Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN), the multicast receiver is deployed in the VPN, and the multicast source is deployed in the second VPN. The second VPN is an external network. During multicast traffic transmission, the multicast source can transmit multicast traffic to the cloud platform's core switch. The cloud platform's core switch transmits the multicast traffic to the second forwarding VM according to the IGMP protocol. The second forwarding VM transmits the multicast traffic to the first forwarding VM through a communication tunnel. Finally, the first forwarding VM forwards the multicast traffic to the multicast receiver within the VPN.

[0079] As can be seen from the above technical solution, the multicast traffic forwarding device includes a first forwarding virtual machine deployed within a virtual private cloud network (VPN), a second forwarding virtual machine deployed within a first virtual local area network (VLAN), a multicast control module deployed within a control network, and a cloud platform core switch. The first forwarding virtual machine is equipped with a first virtual network interface card (NIC) and a second virtual NIC; the second forwarding virtual machine is equipped with a third virtual NIC and a fourth virtual NIC. Both the first and third virtual NICs are configured with Internet Protocol (IP) addresses belonging to the first VLAN. The multicast control module communicates with the second and fourth virtual NICs respectively to configure bridge establishment and connection management processes for the first and second forwarding virtual machines, enabling the establishment of a communication tunnel between them. The first forwarding virtual machine can transmit multicast traffic to the first device deployed within the VPN based on the first virtual NIC. Multicast traffic transmission with the second forwarding virtual machine is achieved through the communication tunnel. The second forwarding virtual machine transmits multicast traffic to the first forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel; and transmits multicast traffic to the cloud platform core switch based on the third virtual NIC. The cloud platform core switch transmits multicast traffic to a second device deployed within a second virtual local area network (VLAN). This second VLAN is located outside the cloud platform. The beneficial effect of this invention is that two forwarding virtual machines (VMs) are deployed on the cloud platform. The first forwarding VM is deployed within a virtual private cloud network (VPN), while the second forwarding VM is deployed within the first VLAN containing the Internet Protocol (IP) address. Both VMs are configured with IIP addresses to enable communication with the multicast control module. The multicast control module establishes a communication tunnel between the two VMs by configuring bridge establishment and connection management processes for both VMs, enabling them to forward multicast traffic. The cloud platform core switch supports multicast routing protocols, allowing it to correctly transmit multicast traffic to the second device outside the cloud platform, thus achieving multicast traffic routing and forwarding both within and outside the cloud. This invention offers a simple deployment method, requiring no modification or secondary development of the existing network architecture; multicast routing and forwarding functionality is achieved simply by deploying functional forwarding VMs.

[0080] Figure 5 A flowchart of a multicast traffic forwarding method provided in an embodiment of the present invention, the method comprising:

[0081] S501: Multicast traffic is transmitted between the first virtual network card of the first forwarding virtual machine and the first device deployed within the virtual private cloud network.

[0082] S502: Enables multicast traffic transmission through an internal communication tunnel.

[0083] The communication tunnel is established by the multicast control module configuring the bridge establishment and connection management process for the second virtual network card of the first forwarding virtual machine and the fourth virtual network card of the second forwarding virtual machine.

[0084] S503: The third virtual network interface card based on the second forwarding virtual machine transmits multicast traffic to the cloud platform core switch, so as to facilitate the transmission of multicast traffic between the cloud platform core switch and the second device deployed in the second virtual LAN.

[0085] The second virtual LAN is a virtual LAN outside the cloud platform.

[0086] Figure 5 For a description of the features in the corresponding embodiments, please refer to Figure 1 The relevant descriptions of the corresponding embodiments will not be repeated here.

[0087] As can be seen from the above technical solution, the multicast traffic forwarding device transmits multicast traffic between the first virtual network interface card (NIC) of the first forwarding virtual machine and the first device deployed within the virtual private cloud network. Multicast traffic transmission is achieved through an internal communication tunnel. This communication tunnel is established by the multicast control module through the bridge establishment and connection management processes configured for the second NIC and the fourth NIC of the first forwarding virtual machine. Multicast traffic is also transmitted between the third NIC of the second forwarding virtual machine and the cloud platform core switch, facilitating multicast traffic transmission between the cloud platform core switch and the second device deployed within the second virtual local area network (VLAN). The second VLAN is a VLAN outside the cloud platform. The beneficial effect of this invention is that two forwarding virtual machines are deployed on the cloud platform: the first forwarding virtual machine is deployed within the virtual private cloud network, and the second forwarding virtual machine is deployed within the first VLAN where the Internet Protocol (IP) address is located. Both the first and second forwarding virtual machines are configured with IP addresses to enable communication with the multicast control module. The multicast control module establishes a communication tunnel between the first and second forwarding virtual machines (VMs) by configuring bridge establishment and connection management processes, enabling both VMs to forward multicast traffic. The cloud platform core switch supports multicast routing protocols, allowing it to correctly transmit multicast traffic to a second device outside the cloud platform, thus achieving multicast traffic routing and forwarding both within and outside the cloud. This invention is simple to deploy, requiring no modification or secondary development of the existing network architecture; multicast routing and forwarding functionality can be achieved simply by deploying functional forwarding VMs.

[0088] Figure 6 A structural diagram of a multicast traffic forwarding device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is shown below. Figure 6 As shown, the multicast traffic forwarding device includes: a memory 60 for storing computer programs;

[0089] The processor 61 is used to execute computer programs to implement the steps of the multicast traffic forwarding method as described in the above embodiments.

[0090] The multicast traffic forwarding device provided in this embodiment may include, but is not limited to, smartphones, tablets, laptops, or desktop computers.

[0091] The processor 61 may include one or more processing cores, such as a quad-core processor or an octa-core processor. The processor 61 may be implemented using at least one hardware form selected from Digital Signal Processing (DSP), Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), and Programmable Logic Array (PLA). The processor 61 may also include a main processor and a coprocessor. The main processor, also known as the Central Processing Unit (CPU), is used to process data in the wake-up state; the coprocessor is a low-power processor used to process data in the standby state. In some embodiments, the processor 61 may integrate a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), which is responsible for rendering and drawing the content to be displayed on the screen. In some embodiments, the processor 61 may also include an Artificial Intelligence (AI) processor, which handles computational operations related to machine learning.

[0092] The memory 60 may include one or more computer-readable storage media, which may be non-transitory. The memory 60 may also include high-speed random access memory and non-volatile memory, such as one or more disk storage devices or flash memory devices. In this embodiment, the memory 60 is used to store at least the following computer program 601, which, after being loaded and executed by the processor 61, is capable of implementing the relevant steps of the multicast traffic forwarding method disclosed in any of the foregoing embodiments. In addition, the resources stored in the memory 60 may also include an operating system 602 and data 603, and the storage method may be temporary or permanent storage. The operating system 602 may include Windows, Unix, Linux, etc. The data 603 may include, but is not limited to, multicast traffic.

[0093] In some embodiments, the multicast traffic forwarding device may further include a display screen 62, an input / output interface 63, a communication interface 64, a power supply 65, and a communication bus 66.

[0094] Those skilled in the art will understand that Figure 6 The structure shown does not constitute a limitation on multicast traffic forwarding devices and may include more or fewer components than illustrated.

[0095] It is understood that if the multicast traffic forwarding method in the above embodiments is implemented as a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present invention, in essence, or the part that contributes to the current technology, or all or part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and executes all or part of the steps of the methods in the various embodiments of the present invention. The aforementioned storage medium includes: USB flash drive, mobile hard drive, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), electrically erasable programmable ROM, register, hard disk, removable disk, CD-ROM, magnetic disk or optical disk, and other media capable of storing program code.

[0096] Based on this, embodiments of the present invention also provide a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the multicast traffic forwarding method described above.

[0097] This invention also provides a computer program product, including a computer program / instruction, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the multicast traffic forwarding method described above.

[0098] The foregoing has provided a detailed description of a multicast traffic forwarding apparatus, method, device, and computer-readable storage medium provided by embodiments of the present invention. The various embodiments are described in a progressive manner, with each embodiment focusing on its differences from other embodiments. Similar or identical parts between embodiments can be referred to interchangeably. For the apparatus disclosed in the embodiments, since it corresponds to the method disclosed in the embodiments, the description is relatively simple; relevant parts can be referred to in the method section.

[0099] Those skilled in the art will further recognize that the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate the interchangeability of hardware and software, the components and steps of the various examples have been generally described in terms of functionality in the foregoing description. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementations should not be considered beyond the scope of this invention.

[0100] The multicast traffic forwarding device, method, apparatus, and computer-readable storage medium provided by the present invention have been described in detail above. Specific examples have been used to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of the present invention. The descriptions of the embodiments above are merely for the purpose of helping to understand the method and core ideas of the present invention. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various improvements and modifications to the present invention without departing from its principles, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A multicast traffic forwarding device, characterized in that, The system includes a first forwarding virtual machine deployed within a virtual private cloud network, a second forwarding virtual machine deployed within a first virtual local area network (VLAN), a multicast control module deployed within a control network, and a cloud platform core switch. The first forwarding virtual machine is equipped with a first virtual network interface card (NIC) and a second virtual NIC. The second forwarding virtual machine is equipped with a third virtual NIC and a fourth virtual NIC. Both the first virtual NIC and the third virtual NIC are configured with Internet Protocol (IP) addresses belonging to the first VLAN. The multicast control module communicates with the second virtual network card and the fourth virtual network card respectively, and is used to configure the bridge establishment and connection management process for the first forwarding virtual machine and the second forwarding virtual machine, so as to establish a communication tunnel between the first forwarding virtual machine and the second forwarding virtual machine. The first forwarding virtual machine is used to transmit multicast traffic between the first virtual network interface card and the first device deployed within the virtual private cloud network; and to transmit multicast traffic with the second forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel. The second forwarding virtual machine is used to transmit multicast traffic with the first forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel; and to transmit multicast traffic with the cloud platform core switch based on the third virtual network interface card. The cloud platform core switch is used to transmit multicast traffic with the second device deployed in the second virtual local area network (VLAN). The second VLAN is a VLAN outside the cloud platform. The first VLAN to which the second forwarding virtual machine belongs is a network opened by the cloud platform. The multicast control module is used to configure the first bridge establishment and connection management process for the second virtual network interface card (NIC); and to configure the second bridge establishment and connection management process for the fourth virtual NIC. The first forwarding virtual machine is used to construct a first virtual bridge and create a first virtual network port according to the first bridge establishment and connection management process, so as to enable itself to have multicast forwarding function; and to establish a general routing encapsulation tunnel for communication with the second forwarding virtual machine; The second forwarding virtual machine is used to construct a second virtual bridge and create a second virtual network port according to the second bridge establishment and connection management process, so that it has multicast forwarding function and network address translation function; and to establish a general routing encapsulation tunnel for communication with the first forwarding virtual machine; The multicast control module is used to obtain the operating status and network configuration of the first forwarding virtual machine through the second virtual network card, and create a first bridge establishment and connection management process based on the operating status and network configuration of the first forwarding virtual machine; and to obtain the operating status and network configuration of the second forwarding virtual machine through the fourth virtual network card, and create a second bridge establishment and connection management process based on the operating status and network configuration of the second forwarding virtual machine. The first virtual network interface card (NIC) belongs to the Virtual Private Cloud (VPN) network. Opening the security group of the first virtual NIC facilitates the reception and forwarding of multicast traffic. The second virtual NIC belongs to the control network and is used to communicate with the multicast control module. The third virtual NIC belongs to the first VPN of the floating IP network segment. Opening the security group of the third virtual NIC facilitates the reception and forwarding of multicast traffic. The fourth virtual NIC belongs to the control network and is used to communicate with the multicast control module.

2. The multicast traffic forwarding device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first device is a multicast source device; the second device is a multicast receiver device; The first virtual network interface card is used to receive multicast traffic sent by the multicast source device; The multicast traffic is transmitted through the communication tunnel to the third virtual network interface card of the second forwarding virtual machine; The third virtual network interface card is used to perform source address translation on the received multicast traffic and transmit the multicast traffic after source address translation to the cloud platform core switch. The cloud platform core switch is used to receive multicast traffic with the source address converted from the third virtual network card, and to perform Layer 3 routing on the multicast traffic with the source address converted to the multicast receiving device.

3. The multicast traffic forwarding device according to claim 2, characterized in that, The third virtual network interface card is used to decapsulate the multicast traffic according to the multicast routing protocol to obtain the source address contained in the multicast traffic; Switch the source address to the Internet Protocol address of the third virtual network card.

4. The multicast traffic forwarding device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first device is a multicast receiving device; the second device is a multicast source device; The cloud platform core switch is used to complete the registration of the multicast receiving device according to the Internet Group Management Protocol (IMP) message sent by the multicast receiving device; and to receive multicast messages transmitted by the multicast source device. According to the Internet Group Management Protocol, the multicast message is sent to the second forwarding virtual machine; The second forwarding virtual machine is used to transmit the multicast message to the first forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel when the multicast message is received; The first forwarding virtual machine is used to forward the multicast message to the multicast receiving device upon receiving the multicast message.

5. The multicast traffic forwarding device according to claim 4, characterized in that, The first forwarding virtual machine is used to receive Internet Group Management Protocol (IMP) messages sent by the multicast receiving device; and to transmit the IMP messages to the second forwarding virtual machine through the communication tunnel. The second forwarding virtual machine is used to, upon receiving the Internet Group Management Protocol (IMP) message, modify the source address of the IMP message to the Internet Protocol address of the third virtual network interface card (NIC) to obtain the modified IMP message; and send the modified IMP message to the cloud platform core switch. The cloud platform core switch is used to receive modified Internet Group Management Protocol (IMP) messages and to complete the registration of the multicast receiving devices based on the modified IMP messages.

6. A multicast traffic forwarding method, characterized in that, The method, applicable to the multicast traffic forwarding apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, comprises: The first forwarding virtual machine transmits multicast traffic to the first virtual network card and the first device deployed in the virtual private cloud network; the first forwarding virtual machine is used to construct the first virtual bridge and create the first virtual network port according to the first bridge establishment and connection management process, so that it has multicast forwarding function; and establishes a general routing encapsulation tunnel for communication with the second forwarding virtual machine; Multicast traffic is transmitted through an internal communication tunnel. This communication tunnel is established by the multicast control module configuring bridge establishment and connection management processes for the second virtual network interface card (NIC) of the first forwarding virtual machine and the fourth virtual NIC of the second forwarding virtual machine. The multicast control module is used to configure a first bridge establishment and connection management process for the second virtual NIC and a second bridge establishment and connection management process for the fourth virtual NIC. The multicast control module is also used to obtain the operating status and network configuration of the first forwarding virtual machine through the second virtual NIC, and create a first bridge establishment and connection management process based on the operating status and network configuration of the first forwarding virtual machine; and to obtain the operating status and network configuration of the second forwarding virtual machine through the fourth virtual NIC, and create a second bridge establishment and connection management process based on the operating status and network configuration of the second forwarding virtual machine. The third virtual network interface card (NIC) of the second forwarding virtual machine transmits multicast traffic to the cloud platform core switch, facilitating multicast traffic transmission between the cloud platform core switch and the second device deployed within the second virtual LAN. The second virtual LAN is an external virtual LAN to the cloud platform; the first virtual LAN to which the second forwarding virtual machine belongs is a network established by the cloud platform; the second forwarding virtual machine is used to construct a second virtual bridge and create a second virtual network interface according to the second bridge establishment and connection management process, enabling it to possess multicast forwarding and network address translation (NAT) functions; and to establish a general routing encapsulation tunnel for communication with the first forwarding virtual machine. The first virtual network interface card (NIC) belongs to the Virtual Private Cloud (VPN) network. Opening the security group of the first virtual NIC facilitates the reception and forwarding of multicast traffic. The second virtual NIC belongs to the control network and is used to communicate with the multicast control module. The third virtual NIC belongs to the first VPN of the floating IP network segment. Opening the security group of the third virtual NIC facilitates the reception and forwarding of multicast traffic. The fourth virtual NIC belongs to the control network and is used to communicate with the multicast control module.

7. A multicast traffic forwarding device, characterized in that, include: Memory, used to store computer programs; A processor for executing the computer program to implement the steps of the multicast traffic forwarding method as described in claim 6.

8. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the multicast traffic forwarding method as described in claim 6.

Images