Router and test method

Abstract

To allow prior confirmation for channel switching without actually implementing channel switching of user traffic, using an existing IP network.SOLUTION: A router for exchanging channel information with an external router using a channel control protocol includes: a channel information storage unit which stores channel information for use in packet transfer; a testing channel information storage unit which stores channel information for test; a channel receiving unit which reflects, when receiving a testing channel information update message from an external first router, the testing channel information update message not in the channel information storage unit but in the testing channel information storage unit; and a channel transmission unit which transmits, to an external second router, a testing channel information update message pertaining to channel information updated with the testing channel information update message in the testing channel information storage unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a router and a testing method. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, communication networks such as the Internet and mobile communications have become an essential part of social infrastructure for daily life, being used for a variety of purposes. Therefore, when a large-scale communication failure occurs in a communication network, it has a significant impact on society. There are various factors that can cause a large-scale communication failure in a communication network, but one of the major causes is operational errors during the operation and maintenance of the communication network. Various technical efforts have been implemented to prevent such operational errors. For example, the technology described in Patent Document 1 and Non-Patent Document 1 prepares a simulation environment for a commercial IP (Internet Protocol) network, and simulates the task of setting network parameters for route switching in that simulation environment to confirm whether route switching is occurring as intended. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-139387 [Non-patent literature]

[0004] [Non-Patent Document 1] IETF, "IRTF: Digital Twin Network: Concepts and Reference Architecture," Internet<URL:https: / / datatracker.ietf.org / doc / draft-irtf-nmrg-network-digital-twin-arch / 01 / > Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, with the above-mentioned conventional technology, it is difficult to completely reproduce an existing commercial IP network in a simulation environment, and therefore there is a possibility that the prior work checks made by simulation may not be reliable.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of these circumstances, and its purpose is to use an existing IP network to confirm route switching work in advance without actually switching the routes of user traffic. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] One aspect of the present invention is a router that exchanges route information with external routers using a route control protocol, comprising: a route information storage unit that stores route information used for packet forwarding; a test route information storage unit that stores route information for testing; a route receiving unit that, when receiving a test route information update message from a first external router, reflects the test route information update message in the test route information storage unit without reflecting the message in the route information storage unit; and a route sending unit that sends a test route information update message regarding the route information updated in the test route information storage unit by the test route information update message to a second external router. One aspect of the present invention is a router as described above, further comprising a route change transmission unit that transmits route change information indicating changes in the route information stored in the test route information storage unit to an external device. One aspect of the present invention is a router in which the routing control protocol is BGP (Border Gateway Protocol), and the test route information update message is a "BGP update message" to which a "Path attribute" indicating a test has been added. In one aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned router, the "Path attribute" includes test identification information and router identification information of the sender of the test route information update message. One aspect of the present invention is a router in which the routing control protocol is BGP (Border Gateway Protocol), and the test route information update message is a "BGP update message" to which a "BGP community" indicating a test has been added. One aspect of the present invention is a router as described above, in which the routing protocol is BGP (Border Gateway Protocol), and the router is equipped with "Adj-RIB-in", "Adj-RIB-out", and "Loc-RIB" for testing. One aspect of the present invention is the router described above, further comprising a management unit that accepts test settings related to the routing protocol.

[0008] One aspect of the present invention is a testing method in which a router that exchanges route information with an external router using a route control protocol is provided with a route information storage unit that stores route information used for packet forwarding and a test route information storage unit that stores route information for testing, and the method includes a route receiving step in which, when the router receives a test route information update message from a first external router, the test route information update message is reflected in the test route information storage unit without being reflected in the route information storage unit, and a route sending step in which the router sends a test route information update message regarding the route information updated in the test route information storage unit by the test route information update message to a second external router. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain an effect that it is possible to check the route switching operation in advance using an existing IP network without actually switching the route of user traffic. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a network testing system according to an embodiment; [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of an overall procedure of a test method according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of a router according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a procedure of a test method according to an embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a procedure of a test method according to an embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a procedure of a test method according to an embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a "Path attribute" dedicated to a test "BGP update message" according to one embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, BGP (Border Gateway Protocol) will be described as an example of a path control protocol (routing protocol) in an IP network.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a network testing system according to this embodiment. In FIG. 1, the IP network NW is the IP network to be tested, and is an existing and operational IP network. The IP network NW is an existing IP network, for example, a commercial IP network. The IP network NW is configured to include multiple routers 10. The routers 10 are connected to each other by communication lines. The routers 10 exchange BGP route information (hereinafter simply referred to as route information) with external routers 10 using BGP.

[0013] The operator terminal 20 is a terminal used by the operator of the IP network NW. The operator terminal 20 connects to at least one router 10 in the IP network NW via communication, and transmits and receives data to and from the router 10. The route change collecting device 30 connects to each router 10 in the IP network NW via communication, and transmits and receives data to and from each router 10.

[0014] 2 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the overall procedure of the test method according to this embodiment, which will be described with reference to FIG.

[0015] (Step S1) Using the operator terminal 20, the operator performs test BGP settings on the router 10 (#1) to which the operator terminal 20 is connected. The test BGP settings must be distinguishable from the normal BGP settings. The normal BGP settings are BGP settings for actually performing route switching. The test BGP settings are BGP settings for confirming the route switching work in advance, without actually performing route switching. Hereinafter, "normal" refers to the case where route switching is actually performed. "Test" refers to the case where route switching is not actually performed, but rather the case where route switching work is confirmed in advance.

[0016] Although the test BGP configuration does not actually perform route switching, the configuration contents of the test BGP configuration are the same as the configuration contents of the normal BGP configuration in order to confirm the route switching operation in advance. The method for distinguishing between the normal BGP configuration and the test BGP configuration in the router 10 may be any method and is not particularly limited. As an example of such a method, separate commands may be prepared for normal and test as commands used when inputting the configuration to the router 10 and reflecting the configuration. For example, the command for inputting the normal configuration is "commit," and the command for inputting the test configuration is "commit experiment."

[0017] (Step S2) Router 10 (#1) reflects the test BGP settings to itself. Router 10 stores the normal BGP settings and the test BGP settings separately. For this reason, router 10 prepares separate configuration files for the normal BGP settings and the test BGP settings, and manages them separately.

[0018] (Step S3) Router 10 (#1) advertises the route information changed by the test BGP setting to another router 10 (#2) (test BGP route advertisement). The router 10 to which router 10 (#1) advertises the test BGP route is the router 10 connected to router 10 (#1) via BGP, which is router 10 (#2) in the example of FIG. 2. The router 10 that advertises the test BGP route adds a special "Path attribute" or "BGP community" that is different from the normal "BGP update message" to the test "BGP update message" in order to distinguish between normal BGP route advertisements and test BGP route advertisements.

[0019] (Step S4) Based on the test BGP route announcement, router 10 (#2) identifies the changes to its own BGP-related routing table (Loc-RIB) due to the test BGP route announcement. Here, router 10 (#2) identifies the changes to its own BGP-related routing table (Loc-RIB), but does not actually change its own BGP-related routing table (Loc-RIB). Therefore, the various routing tables (Loc-RIB, RIB) and packet forwarding table (FIB) in router 10 are not changed by the test BGP route announcement. As a result, the packet forwarding specifications of router 10 on the IP network NW do not actually change due to the test BGP configuration. Therefore, even if an operator erroneously introduces the test BGP configuration, it does not affect actual packet forwarding in the IP network NW, and it is possible to avoid a network failure in the IP network NW due to the erroneous introduction of the test BGP configuration.

[0020] Router 10(#2) advertises the route information changed by the test BGP route advertisement to another router 10(#3) (test BGP route advertisement). The router 10 to which router 10(#2) advertises the test BGP route is the router 10 that has a BGP connection with router 10(#2), which is router 10(#3) in the example of Figure 2. In this way, the test BGP route advertisement is sequentially sent to the next router 10.

[0021] (Step S5) Router 10 (#1) notifies operator terminal 20 that the BGP test configuration has been entered.

[0022] (Step S6) Each router 10 notifies the route change collection device 30 of route change information indicating changes to its own BGP-related routing table (Loc-RIB) that have been changed due to the test BGP configuration in step S1. The notification method and communication protocol used to notify the route change information may be arbitrary and are not particularly limited. For example, the route change information of each router 10 may be converted into a file and sent to the route change collection device 30 via a file transfer protocol such as FTP. For example, the "BGP Monitoring Protocol," a protocol dedicated to notifying route changes in BGP, may be used. The "BGP Monitoring Protocol" is defined in RFC 7854, one of the "RFCs (Request for Comments)" documents published by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF).

[0023] (Step S7) The operator uses the operator terminal 20 to request the route change collecting device 30 to check the route change information of each router 10 in the IP network NW regarding the current test BGP setting.

[0024] (Step S8) The route change collecting device 30 acquires route change information of each router 10 in the IP network NW regarding the test BGP setting requested by the operator.

[0025] (Step S9) The route variation collecting device 30 transmits the acquired route variation information to the operator terminal 20. The operator checks the received route variation information on the operator terminal 20 by displaying it or the like.

[0026] 2, an operator can collect and check route change information for each router 10 in the IP network NW by experimentally configuring the BGP settings required for the route switching work that the operator wants to perform in the IP network NW on the router 10. This makes it possible to check the route switching work in advance using an actual IP network NW.

[0027] 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of a router according to this embodiment. In FIG. 3, a router 10 includes a BGP processor 11, a processor 12 for other routing protocols, a RIB (Routing Information Base) 13, a FIB (Forwarding Information Base) 14, a router manager 15, and a route change information transmitter 16.

[0028] Each part of router 10 may be realized by dedicated hardware, or may be configured with a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and memory, etc., and the functions of each part may be realized by the CPU executing a computer program to realize the function of each part.

[0029] The BGP processor 11 processes information related to BGP. The other routing protocol processor 12 processes information related to routing protocols other than BGP. Examples of routing protocols other than BGP include OSPFv2.

[0030] The RIB 13 indicates the routing table in the router 10 and manages destination interfaces, destination next hops, etc. for various IP routes. The RIB 13 is constructed by various routing protocols including BGP.

[0031] The FIB 14 indicates a routing table managed in the hardware (such as a line card) that processes packets for the router 10, and like the RIB 13, manages the destination interface and destination next hop for each IP route. The FIB 14 reflects the routing table constructed by the RIB 13 in the components required for hardware processing (such as the TCAM).

[0032] The router management unit 15 manages the settings of its own router 10. An operator can change the settings of the router 10 by implementing desired settings in the router management unit 15. The route variation information transmission unit 16 transmits route variation information to the route variation collection device 30.

[0033] The BGP process unit 11 includes a route receiving unit 101, normal Adj-RIB-in 102a, Loc-RIB 103a, and Adj-RIB-out 104a, test Adj-RIB-in 102b, Loc-RIB 103b, and Adj-RIB-out 104b, and a route sending unit 105.

[0034] The route receiving unit 101 receives a "BGP update message" from another router (external router) 10-1.

[0035] The Adj-RIB-in 102a is a database that stores routing information for a normal "BGP update message" that the local router 10 receives from the external router 10-1. The Adj-RIB-in 102a is defined in RFC4271.

[0036] The test Adj-RIB-in 102b is a database that stores the route information of the test "BGP update message" that the local router 10 receives from the external router 10-1.

[0037] The Loc-RIB 103a is a database that stores optimal route information that is constructed based on route information in a normal "BGP update message" that the local router 10 receives from the external router 10-1. The Loc-RIB 103a is defined in RFC4271.

[0038] The test Loc-RIB 103b is a database that manages the changes made to the Loc-RIB 103a by the test "BGP update message" that the local router 10 receives from the external router 10-1.

[0039] The Adj-RIB-out 104a is a database that stores routing information for a normal "BGP update message" that the local router 10 sends to another router (external router) 10-2. The Adj-RIB-out 104a is defined in RFC4271.

[0040] The test Adj-RIB-out 104b is a database that stores the route information of the test "BGP update message" that the local router 10 sends to the external router 10-2.

[0041] The route sending unit 105 sends a "BGP update message" to the external router 10-2.

[0042] Next, the testing method according to this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to Figures 4 to 6. Figures 4 to 6 are sequence diagrams showing an example of the procedure of the testing method according to this embodiment.

[0043] [BGP connection procedure] The BGP connection procedure according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0044] First, a TCP session is established between router 10 (#1) and router 10 (#2) through steps S21-S23, which are conventional TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) procedures. Next, a BGP connection is established (steps S24 and S25).

[0045] (Step S24) Router 10 (#1) sends a "BGP Open message" to router 10 (#2). Router 10 (#1) stores a code (Capability Code) indicating that a test "BGP update message" is available in a Capability field, which is an optional parameter in the "BGP Open message." Capability is defined in RFC5492. Capability Code is an integer value between 0 and 255 managed by IANA (Internet Assigned Numbers Authority). In this embodiment, an integer value (Capability Code) corresponding to a test "BGP update message" to be assigned by IANA in the future is stored in the Capability field.

[0046] (Step S25) Router 10 (#2) sends a "BGP Open message" to router 10 (#1). As in step S24, router 10 (#2) stores a code (Capability Code) indicating that the test "BGP update message" is available in the Capability field, which is an optional parameter in the "BGP Open message."

[0047] 4 completes the BGP connection between router 10 (#1) and router 10 (#2), and also enables the routers to explicitly exchange information indicating that they support the test "BGP update message." This makes it possible to send the test "BGP update message" to the peer router 10.

[0048] [Normal Route Transmission] A normal route transmission procedure according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0049] (Step S31) The router 10 (#1) transmits a normal "BGP update message" to the router 10 (#2) (route transmission). The normal "BGP update message" includes normal route information.

[0050] (Step S32) The route receiving unit 101 of the router 10 (#2) stores the route information in the normal "BGP update message" received from the router 10 (#1) in the Adj-RIB-in 102a (route registration).

[0051] (Step S33) The Adj-RIB-in 102a of the router 10(#2) reflects the stored route information in the Loc-RIB 103a (route registration). However, the reflection of route information in the Loc-RIB 103a is performed only when it is necessary to update the current Loc-RIB 103a after applying the routing policy set in the router 10(#2) at the time of receiving the route for the router 10(#1). For example, if high-priority route information (e.g., route information with a low value of the MULTI_EXIT_DISC attribute) has already been received from another router 10, there is no need to update the Loc-RIB 103a. The following procedure is performed when it is necessary to update the Loc-RIB 103a.

[0052] (Step S34) The Loc-RIB 103a of the router 10 (#2) reflects its own update contents in the RIB 13 (route registration). The reflection of the update contents of the Loc-RIB 103a in the RIB 13 is also performed only when it is necessary to update the current RIB 13. For example, if route information based on another high-priority routing protocol already exists in the RIB 13, there is no need to update the RIB 13. The following procedure is performed when it is necessary to update the RIB 13.

[0053] (Step S35) The RIB 13 of the router 10 (#2) reflects its own updated contents in the FIB 14 (route registration).

[0054] (Step S36) The Loc-RIB 103a of the router 10(#2) updates the route information of the Adj-RIB-out 104a for the router 10(#3) based on its own updated route information (route registration).

[0055] (Step S37) The Adj-RIB-out 104a of the router 10(#2) registers the updated route information in the route transmission unit 105 (route registration). When registering the route information in the route transmission unit 105, the routing policy set in the router 10(#2) for route transmission to the router 10(#3) is applied to the route information before registration in the route transmission unit 105.

[0056] (Step S38) The route sending unit 105 of the router 10 (#2) sends a normal "BGP update message" including the registered route information to the router 10 (#3) (route sending).

[0057] 5, router 10 (#2) receives a normal "BGP update message" from router 10 (#1), updates its own routing tables (RIB and FIB), and broadcasts the BGP route update information to router 10 (#3). This normal route transmission procedure (steps S31-S38) is described in RFC4271.

[0058] [Test route transmission] A test route transmission procedure according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0059] (Step S41) Router 10 (#1) sends a test "BGP update message" to router 10 (#2) (route transmission). The test "BGP update message" includes test route information. The test "BGP update message" is different from a normal "BGP update message." Examples 1 and 2 are given below as methods for differentiating the test "BGP update message" from a normal "BGP update message."

[0060] (Example 1) A special "Path attribute" different from that of a normal "BGP update message" is added to the test "BGP update message." Here, a "Path attribute" is created specifically for the test "BGP update message." Figure 7 shows an example of a "Path attribute" specifically for the test "BGP update message."

[0061] In FIG. 7, "Flag" is a flag relating to the processing policy of "Path attribute" defined in RFC4271, and the present embodiment also follows the provisions of RFC4271. "Type code" is a field that stores an integer value between 0 and 255 that indicates the "Path attribute" defined in RFC4271. In the test "BGP update message," "Type code" stores a code that indicates the "Path attribute" that is exclusive to the test "BGP update message." "Length" is information indicating the length of the "Path attribute", and in this embodiment, it also complies with the provisions of RFC4271.

[0062] The "Experiment Test ID field" and "Originator Router ID field" are not defined in RFC4271 and are fields added in this embodiment. The "Experiment Test ID field" stores a test ID that uniquely identifies the test "BGP update message." The test ID is generated by the router 10 where the test BGP configuration is implemented (router 10 (#1) in Figure 2). The "Originator Router ID field" stores the router ID of the router 10 on which the test BGP configuration was implemented (router 10 (#1) in Figure 2). The router ID is the "BGP Identifier" defined in RFC4271. Regarding the test ID and router ID stored in the "Experiment Test ID field" and "Originator Router ID field," each router 10 sends a test "BGP update message" without changing the test ID and router ID while the test "BGP update message" is being exchanged between routers 10.

[0063] In this example 1, information about the router 10 (router 10 (#1) in Figure 2) on which the test BGP configuration was implemented is stored in the "Path attribute" added to the test "BGP update message," and by exchanging test "BGP update messages" between routers 10, it is possible to uniquely identify which router 10 (router ID) and which test (test ID) caused the BGP route change due to the test "BGP update message" managed by the test Loc-RIB 103b of a certain router 10.

[0064] (Example 2) A special "BGP community" that is different from the normal "BGP update message" is added to the test "BGP update message." "BGP communities" are managed by IANA. Here, a special "BGP community" is set to indicate that the "BGP update message" is for test purposes.

[0065] In this Example 2, detailed information about the test BGP settings cannot be exchanged between routers 10 as in Example 1 above, but the existing "Path attribute" can be used to indicate that the message is a test "BGP update message." This has the advantage that Example 2 requires fewer changes to existing routers 10.

[0066] The decision to use either the above-mentioned Example 1 "Special Path attribute for testing" or Example 2 "Special BGP community for testing" can be made based on the operator's purpose of use, etc.

[0067] (Step S42) The route receiving unit 101 of the router 10 (#2) stores the test route information in the test "BGP update message" received from the router 10 (#1) in the test Adj-RIB-in 102b (route registration). Whether the message is a test "BGP update message" is determined based on whether the above-mentioned example 1 "special test 'Path attribute'" or example 2 "special test 'BGP community'" is added.

[0068] (Step S43) The test Adj-RIB-in 102b of the router 10 (#2) checks the route information of the Loc-RIB 103a to see if the test route information received from the route receiving unit 101 causes a change in the optimal route information (route fluctuation) in the Loc-RIB 103a (route confirmation). Specifically, the test Adj-RIB-in 102b inquires of the Loc-RIB 103a about a route related to an IP address prefix (e.g., 192.0.2.0 / 24) included in the test route information received from the route receiving unit 101, and checks the current routing table information related to the route returned from the Loc-RIB 103a. If the result of this check shows that the test route information has high priority (e.g., route information with a low value for the MULTI_EXIT_DISC attribute), the test Adj-RIB-in 102b determines that the test route information will cause a route change in the Loc-RIB 103a. If the route does not exist in the Loc-RIB 103a, a new route is added to the routing table in the Loc-RIB 103a based on the test route information, and the test Adj-RIB-in 102b determines that the test route information will cause a route change in the Loc-RIB 103a. The following procedure is performed when it is determined that a path change will occur in Loc-RIB 103a.

[0069] (Step S44) The test Adj-RIB-in 102b of the router 10(#2) reflects the test route information received from the route receiving unit 101 to the test Loc-RIB 103b (route registration). However, the reflection of the test route information to the test Loc-RIB 103b is performed only when it is necessary to update the current Loc-RIB 103a after applying the routing policy set in the router 10(#2) at the time of route reception for the router 10(#1) to the test route information. For example, if high-priority route information (e.g., route information with a low value of the MULTI_EXIT_DISC attribute) has already been received from another router 10, there is no need to update the test Loc-RIB 103b. The following procedure is performed when it is necessary to update the test Loc-RIB 103b.

[0070] (Step S45) The test Loc-RIB 103b of the router 10(#2) updates the test route information of the test Adj-RIB-out 104b for the router 10(#3) based on its own updated test route information (route registration).

[0071] (Step S46) The test Adj-RIB-out 104b of the router 10(#2) registers the updated test route information in the route transmission unit 105 (route registration). When registering the test route information in the route transmission unit 105, the routing policy set in the router 10(#2) for route transmission to the router 10(#3) is applied to the test route information before registration in the route transmission unit 105.

[0072] (Step S47) The route sending unit 105 of the router 10 (#2) sends a test "BGP update message" including the registered test route information to the router 10 (#3) (route sending). The test "BGP update message" is appended with the "special test 'Path attribute'" in Example 1 or the "special test 'BGP community'" in Example 2 described above. This indicates that it is a test "BGP update message."

[0073] (Step S48) The test Loc-RIB 103b of the router 10(#2) transmits route change information indicating the changes made to the Loc-RIB 103a by the test route information to the route change information transmitter 16. This step S48 may be performed in parallel with the above-mentioned step S45.

[0074] (Step S49) The route variation information transmitter 16 of the router 10 (#2) transmits the route variation information to the route variation collection device 30. For example, the route variation information transmitter 16 may transmit the received route variation information to the route variation collection device 30 every time route variation information is received from the test Loc-RIB 103b. This enables rapid collection of route variation information. For example, the route variation information transmitter 16 may transmit all route variation information received from the test Loc-RIB 103b over a certain period of time to the route variation collection device 30. This reduces the load of transmitting route variation information on the router 10.

[0075] According to the above-described embodiment, it is possible to obtain an effect that route switching work can be checked in advance using an existing IP network without actually switching the routes of actual user traffic, thereby improving the reliability of pre-operation checks in an existing commercial IP network, which has been difficult to achieve using simulations.

[0076] This will enable, for example, improvements to the overall quality of services in commercial networks, thereby contributing to Goal 9 of the United Nations-led Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which is to "Build resilient infrastructure, promote sustainable industrialization and foster innovation."

[0077] Although an embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and design changes and the like are also included within the scope that does not deviate from the gist of the present invention.

[0078] In addition, a computer program for realizing the functions of each of the above-described devices may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded on the recording medium may be read and executed by a computer system. Note that the "computer system" here may also include hardware such as an OS and peripheral devices. In addition, "computer-readable recording medium" refers to writable non-volatile memory such as a flexible disk, optical magnetic disk, ROM, or flash memory, portable media such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), or a storage device such as a hard disk built into a computer system.

[0079] Furthermore, the term "computer-readable recording medium" also includes those that retain a program for a certain period of time, such as volatile memory (e.g., DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory)) within a computer system that serves as a server or client when a program is transmitted via a network such as the Internet or a communication line such as a telephone line. The program may be transmitted from a computer system storing the program in a storage device or the like to another computer system via a transmission medium or by transmission waves in the transmission medium. Here, the "transmission medium" that transmits the program refers to a medium that has the function of transmitting information, such as a network (communication network) such as the Internet or a communication line (communication line) such as a telephone line. The program may also be a program for implementing some of the functions described above, or may be a so-called differential file (differential program) that can implement the functions described above in combination with a program already stored in the computer system. [Explanation of symbols]

[0080] 10...Router, 20...Operator terminal, 30...Route change collection device, 11...BGP process unit, 12...Process unit for other routing protocols, 13...RIB, 14...FIB, 15...Router management unit, 16...Route change information transmitter, 101...Route receiver, 102a...Adj-RIB-in, 103a...Loc-RIB, 104a...Adj-RIB-out, 102b...Test Adj-RIB-in, 103b...Test Loc-RIB, 104b...Test Adj-RIB-out, 105...Route transmitter, NW...IP network

Claims

1. In a router that exchanges routing information with external routers using a routing control protocol, a route information storage unit for storing route information used for packet forwarding; a test route information storage unit for storing route information for testing; a route receiving unit that, when receiving a test route information update message from an external first router, reflects the test route information update message in the test route information storage unit without reflecting the test route information update message in the route information storage unit; a route transmitting unit that transmits a test route information update message regarding the route information updated by the test route information update message in the test route information storage unit to an external second router; A router equipped with

2. a route fluctuation transmitting unit that transmits route fluctuation information indicating a change in the route information stored in the test route information storage unit to an external device; The router of claim 1 further comprising:

3. the routing protocol is BGP (Border Gateway Protocol), The test route information update message is a "BGP update message" to which a "Path attribute" indicating a test has been added. The router of claim 1 .

4. The "Path attribute" includes test identification information and router identification information of the source of the test route information update message. The router of claim 3 .

5. the routing protocol is BGP (Border Gateway Protocol), The test route information update message is a "BGP update message" to which a "BGP community" indicating a test has been added. The router of claim 1 .

6. the routing protocol is BGP (Border Gateway Protocol), Equipped with "Adj-RIB-in", "Adj-RIB-out" and "Loc-RIB" for testing; The router of claim 1 .

7. a management unit that receives test settings related to the routing protocol; The router of claim 1 further comprising:

8. A router that exchanges routing information with an external router using a routing control protocol includes a routing information storage unit that stores routing information used for packet forwarding, and a test routing information storage unit that stores routing information for testing; a route receiving step of, when the router itself receives a test route information update message from an external first router, reflecting the test route information update message in the test route information storage unit without reflecting the test route information update message in the route information storage unit; a route transmission step in which the router transmits, to an external second router, a test route information update message relating to the route information updated in the test route information storage unit by the test route information update message; Test methods including:

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