BIER-TE Pseudo Node Segmented Forwarding Tables
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Solution Overview
Problem
In BIER-TE domains with broadcast links, egress nodes on a point-to-multipoint path often receive duplicated packets, leading to inefficiency and congestion due to existing packet forwarding techniques.
Innovation Solution
A network node generates an improved bit index forwarding table (BIFT) comprising a main BIFT with a forwarding entry for a local area network-connected adjacency to a pseudo node and a secondary BIFT with entries for forward-connected adjacencies to neighbor nodes, ensuring that egress nodes do not receive duplicated packets by routing packets accordingly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If existing packet forwarding techniques are used in BIER-TE domains with broadcast links, then packet forwarding is simple, but egress nodes receive duplicated packets causing inefficiency and congestion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the forwarding table into two distinct parts: a main BIFT for standard forwarding and a secondary BIFT specifically for broadcast link forwarding. This segmentation allows the system to handle broadcast link packets differently from regular packets, preventing duplicate deliveries by using the secondary BIFT to track which egress nodes have already received packets on broadcast links
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a pseudo-node as an intermediary representation for broadcast links in the BIER-TE domain. This pseudo-node acts as a mediator that coordinates packet distribution to egress nodes connected to the broadcast link, ensuring that packets are delivered exactly once to each egress node while maintaining the simplicity of BIER forwarding
2Reliability
If an improved BIFT with main and secondary parts is implemented, then duplicate packet reception is prevented, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The forwarding table is divided into a main BIFT and a secondary BIFT, where the main BIFT handles standard forwarding operations and the secondary BIFT handles broadcast link-specific forwarding. This segmentation isolates the complexity to only the necessary component (secondary BIFT) while keeping the main forwarding logic simple and unchanged
Solution Approach 2:
The secondary BIFT is populated and maintained automatically by the pseudo-node through standard BIER signaling protocols. The system self-configures the broadcast link forwarding information without requiring manual intervention or complex control plane processing at each router, reducing operational complexity despite the enhanced functionality
Data Source
AI summary
A method implemented by a network node in a Bit Index Explicit Replication Traffic/Tree Engineering (BIER-TE) domain is used to avoid duplicate packets. The method includes generating an improved bit index forwarding table (BIFT) containing a forwarding entry for a local area network (LAN)-connected adjacency from the network node to a pseudo node; and a secondary BIFT including a forwarding entry for a forward connected adjacency from the pseudo node to each of the pseudo node's next hop nodes except the network node; sending a packet containing a point to multipoint (P2MP) path with a bit position for the LAN-connected adjacency to the pseudo node according to the forwarding entry for the LAN-connected adjacency in the improved BIFT; and sending the packet to each of the pseudo node's next hop nodes on the P2MP path based on the secondary BIFT.