Dispatcher Node Distributes Packets to Service Control Engines
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Solution Overview
Problem
Service control engines (SCEs) are limited in processing data packets due to the compute-intensive nature of deep packet inspection and other duties, making it difficult to handle high-speed, high-capacity network traffic effectively.
Innovation Solution
A dispatcher node is introduced to distribute traffic among multiple SCEs, ensuring that packets associated with the same data flow are directed to the same SCE, thereby increasing the aggregate processing capacity to handle high-speed, high-capacity links.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a single SCE processes all data packets, then policy enforcement is centralized, but processing capacity is insufficient for high-speed links
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the SCE functionality into multiple parallel SCEs that process packets concurrently. The dispatcher node segments the packet flow and distributes it to multiple SCEs, enabling parallel processing that increases overall capacity while maintaining centralized control through the dispatcher.
Solution Approach 2:
The dispatcher node acts as an intermediary between the network link and multiple SCEs. It receives packets from the high-speed link, determines destination SCEs, and distributes packets appropriately, mediating the complexity between the single high-capacity interface and multiple processing units.
2Reliability
If deep packet inspection is performed on all packets, then policy enforcement is thorough, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the packet processing workload across multiple SCEs, allowing deep packet inspection to be performed in parallel on different packets simultaneously. This maintains thorough policy enforcement while reducing the processing time per packet through concurrent execution.
3Adaptability or versatility
If additional network capacity is added to accommodate high-bandwidth applications, then subscriber demand is met, but network maintenance cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments packet processing across multiple SCEs, enabling the network to handle high-bandwidth applications through parallel processing rather than requiring proportional increases in single-link capacity. This approach meets subscriber demand while avoiding the full cost of adding equivalent dedicated capacity.
Data Source
AI summary
A dispatching technique dispatches packets to a plurality of service control engines (SCEs) which in aggregate may be configured to handle traffic produced by a high-speed high-capacity data link. Upstream and downstream packets that are associated with a data flow between a subscriber and a destination node in a communication network are received from by a dispatcher which is located in a path used by the data flow. For each packet, the dispatcher identifies an SCE from among a plurality of SCEs that is to receive the packet based upon an address contained in the packet. The packet is then dispatched by the dispatcher to the identified SCE which processes the packet accordingly. After processing the packet, the SCE returns the packet to the dispatcher which further processes the packet including transferring the packet onto the communication network towards its destination.