Packet Forwarding Burst Sequence Handling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current packet forwarding devices face challenges in improving packet processing capability and reducing forwarding delay due to cache pressure and poor bandwidth adaptability, especially when handling multiple service flows and cross-connected rigid pipes.
Innovation Solution
The method involves determining whether a target packet is a header or following packet in a burst sequence, using a feature field as a burst identifier to obtain port information from a stored correspondence, and sending the packet through the corresponding egress port, thereby reducing the need for complex table lookups and increasing forwarding rate and reducing delay.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the transmit end device caches multiple consecutive packets to form a burst data unit, then the forwarding rate is improved by reducing table lookup frequency, but the cache pressure on the packet forwarding device increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments packets into header packets and following packets within a burst sequence. Header packets trigger table lookups and egress port determination, while following packets are forwarded directly using pre-determined egress ports. This segmentation reduces the frequency of table lookups and egress port determinations, improving forwarding rate while minimizing cache requirements compared to buffering entire burst data units.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs egress port determination when a header packet is received, before processing following packets in the burst sequence. The egress port information is cached and reused for all subsequent following packets until the next header packet arrives. This preliminary action eliminates the need to cache multiple complete packets, reducing cache pressure while maintaining high forwarding rates.
2Reliability
If the packet forwarding device performs table lookup and forwarding for all packets one by one, then the forwarding accuracy is maintained, but the forwarding delay increases due to queuing and uncertain processing time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the processing of multiple following packets by determining the egress port once for the entire burst sequence when the header packet is received. All following packets in the sequence share the same egress port determination, eliminating repeated table lookups and reducing queuing delay while maintaining accurate forwarding through the pre-determined egress port.
3Ease of manufacture
If bandwidth of a physical port is divided into multiple timeslots with fixed bandwidth, then the network management becomes simpler, but the adaptability to service flow bandwidth requirements deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic burst sequence identification using feature fields in packet headers, allowing the system to adapt to varying service flow requirements in real-time. Unlike fixed timeslot allocations, the feature field-based approach dynamically identifies and processes burst sequences based on actual traffic patterns, providing bandwidth adaptability while maintaining simple forwarding operations through direct egress port determination.
4Reliability
If one service flow is corresponding to one rigid pipe, then the service quality is guaranteed, but the device complexity increases when handling a large quantity of cross-connected rigid pipes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal forwarding mechanism that handles multiple service flows through a common feature field-based identification system. Instead of requiring separate rigid pipe infrastructure for each service flow, the system uses feature fields to universally identify burst sequences and determine egress ports, reducing cross-connection complexity while maintaining service quality guarantees through consistent forwarding rules.
Data Source
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Figure 3A
Figure 3B-1
AI summary
This application discloses a packet forwarding method and apparatus, and pertains to the field of communications technologies. The method includes: determining whether a current to-be-sent target packet is a header packet or a following packet in a burst sequence; when the target packet is the following packet in the burst sequence, obtaining port information of an egress port used to send the burst sequence, where the port information of the egress port is determined and stored when the header packet in the burst sequence is sent, and the burst sequence is a sequence including a plurality of packets that belong to a same service flow; and sending the target packet through the obtained egress port. Because the port information of the egress port of the burst sequence is determined and stored when the header packet in the burst sequence is sent, in this application, when sending the target packet, the target packet may be directly sent through the corresponding egress port determined based on the stored egress port information, and there is no need to perform a complex action of looking up a routing table or looking up another forwarding table again based on forwarding information carried in the target packet, thereby increasing a forwarding rate and reducing a forwarding delay.