SDN Tunnel Offload for Cross-Node Container Networking

Solution Overview

Problem

Existing container network interface plugins in Kubernetes environments inefficiently utilize computing resources for tunneling protocols, leading to poor communication performance and decreased quality of information services.

Innovation Solution

Offload tunneling protocols to Software-Defined Networking (SDN) switches, using tunnel endpoints to encapsulate and decapsulate packets between pods, reducing the burden on nodes and enhancing throughput.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If container network interface plugins use node computing resources to implement encapsulation and decapsulation based on tunneling protocol, then container network communication between cross-network nodes is achieved, but computing resources are heavily consumed leading to poor communication performance

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontainer network communication capabilityVSAvoidcommunication performance

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the encapsulation and decapsulation functions from the container network interface plugins on nodes and relocates them to SDN switches. This separation removes the computational burden from nodes while maintaining the tunneling protocol functionality, thereby improving communication performance without sacrificing container network communication capability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces SDN switches as intermediaries between containers on different nodes. The SDN switches perform the encapsulation and decapsulation operations that were previously executed on node plugins, acting as a mediator that handles the tunneling protocol operations centrally and efficiently, thus resolving the performance bottleneck.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Adaptability or versatility

If container network interface plugins implement tunneling protocol on nodes, then cross-network container communication is enabled, but node computing resources are heavily consumed

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecross-network communication capabilityVSAvoidnode computing resource consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the resource-intensive tunneling protocol implementation from node-based container network interface plugins and relocates it to SDN switches. This extraction maintains the cross-network communication capability while significantly reducing the computing resource consumption on individual nodes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces SDN switches as intermediary devices that handle tunneling protocol operations. These switches are specifically designed to perform encapsulation and decapsulation efficiently, thereby enabling cross-network communication without the heavy resource consumption that would occur if nodes performed these operations themselves.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Productivity

If frequent communications occur among many containers, then network communication activity increases, but computing resource loss increases and service quality decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecommunication frequencyVSAvoidcomputing resource loss

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces SDN switches as intermediary devices that handle tunneling protocol operations. These switches are specifically designed to perform encapsulation and decapsulation efficiently, thereby enabling cross-network communication without the heavy resource consumption that would occur if nodes performed these operations themselves.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent extracts the resource-intensive tunneling protocol implementation from node-based container network interface plugins and relocates it to SDN switches. This extraction maintains the cross-network communication capability while significantly reducing the computing resource consumption on individual nodes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS12634234B2Container network communication system and method

Publication Date: 2026.05.19 NAT YANG MING CHIAO TUNG UNIV

AI summary

The present disclosure provides a container network communication method, which includes steps as follows. An encapsulation based on a tunneling protocol is performed on a first packet with a destination network address indicating a second pod by a first tunnel endpoint of a first SDN switch, so as to obtain a first tunnel packet; the first tunnel packet is sent from the first SDN switch to the second SDN switch, and then performing a decapsulation based on the tunneling protocol on the first tunnel packet by a second tunnel endpoint of the second SDN switch, so that the second pod obtains a data of the first packet.