Disclosed service discovery methods include responding, by a node, to detecting a new connection to a switch port by performing new connection operations that include determining, using link-layer discovery protocol (LLDP) advertisements, a switch port number and self-assigning an IP address in accordance with a predetermined addressing protocol in which the self-assigned IP address is indicative of the switch port number. The IP address assigned to the node may indicate the node's switch port number. Disclosed methods may further include initiating a unicast discovery procedure to determine, via unicast messages exchanged between nodes connected to the switch, a switch port roster that lists or otherwise indicates nodes connected to the switch as well as their corresponding port numbers and services available from each node. The switch port roster may be distributed to each of the connected nodes. The unicast discovery procedure may be periodically launched to refresh and re-distribute the roster.

A connection status detection method used for detecting connectivity of a segment routing (SR) path between nodes is disclosed. After receiving a path detection packet, a first node responds to the path detection packet based on connectivity of an SR path between the first node and a third node, and the path detection packet is used to indicate to detect the connectivity of the segment routing (SR) path between the nodes.

A method, performed by a network node, for enabling Interior Gateway Protocol (IGP) fast convergence, the method includes determining that there is a significant change in link state information, the significant change is at least one of a link down, a link up, and a link metric change. The method further includes originating a link state packet comprising a flag that is set to indicate the significant change in the link state information; and distributing the link state packet.

A path identity allocation method, system, and apparatus, a device, and a storage medium are provided, and belong to the field of communication technologies. According to the method, a forwarding node on a path receives a PCEP packet, so that when determining that path identification information of the path is unavailable, the forwarding node performs, based on indication information in the PCEP packet, an operation associated with the path identification information, for example, determines, based on indicated content, that the forwarding node reallocates a path identity, or requests the control node to reallocate a path identity.

Transmitting node (120) and receiving node (121) for handling LLDP messages in a communication network (100). The transmitting node (120) transmits a LLDP message to the receiving node (121), which LLDP message comprises security related information enabling to verify authenticity of the transmitting node (120). The receiving node (121) receives one or more LLDP messages, at least one comprising security related information enabling to verify authenticity of the transmitting node (120; 124) that transmitted the LLDP message.

A system for layer-2 path tracing is provided. During operation, the system can send, from an originating device, a layer-2 trace packet with a packet type in a layer-2 header of the layer-2 trace packet. The packet type can indicate the trace packet to be a tracing packet. The system can then receive a layer-2 response packet from a respective participating device, which supports layer-2 path tracing, on a path to a target device of the trace packet. Subsequently, the system can obtain, from a payload of the response packet, trace information of a forward path to the participating device traversed by the trace packet and a reverse path from the participating device traversed by the response packet. The trace information can identify one or more layer-2 devices along the forward and reverse paths, and include one or more layer-2 identifiers corresponding to the identified one or more layer-2 devices.

Systems, methods, and devices for offloading network data to a datastore. A system includes a publisher device in a network computing environment. The system includes a subscriber device in the network computing environment. The system includes a datastore independent of the publisher device and the subscriber device, the datastore comprising one or more processors in a processing platform configurable to execute instructions stored in non-transitory computer readable storage media. The instructions includes receiving data from the publisher device. The instructions include storing the data across one or more of a plurality of shared storage devices. The instructions include providing the data to the subscriber device.

For relaying a route-discovery request in order to discover at least one route from a source node device to a destination node device in a communication network comprising other node devices able to act as relays between the source node device and the destination node device, at least one node device among said other node devices dynamically defines a waiting delay value to be applied before relaying the route-discovery request. More precisely, said at least one node device defines the waiting delay value according to a quality level of a link via which the route-discovery request was received.

In general, techniques are described for extending network connectivity software utilities, such as traceroute, to provide complete visibility into a network topology between a source device and a destination device, even when an intermediate network device may be actively utilizing multiple network links when forwarding packets toward the destination. In one example, a network device coupled to a plurality of paths and positioned between a source network device and destination network device may receive a traceroute packet. The network device may also, for each of the plurality of paths, modify a payload of the traceroute packet to include a respective identifier for a corresponding path of the plurality of paths to construct a respective modified traceroute packet for the corresponding path. The network device may also forward the respective modified traceroute packets on the corresponding paths.

This application discloses a forwarding entry generation method, a packet sending method, a network device, and a system, so that a specified network device cannot use a backup forwarding path to forward a packet, thereby reducing, to some extent, a technical problem such as network resource waste or network congestion caused by a loop problem. The method includes: A first network device obtains routing information advertised by a second network device; and the first network device determines that the routing information advertised by the second network device matches a summary route stored in the first network device, and generates, based on a segment identifier of the second network device, a forwarding entry corresponding to the summary route. The forwarding entry includes the segment identifier of the second network device, and a forwarding path corresponding to the forwarding entry passes through the second network device.