Some embodiments provide a method, executable by a first network device, that receives a set of commands to create a custom routing table. The set of commands specifies that the custom routing table be configured to resolve next hops for routing protocol paths using routes determined by a subset of a set of protocols used by a predefined routing table of the first network device to determine next hops for routing protocol paths. Based on the set of commands, the method further generates the custom routing table. The method also receives a routing protocol path from a second network device. The method further uses one of the custom routing table and the predefined routing table to resolve a next hop for the routing protocol path.

In general, techniques are described by which to provide a scaled end-to-end view of link metrics to integrate multiple non-uniform Interior Gateway Protocol (“IGP”) domains. For example, an Accumulated Interior Gateway Protocol (“AIGP”) attribute, a non-transitive BGP attribute, which includes a link metric assigned to a link within a first IGP domain, is scaled to conform to a metric scale of the second IGP domain. The AIGP attribute may also add link metric assigned to a link within the second IGP domain and may add static metrics of non-IGP links connecting the IGP domains. An IGP domain may set its IGP to the scaled AIGP attribute such that the link metric may include a uniformly scaled end-to-end view of link metrics across the IGP domains. Additionally, a sham-link is assigned a metric value in accordance with the scaling techniques.

An apparatus of a communication network system, which routes data packets and stores trusted routes between different communication network systems in a database, detects (S12) that a data packet requires a route with a specific level of trust, determines (S13), from the trusted routes stored in the database, a specific trusted route towards a destination as indicated in the data packet, and sets (S15) the data packet on the specific trusted route towards the destination.

Systems and methods include determining one or more Layer 3 Virtual Private Networks (L3VPNs) supported at the router; and advertising the one or more L3 VPNs to one or more routers in the Segment Routing network with each advertisement including a service Segment Identifier (SID) for each of the one or more L3VPNs and one of a node SID for the router or an Anycast SID when the router is connected to a Multi-Home site. The steps can further include transmitting a Layer 3 (L3) packet for an L3 VPN of the one or more L3 VPNs with a destination SID and a service SID of the L3VPN. The advertisement can include encapsulation as an IPv6 prefix containing both the node SID for the router and the service SID, and wherein prefixes are treated as attributes of a route.

A method comprises, at a first router configured to perform Bit Index Explicit Replication (BIER) for forwarding of multicast packets in a network, storing configuration information that indicates that the first router belongs to multiple subdomains of a BIER domain, and is able to forward the multicast packets for a virtual private network on the multiple subdomains. The method further comprises, during an auto-discovery procedure, generating an auto-discovery message to include an auto-discovery route and route attributes that indicate the multiple subdomains, and sending the auto-discovery message to a second router of the virtual private network the network.

Methods and systems for generating a model of a transit autonomous system (AS) network. The method comprises analyzing the routing information base for each border gateway protocol (BGP) node in the AS and storing, for each BGP router, (i) a routing table; and, (ii) a prioritized list of next hops for each prefix based on the appropriate best path algorithm. The model can be used to (a) determine how traffic will be routed through the transit AS in steady state and failure scenarios (e.g. when one or more links or nodes/routers have failed); and/or (b) determine how traffic should be routed through the transit AS (e.g. determine the best routes) in steady state and failure scenarios. The optimal routing of the traffic in a particular steady state or failure scenario (as determined by the model) can be compared to the actual routing of the traffic in the steady state or failure scenario (as determined by the model) to determine what changes to make to the transit AS to achieve the optimum routing.

A method includes a second provider edge (PE) device sending, to a first PE device, a media access control (MAC) route learned from a customer edge (CE) device, wherein the first PE device generates a MAC forwarding entry based on the MAC route, wherein the first PE device may forward, based on the MAC forwarding entry using the CE device, a packet whose destination MAC address is the CE device or a MAC address of a terminal device accessing the CE device, and wherein an outbound interface identifier included in the MAC forwarding entry is an identifier of an interface connected to the CE device.

A system and method for software defined network (SDN) management. Route information is received from a customer edge (CE) device. The route information is parsed to identify at least one virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) instance for which the route information is intended. The route information is imported into the VRF instance.

Exemplary payment networks and methods are provided for facilitating data transfers. One exemplary method includes determining a subset of network routers that offer access to a regional hub based on network address summaries for first and second routers and prioritizing the first router over the second router, based on a specificity value of each of the first and second routers, as defined by the network address summaries. The method also includes checking whether a connection to the first router provides a viable data transfer path to the regional hub and recording the path to the first router in a routing table, when the connection to the first router is viable. Further, the method includes receiving a request to transfer data to the regional hub and transferring the data, via the path recorded in the routing table, to the regional hub.

A method includes a first provider edge (PE) device sending, to a second PE device, a media access control (MAC) route learned from a customer edge (CE) device and a virtual local area network (VLAN) identifier, wherein the second PE device generates a MAC forwarding entry based on the MAC route and the VLAN identifier, where the MAC forwarding entry is used to directly forward, using the CE device, a packet whose destination MAC address is the CE device or a MAC address of a terminal device accessing the CE device. An outbound interface identifier included in the MAC forwarding entry is an identifier of an interface connected to the CE device.