In one embodiment, a method includes creating a catalog of service function (“SF”) profiles, wherein each of the profiles is associated with an SF and indicates a type of the associated SF; storing the catalog of SF profiles in a memory device of a service controller associated with the DVS; creating a service profile group template (“SPGT”) that includes at least one SF profile from the catalog of SF profiles, wherein the SPGT includes a service chain definition identifying at least one service chain comprising the SF associated with the at least one SF profile to be executed in connection with a service path and at least one policy for classifying traffic to the at least one service chain; deploying a first SPG instance based on the SPGT; and deploying an additional SPG instance based on the SPGT in accordance with a scaling policy included in the SPGT.

This disclosure describes methods, devices, and systems related to coordinating channel switch times and specifying device operation (for example, transmitting device operation) to ensure data reception by one or more devices (for example, receiving devices). A device may receive a data path setup request frame from a second device. The device may cause to send a service a data path setup response frame. The device may cause to establish a communication with the second device on a first channel. The device may cause to establish a communication with the second device on a second channel at a first time. The device may cause to wait, by the device, at least for a duration specified by a channel switch time (CST) parameter. The device may cause to send device data to the second device over the first channel or the second channel based at least in part on the CST parameter.

An apparatus is provided that includes n communication channels, and m communication media interfaces, and v virtual lanes. V is a positive integer multiple of the least common multiple of m and n. An information stream is transferred into data and alignment blocks striped across all of the v virtual lanes, the blocks being communicated from the virtual lanes onto the communication channels. The blocks are received on the communication channels. Each of the communication channels transmits a different portion of the blocks striped across all of the v virtual lanes. In more particular embodiments, v>=n>=m. The communication media interfaces can be electrical and optical. Each of the communication channels can include a SerDes interface operating at least 5 Gigabits per second. Furthermore, each of the m communication media interfaces is configured to transmit a different stream of information over a single optical fiber.

The present invention relates to data switching networks, and, in particular, to link aggregation groups in Ethernet switching networks. A technique is described in which a large number of links in a link aggregation group can be managed.

A content monitor includes a processor that at least receives requests from a plurality of clients for content, instructs each client to retry their respective request at a first later time if the request is received before a first time, counts the requests to determine if a number of the requests exceeds a threshold if the request is received before a second time, instructs each client to retry their respective request at a second later time if the counted number of requests does not exceed a first threshold, instructs each client to join a multicast group to receive the content when the number of requests exceeds the first threshold, and counts a number of late clients joining the multicast group after a first portion of the content has been sent to the multicast group.

Systems and methods are disclosed for effectuating control-plane changes at increased speeds to protect a network in which switching operations are performed. Operations to effectuate control-plane changes in the network can be divided between software and more-rapid, dedicated hardware within a line card. Examples of operations reserved to hardware implementation can include blocking and unblocking of ports, flushing of learned entries from switch tables, and coordination of control-plane changes through the generation of messages sent between nodes, and also between line cards of a node. Determinations about the need for hardware-driven, control-plane changes may be made based on events occurring in the network in accordance with any of a number of different network protection protocols. The protocol may be implemented in a state machine and the software may determine the state of the hardware through a master/slave relationship.

A method, system, and/or computer program product configures hierarchical cloud resources. A supervisor server receives a signal indicating a boundary of a set of hierarchical cloud resources. The boundary describes a level of resource sharing among the set of hierarchical cloud resources, which includes a set of software applications, a set of middleware that supports one or more software applications from the set of software applications, and a set of virtual mechanisms that supports one or more middleware from the set of middleware. The supervisor server receives a signal from one or more Isolation/Density (I/D) switches, which are associated with one or more software applications from the set of software applications and one or more middleware from the set of the middleware, and then configures the hierarchical cloud resources, according to the boundary of the set of hierarchical cloud resources, and according to settings of the I/D switches.

A data packet extraction method and apparatus is disclosed. Two hash values calculated based on quintuple information of different data packets of a same session are the same, that is, two calculated remainders are also the same at a same sampling ratio. When one remainder of the two calculated remainders is a preset sampling remainder, all the data packets in a network that belong to the session are extracted, so as to implement data packet extraction based on a session. When the quintuple information of the different data packets of the same session matches a first mapping table, either all the data packets of the same session can match the first mapping table, or none of the data packets of the same session can match the first mapping table, so as to implement data packet extraction based on a session.

A topological learning method and apparatus for an OPENFLOW network cross a conventional Internet Protocol (IP) network. The method includes obtaining, by a controller, M OPENFLOW switch (OFS) ports connected to a same conventional IP network, determining whether there is a logical switch corresponding to the conventional IP network, if the controller determines that there is no logical switch corresponding to the conventional IP network, creating and storing the information about the logical switch, where the information about the logical switch includes related information of the M OFS ports, and related information of each OFS port includes link information in a direction from the port to the logical switch and/or link information in a direction from the logical switch to the port, and managing, by the controller, the logical switch as a common OPENFLOW switch of an OPENFLOW network.

Creation of a virtual overlay for a multipath network with tiered topology is disclosed. A virtual-node module may group network nodes connected within a common tier, which is initially the tier furthest from the core. This module may also group network nodes at a consecutive tier, closer to the core, that connect a pairs of groupings in the common tier by links between the common and consecutive tiers. Groupings with a common network node may be combined and designated as virtual nodes. A virtual-link module may sum bandwidths for network links between virtual-node pairs with nodes in both the common and consecutive tiers. A check module may combine virtual nodes and links and network nodes and links not yet virtualized in a graph, which it may check for a cycle. An iteration module may iterate both tiers toward the core, triggering further grouping, summing, and updating until no loop exists.