A crossbar switch has N input ports, M output ports, and a switching matrix with N×M crosspoints. In an embodiment, each crosspoint contains an internal queue (XQ), which can store one or more packets to be routed. Traffic rates to be realized between all Input/Output (IO) pairs of the switch are specified in an N×M traffic rate matrix, where each element equals a number of requested cell transmission opportunities between each IO pair within a scheduling frame of F time-slots. An efficient algorithm for scheduling N traffic flows with traffic rates based upon a recursive and fair decomposition of a traffic rate vector with N elements, is proposed. To reduce memory requirements a shared row queue (SRQ) may be embedded in each row of the switching matrix, allowing the size of all the XQs to be reduced. To further reduce memory requirements, a shared column queue may be used in place of the XQs. The proposed buffered crossbar switches with shared row and column queues, in conjunction with the row scheduling algorithm and the DCS column scheduling algorithm, can achieve high throughput with reduced buffer and VLSI area requirements, while providing probabilistic guarantees on rate, delay and jitter for scheduled traffic flows.

Example implementations relate to a bridge port extender. For example, a bridge port extender may include a processor. The processor may receive an Ethernet frame from a network bridge, where the Ethernet frame includes an encapsulated portion and an unencapsulated portion, and where the unencapsulated portion includes an E-tag. The processor may remove the E-tag from the unencapsulated portion to form a modified Ethernet frame. The processor may transmit the modified Ethernet frame to a client device based on the E-tag.

An address allocation method, a carrier grade network address translation (CGN) device, and a CGN dual-active system, where a second CGN device receives a first to-be-sent packet sent by a network address translation (NAT) device, searches a recorded correspondence between a private network address, a public network address, and a port range for a source address of the first to-be-sent packet, sends an address allocation request used to request a public network address and a port range of the source address to a first CGN device when a search result indicating that no source address of the first to-be-sent packet is found. The first CGN device allocates a public network address and a port range to the source address of the first to-be-sent packet, records the network address and the port range, and synchronies the allocated public network address and the allocated port range to the second CGN device.

A communication device includes a plurality of controllers, a plurality of buses that transmit transmission information, and a gateway to which the plurality of buses are collectively connected. Each of the plurality of controllers has a pattern table that defines, for each piece of the transmission information, a transmission bus pattern, and controls the input and output of the transmission information according to the pattern table. Each of the plurality of controllers is connected to at least two buses, and outputs, to the gateway via all of the connected buses, check information for a confirmation of connections to the connected buses. The gateway determines an interrupted bus from which no check information is input, and outputs, to each of the plurality of controllers, a route switch instruction instructing use of a pattern table that does not include the interrupted bus(es).

One embodiment of the present invention provides a computing system. The computing system includes a packet processor, a buffer management module, a data monitoring module, and a flow control module. The packet processor identifies a class of service indicating priority-based flow control associated with a remote computing system from a notification message. The buffer management module creates a buffer dedicated for frames belonging to the class of service from the remote computing system in response to identifying the class of service. The data monitoring module detects a potential overflow of the buffer. The flow control module operates in conjunction with the packet processor to generate a pause frame in response to detecting a potential overflow.

Methods, systems, and computer programs are presented for networking communications. One method includes an operation for receiving a packet in a first format by a virtual driver providing a communications interface of a first type (CI1), the first format being for CI1. Further, the method includes an operation for encapsulating the packet in a second format by a processor, the second format being for a communications interface of a second type (CI2) different from CI1. In addition, the method includes an operation for sending the encapsulated packet in the second format to a switch module. The switch module includes a switch fabric, one or more CI1 ports, and one or more CI2 ports, and the switch module transforms the packet back to the first format to send the packet in the first format to a CI1 network via one of the CI1 ports in the switch module.

A method, apparatus, and system for implementing node port virtualization on a fiber channel in the field of communication technologies are provided. Multiple different virtual Node Port (N_port) identifications (IDs) are allocated to each of multiple N_ports, of an N_port virtualization (NPV) switch, corresponding to an N_port ID of a remote node. Because a virtual N_port ID is allocated, to each remote node, for more than one N_port of the NPV switch, regardless of which N_port of these N_ports a node connected to the NPV switch is registered for, the node can obtain the virtual N_port ID that is of each remote node and that is corresponding to the N_port. Therefore, any node connected to the NPV switch can communicate with any remote node, thereby improving communication efficiency.

A plurality of management cards including an active card and a standby card are provided. The active card determines open or block of a ring port in accordance with an event based on a ring protocol, issues an open instruction or a block instruction to a line card, and notifies a block factor in addition to the block instruction when issuing the block instruction. The line card controls open or block of the ring port in accordance with the open instruction or the block instruction and retains open/block information of the ring port and a block factor of the block state in a port management table. When the standby card is changed to the active card in accordance with a predetermined change instruction, it acquires the information retained in the port management table from the line card.

A hybrid control method for a network includes operating edge switches under software defined networking control, wherein each of the edge switches is communicatively coupled to a controller for the software defined networking control; operating non-adjacent switches communicatively coupling the edge switches together under distributed control, wherein the non-adjacent switches are not coupled to the controller; and utilizing the controller to route traffic between the edge switches through the non-adjacent switches in a hybrid control scheme including both the software defined networking control and the distributed control.

Disclosed are various embodiments for multi-homing in an extended bridge, including both multi-homing of port extenders and multi-homing of end stations. In various embodiments, a controlling bridge device receives a packet via an ingress virtual port and determines a destination virtual port link aggregation group based at least in part on a destination media access control (MAC) address of an end station in the packet. The controlling bridge device selects one of multiple egress virtual ports of the destination virtual port link aggregation group. The end station of the extended bridge is reachable through any of the egress virtual ports of the destination virtual port link aggregation group. The controlling bridge device forwards the packet through the selected egress virtual port, and the forwarded packet includes an identifier of a destination virtual port to which the end station is connected.