Patent ID: 9565027
Date: 2017-02-07
CPC Classifications: H04L

Claim:
1. In a border network node, an Internet Protocol (IP) traffic control method comprising: receiving a message that comprises multicast group information and distribution tree root information from a tree root node in a first network area, wherein the multicast group information comprises a plurality of multicast group IP addresses and a plurality of group masks, and wherein the distribution tree root information identifies the tree root node; determining that the border network node is a designated forwarder for a second network area; sending an announcement message that comprises the multicast group information and the distribution tree root information within the second network area, wherein the announcement message indicates the border network node is a tree root node in the second network area; receiving, by the border network node, multicast group membership information from at least one of network nodes in the first network area and at least one of network nodes in the second network area in response to the announcement message; computing a multicast group membership summary for the first network area and the second network area; sending the multicast group membership summary for the second network area to the first network area and the multicast group membership summary for the first network area to the second network area; computing a distribution tree in accordance with the multicast group information and the distribution tree root information; pruning the distribution tree in accordance with the multicast group membership information, wherein pruning the distribution tree generates a multicast tree; and communicating multicast data traffic between the first network area and the second network area along the multicast tree.