Patent ID: 9699070
Date: 2017-07-04
CPC Classifications: G06F,H04L

Claim:
1. For a network controller that manages software and hardware forwarding elements that implement a logical network, a method comprising: sending management data to the hardware switching element using a database protocol as a single communication channel to add the hardware switching element to the logical network managed by the network controller, wherein the logical network includes at least one software switching element; to manage traffic between the hardware switching element and the software switching element, exchanging state data with the hardware switching element through the single communication channel using the database protocol's asynchronous notification, said asynchronous exchange comprising: wherein the hardware switching element uses the management data and the state data to define flow entries for a set of forwarding tables of the hardware switching element that implement the logical network, and said database protocol serves as the only communication channel through which the hardware switching element receives data from the controller to define flow entries.