Patent ID: 9634945
Date: 2017-04-25
CPC Classifications: H04L

Claim:
1. A method comprising: assigning, by an initial client node of a data flow over a communications network, an initial traffic class as a current traffic classification of the data flow, wherein the initial client node is co-located with, or situated within a local network of, an application device from which the data flow originated, and wherein the initial traffic class is based on one or more static traffic classification methods applied with respect to one or more initial packets of the data flow; receiving, by the initial client node, traffic classification information regarding the data flow from a remote downstream node of the data flow, wherein the remote downstream node is remotely located from the initial client node in that it is not co-located with the initial client node and is not within a local network of the initial client node, and wherein the traffic classification information is based on a dynamic analysis of further data packets of the traffic flow by the downstream node, beyond the one or more initial packets upon which the initial traffic class was based; and updating, by the initial client node, the current traffic classification of the data flow based on the received traffic classification information, if the information indicates a different traffic class than the initial traffic class.