Patent ID: 7853714
Filing Date: 2010-12-14
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
1. A router comprising: a plurality of virtual hosts executing on an operating system of the router; a plurality of interfaces to receive data from multiple virtual private networks; a control unit that maintains routing information that describes routes and next hops along each of the routes, wherein the control unit maintains a plurality of forwarding information bases that each includes forwarding information for a respective one of the virtual private networks, and wherein each of the forwarding information bases associates network destinations with the next hops for the virtual private networks, wherein the control unit dynamically instantiates one or more inbound logical interfaces to deliver virtual private network traffic from the control unit to the virtual hosts and one or more outbound logical interfaces to deliver the virtual private network traffic from the virtual hosts to the control unit, wherein the control unit destructs the dynamically instantiated logical interfaces after delivering the virtual private network traffic, wherein the control unit forwards the virtual private network traffic received from the virtual private networks to the virtual hosts in accordance with a respective one of the forwarding information bases, and wherein each of the virtual hosts operates as a network device within at least one of the virtual private networks to process the received virtual private network traffic and provide a service to another network device within the respective virtual private network.