Patent ID: 7580409
Filing Date: 2009-08-25
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
1. A system, associated with a network entity, for communicating proprietary control information over one or more backplane connections interconnecting one or more I/O blades with one or more management/switching (MSM) blades without functioning as a user interface, with the one or more backplane connections coupled to the one or more I/O blades through one or more backplane-side MAC controllers, and coupled to the one or more MSM blades through one or more backplane-side MAC controllers, comprising: first logic for storing proprietary control information, comprising control information recognized by the network entity but not generally recognized by other network entities, within a layer of a packet above the physical layer; and second logic for communicating the packet, including the proprietary control information, over the one or more of the backplane connections; wherein the proprietary control information as stored in the packet either replaces or appears in the packet to any third party devices that may happen to gain access as at least a portion of one or more standard packet fields; wherein the first logic derives at least a portion of the control information from a packet header, and deletes the packet header prior to communication of the packet over the one or more backplane connections, and wherein a third logic re-creates at least a portion of the packet header from the control information after communication of the packet over the one or more backplane connections.