Patent ID: 7978719
Filing Date: 2011-07-12
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
1. A method of assigning endpoint identifiers to network interfaces of a communications network, said method comprising: providing the communications network with a network interface having a first endpoint identifier assigned thereto, said first endpoint identifier being a unique identifier assigned to the network interface based on physical location of a port of the communications network to which the network interface is connected, wherein the first endpoint identifier is computed using an equation, said equation using at least one mathematical operator to mathematically combine an identifier of the port to which the network interface is connected and an identifier of a chip comprising the port to which the network interface is connected, wherein the chip is part of a switch board of the communications network; dynamically assigning, by a network manager of a communications network by a processor, a second endpoint identifier to the network interface, in response to physically moving the network interface from the port to another port of the communications network, the another port being different from the one port, said second endpoint identifier being different than the first endpoint identifier and being based on a new physical location of the network interface, said second endpoint identifier being computed using the equation, said equation using at least one mathematical operator to mathematically combine an identifier of the another port and an identifier of a chip comprising the another port; and wherein the equation to compute at least one of the first endpoint identifier or the second endpoint identifier is a function of the identifier of the respective port, the identifier of the chip comprising that port, the identifier of the switch board comprising the chip comprising that port, and a number of intermediate switch boards in the communications network, and the equation to compute at least one of the first endpoint identifier or the second endpoint identifier comprises, in part, (the identifier of the switch board)−(the number of intermediate switch boards+1).