Patent ID: 8089965
Filing Date: 2012-01-03
Classification: H04L,Y02D

Abstract:
1. A communication apparatus comprising: an input interface to receive a multicast frame addressed to a plurality of destinations; a first output interface comprising a plurality of redundant output interfaces that provide working physical links for transmitting frames and standby physical links staying on standby while being ready to transmit frames, the working and standby physical links being configurable to provide a logical link formed from an aggregation of physical links connected to a single destination; a second output interface to provide a plurality of non-redundant physical links respectively connected to different destination terminal devices; an aggregate multicast destination management database storing aggregate multicast destination management data which comprises: a multicast destination selector that consults the aggregate multicast destination management data stored in the aggregate multicast destination management database to select one of the working or backup physical link parameters which corresponds to a specified part of the received multicast frame; a multicast destination management database storing multicast destination management data describing the patterns of the output physical links which correspond to the working and backup physical link parameters; and a multicast distribution selector that consults the multicast destination management data stored in the multicast destination management database to determine one of the patterns of the output physical links for use in transmitting the received multicast frame, according to said one of the working or backup physical link parameters that is selected by the multicast destination selector.