Patent ID: 8976793
Filing Date: 2015-03-10
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
1. A method of providing a Virtual Private LAN Service (VPLS) across a carrier Ethernet network, the method comprising: at a first node of the carrier Ethernet network, receiving a frame from a customer, the frame having a first customer MAC address as a customer source MAC address and a second customer MAC address as a customer destination MAC address; identifying the frame to be transported across the carrier Ethernet network by encapsulating it with a VLAN identifier, an encapsulating source MAC address and an encapsulating destination MAC address, the encapsulating source MAC address being a MAC address of the first node; forwarding the encapsulated frame across the carrier Ethernet network based on the combination of the VLAN identifier and the destination MAC address without changing the VLAN identifier; receiving the encapsulated frame at a second node; at the second node, configuring a mapping between the customer source MAC address of the frame and a combination of the MAC address of the first node and the VLAN identifier, the MAC address of the first node being learned from the encapsulating source MAC address of the frame; and forwarding the frame to the customer based on the customer destination MAC address.