Patent ID: 7539184
Filing Date: 2009-05-26
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
1. A network line card, comprising: a media interface; a switch fabric interface; a plurality of network processor units (NPUs), each NPU within the plurality of NPUs including a media switch fabric (MSF) interface that may configured to support media-based transmit and receive interfaces and switch fabric-based transmit and receive interfaces; a media-based switch including a plurality of media-based transmit and receive interfaces, a cross-connect having a plurality of groups of input/output (I/O ports), the cross connect enabling a signal for a given I/O port in a group within the plurality of groups to be selectively routed to another I/O port in that group; and a mechanism to selectively couple, for each NPU MSF interface, media-based transmit and receive signals to the media-based switch and switch fabric-based transmit and receive signals to the cross-connect, wherein a given NPU is enabled to communicate with another NPU and the media interface via media transmit and receive signals routed through the media-based switch, and each NPU is enabled to communicate with the switch fabric interface via signals routed through the cross-connect.