Patent ID: 7170854
Filing Date: 2007-01-30
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
1. A method for providing protection switching in a voice-over-broadband (VOB) gateway, the method comprising: multicasting egress traffic from a switch fabric to a working port and to a protection port; forwarding the egress traffic from the working port to a network in a working mode of operation; forwarding the egress traffic from the protection port to the network in a protection mode of operation; forwarding ingress traffic from a network connector to the working port and to the protection port; forwarding the ingress traffic from the working port to the switch fabric in the working mode of operation, wherein only the working port forwards the ingress traffic in the working mode of operation; forwarding the ingress traffic from the protection port to the switch fabric in the protection mode of operation, wherein only the protection port forwards the ingress traffic in the protection mode of operation; sharing status information between the working port and the protection port; and selecting between the working mode of operation and the protection mode of operation, based on the status information wherein forwarding the ingress traffic from the protection port comprises forwarding the ingress traffic from the protection port directly to a control module of the VOB gateway via a backplane of the VOB gateway.