Patent ID: 7826445
Filing Date: 2010-11-02
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
1. A method for communicating with a plurality of network processors, one or more of the processors having a different operating environment, comprising: receiving an application programming interface (API) call, the API call including a call address identifying one or more of the network processors; accessing a service that identifies an appropriate form for the API call for each operating environment implemented by each network processor identified by the call address, wherein the service is a destination management service for registering (a) the application programming interface (API) call and recording an associated operating environment supporting the API call, (b) a unicast address for each of the network processors and the operating environment for the network processor at each unicast address, and (c) a multicast address including the unicast addresses for the network processors; and building one or more messages for the network processors identified by the call address, each of the one or more messages including the appropriate form for the API call for the operating environment of each of the network processors to receive any particular message.