Patent ID: 6081511
Filing Date: 2000-06-27
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
A method of sharing communication load in a redundant computer communication network having a plurality of links, the communication load comprising transmission of a plurality of packets, the method comprising the steps of:identifying at least one group of a plurality of the links in the network that are a part of a redundant communication path passing through a port on a bridge in the network, any one link in the group being sufficient to support the communication load in the network without any of the other links in the group;transferring the communication load across the port;sharing the communication load among the links in the group;providing a packet containing information for transmission in the network;forwarding the packet across at least one of the links on the network that is not identified as a member of one of the groups; andfor each of the groups, forwarding the packet across only one of the links in the group.