Patent ID: 7602706
Filing Date: 2009-10-13
Classification: H04L

Abstract:
1. A method for providing inter-ring protection in shared packet rings, the method comprising: utilizing a spanning tree protocol to identify a first node as a root node; operating the first node in an active mode, the first node connected to a ring interconnect node on the same ring as the first node and to a peer node on a different ring, the ring interconnect node in a standby mode, the first node configured to exchange control messages with the ring interconnect node during a failure of the peer node or a ring interconnecting link connecting the first node to the peer node; forwarding packets from the first node to the peer node on the ring interconnecting link in the active mode; receiving at the first node, notification of a failure of the ring interconnecting link or the peer node; and in response to said notification of a failure: wherein packets received at the first node or the ring interconnect node are blocked from being forwarded to said different ring when the node is in the standby mode.