Patent ID: 8305896

Claim:
An apparatus, comprising: a router having an input port and an output port, the router receiving at least one high priority traffic flow session and a plurality of low priority flow traffic flow sessions through the input port; accelerating logic on the router configured to provide compression of selected traffic flow sessions received at the accelerating logic; and routing logic for controlling the processing of traffic flow sessions received at the input port operatively coupled to the router, the routing logic routing the at least one high priority traffic flow session to the accelerating logic and routing the plurality of low priority traffic flow to the output port bypassing the accelerating logic; wherein the routing logic determines an amount of central processing unit resources available; wherein the routing logic selectively routes a selected set of the plurality of low priority traffic flow sessions to the accelerating logic responsive to determining sufficient central processing unit resources are available to compress the selected set of the plurality of low priority traffic flow sessions as a set of compressed traffic flow sessions while there are sufficient central processing resources available to compress the selected set of the plurality of low priority traffic flow sessions; wherein the routing logic is configured to determine a benefit result of the compression to the set of compressed traffic flow sessions; and, wherein the routing logic is configured to selectively route a one of the set of compressed traffic flow sessions having a minimum benefit result to the output port bypassing the acceleration logic responsive to determinin there are insufficient central processing unit resources available to compress the set of compressed traffic flow sessions.