Patent ID: 8259714

Claim:
A packet transferring node, comprising: a plurality of line interface units to be coupled to a network via a network port; and a plurality of routing and transferring units connected to said plurality of line interface units; wherein, upon receiving a packet from the network via the network port, said line interface units perform a first judgment of whether the received packet is a specific packet for selecting a routing and transferring unit among said plurality of routing and transferring units to which the received packet is transmitted, if the received packet is judged to be a specific packet and related to controlling the network, said line interface units transfer said packet to a specific routing and transferring unit that executes a first process related to packet routing and a second process that is distinct from the first process, and if the received packet is not judged to be a specific packet, the line interface units perform a second judgment based on a hash value obtained by applying a hash function to information included a header of the received packet and decide, according to a result of the second judgment, to which one of said plurality of routing and transferring units, including said specific routing and transferring unit, said received inputted packet is to be transferred.