Patent ID: 8395998

Claim:
A device comprising: a physical interface to receive a plurality of signals and to output the plurality of signals; a switch block including: a plurality of input ports to receive the plurality of signals from the physical interface, and a plurality of output ports to output the plurality of signals, the switch block being to: detect, at a first input port of the plurality of input ports, an incoming operation and maintenance (OAM) data item associated with at least one of the plurality of signals, transfer the incoming OAM data item and a first identifier, associated with the first input port, to a first output port of the plurality of output ports, receive an outgoing OAM data item at a second input port of the plurality of input ports, and output, via a second output port of the plurality of output ports and with the at least one of the plurality of signals, the outgoing OAM data item based on a second identifier associated with the second output port; and an OAM processor connected to the first output port, the OAM processor being to: receive, via the first output port, the incoming OAM data item and the first identifier associated with the first input port, identify the second output port based on the first identifier associated with the first input port, and output, to the second input port, the outgoing OAM data item and the second identifier associated with the second output port.