Patent ID: 8402454

Claim:
A method performed within a network element, for directing traffic away from cards of a first virtual partition, before changing software on the cards of the first virtual partition, until after the cards of the first virtual partition have session data, and while the network element services sessions, the method comprising: redistributing sessions, currently serviced by the cards of the first virtual partition of the network element, to cards of a second virtual partition of the network element, each of the first and second virtual partitions having at least one control card and at least one line card; performing the directing the traffic away from the cards of the first virtual partition, prior to taking the at least one line card of the first virtual partition offline; after the redistributing the sessions, from the cards of the first virtual partition to the cards of the second virtual partition, performing the changing the software on the at least one line card of the first virtual partition, while the cards of the second virtual partition service sessions, including the sessions redistributed from the cards of the first virtual partition; and after the changing the software on the at least one line card of the first virtual partition, synchronizing session data, for sessions currently serviced by the cards of the second virtual partition, from the cards of the second virtual partition to the cards of the first virtual partition, wherein the directing the traffic away from the cards of the first virtual partition is performed before the changing the software on the at least one line card of the first virtual partition, and continues until after the synchronizing the session data from the cards of the second virtual partition to the cards of the first virtual partition, whereby speed of traffic movement away from the cards of the first virtual partition is increased by the directing of the traffic away from the first virtual partition prior to the taking of the at least one line card of the first virtual partition offline, and the traffic is directed away from the cards of the first virtual partition until after the cards of the first virtual partition have session data to handle the traffic.