Patent ID: 7646760

Claim:
A system, comprising: a first switch comprising a first plurality of ports, wherein each of the first plurality of ports has an identifier and wherein the first plurality of ports has an ordering in which an identifier for a given one of the first plurality of ports and an offset within the ordering are usable to specify a different one of the first plurality of ports, wherein the first switch is configured to receive, at a first port of the first plurality of ports, a data packet that includes a path specification, wherein the path specification is for a path of the data packet between a data source and a terminus in a network and includes information specifying a turn list and a turn counter value, wherein the turn list includes a plurality of turn fields, and wherein each of at least two of the plurality of turn fields specifies, for a corresponding network device within the path, a turn value; wherein the first switch is configured to select a turn value from one of the at least two turn fields based on the turn counter value, wherein the selected turn value specifies a first offset within the ordering relative to an identifier for first port, and wherein the first switch is further configured to select a port other than the first port within the first plurality of ports on which to transmit the data packet, wherein the first switch is configured to select the other port based on the identifier for the first port and the selected turn value.