Patent ID: 7529257

Claim:
A method for supporting a Generalized MultiProtocol Label Switching (GMPLS) hierarchy through multiple routing instances in a network having multiple regions, each region having associated therewith a separate routing instance, the method comprising: creating a link between two regions of a virtual private network at an edge device of a first region having a first routing instance associated therewith, wherein each of said two regions comprises a different Label-Switched Path (LSP) hierarchy and said edge device is configured to participate in multiple levels of said hierarchy; selecting a path; forwarding a message along said path from the edge device to a network device coupled to a second region; receiving a response from the network device at the edge device; inserting a new Label-Switched Path (LSP) linking the two regions into a routing database for a second routing instance associated with the second region and different from said first routing instance; injecting said new LSP into said first routing instance as a forwarding or routing adjacency, wherein said new LSP appears as a link to said first routing instance; and transmitting data on the network using said new LSP.