Patent ID: 8498297

Claim:
An Ethernet switch for use in an Ethernet network, the switch comprising: a set of ingress ports for receiving data frames; a set of egress ports; a storage to store master forwarding information; a switch fabric for selectively interconnecting the ingress and egress ports; a respective local memory associated with each ingress port, each local memory storing local Ethernet forwarding information for Ethernet forwarding decisions, the local Ethernet forwarding information, for at least one Ethernet connection established in the Ethernet network using a control or management plane of the Ethernet network, comprising a destination MAC address and a Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) tag as index values which, in combination, identify one or more of the egress ports to which data frames received by the respective ingress port should be forwarded; a control or management interface for receiving information about the established Ethernet connection through the switch; and a switch controller configured to cause local Ethernet forwarding information to be stored in the local memory associated with a first of the ingress ports which the established Ethernet connection will use, on the basis of the received information about the established Ethernet connection, and not to be stored in the local memory associated with a second of the ingress ports which the established Ethernet connection will not use, wherein the switch controller is configured to further maintain the master forwarding information that contains the local Ethernet forwarding information in the corresponding local memories.