Patent ID: 7706353

Claim:
A method for performing congestion control in a node in a connection-oriented packet-switching network, the method comprising: determining that there is an indication of traffic congestion in a first path connecting a source node and a destination node for a communication session, wherein the first path is a non-real time connection with an available cell rate of R ACR ; the source node ascertaining whether M alternative paths exist with available resources able to satisfy the R ACR for transferring traffic between the source node and the destination node, wherein M is equal to or greater than 1; the node selecting one of the M alternative paths to reroute the traffic between the source node and the destination node if the M alternative paths exist; the source node ascertaining whether X alternative paths exist with available resources able to satisfy a reduced Available Cell Rate of R′ ACR , if M alternative paths do not exist, wherein R′ ACR is less than the R ACR , but is greater than a new available cell rate for the first path if rate control were instituted to eliminate the traffic congestion; and the source node selecting one of the X alternative paths to reroute the traffic between the source node and the destination node if the X alternative paths exist, the selected alternative path replacing the first path for a remainder of the communication session.