Patent ID: 8577999

Claim:
A method comprising: receiving, in a first network of a first network type at a first device from a second device, a capability advertisement message which comprises role capabilities of the second device for at least a second network type, where a role capability for a given network type describes a device role the second device can assume in a network of the given network type, where the first network type is a first, physical network type, where the second network type is a second, physical network type and where the first network type is different from the second network type, where the capability advertisement message comprises at least one capability field, where each capability field is associated with a given device role in a given network, and where each capability field specifies whether the second device is capable of assuming the given device role in the given network; in response to receiving the capability advertisement message, sending, in the first network from the first device to the second device, an activation message which comprises a request that the second device become active in a second network of the second network type for at least one of the role capabilities of the capability advertisement message and parameters for the second network; and in response to the activation message, receiving, in the first network at the first device from the second device, a notification message which indicates whether the request of the activation message was accepted.