Patent ID: 8605573

Claim:
An apparatus comprising: a link protection device for a network including one or more protected network devices, each of the protected network devices having a first link that provides a connection between the link protection device and the network for each respective protected network device, and each of the protected network devices having a first network switch that is part of the first link, wherein the link protection device comprises: a determination system for determining if the first network switch for one or more of the protected network devices has failed; a link switch for each of the protected network devices for switching the connection for each protected network device from the first link to a second link for each respective protected network device upon the determination system determining that the first network switch for the respective protected network device has failed; a protected port for connecting each respective protected network device to the respective first and second links for the protected network device; a storage device for storing a network address for each of the protected network devices; and a transmission system for building and transmitting a first update data packet to network switches of the network over the second link for a protected network device when the link protection device switches the connection for the protected network device from the first link to the second link for the protected network device, and wherein the first update data packet has a source comprising the stored network address of the protected network device and has a destination comprising the broadcast address of the network to thereby emulate a transmission from the protected network device.