Patent ID: 7894453

Claim:
A host, comprising: a Network Layer; a Transport Layer; and a first target, wherein the host is configured to: receive a first packet for the first target; prior to sending the first packet to the Network Layer in the host: determine the first target of the first packet; obtain a first target ID associated with the first target; obtain a first virtual network stack (VNS) instance ID using the first target ID; and obtain a first VNS Instance parameter using the first VNS instance ID; send the first packet to the Network Layer; process the first packet in the Network Layer using the first VNS Instance parameter to obtain a first network processed packet; receive a second packet for a second target; prior to sending the second packet to the Network Layer in the host: determine the second target of the second packet; obtain a second target ID associated with the second target; obtain a second VNS instance ID using the second target ID; and obtain a second VNS Instance parameter using the second VNS instance ID; send the second packet to the Network Layer; and process the second packet in the Network Layer using the second VNS Instance parameter to obtain a second network processed packet.