Patent ID: 8107370

Claim:
An access device for interconnecting a restricted device and a network, the access device comprising: a plurality of input ports, wherein each input port is configured to receive packets of network traffic, each input port being adapted for connection to a corresponding digital device; memory associated with the access device, the memory including: for each input port, a parameter programmed in the access device, the parameter having a value that indicates whether a digital device that is connected to the input port associated with the parameter is to be treated as restricted or unrestricted, the value of the parameter being configurable by a user of the access device such that the input port may be restricted or unrestricted based on the value of the parameter configured by the user; and for each input port, a packet detector that is configured by the user using a controller to: examine packets received on the input port; determine whether the examined packets are restricted, wherein the packet detector examines a packet received on the input port by extracting one or more fields from a header of the received packet and comparing the extracted fields to restriction patterns stored in a memory in the packet detector, the restriction patterns being modifiable by a user of the access device, wherein determining that a received packet is restricted is based on a match between the extracted fields and a restriction pattern; based on a determination that the received packet is restricted, examine the value of the parameter associated with the input port to determine whether the input port is restricted or unrestricted, wherein the packet detector routes the received packet to an exception handler upon determining that the input port is restricted, and routes the received packet to a routing engine separate and distinct from the exception handler upon determining that the input port is not restricted; and based on a determination that the received packet is not restricted, route the received packet to the routing engine.