Patent ID: 6977995

Claim:
A network having overload control for handling an overload condition involving at least a first plurality of traffic sources operating according to a first traffic control mechanism and a second plurality of traffic sources operating according to a second traffic control mechanism, the network comprising a server configured to broadcast, upon detection of the overload condition: a first control value to a first subset of the first plurality of traffic sources and a second control value to a second subset of the first plurality of traffic sources, so as to achieve a degree of traffic control intermediate between discrete degrees of traffic control that would be achieved by separate use of the first and second control values in the first traffic control mechanism, and a third control value to a first subset of the second plurality of traffic sources and a fourth control value to a second subset of the second plurality of traffic sources, so as to achieve a degree of traffic control intermediate between discrete degrees of traffic control that would be achieved by separate use of the third and fourth control values in the second traffic control mechanism.