Patent ID: 8189579

Claim:
A method comprising: performing network routing operations for a routing protocol with a multi-chassis router having a plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components operating as a single node within a network; receiving a request from the routing protocol to perform periodic communications with a peer network router within the network, wherein the periodic communications verify that the peer network router is operational with respect to the routing protocol; allocating responsibility for performing periodic communications with the peer network router for the routing protocol to a first one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router; issuing, with the first one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router via a first interface of the first one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router, a request to the peer network router for a responsive periodic communication in accordance with the allocated responsibility; receiving a periodic communication from the peer network router at a second one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router via a second interface of the second one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router, wherein a path through the multi-chassis router connects the second one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router to the first one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router, wherein the periodic communication received at the second one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router is responsive to the request for the responsive periodic communication issued by the first one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router; and sending the received periodic communication on the path through the multi-chassis router from the second one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router to the first one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router when the second one of the plurality of hierarchically arranged routing components of the multi-chassis router at which the periodic communication is received is not the routing component to which responsibility for performing the periodic communications has been allocated.