Patent ID: 8266271

Claim:
In a protocol analyzer system in a computer network, a method for capturing network data of interest, the method comprising: receiving communications traffic through a domain of ports, which represents a number of simultaneous users that use different ports within a sync group, that are on a protocol analyzer, the domain of ports logically grouping at least a first port from a first chassis of the sync group comprising a plurality of chassis and at least a first port from a second chassis of the sync group, wherein at least a second port from the first chassis and at least a second port from the second chassis are not logically grouped in the domain of ports, and wherein the logical grouping of ports allows a user to control the ports in the domain without affecting the ports not logically grouped in the domain; monitoring the communications traffic through one or more analyzer modules to identify data of interest, each analyzer module being in communication with and receiving the communications traffic through at least one of the ports in the domain of ports; and delivering one or more control signals between the plurality of chassis using a serial protocol, wherein the control signals coordinate the operation of each port in the domain of ports.