Patent ID: 7251244

Claim:
A device comprising: means for receiving a first packet; means for determining whether the first packet is a Link Control Protocol (LCP) echo requirement packet and for producing a first response packet, including: means for rewriting an LCP header of the first packet if the first packet is an LCP echo requirement packet, wherein rewriting designates the device as a destination, and means for establishing an LCP echo response flag in the LCP header when the first packet is an LCP echo requirement packet; means for transmitting the first response packet to a switch fabric; means for receiving a second packet from the switch fabric; means for determining if the LCP echo response flag is established in the second packet and for producing a second response packet by rewriting the LCP header of the second packet when the LCP echo response flag is determined to be established in the second packet; and means for transmitting the second response packet to a response destination of the first packet.