Patent ID: 7855955

Claim:
A method for managing frames in a global-area communications network which comprises a plurality of sub-networks linked to one another by tunnels at the ends of which there are tunnel endpoints, at least one of the sub-networks comprising at least one source device, wherein when a given tunnel endpoint receives, from a local sub-network, to which the tunnel endpoint is connected, a frame sent out by a source device in the global-area network, the given tunnel endpoint performs the following steps: obtaining, from the frame, an address of the source device; verifying that the address is included in a first list of addresses comprising addresses associated with source devices connected to remote sub-network or sub-networks distinct from the local sub-network; and in the event of positive verification, discarding the frame, wherein the given tunnel endpoint obtains the first list of addresses in performing the following steps: for each tunnel endpoint of the local sub-network, distinct from the given tunnel endpoint, obtaining a second list of addresses on the basis of information received from each tunnel endpoint, this second list of addresses comprising addresses associated with source devices belonging to the remote sub-network or sub-networks connected to the local sub-network via said tunnel endpoint; determining a third list of addresses comprising addresses associated with source devices belonging to the remote sub-network or sub-networks connected to the local sub-network via the given tunnel endpoint; and generating the first list of addresses from the second and third lists of addresses.