Patent Document ID: 7869349
Application ID: 12251094
Patent Flag: 1

Claim One:
1. A method for detecting and correcting invalid network paths in a computer network having a plurality of routers and a set of global invariant rules imbedded in the network comprising: querying, on a computer, a subset of a routing table data structure defining network paths wherein said subset includes a plurality of routing table entries; comparing an earlier routing table entry with at least one newer routing table entry in the network; detecting inconsistencies between the newer network routing table entry and the older network routing table entry; invalidating the network entries of the older network routing table data structure that are inconsistent with the newer entries; reconstructing, on a computer, the routing table data structure by replacing the invalidated network routing table entries with new routing table entries that minimize violation of the invariant rules wherein said reconstructing the routing table data structure comprises: selecting an invalidated network path segment, wherein said invalidated network path segment has an originating network address and a destination network address; sequentially selecting a node that neighbors the originating network address of said invalidated network path segment and ending at the destination address of the invalidated network path segment; designating a new proposed network path segment by concatenating the originating network address of said invalidated segment to the neighboring node sequentially selected defining a proposed path from said originating network address to said destination network address; determining if said newly designated proposed network path violates an invariant rule; and designating said path as invalid and selecting the next neighboring node if said newly designated proposed network path violates an invariant rule; designating said invalidated node as unrepairable if a plurality of said newly designated proposed network paths relating to a particular neighboring node are determined not to violate at least one invariant rule, replacing said invalidated route with said newly designated proposed network path only when a single newly designated proposed network path relating to a particular neighboring node is determined to comply with each invariant rule.