Systems and methods for determining network topologies

摘要

A controller may control client switches in a network including client and non-client switches. The controller may maintain a link discovery table including entries that identify links between client switches. The controller may classify the links as direct or broadcast links. To classify links of the link discovery table, the controller may direct client switches to send broadcast and directed discovery packets from switch ports. Client switches that receive the discovery packets from other client switches may forward the discovery packets to the controller. The controller may use the discovery packets to classify the links of the link discovery table. The controller may classify ports as broadcast or regular ports based on the classified links. Non-client broadcast domains of the network topology may be identified from the broadcast ports using the broadcast and direct links of the link discovery table.

主权项

1. A method of using a controller that controls client switches in a network having non-client switches and end hosts that are coupled to the client and non-client switches, wherein the client switches include ports, the method comprising:
generating, using the controller, broadcast discovery packets; directing, using the controller, the client switches to send the broadcast discovery packets generated using the controller from the ports of the client switches, wherein the broadcast discovery packets identify that the broadcast discovery packets should be flooded throughout the network by both the client and the non-client switches; receiving, at the controller, the broadcast discovery packets from the client switches; generating, using the controller, network topology information based at least partly on the received broadcast discovery packets; generating, using the controller, flow table entries for the client switches based on the generated network topology information; and controlling, using the controller, the client switches to forward network packets that are different from the broadcast discovery packets through the network by providing the flow table entries to the client switches.