INDEFINITELY EXPANDABLE HIGH-CAPACITY DATA SWITCH

摘要

A data switch for a packet data switch includes switching nodes connected to each other in an interconnecting matrix, providing a multiplicity of data paths between an incoming data or telecom port and an outgoing data or telecom port of the data switch. The interconnecting switching nodes can achieve high capacity data switching by providing a partial switching solution at each node, distributing the switching load. A switching protocol for interconnecting switching nodes allows data packets to be selectively passed from any incoming port on an interconnecting switch node to any interconnecting switching node or outgoing port connected to it. In at least one example, the switching protocol has mechanisms in it to provide for the duplicating of the contents of the data packet and pass them to multiple interconnecting switching nodes or outgoing ports.

主权项

1. A packet-data switching system, the system comprising:
a plurality of interconnecting switching nodes, each node having an embedded processor and a plurality of physical ports; and a switch management processor for managing the plurality of switching nodes; wherein each switching node is configured to receive a data packet at one of the plurality of ports and to process the data packet; wherein processing the data packet includes at least one of:
routing the data packet to another of the plurality of ports of the switching node for egress from the switching system;routing the data packet to another of the plurality of switching nodes;routing the data packet to the embedded processor; androuting the data packet to the switch management processor; wherein processing the data packet includes identifying, as switching system ingress data packets, data packets that are entering the switching system and wherein processing a switching system ingress data packet includes:
identifying, as an ingress node, the switching node via which the data packet entered the switching system;determining a destination of the data packet;using the destination to identify, as the egress node, a switching node via which the data packet will exit the switching system;determining a path from the ingress node to the egress node, the path including at least one switching node;determining, for each of the at least one switching node in the path, a physical address of an egress port for transmitting the data packet to the next step in the path;representing the path as a list of the addresses of at least one egress port, in the order of the switching nodes that the data packet will encounter on its way to the egress port of the egress node, wherein the egress port of the egress node is at the back of the list;modifying a data packet header to include a list of addresses of egress ports; androuting the data packet through the switching system using the list of addresses of egress ports, wherein at the egress node, the data packet header is restored to its original condition before the data packet egresses the switching system.