EFFICIENT PERFORMANCE MONITORING USING IPV6 CAPABILITIES

摘要

The present invention provides a method for obtaining and reporting performance information on node-to-node data transfers, i.e., network hops, based on integrated capabilities in Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6), specifically extension headers. The performance of a (real-time) data flow is monitored between a source-destination pair by inserting specific information in an extension header of select data packets in the data flow. By initiating an extension header at a source client, and updating the extension header at any intermediate nodes along the source-destination path, a destination node can produce a detailed set of statistics relating to the current performance level of select nodes in a network based upon the reported data in the extension header. Additionally, data flow performance can be monitored on any desired network path or segment independent of particular flows on those paths.