Packet Switching Device Including Cascaded Aggregation Nodes

摘要

In one embodiment, a packet switching device includes one or more host devices and a cascade of aggregation nodes. The aggregation nodes aggregate customer traffic and communicate it with the host device. Typically the aggregation nodes are remotely located from the host device. The host device may be connected to one or both ends of the cascaded topology of aggregation nodes. In one embodiment, the cascaded topology of aggregation nodes automatically configures itself using initiation packets. In one embodiment, the cascaded topology of aggregation nodes reacts to detected faults, such as by changing direction packet traffic is sent through the cascaded topology. By cascading aggregation nodes, in contrast to having each aggregation node connected to the host device via one or more point-to-point links, communications costs are decreased in one embodiment.

主权项

1. An apparatus, comprising:
a first host device; a plurality of cascaded aggregation nodes; and a plurality of network links communicatively coupling the plurality of cascaded aggregation nodes to adjacent other one or more nodes of the plurality of cascaded aggregation nodes to form a cascaded topology, and communicatively coupling the plurality of cascaded aggregation nodes to the first host device; wherein the apparatus is configured to operate as a first packet switching device including the first host device and one or more of the plurality of aggregation nodes.