U.S. patent application number 13/338213 was filed with the patent office on 2012-04-26 for methods and systems for a distributed provider edge.
This patent application is currently assigned to FORTINET, INC.. Invention is credited to Rajesh Balay, John Crawbuck, Pasula Srinivasa Reddy, Chandramouli Sargor, Vijay Srinivasan, Sanjeev Tyagi.
Application Number | 20120099596 13/338213 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 29583656 |
Filed Date | 2012-04-26 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120099596 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Balay; Rajesh ; et
al. |
April 26, 2012 |
METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR A DISTRIBUTED PROVIDER EDGE
Abstract
Methods and systems for a distributed provider edge are
provided. According to one embodiment, a one-to-one association is
formed between a Virtual Routing and Forwarding device (VRF) of a
provider edge device (PE) of a service provider and a customer
site. The VRF includes a routing information base (RIB) and a
forwarding information base (FIB). A network interface module is
instantiated within the VRF for each network interface employed,
such as an intranet, extranet, Virtual Private Network (VPN) and/or
Internet interface. A first packet is received at the PE via a
first network interface. A first network interface module
associated with the first network interface accesses the RIB to
acquire routing information for the first packet. A second packet
is received via a second network interface. A second network
interface module associated with the second network interface
accesses the RIB to acquire routing information for the second
packet.
Inventors: |
Balay; Rajesh; (Sunnyvale,
CA) ; Srinivasan; Vijay; (Palo Alto, CA) ;
Tyagi; Sanjeev; (Santa Clara, CA) ; Reddy; Pasula
Srinivasa; (Palo Alto, CA) ; Sargor;
Chandramouli; (Sunnyvale, CA) ; Crawbuck; John;
(Pleasanton, CA) |
Assignee: |
FORTINET, INC.
Sunnyvale
CA
|
Family ID: |
29583656 |
Appl. No.: |
13/338213 |
Filed: |
December 27, 2011 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
11537609 |
Sep 30, 2006 |
8085776 |
|
|
13338213 |
|
|
|
|
10163073 |
Jun 4, 2002 |
7116665 |
|
|
11537609 |
|
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Current U.S.
Class: |
370/392 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04L 45/22 20130101;
H04L 45/50 20130101; H04L 45/00 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
370/392 |
International
Class: |
H04L 12/56 20060101
H04L012/56 |
Claims
1. A method comprising: forming a one-to-one association between a
single Virtual Routing and Forwarding device (VRF) of a physical
provider edge device (PE) of a service provider and a single site
of a customer of the service provider, the VRF having a single
routing information base (RIB) and a single forwarding information
base (FIB); instantiating, within the VRF, a network interface
module for each of a plurality of network interfaces employed by
the single customer site, the plurality of network interfaces
including two or more network interfaces selected from an intranet
interface, an extranet interface, a Virtual Private Network (VPN)
interface and an Internet interface; receiving, at the PE via a
first network interface of the plurality of network interfaces, a
first data packet; accessing, by a first network interface module
of the plurality of network interface modules that is associated
with the first network interface, the single RIB to acquire routing
information for the first data packet; receiving, at the PE via a
second network interface of the plurality of network interfaces, a
second data packet; and accessing, by a second network interface
module of the plurality of network interface modules that is
associated with the second network interface, the single RIB to
acquire routing information for the second data packet.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of network
interface modules comprise a plurality of VPN Protocol Instance
Modules (VRPs).
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the plurality of VRPs communicate
directly with the single RIB and indirectly with the single
FIB.
4. The method of claim 2, wherein the plurality of VRPs communicate
with the single RIB by importing and exporting routes from the
single RIB.
5. The method of claim 2, wherein a plurality of data planes
communicatively couple the VRF and a backbone interface device of
the PE, which is operable to transmit outbound data packets onto a
network backbone, and the method further comprises the plurality of
VRPs selectively using one of a plurality of data planes to
communicate the outbound data packets to the backbone interface
device based on a type of traffic represented by the outbound data
packets.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein the single FIB is used to forward
traffic received by the VRF to the backbone interface device as
labeled packets.
7. The method of claim 5, further comprising enabling different
services for the outbound data packets based on the selected data
plane.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein the different services include
policy-based services, Network Address Translation (NAT) services,
firewall services or proxy services.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein a first VPN interface of the
plurality of network interfaces provides access to an Intranet
associated with the single customer site and a second VPN interface
of the plurality of network interfaces provides access to an
Extranet associated with the single customer site.
10. A physical distributed provider edge (PE) system embodying
modules to perform a method for processing network traffic of a
service provider, the method comprising: forming a one-to-one
association between a single Virtual Routing and Forwarding device
(VRF) of the PE and a single site of a customer of the service
provider, the VRF having a single routing information base (RIB)
and a single forwarding information base (FIB); instantiating,
within the VRF, a network interface module for each of a plurality
of network interfaces employed by the single customer site, the
plurality of network interfaces including two or more network
interfaces selected from an intranet interface, an extranet
interface, a Virtual Private Network (VPN) interface and an
Internet interface; receiving, at the PE via a first network
interface of the plurality of network interfaces, a first data
packet; accessing, by a first network interface module of the
plurality of network interface modules that is associated with the
first network interface, the single RIB to acquire routing
information for the first data packet; receiving, at the PE via a
second network interface of the plurality of network interfaces, a
second data packet; and accessing, by a second network interface
module of the plurality of network interface modules that is
associated with the second network interface, the single RIB to
acquire routing information for the second data packet.
11. The system of claim 10, wherein the plurality of network
interface modules comprise a plurality of VPN Protocol Instance
Modules (VRPs).
12. The system of claim 11, wherein the plurality of VRPs
communicate directly with the single RIB and indirectly with the
single FIB.
13. The system of claim 11, wherein the plurality of VRPs
communicate with the single RIB by importing and exporting routes
from the single RIB.
14. The system of claim 11, further comprising a backbone interface
device operable to transmit outbound data packets onto a network
backbone and a plurality of data planes communicatively coupling
the VRF and the backbone interface device, and wherein the method
further comprises the plurality of VRPs selectively using one of a
plurality of data planes to communicate the outbound data packets
to the backbone interface device based on a type of traffic
represented by the outbound data packets.
15. The system of claim 14, wherein the single FIB is used to
forward traffic received by the VRF to the backbone interface
device as labeled packets.
16. The system of claim 14, wherein the method further comprises
enabling different services for the outbound data packets based on
the selected data plane.
17. The method of claim 16, wherein the different services include
policy-based services, Network Address Translation (NAT) services,
firewall services or proxy services.
18. The system of claim 11, wherein a first VPN interface of the
plurality of network interfaces provides access to an Intranet
associated with the single customer site and a second VPN interface
of the plurality of network interfaces provides access to an
Extranet associated with the single customer site.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 11/537,609, filed Sep. 30, 2006, which is a
continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/163,073, filed
Jun. 4, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,116,665, both of which are hereby
incorporated by referenced in their entirety for all purposes.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
[0002] Contained herein is material that is subject to copyright
protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile
reproduction of the patent disclosure by any person as it appears
in the Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but
otherwise reserves all rights to the copyright whatsoever.
Copyright.COPYRGT. 2002-2011, Fortinet, Inc.
BACKGROUND
[0003] 1. Field
[0004] Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to
methods and systems for a distributed provider edge, more
specifically methods and systems are provided to distribute and
integrate provider edge technology.
[0005] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0006] In today's highly interconnected computing environments, a
single customer can require a myriad of network configurations. For
example, a customer can have internal networks called Intranets,
external networks to other sites of the customer or to other
organizations called Extranets, and the customer can have one or
more Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). Each different VPN can be
considered a separate network configuration. The customer can also
have Internet network configurations to provide access to the World
Wide Web (WWW).
[0007] Each network configuration (e.g., Intranet, Extranet, VPN,
Internet, and others) will have its own data addressing scheme and
policies that the customer must maintain and manage. As one of
ordinary skill in the art readily appreciates this is not a trivial
exercise. Moreover, often the customer may desire to have different
network configuration interface with one another (e.g., an Extranet
with an Intranet, and the like). This adds a layer of complexity in
managing the customer's network configurations since the addressing
schemes and policies between disparate network configurations are
often not compatible with each other.
[0008] As a result, customers have turned to Service Providers
(SPs) to manage and outsource the customers' networks. To do this,
a customer's network site uses a customer edge device (CE). The CE
can be any host computing device and/or a routing device for
transferring network traffic from the customer's site to the SP.
Network traffic occurs as data packets transmitted over a data link
(e.g., Gigabit Ethernet (GigE), Frame Relay (FR), Time-Division
Multiplexing (TDM), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), and others).
The SP receives the data packets at a Provider Edge device (PE),
which is another host computing device and/or routing device.
[0009] Typically, a customer will lease hardware from a SP, in
order to manage the outsourced network configurations. The SP uses
an Internet Protocol (IP) backbone to interface network traffic to
the CE. Further, routing tables (RIBs) and forwarding tables (FIBs)
are uniquely assigned to each of the customer's network
configurations in order to effectively relay network traffic within
the PE. Thus, the SP provisions separate routing devices for the
customer to accommodate each of the customer's network
configurations. As one of ordinary skill in the art readily
appreciates, this becomes expensive for a customer, especially as
the number of network configurations increase at the customer's
site.
[0010] To address these problems, the Internet Engineering Task
Force (IETF) promulgated a standard referred to as Request for
Comments (RFC) number 2547 (RFC2547). RFC2547 defines methods by
which a SP with an IP backbone can more efficiently provide VPNs
(e.g., network configurations) for its customers. RFC2547 uses
Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) and Border Gateway Protocol
(BGP) for distributing routes of network traffic over the IP
backbone. Each network configuration (e.g., VPN) occurring within
the SP's PE includes a Virtual Routing and Forwarding Module (VRFM)
that has its own unique RIB and FIB for acquiring routes and
forwarding data packets. The disparate RIBs, between VRFMs,
exchange routes using BGP. VRFMs enable a VPN exchange using BGP to
provide VPN routing. Data between the VRFMs is transmitted as
labeled packets over a backbone tunnel.
[0011] Yet, RFC2547 requires a single unique RIB and FIB for each
VPN. Moreover, a VPN interface (e.g., VPN communication protocol
originating from a VPN site) that is associated with a VPN exchange
communicates with a single VRFM. Thus, in RFC2547, each additional
VPN interface requires a different instantiation of a VRFM to
handle the additional VPN interface. Thus, each VRFM can support
only one VPN. Furthermore, RFC2547 does not address how a VPN site
can be enabled to access the Internet. As is readily apparent to
one of ordinary skill in the art, these limitations impact the
scalability of the RFC2547 standard since the mapping between the
RIBs, FIBs, and VPN interfaces are symmetric with the VRFMs.
Moreover, the features of the VRFMs cannot be distributed to other
devices within the SP's PE.
[0012] Therefore, there is a need for improving existing PE methods
and systems, so that the features of the RFC2547 standard and other
VPN provisioning models can be fully utilized in a scalable fashion
with a distributed PE. Such improvements can permit a single CE to
communicate with a single PE over a single CE to PE interface
channel while using a variety of disparate VPN. With such
improvements, the VPNs can intercommunicate, as desired by the
customer, within the distributed PE over a single CE to PE
interface channel.
SUMMARY
[0013] Methods and systems are described for a distributed provider
edge. According to one embodiment, a method for processing network
traffic is provided. A one-to-one association is formed between a
single Virtual Routing and Forwarding device (VRF) of a physical
provider edge device (PE) of a service provider and a single site
of a customer of the service provider. The VRF includes a single
routing information base (RIB) and a single forwarding information
base (FIB). A network interface module is instantiated within the
VRF for each network interface employed by the customer site. The
network interfaces may include an intranet interface, an extranet
interface, a Virtual Private Network (VPN) interface and/or an
Internet interface. A first data packet is received at the PE via a
first network interface. A first network interface module
associated with the first network interface accesses the RIB to
acquire routing information for the first data packet. A second
data packet is received at the PE via a second network interface. A
second network interface module associated with the second network
interface accesses the RIB to acquire routing information for the
second data packet.
[0014] Other features of embodiments of the present invention will
be apparent from the accompanying drawings and from the detailed
description that follows.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] Embodiments of the present invention are illustrated by way
of example, and not by way of limitation, in the figures of the
accompanying drawings and in which like reference numerals refer to
similar elements and in which:
[0016] FIG. 1 shows a diagram of a distributed PE system, according
to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0017] FIG. 2 shows another diagram of a distributed PE system,
according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0018] FIG. 3 shows still another diagram of a distributed PE
system, according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0019] FIG. 4 shows a flow diagram of a method for processing
network traffic on a distributed PE, according to an embodiment of
the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0020] Methods and systems are described for ***.
[0021] In the following detailed description of various embodiments
of the present invention, reference is made to the accompanying
drawings that form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of
illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be
practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be
utilized and structural changes may be made without departing from
the scope of the present invention.
[0022] Various embodiments of the present invention utilize some
aspects of the RFC2547 standard and other VPN provisioning modules
(e.g., Provider Provisioned VPN Framework (PPVPN-FRMWRK). Moreover,
BGP is used with various embodiments of the present invention to
communicate imported and exported routes acquired from VPN Protocol
Instance Modules (VRPs) (e.g., via the RIB) to PE backbone devices.
The PE backbone devices access tunnels or Internet connections and
communicate the routes to other PE systems or Internet routing
devices for Internet traffic. Additionally, MPLS is used to relay
data packets from FIBs to tunnels and vice versa (e.g.,
encapsulation). Of course it is readily apparent, that any
standard, model, protocol, and/or combination of protocols can be
used to achieve the teachings of the present disclosure. All such
variations are intended to fall within the broad scope of the
present invention.
[0023] VRPs are unique modules in the context of embodiments of the
present invention that are associated with a single VPN site. They
are not directly associated with a VPN interface (e.g., PE-CE links
defined in RFC2547). Rather, a VPN interface is associated with a
VRF. Multiple VRPs can reside in a single VRF and share the same
RIB and FIB, thus enabling multiple VPNs for a VPN interface by
making use of a single RIB and FIB at the PE. Conversely, RFC2547
does associate a single VPN with a single VRFM, and a VPN interface
with a single VRFM, thereby restricting a VPN interface of a
customer to participate in a single VPN. For a customer site to
participate in multiple VPNs, RFC2547 requires multiple VRFMs and
hence multiple RIBs and FIBs.
[0024] Moreover, the use of the word "device" in the present
disclosure need not be a single physical device, since it will be
readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon reading
the present disclosure that a plurality of physical devices can be
logically associated as a single virtual device. Additionally, a
"normalized interface" refers to a standard communication technique
(e.g. Application Programming Libraries, link-layer protocols) used
to communicate between a VRF and a PE backbone device of the
present disclosure. The normalized interface can communicate
control plane information (e.g. routes) directly to the PE backbone
device and at the same time communicate data plane information
(e.g., raw data packets) indirectly to the PE backbone device.
[0025] FIG. 1 illustrates a diagram of a distributed PE system 100,
according to an embodiment of the present invention. The PE system
100 includes a Virtual Routing and Forwarding device 110 (VRF)
having a plurality of VRPs (e.g., 111 and 112). Moreover, the VRF
110 includes a single RIB 112 and a single FIB 114. The PE system
100 also includes a PE backbone device 120 having an interface 121
and a Labeled Forwarding Table 122 (LFIB). The various components
of the PE system 100 can be implemented on any computing device(s),
such as a router(s), a switch(es), a virtual router(s), a host
computing device(s), and others. For example, the PE system 100 can
be implemented as any edge device(s) or components of any edge
device(s) described in the IETF's Provider Provisioned VPNs
Framework (e.g., PPVPN-FRMWRK). Moreover, the external
interfaces/communication/protocols between the PE system 100 to a
VPN site 130 (e.g., at CE 131) or to a backbone 140 (e.g., P
systems/devices or PE systems/devices) can be the same as is
defined by IETF standards. Therefore, the teachings of the present
disclosure remain compliant with an IETF-based implementation.
[0026] A VRF 110 of the present disclosure is not restricted to a
single VPN site 130. Multiple VPN sites (not shown in FIG. 1) can
connect to a single VRF 110 as long as each of the VPN sites is
participating in same VPN, this is consistent with IETF standards.
Moreover, in the present disclosure multiple VPN sites 130 can
connect to a single VRF 110 as long as the VPN site 130 is
participating in one of the VPNs enabled by the VRF 110. In one
embodiment of the present disclosure, the VRF 110 is associated
with a single VPN site 130, the VPN site 130 includes a Customer
Edge device 131 (CE) used to transfer and receive network traffic
from the PE system 100. In one embodiment, the CE device 131 is a
CE device defined by RFC2547. Moreover, the CE device 131 can be
used to process all the VPNs occurring at the VPN site 130. Each
VRP (e.g., 111 or 112) is associated with a single VPN from the VPN
site 130.
[0027] Each VRP (e.g., 111 or 112) accesses the RIB 112 of the VRF
110 directly to update (e.g., import/export) routing information
associated with a VPN. The VRP (e.g., 111 or 112) uses a control
interface to a BGP module in order to relay (e.g.,
acquire/distribute) the routing information to/from other PE
systems. The VRP (e.g., 111 or 112) provides the same functional
interface to the BGP module as expected by it from the RIB 113 in
RFC2547. The VRP (e.g., 111 or 112), by updating the RIB 113 or FIB
114, enables the VRF 110 to receive VPN data from the CE 131 or the
PE backbone 120.
[0028] The PE backbone's interface 121 is used by each of the VRPs
(e.g., 111 and 112). The interface 121 represents a control plane
between the VRPs (e.g., 111 and 112) and the backbone 120. The
interface 121 can be message based (e.g., asynchronous) or
implemented as a functional Application Programming Interface (API)
library accessible to both the PE backbone 120 and each of the VRPs
(e.g., 111 and 112). The interface 121 can remain consistent with
RFC2547 and other IETF standards.
[0029] Additionally, a data plane interface 115 is used to relay
raw data packets from the VRF 110 and the PE backbone 120. This
data plane interface 115 can include an identifier with the relayed
data packets that permit the Labeled FIB 122 of the PE backbone to
determine which VPN the data packets are originating from. As one
of ordinary skill in the art readily recognizes, the data plane 115
can enable accounting and other network services (e.g.,
policy-based services, Network Address Translation (NAT) services,
firewall services, proxy services, and the like) for all VPN
traffic occurring in the PE system 100 and distinguish between the
various types of VPN traffic (e.g., determine which VPN requires
traffic to have services and policies instituted).
[0030] Unlike RFC2547, in the context of embodiments of the present
invention the PE backbone 120 acquires addressing/routing
information using BGP indirectly from one of the VRPs (e.g., 111 or
112) and not directly from a RIB 113. Additionally, multiple VRPs
(e.g., 111 and 112) are embodied on a single VRF 110 and use the
same RIB 112 and FIB 114. This provides an integrated solution that
permits a single VPN site 130 to use a single VRF 110 to
participate in multiple VPNs. Moreover, VPN interfaces and PE to CE
interfaces are associated with the VRF 110 and not the VRPs (e.g.,
111 and 112). In fact, any routing protocol operational on the VRF
110 can interact with other protocols, including each of the VRPs
(e.g., 111 and 112) indirectly through the RIB 112 by importing and
exporting routes. Thus, a single protocol instance could be used to
provide routing information to the VPN site 130 (e.g. at the CE
131) for all VPNs.
[0031] Traffic received from the CE 131 and PE system 100
interfaces is used to access the VRF's FIB 114. If the traffic is
outbound traffic then routes are sent to the PE backbone 120 using
the interface 121. And, the data packets are sent to the PE
backbone 120 using data plane interface 115. The data packets are
sent as labeled packets (label stacking can be used) to the
backbone 120. Similarly, traffic received by the backbone 120 is
sent to the VRF as IP packets (e.g., not labeled) over the
interface 121 (e.g., routes) and data plane 115 (e.g., data
packets). Data can be forwarded using the VRF's FIB 114 to the VPN
site 130.
[0032] The LFIB 122 is used by the PE backbone 120 for forwarding
VPN data packets received at the PE backbone 120. For outbound
traffic, a labeled entry lookup is performed against the LFIB 122.
The lookup results in the traffic being forwarded on backbone 140
using tunnel 141. The tunnel 141 provides a path to another PE
system 100 and another PE backbone device 120. The traffic is sent
via the tunnel 141 as labeled packets. For inbound traffic, the
labeled entry lookup in the LFIB 122 results in forwarding the
traffic to an appropriate VRF 110 as IP packets (e.g., not
labeled). Additionally, in some embodiments of the present
invention, a LFIB 122 does not reside on the PE backbone 120,
rather, a combination FIB/LFIB can be implemented on the VRF 110,
in this way the PE backbone 120 is not required to do any lookup on
received data packets.
[0033] As one of ordinary skill in the art now appreciates, mapping
of multiple VPNs to a single VRF 110 is asymmetrical and unique
within the context of embodiments of the present invention. A
control data plane 115 associated with a backbone 120 is used to
communicate data packets between the VRF 110 and the backbone 120.
Moreover, VPN interfaces and CE to PE interfaces are associated
with the VRF 110 and not the VRPs (e.g., 111 and 112). Interactions
between the VRPs (e.g., 111 and 112) are achieved through the
single RIB 112.
[0034] FIG. 2 illustrates another diagram of a distributed PE
system 200, according to an embodiment of the present invention.
The PE system 200 includes a VRF 210 having a plurality of VRPs
(e.g., 211 and 212). The VRF also includes a single RIB 212 and a
single FIB 214. Moreover, the PE system 200 includes a backbone
device 220 having a first data plane 215 and a second data plane
216, a LFIB 222, and in some embodiments a FIB 223. The PE system
200 can be implemented using a single computing device, a plurality
of computing devices, or a plurality of components of computing
devices. The PE system 200 can also be compliant with IETF
standards.
[0035] The PE backbone device 220 is interfaced to backbone 240,
which includes a first tunnel 241 and a second tunnel 242. In some
embodiments, backbone 240 also includes an Internet tunnel 243.
Although, as one skilled in the art recognizes, the Internet tunnel
is actually just an Internet connection, since data packets do not
need to be labeled with Internet traffic. In this way, a FIB 220
can be used in some embodiments, within the PE backbone 220. The
tunnels (e.g., 241-243) can be MPLS Labeled Switched Paths (LSPs),
IP-Sec, or any other tunnel capable of carrying labeled packets.
Direct or indirect mapping of VPN routes can be used to route
packets to one of the tunnels (e.g., 241-243). If indirect mapping
is used, then a LFIB 222 lookup (e.g., swap or transform) is
required for outbound VPN traffic.
[0036] The VRPs (e.g., 211 and 212) reside on the VRF 210; each VRP
(e.g., 211 or 212) represents a separate VPN occurring within the
VRF 210. Moreover, the VRF 210 communicates with a VPN site 230
having a CE device 231. The VRF uses a plurality of interfaces
associated with the different VPNs and the CE to PE communications
to interact with the CE 231.
[0037] Each of the VRPs (e.g., 211 and 212) has access to the first
215 and second data planes 216. Each data plane (e.g., 215 and 216)
corresponds to data packets associated with a different type of VPN
or Internet traffic. The VRPs (e.g., 211 and 212) communicate
directly with the RIB 212 and indirectly with the FIB 214 to
selectively determine which data plane (e.g., first 215 or second
216) to use when communicating with the PE backbone device 220.
Control information (e.g., routes) is sent by the VRPs (e.g., 211
and 212) to the PE backbone's control interface 221.
[0038] In one embodiment, the first tunnel 241 is a first VPN and
the second tunnel 242 is a second VPN. Moreover, in some
embodiments, the first tunnel can be represented as an Internet
connection 243 (e.g. destined for an Internet routing device on the
Internet), and the second tunnel 242 is a VPN tunnel. Furthermore,
in one embodiment, the first tunnel 241 is an Intranet tunnel and
the second tunnel 242 is an Extranet tunnel. Of course a variety of
tunnel communications can also be used with the present disclosure.
All such tunnel combinations are included within the broad scope of
the present invention. Moreover, each tunnel (e.g., 241-243) can
have different services enabled or associated with them. For
example, the Internet connection/tunnel 243 can include NAT
services, firewall services, proxy services, and the like. In this
way, the VRF 210 can detect the data plane (e.g., 215 or 216) and
force the appropriate services or polices required for the received
data packets. Additionally, if Internet and VPN traffic are using
the same services and policies then a data plane 216 can be used to
communicate between the PE backbone device 220 and the VRF 210.
[0039] As one of ordinary skill in the art now appreciates, various
embodiments of PE system 200 can permit a single instance of a VRF
210 to support multiple disparate VPNs through the use of instances
of different VRPs (e.g., 211 and 212) enabled on the single VRF
210. Moreover, secure Extranet and Intranet communications can be
achieved for a single PE system 200 using multiple data planes
(e.g., 215 and 216) between the VRPs (e.g., 211 and 212) and the PE
backbone device 220 to select the appropriate tunnel (e.g., 241,
242, or 243). Further, a single VRF 210 can support both VPN
traffic as well as Internet traffic. The flexible approach of PE
system 100 also permits modifications (e.g., new instances of VRPs
(e.g., 211 and 212) or new developed control planes, using new
identifiers for the data packets) to be installed more easily into
the PE system 200 when additional tunnels and networks are
created/needed in the future.
[0040] FIG. 3 illustrates still another diagram of a distributed PE
system 300, according to an embodiment of the present invention.
The PE system 100 includes a VRF 310 having a first VRP 311 and a
second VRP 312. The VRF 310 also includes a single RIB 312 and a
single FIB 314. Furthermore, PE system 100 includes a first PE
backbone device 320 associated with a first SP, and a second PE
backbone device 330 associated with a second SP. The PE system 100
can be implemented and distributed across one or a plurality of
computing devices, or on a plurality of components of computing
devices. The PE system 100 can be virtual, physical, or a
combination of both virtual and physical. Moreover, the PE system
100 can be compliant with IETF standards.
[0041] The PE backbone devices (e.g., 320 and 330) communicate with
a backbone 350 having a first tunnel 351 and a second tunnel 352.
The first PE backbone 320 uses the first tunnel 351 to communicate
with the first SP. Similarly, the second PE backbone 330 uses the
second tunnel 352 to communicate with the second SP.
[0042] The VRF 310 uses a plurality of VPN interfaces and CE to PE
interfaces to communicate with a VPN Site 360 having a CE 360. The
first VRP 311 is designed to directly access the RIB 312 to acquire
route information associated with the first SP. This information is
passed along to the first backbone 320 by using interface 321.
Moreover, the data packets are relayed to the first PE backbone 320
using a first data plane 315 with an identifier. The identifier is
then used to lookup forwarding information in a LFIB 322. A
determination is made that the data packets need to be relayed via
the first tunnel 351 associated with the first SP.
[0043] The second VRP 312 is designed to directly access the RIB
312 to acquire route information associated with the second SP.
This information is passed along to the second backbone 330 by
using interface 321, Moreover, the data packets are relayed to the
second PE backbone 330 using a second data plane 316 with an
identifier. The identifier is then used to lookup forwarding
information in a LFIB 332. A determination is made that the data
packets need to be relayed via the second tunnel 352 associated
with the second SP.
[0044] In some embodiments of PE system 300, the tunnels (e.g., 351
and 352) communicate with additional PE systems 300 having
additional backbones (e.g., 320 and/or 330). Moreover, outbound
traffic destined for one of the tunnels (e.g., 351 or 352) is sent
as labeled data packets. Inbound traffic received by one of the
backbones (e.g., 320 or 330) is forwarded to the VRPs (e.g., 311
and 312) as IP data packets. Additionally, in some embodiments, the
backbones (e.g., 320 and 330) and the VRF 310 are enabled with BGP
for importing and exporting routes from the RIB 312 directly and
indirectly from the FIB 314.
[0045] PE system 300 permits a single VRF 310 associated with a CE
361 to handle network traffic associated with multiple SPs. This
permits a single VPN customer the opportunity to use multiple SP
backbone providers. Thus, a single customer site can allow multiple
participants into a VPN, where the multiple participants each use a
different SP to connect and communicate with the VPN. Additionally,
this functionality cannot be provided with RFC2547.
[0046] FIG. 4 illustrates a flow diagram of one method 400 for
processing network traffic on a distributed PE, according to an
embodiment of the present invention. Initially, in 410, a first
data packet is received at a PE device. The first data packet is
associated with a first VPN transaction from a customer site.
Concurrently, in 412, a second data packet is received at the PE.
The second data packet is associated with a second VPN transaction
from the customer site.
[0047] In 420, the first data packet is associated with a first
VRP. The first VRP resides on a VRF. The VRF interfaces with a CE
at the customer site. Moreover, in 430, the first VRP acquires
first addressing/routing information about the first data packet
through a single RIB residing on the VRF. Also, the RIB indirectly
provides the first VRP with information from a single FIB also
residing on the VRF.
[0048] In 422, the second data packet is associated with a second
VRP. The second VRP also resides with the first VRP on the VRF.
Similarly, in 432, the second VRP acquires second
addressing/routing information about the second data packet through
the RIB directly and the FIB indirectly (e.g., through the RIB). In
some embodiments, the first and second addressing/routing
information is acquired by the VRPs by using BGP on the VRF to
import and export routing information.
[0049] Both VRPs, in 440, use a single data plane associated with
the VRF and a backbone device to communicate the first and second
data packets from the VRF to the PE backbone device. Additionally,
the PE backbone device can receive backbone data packets from one
or more tunnels interfaced to the PE backbone device. In one
embodiment, these backbone data packets are then located in the PE
backbone's LFIB and relayed to either the first VRP or the second
VRP via the control data plane.
[0050] In one embodiment, the association between the data packets
and the appropriate VRP is asymmetric and unique. Moreover, in some
embodiments, one or more additional data planes between the VRF and
the backbone is provided, where each of the one or more additional
data planes are associated with a different type of VPN. Some types
of VPNs can include Extranets, Intranets, custom created VPNs, and
the others. Additionally, a normalized Internet access data plane
can be provided between the VRF and the backbone to permit Internet
traffic with the VPN traffic to be sent via an Internet connection
as a non-labeled data packet.
CONCLUSION
[0051] Methods and systems detailed provide a distributed PE. These
methods and systems create permit the distribution of processing
and workload of Virtual Routing and Forwarding to multiple devices
by introducing a data plane between a VRF and a PE backbone device.
The VRF includes a single RIB and FIB, but includes multiple
instances of VRPs. Each VRP accesses the RIB and the FIB and
communicates routing information via a control plane to the PE
backbone device and data packets via the data plane to the PE
backbone device.
[0052] Furthermore, multiple data planes can be instituted to
permit integration of disparate networks over the VRF. For example,
a data plane can be used for Internet communications, Intranet
communications, and/or Extranet communications. In this way, a
single VRF instituting a plurality of VRP instances can use a set
of data planes to interface with a PE backbone device. The PE
backbone device can then use a plurality of tunnels to communicate
with additional PE systems or the Internet.
[0053] Moreover, a single VRF can be interfaced to two separate PE
backbone devices using disparate SPs. This is achieved by having a
single VRP instance for each PE backbone device within the VRF. The
appropriate VRP uses the VRF's RIB to identify data packets
associated with a particular SP. The VRPs then use data planes from
the VRF to the appropriate PE backbone device in order to transfer
the data packets. The PE backbone device then uses the appropriate
SP's tunnel to communicate with the appropriate SP.
[0054] Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and
described herein, it will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill
in the art that any arrangement that is calculated to achieve the
same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodiments shown.
This application is intended to cover any adaptations or variations
of the embodiments of the present invention described herein.
Therefore, it is intended that this invention be limited only by
the claims and the equivalents thereof.
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