JP5526047B2 - Packet relay apparatus and output destination determination method in packet relay apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a packet relay device.

  A packet relay device such as a switch or a router is used as a device for configuring a network such as a local area network (LAN). The packet relay device has a plurality of physical ports and is connected to clients and other packet relay devices via cables connected to the physical ports. When the packet relay apparatus receives the packet, the packet relay apparatus creates a table for determining the destination based on the information (source address, destination address, VLAN-ID, etc.) included in the packet header, the received physical port, and the like. The output destination (the physical port that is the output destination, the VLAN of the output destination, etc.) is determined with reference to the above. As a table for determining an output destination, for example, in a layer 2 switch, a physical port is associated with a VLAN-ID (VLAN identification information assigned by a client) and a VLAN value (information for identifying a VLAN in the switch). A plurality of tables such as a table, a table that associates a destination MAC (Media Access Control) address, an output destination physical port, and an output destination VLAN-ID are used.

  In such a packet relay device, instead of a physical port to which a cable has already been connected (hereinafter referred to as a “physical port before switching”) for the convenience of operation, another physical port (hereinafter referred to as “post-switching”) is used. The physical port used for communication may be changed by switching the cable to the “physical port”) (hereinafter referred to as “connection port switching”). In this case, in addition to the cable reconnection work, it is necessary to change the setting contents of various tables for determining the output destination. For example, the user operates the management terminal connected to the layer 2 switch, deletes the entry related to the physical port before switching in each table, and then changes the physical port number in the settings of the deleted entry Add an entry for the physical port after switching. In order to reduce the workload associated with such connection port switching, a technique has been proposed in which, when connection port switching is detected, an entry relating to the physical port before switching is automatically deleted from the forwarding table (Patent Document 1). . Note that when the forwarding table is updated, the operation of the switch is stopped.

International Publication Number WO-2008 / 111128

  In the technology that automatically deletes entries related to physical ports before switching from the table when connection port switching is detected, all entries related to physical ports before switching are deleted, and then entries related to physical ports after switching are added. Since table updating is performed, it takes a long time to update the table. In particular, when there are multiple tables to be updated, it takes a long time to complete the update of all tables, and it takes a long time to resume operation (resume packet relay processing using the updated table). There was a problem.

  An object of the present invention is to shorten the period until the operation is restarted when switching connection ports in a packet relay device.

SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following forms or application examples.
[Mode 1] A packet relay device, comprising: a plurality of physical ports for transmitting and receiving packets; a plurality of logical ports each of which is a bundle of two or more physical ports; and a plurality of virtual ports; A one-to-one correspondence table; a link aggregation table that associates each logical port with the two or more physical ports that constitute each logical port; and any one of the plurality of logical ports. An output destination specifying table for associating output destination specifying information used for specifying an output destination of a received packet and any one of the plurality of virtual ports; from the received packet to the output destination An output destination specifying information acquisition unit for acquiring the specific information; referring to the output destination specifying table; An output destination virtual port determination unit that determines an output destination virtual port that is the virtual port that is an output destination of the received packet based on fixed information; and the determined output destination virtual port with reference to the port correspondence table And an output destination determination unit that determines the physical port corresponding to the determined logical port as an output destination of the received packet with reference to the link aggregation table. A packet relay device.

Application Example 1 A packet relay device,
Multiple physical ports to send and receive packets;
A pair of the plurality of physical ports and the plurality of virtual ports, or a logical port that is a logical port obtained by bundling two or more physical ports, and a pair of the plurality of logical ports and the plurality of virtual ports. Port correspondence table associated with 1,
Output destination specifying information used for specifying an output destination of a received packet received by any one of the plurality of physical ports or any one of the plurality of logical ports; and An output destination specifying table for associating one of the virtual ports with the virtual port;
An output destination specifying information acquisition unit for acquiring the output destination specifying information from the received packet;
Referring to the output destination specifying table, based on the acquired output destination specifying information, an output destination virtual port determining unit that determines an output destination virtual port that is the virtual port that is an output destination of the received packet;
With reference to the port correspondence table, an output destination determination unit that determines the physical port or the logical port corresponding to the determined output destination virtual port as an output destination of the received packet;
A packet relay device.

  In the packet relay apparatus of Application Example 1, in the output destination specification table referred to when determining the output destination, the output destination specifying information is associated with the virtual port instead of the physical port or the logical port, and In the port correspondence table, the physical port or logical port and the virtual port are associated with 1: 1. Therefore, when the connection port is switched, it is only necessary to change (update) the association between the physical port or logical port and the virtual port in the port correspondence table, and the update of the output destination specifying table can be omitted. Generally, the output destination specifying table is more complex than the port correspondence table, and the output destination specifying table is composed of a larger number of tables. It is possible to shorten the period required for the process. Therefore, in the packet relay apparatus, the period until the operation is restarted when the connection port is switched can be shortened. In addition, it is possible to reduce the user burden of setting changes accompanying connection port switching.

Application Example 2 In the packet relay device according to claim 1,
The output destination specifying information includes at least a destination address of the received packet,
The output destination specifying table includes a destination table that associates at least one of the plurality of virtual ports with a destination address of the received packet,
The output destination virtual port determining unit refers to the output destination specifying table, and determines the virtual port that is the output destination of the received packet based on the destination address of the received packet.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to omit updating a relatively complicated destination table in which a virtual port and a destination address of a received packet are associated with each other when switching connection ports.

Application Example 3 In the packet relay device according to claim 2, further comprising:
A receiving-side virtual port identifying unit that identifies the virtual port corresponding to the physical port or the logical port that has received the received packet with reference to the port correspondence table;
A packet relay unit that relays the received packet to the determined output destination;
With
The output destination specifying information includes at least a destination address of the received packet and a VLAN-ID set in a header of the received packet,
The destination table associates any one of the plurality of virtual ports, the destination address of the received packet, and a VLAN value for identifying a VLAN in the packet relay device,
The output destination specifying table is:
The destination table;
A VLAN determination table associating any one of the plurality of virtual ports with the VLAN-ID of the received packet and the VLAN value;
A VLAN-ID conversion table associating the output destination virtual port, the VLAN value, and the VLAN-ID;
Including
The output destination determining unit refers to the VLAN determination table, and based on the specified receiving virtual port and the VLAN-ID of the received packet, the VLAN destination to which the transmission source of the received packet belongs Determining the VLAN value;
The output destination virtual port determination unit refers to the destination table, and determines the output destination virtual port for the received packet based on the determined VLAN value and the destination address included in the header of the received packet. Determine the port,
The output destination determination unit refers to the VLAN-ID conversion table and uses the VLAN-ID used when outputting the received packet based on the determined output destination virtual port and the determined VLAN value. Determine the ID,
The packet relay unit writes the determined VLAN-ID into a header of the received packet and outputs the received packet from the physical port or the logical port determined as the output destination .

  With such a configuration, when a VLAN is set in the packet relay device and the device connected to the packet relay device, it is possible to realize packet relay in the VLAN. In addition, even if the configuration includes a total of three tables, ie, a VLAN determination table, a destination table, and a VLAN-ID conversion table, as an output table, when the connection port is switched, It is only necessary to update the period, and the period required for the setting change at the time of switching the connection port can be shortened, and the burden of the user's setting work can be reduced.

Application Example 4 In the packet relay device according to claim 3,
When the output destination virtual port determination unit refers to the destination table, the determined VLAN value and the destination address of the received packet are associated with any of the virtual ports in the destination table. If not, the virtual port associated with the same VLAN value as the VLAN value associated with the virtual port that received the received packet, and the virtual port that received the received packet A packet relay device that determines all other virtual ports except for as the output destination virtual ports.

  With such a configuration, the packet relay device receives a packet to an unknown destination when the VLAN value and the destination address included in the packet header in the destination table are not associated with any virtual port. Even in this case, the packet can be output (relayed) toward the destination.

Application Example 5 In the packet relay device according to claim 3 or 4,
When the received packet is received, the output destination virtual port determining unit associates the determined VLAN value and the source address of the received packet with any virtual port in the destination table. If not, in the destination table, the determined VLAN value, the source address of the received packet, the virtual port associated with the physical port or the logical port that received the received packet, A packet relay device.

  With such a configuration, when the VLAN value and the transmission source address are not associated with any virtual port in the destination table, that is, when the packet relay apparatus receives a packet from an unknown apparatus (transmission source). Since the address, VLAN value, and virtual port of the transmission source are associated with the destination table, when the packet addressed to the unknown device is received, the output destination is specified with reference to the destination table. can do. Therefore, when a new device is connected to the packet relay device, the user does not need to register the device in the destination table, and the user's work load can be reduced.

Application Example 6 In the packet relay device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
A packet comprising a user interface that allows updating of the correspondence between the plurality of physical ports and the plurality of virtual ports or the correspondence between the plurality of logical ports and the plurality of virtual ports in the port correspondence table; Relay device.

  With such a configuration, when the connection port is changed, the user can update the port correspondence table using the user interface.

Application Example 7 In the packet relay device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The packet relay device, wherein the packet is a layer 2 frame.

  With such a configuration, a device that relays a layer 2 frame (for example, a layer 2 switch) can be adopted as a packet relay device, and the period until the operation is resumed when the connection port is switched in the layer 2 switch or the like is shortened. can do.

Application Example 8 A method for determining an output destination of a received packet in a packet relay device having a plurality of physical ports that transmit and receive packets,
(A) In the packet relay device, the plurality of physical ports and the plurality of virtual ports, or a logical port that is a logical port obtained by bundling two or more physical ports, Associating a plurality of virtual ports on a one-to-one basis;
(B) In the packet relay device, used to specify an output destination of a received packet received by any one of the plurality of physical ports or any one of the plurality of logical ports. Associating output destination specifying information with any one of the plurality of virtual ports;
(C) in the packet relay device, obtaining the output destination specifying information from the received packet;
(D) The packet relay apparatus refers to the output destination specifying table and determines an output destination virtual port that is the virtual port serving as the output destination of the received packet based on the acquired output destination specifying information. Process,
(E) in the packet relay device, referring to the port correspondence table, determining the physical port or the logical port corresponding to the determined output destination virtual port as an output destination of the received packet;
A method comprising:

  In the method of the application example 8, in the output destination specifying table referred to when determining the output destination, the output destination specifying information is associated with the virtual port instead of the physical port or the logical port, and the port correspondence In the table, physical ports or logical ports and virtual ports are associated with 1: 1. Therefore, when the connection port is switched, it is only necessary to change (update) the association between the physical port or logical port and the virtual port in the port correspondence table, and the update of the output destination specifying table can be omitted. Generally, the output destination specifying table is more complex than the port correspondence table, and the output destination specifying table is composed of a larger number of tables. It is possible to shorten the period required for the process. Therefore, in the packet relay apparatus, the period until the operation is restarted when the connection port is switched can be shortened. In addition, it is possible to reduce the user burden of setting changes accompanying connection port switching.

Application Example 9 In a packet relay device having a computer and a plurality of physical ports that transmit and receive packets, a program for determining an output destination of a received packet,
(A) Each of the physical ports and a plurality of virtual ports, or a logical port that is a logical port in which two or more physical ports are bundled, and the plurality of logical ports and the plurality of virtual ports, A one-to-one correspondence function;
(B) output destination specifying information used for specifying an output destination of a received packet received by any one of the plurality of physical ports or any one of the plurality of logical ports; A function of associating any one of the plurality of virtual ports;
(C) a function of acquiring the output destination specifying information from the received packet;
(D) a function of referring to the output destination specifying table and determining an output destination virtual port that is the virtual port serving as an output destination of the received packet based on the acquired output destination specifying information;
(E) a function of referring to the port correspondence table to determine the physical port or the logical port corresponding to the determined output destination virtual port as an output destination of the received packet;
A program for causing the computer to realize the above.

  In the program of the application example 9, in the output destination specifying table referred to when determining the output destination, the virtual destination is associated with the output destination specifying information, not the physical port or the logical port, and the port correspondence In the table, physical ports or logical ports and virtual ports are associated with 1: 1. Therefore, when the connection port is switched, it is only necessary to change (update) the association between the physical port or logical port and the virtual port in the port correspondence table, and the update of the output destination specifying table can be omitted. Generally, the output destination specifying table is more complex than the port correspondence table, and the output destination specifying table is composed of a larger number of tables. Therefore, the setting change accompanying connection port switching is performed by the program of application example 9. It is possible to shorten the period required for the process. Therefore, in the packet relay apparatus, the period until the operation is restarted when the connection port is switched can be shortened. In addition, it is possible to reduce the user burden of setting changes accompanying connection port switching.

  Application Example 10 A computer-readable recording medium on which the program according to claim 9 is recorded.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to cause a computer to read a program using such a recording medium and realize each function.

  The present invention can be realized in various modes. For example, a network system or a control method of the network system, a computer program for realizing the functions of the network system and the control method, and the computer program It can be realized in the form of a recorded recording medium.

It is explanatory drawing which shows schematic structure of the network system using the packet relay apparatus as one Example of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the functional block of the 1st switch shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of initial setting contents of a virtual port table illustrated in FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of initial setting contents of a VLAN determination table illustrated in FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of initial setting contents of a destination table illustrated in FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of initial setting contents of a flooding table illustrated in FIG. 2. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the initial setting content of the real physical port conversion table shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the initial setting content of the VLAN-ID conversion table shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the command input into the screen for a setting at the time of initialization. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the destination registration process performed in a 1st switch. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the destination search process performed in a 1st switch. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structural example of the network system after the switching of the connection port in 1st Example. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement procedure of the reset process performed in 1st Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the command input into the screen for a setting in the reset process of 1st Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows the setting content of the virtual port table updated when the command shown in FIG. 14 is input. FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram illustrating setting contents of an actual physical port conversion table updated when the command illustrated in FIG. 14 is input. It is explanatory drawing which shows the functional block of the switch of a comparative example. It is a 1st flowchart which shows the work procedure of the reset process performed in a comparative example. It is a 2nd flowchart which shows the work procedure of the reset process performed in a comparative example. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the command input into the screen for a setting in the reset process of a comparative example. It is explanatory drawing which shows schematic structure of the network system using the packet relay apparatus in 2nd Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows the functional block of the 6th switch shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the initial setting content of the virtual port table in 2nd Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the initial setting content of the VLAN determination table in 2nd Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the initial setting content of the destination table in 2nd Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the initial setting content of the flooding table in 2nd Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the initial setting content of the line port conversion table shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the initial setting content of the VLAN-ID conversion table in 2nd Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows the initial setting content of the LAG table shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the command input into the screen for a setting at the time of initial setting in 2nd Example. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the destination search process of 2nd Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structural example of the network system after the switching of the connection port in 2nd Example. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement procedure of the reset process performed in 2nd Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of an input of the command for a setting input by step S310 of a reset process in 2nd Example. FIG. 35 is an explanatory diagram illustrating setting contents of a virtual port table that is updated when the command illustrated in FIG. 34 is input. FIG. 35 is an explanatory diagram showing setting contents of a line port conversion table that is updated when the command shown in FIG. 34 is input. It is explanatory drawing which shows the setting content of the LAG table updated when the command shown in FIG. 34 is input.

A. First embodiment:
A1. System configuration:
FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of a network system using a packet relay apparatus as an embodiment of the present invention. The network system 10 includes a first switch SW1, a second switch SW2, a third switch SW3, a fourth switch SW4, a fifth switch SW5 as packet relay apparatuses, and six personal computers PC1, PC2, PC3 as clients. , PC4, PC5, PC6, and realizes data transmission / reception between the clients.

  Each of the five switches SW1 to SW5 is a switch that relays a frame of layer 2 (second layer (data link layer) in the OSI reference model). The first switch SW1 includes four physical ports P11, P12, P13, and P14. Here, the “physical port” is an existing port and means a port to which one independent (one pair) cable (line) is connected. Each physical port has an input physical port and an output physical port. A network cable L2 is connected to the physical port P11. Similarly, a network cable L3 is connected to the physical port P12, a network cable L4 is connected to the physical port P13, and a network cable L5 is connected to the physical port P14. The first switch SW1 is connected to the other four switches SW2 to SW5. Specifically, the first switch SW1 is connected to the second switch SW2 via the network cable L2. The first switch SW1 is connected to the third switch SW3 via the network cable L3, the fourth switch SW4 via the network cable L4, and the fifth switch SW5 via the network cable L5.

  The second switch SW2 includes four physical ports P21, P22, P23, and P24. A network cable L2 is connected to the physical port P21. A personal computer PC1 is connected to the physical port P22 via a network cable. Similarly, a personal computer PC2 is connected to the physical port P23 via a network cable. A network cable is not connected to the physical port P24.

  The third switch SW3 includes four physical ports P31, P32, P33, and P34. A network cable L3 is connected to the physical port P31. A personal computer PC3 is connected to the physical port P32 via a network cable. A network cable is not connected to the two physical ports P33 and P34.

  The fourth switch SW4 includes four physical ports P41, P42, P43, and P44. A network cable L4 is connected to the physical port P41. A personal computer PC4 is connected to the physical port P42 via a network cable. A network cable is not connected to the two physical ports P43 and P44.

  The fifth switch SW5 includes four physical ports P51, P52, P53, and P54. A network cable L5 is connected to the physical port P51. A personal computer PC5 is connected to the physical port P52 via a network cable. Similarly, a personal computer PC6 is connected to the physical port P53 via a network cable. A network cable is not connected to the physical port P54.

  Each of the personal computers PC1 to PC6 includes a network interface card (not shown) that realizes communication at layer 2, and a network cable is connected to the network interface card. A MAC (Media Access Control) address is set for each of the network interface cards of the personal computers PC1 to PC6. Specifically, the MAC address “A1” is set in the network interface card of the personal computer PC1. In general, the MAC address is represented by 48 bits, but in this embodiment, for convenience of explanation, the MAC address is represented by a schematic identifier. Similarly, the network interface card of the personal computer PC2 has the MAC address “A2”, the network interface card of the personal computer PC3 has the MAC address “A3”, and the network interface card of the personal computer PC4 has the MAC address “A4”. The MAC address “A5” is set in the network interface card of the personal computer PC5, and the MAC address “A6” is set in the network interface card of the personal computer PC6.

  In addition, the VLAN-ID of the VLAN to which the personal computer PC1 to PC6 belongs is set in each personal computer PC1 to PC6. Specifically, VLAN-ID “10” is set in the personal computer PC1. Similarly, VLAN-ID “20” is assigned to personal computer PC2, VLAN-ID “10” is assigned to personal computer PC3, VLAN-ID “40” is assigned to personal computer PC4, and VLAN-ID is assigned to personal computer PC5. “30” is set to the VLAN-ID “60” in the personal computer PC6. The VLAN-ID is an identifier for identifying the VLAN in each client belonging to the VLAN.

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing functional blocks of the first switch shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the first switch SW <b> 1 includes a transfer circuit 100, a header processing unit 200, and a storage unit 300. The transfer circuit 100 includes the physical ports P11 to P14 described above, extracts a layer 2 frame from signals received at the physical ports P11 to P14, and also outputs a layer 2 frame from the physical ports P11 to P14 serving as output destinations. Is output. In addition, the transfer circuit 100 notifies the header processing unit 200 of information in the extracted header of the layer 2 frame and information on the input port (information of the physical port that has input the layer 2 frame).

  The header processing unit 200 is a functional unit that analyzes header information and input port information notified from the transfer circuit 100 and determines an output destination, and can be configured by, for example, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). The header processing unit 200 includes a port virtualization unit 210, a VLAN determination unit 220, a destination search unit 230, an actual physical port conversion unit 240, and a VLAN-ID conversion unit 250.

  The port virtualization unit 210 converts the physical port into a virtual port described later. The VLAN determination unit 220 determines the VLAN to which the received packet belongs. The destination search unit 230 searches for a virtual port as an output destination (transfer destination) of the received packet. The real physical port conversion unit 240 converts the virtual port into a physical port. The VLAN-ID converter 250 determines the VLAN-ID of the packet to be output.

  The storage unit 300 can be configured by a writable nonvolatile memory (for example, an EEPROM: Electronically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory). The storage unit 300 includes a virtual port table 310, a VLAN determination table 320, a destination table 330, a flooding table 340, a real physical port conversion table 350, and a VLAN-ID conversion table 360 in advance.

  FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the virtual port table shown in FIG. The virtual port table 310 is referred to when the port virtualization unit 210 converts a physical port into a virtual port. As shown in FIG. 3, the virtual port table 310 associates an input physical port with an input virtual port. The input physical port means an input-side physical port of the physical port, and the input virtual port means an input-side virtual port of the virtual port. Here, the “virtual port” is a virtual (logical) port, which is different from an actual port, and means a port used only in the setting of each table. The virtual port has an input virtual port (input-side virtual port) and an output virtual port (output-side virtual port), like the physical port.

  In the example of FIG. 3, in the virtual port table 310, the input physical port “PI1” (meaning the physical port on the input side of the physical port P11) and the input virtual port “VPI1” (the virtual port on the input side of the virtual port VP1) Means). Similarly, in the virtual port table 310, the input physical port “PI2” and the input virtual port “VPI2”, the input physical port “PI3” and the input virtual port “VPI3”, and the input physical port “PI4” and the input virtual The port “VPI4” is associated with each other. Thus, in the virtual port table 310, input physical ports and input virtual ports are associated with each other on a one-to-one basis. In other words, each input physical port is associated with only one input virtual port, and each virtual input port is associated with only one input physical port.

  Such initial setting contents of the virtual port table 310 are manually set by a user (system administrator or the like). In the example of FIG. 3, the input physical port and the input virtual port are associated with each other in numerical order. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and an arbitrary method for associating the input physical port and the input virtual port one-to-one. The input physical port and the input virtual port can be associated with each other.

  FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the VLAN determination table shown in FIG. The VLAN determination table 320 is referred to when the VLAN is set by the VLAN determination unit 320. As illustrated in FIG. 4, the VLAN determination table 320 associates an input virtual port, a VLAN-ID, and a VLAN (VLAN value). The VLAN-ID is set in a part of the header of the layer 2 frame (VLAN tag) as defined in IEEE 802.1Q. The VLAN (VLAN value) is an identifier for identifying each VLAN in the first switch SW1. In this embodiment, the same value as the VLAN-ID is used. A configuration in which a value different from the VLAN value can be set as the VLAN-ID.

  In the example of FIG. 4, in the VLAN determination table 320, the input virtual port “VPI1”, VLAN-ID “10”, and VLAN (VLAN value) “10” are associated with each other. Similarly, in the VLAN determination table 320, the input virtual port “VPI2”, the VLAN-ID “20”, and the VLAN “20” are included, and the input virtual port “VPI2”, the VLAN-ID “40”, and the VLAN “40” are included. , The input virtual port “VPI3”, the VLAN-ID “10”, and the VLAN “10”, the input virtual port “VPI4”, the VLAN-ID “30”, and the VLAN “30” are the input virtual port “VPI4”. VLAN-ID “60” and VLAN “60” are associated with each other. A plurality of VLAN-IDs (and VLAN values) are associated with the same input virtual port because a plurality of VLANs can be set for one virtual port. Note that the first switch SW1 (and all other switches SW2 to SW6) does not relay packets (layer 2 frames) between different VLANs, but only between physical ports belonging to the same VLAN. Relay. With such a configuration, the network can be divided into a plurality of logical network segments, and communication in one network segment can be prevented from affecting communication in another network segment.

  Such initial setting contents of the VLAN determination table 320 are manually set by a user (system administrator or the like) based on the initial setting contents of the virtual port table 310. Specifically, for example, the user sets the VLAN-ID “10, 20” ahead of the input physical port “PI1” associated with the input virtual port “VPI1” in the initial setting of the virtual port table 310. PC with the value of is connected. Therefore, in the VLAN determination table 320, the user associates the input virtual port “VPI1” and the VLAN-ID “10” with the VLAN “10” (entry on the first row) and the input virtual port “VPI1”. And an entry (second row entry) that associates VLAN “20” with VLAN-ID “20”.

  FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the destination table shown in FIG. The destination table 330 is referred to when the destination search unit 230 determines the output destination of the received packet. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the destination table 330 associates a VLAN (VLAN value), a MAC address, and a virtual port.

  In the example of FIG. 5, in the destination table 330, VLAN “10”, MAC address “A1”, and virtual port “VP1” are associated with each other. Similarly, in the destination table 330, the VLAN “10”, the MAC address “A3”, the virtual port “VP2”, the VLAN “20”, the MAC address “A2”, and the virtual port “VP1” are the VLAN “30”. And MAC address “A5” and virtual port “VP4”, VLAN “40”, MAC address “A4” and virtual port “VP3”, VLAN “60”, MAC address “A6” and virtual port “VP4”. Are associated with each other. Each setting content of the destination table 330 is set by destination registration processing described later.

  FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the flooding table shown in FIG. The flooding table 340 is a table that is referred to when the destination MAC address set in the received packet is not registered in the destination table 330, and associates the VLAN (VLAN value) with the output virtual port. In the first switch SW1, when the destination MAC address of the received packet is not registered in the destination table 330, that is, when a packet to an unknown destination is received, all destinations (devices) belonging to the same VLAN as the VLAN of the received packet So-called flooding is performed to relay received packets. The flooding table 340 is a table that is referred to during the flooding.

  In the example of FIG. 6, the VLAN “10” and the output virtual ports “VPO1, VPO2” are associated with each other in the flooding table 340. Similarly, the VLAN “20” and the output virtual port “VPO1”, the VLAN “30” and the output virtual port “VPO4”, the VLAN “40” and the output virtual port “VPO3” are the VLAN “60”. The output virtual port “VPO4” is associated with each other.

  Such initial setting contents of the flooding table 340 are manually set based on the initial setting contents of the VLAN determination table 320. Specifically, for example, in the initial setting of the VLAN determination table 320, an entry that associates the VLAN “10” with the input virtual port “VPI1” and the VLAN-ID “10” with which the input physical port PI1 is associated is created. The entry that associates the VLAN “10” is set to the input virtual port “VPI2” and the VLAN-ID “10” associated with the input physical port PI2. Therefore, in the flooding table 340, “VPO1, VPO2” that are output virtual ports are set for the VLAN “10”.

  FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the real physical port conversion table shown in FIG. The real physical port conversion table 350 is referred to when the virtual port is converted into a physical port by the real physical port conversion unit 240. As shown in FIG. 7, the real physical port conversion table 350 associates output virtual ports with output physical ports.

  In the example of FIG. 7, in the real physical port conversion table 350, the output virtual port “VP01” (meaning the output-side virtual port of the virtual port VP1) and the output physical port “PO1” (the output-side physical port of the physical port P11 are indicated). Meaning). Similarly, in the real physical port conversion table 350, the output virtual port “VP02” and the output physical port “PO2” are the output virtual port “VP03” and the output physical port “PO3” are the output virtual port “VP04”. The output physical port “PO4” is associated with each other. Such initial setting contents of the real physical port conversion table 350 are manually set by a user (system administrator or the like).

  FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the VLAN-ID conversion table shown in FIG. The VLAN-ID conversion table 360 is referred to when the VLAN-ID of the packet output by the VLAN-ID conversion unit 250 is determined. As shown in FIG. 8, the VLAN-ID conversion table 360 associates output virtual ports, VLANs (VLAN values), and VLAN-IDs.

  In the example of FIG. 8, in the VLAN-ID conversion table 360, the output virtual port “VPO1”, the VLAN “10”, and the VLAN-ID “10” are associated with each other. Similarly, the output virtual port “VPO2”, VLAN “20”, VLAN-ID “20”, the output virtual port “VPO2”, VLAN “10”, and VLAN-ID “10” are output virtual port “VPO3”. ", VLAN" 40 ", and VLAN-ID" 40 ", output virtual port" VPO4 ", VLAN" 30 ", and VLAN-ID" 30 ", output virtual port" VPO4 ", VLAN" 60 ", and VLAN. -ID “60” is associated with each other. Such initial setting contents of the VLAN-ID conversion table 360 are manually set by a user (system administrator or the like).

  As described above, the initial settings of the virtual port table 310, the VLAN determination table 320, the flooding table 340, the actual physical port conversion table 350, and the VALN-ID conversion table 360 are manually set by the user. This setting can be realized, for example, by a user inputting a command on a setting screen displayed on a management terminal (such as a personal computer) connected to the first switch SW1. The setting screen may be generated by the first switch SW1, transmitted to the management terminal, and displayed. A configuration in which the management terminal generates and displays a setting screen can also be adopted.

  FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a command input to the setting screen at the time of initial setting. In FIG. 9, a command for initial setting is input on the setting screen W1. In FIG. 9, only a part of the commands inputted at the time of initial setting are shown. Specifically, a command for associating the physical port P12 and the virtual port VP2 is input to the area Ar1 in the setting screen W1. Similarly, a command for associating the physical port P14 and the virtual port VP4 is input to the area Ar2. Although omitted in FIG. 9, commands associated with the virtual ports VP1 and VP3 are input to the other physical ports P11 and P13, respectively. The virtual port table 310 and the real physical port conversion table 350 are set by inputting these commands.

  In the setting screen W1, a command for associating the virtual port VP2 with the VLAN-ID “10” is input to the area Ar3. Similarly, a command for associating the virtual port VP4 with the VLAN-ID “30, 60” is input to the area Ar4. Although omitted in FIG. 9, a command for associating another virtual port with a VLAN-ID is also input. The VLAN determination table 320, the flooding table 340, and the VLAN-ID conversion table 360 are set by inputting these commands.

  The functional configurations of the other switches SW2 to SW5 are the same as the functional configuration of the first switch SW1 described above, except for the setting contents of each table stored in the storage unit 300, and thus the description thereof is omitted.

  The virtual port table 310 and the real physical port conversion table 350 described above correspond to the port correspondence table in the claims. The VLAN determination table 320, the destination table 330, the flooding table 340, and the VLAN-ID conversion table 360 are in the output destination specifying table in the claims, the port virtualization unit 210 is in the receiving virtual port specifying unit in the claims, The destination search unit 230 is the output destination virtual port determination unit in the claims, the real physical port conversion unit 240 and the VLAN-ID conversion unit are the output destination determination unit in the claims, and the transfer circuit 100 is the output destination specification information acquisition in the claims. The setting screen W1 corresponds to the user interface and the packet relay unit.

A2. Address registration process and address search process:
In the first switch SW1, when a layer 2 frame is received at any physical port, a destination registration process and a destination search process are executed. The destination registration process means a process of adding an entry related to a frame destination to the destination table 330. The destination search process means a process of searching and determining the output destination (output destination physical port and output VLAN) of the received frame.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a procedure of destination registration processing executed in the first switch. In the first switch SW1, the port virtualization unit 210 refers to the virtual port table 310 based on the input port information of the received frame notified from the transfer circuit 100, determines the virtual port number, The destination search unit 230 is notified (step S105). For example, when a frame addressed to the personal computer PC3 is received from the personal computer PC1 at the physical port P11 of the first switch SW1, the port virtualization unit 210 refers to the virtual port table 310 and determines the virtual port “VPI1”. To do.

  The VLAN determination unit 220 refers to the VLAN determination table 320 based on the virtual port number notified from the port virtualization unit 210 and the VLAN-ID of the received packet from the transfer circuit 100, determines a VLAN, and searches for a destination. The unit 230 is notified (step S110). For example, as described above, when a frame addressed to the personal computer PC3 is received from the personal computer PC1, the VLAN determining unit 220 receives the input virtual port number “VPI1” and the VLAN-ID “10”. Therefore, the VLAN determination unit 220 determines VLAN “10” with reference to the VLAN determination unit 320 shown in FIG.

  The destination search unit 230 includes the VLAN value notified from the VLAN determination unit 220, the transmission source MAC address included in the header information notified from the transfer circuit 100, and the determined input virtual notified from the port virtualization unit 210. The entry associated with the port is searched in the destination table 330 (step S115), and it is determined whether or not the entry has been registered in the destination table 330 (step S120). If it is determined in step S120 that it is unregistered, the destination search unit 230 sends the VLAN value notified from the VLAN determination unit 220, the source MAC address included in the header information notified from the transfer circuit 100, and the port virtual A new entry associated with the determined virtual port notified from the conversion unit 210 is added to the destination table 330 (step S125). For example, in the state where the uppermost entry shown in FIG. 5 (entry set with VLAN “10”, MAC address “A1”, and virtual port “VP1”) has not been registered yet, the personal computer PC1 described above performs personal When a frame addressed to the computer PC3 is received, the uppermost entry shown in FIG. 5 is added. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S120 that registration has been completed, the destination registration process ends. As described above, the first switch SW1 receives a frame from a new transmission source or receives a frame via a new VLAN (when receiving a frame in which a new VLAN-ID is set). The MAC address of the transmission source, the VLAN, and the virtual port are learned.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of destination search processing executed in the first switch. In the first switch SW1, the destination search unit 230 is notified from the VLAN value notified from the VLAN determination unit 220, the transmission source MAC address included in the header information notified from the transfer circuit 100, and the port virtualization unit 210. The entry associated with the determined input virtual port is searched in the destination table 330 (step S205), and it is determined whether or not the entry has been registered in the destination table 330 (step S210). The notification of the VLAN value from the VLAN determination unit 220 is performed in step S110 of the destination registration process described above. Also, the notification of the input virtual port from the port virtualization unit 210 is performed in step S105 of the destination registration process described above.

  If it is determined in step S210 that registration has been completed, the destination search unit 230 determines the output virtual port included in the virtual port of the found entry as a virtual port to which the frame is to be output, and the determined output virtual port, VLAN value, Is notified to the real physical port conversion unit 240 and the VLAN-ID conversion unit 250 (step S215).

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S210 that the packet is not registered, the destination search unit 230 refers to the flooding table 340 and refers to the virtual port that has received the packet, that is, the VLAN determined in step S110 in the above-described destination registration process. Among the virtual ports associated with (VLAN value) and the output virtual ports associated with the same VLAN, other output virtual ports excluding the output virtual port corresponding to the virtual port that received the packet are received packets. The virtual port to be output is determined, and the determined virtual port and VLAN value are notified to the real physical port conversion unit 240 and the VLAN-ID conversion unit 250 (step S235). For example, when a frame (VLAN-ID: 10) addressed to a personal computer (not shown) is received from the personal computer PC1, there is no entry including the MAC address of the destination personal computer in the destination table 330. In this case, in step S235, out of the output virtual ports “VPO1, VPO2” included in the entry of VLAN “10” in the flooding table 340, the output corresponding to the virtual port VP1 associated with the physical port P11 that receives the frame. Other output virtual ports VPO2 excluding the virtual port VOP1 are determined as virtual ports to which received packets are to be output.

  The real physical port conversion unit 240 refers to the real physical port conversion table 350 based on the output virtual port notified from the destination search unit 230 in step S215 or step S235, determines an output destination physical port, and transfers the transfer circuit. 100 is notified (step S220). For example, as described above, when the output virtual port VPO2 is notified, the real physical port conversion unit 240 refers to the real physical port conversion table 350 and determines the output physical port PO2 as an output destination physical port.

  The VLAN-ID conversion unit 250 refers to the VLAN-ID conversion table 30 based on the output virtual port and VLAN (VLAN value) notified from the destination search unit 230, determines the VLAN-ID, and sends it to the transfer circuit 100. Notification is made (step S225). For example, as described above, when the output virtual ports “VP02” and VLAN “10” are notified, the VLAN-ID conversion unit 250 refers to the VLAN-ID conversion table 360 and sets the VLAN-ID “10”. decide.

  As a result of the above destination search processing, for example, when the physical port “PO2” and the VLAN-ID “10” as the output destination are notified, the transfer circuit 100 adds the VLAN-ID “10” to the header of the received packet. The frame is set and output from the physical port PO2 (that is, the port on the output side of the physical port P12).

A3. Switch connection port:
FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example of the network system after the connection port is switched in the first embodiment. FIG. 12 shows a configuration after the connection port is switched (change of the connection destination device) in the two ports of the first switch SW1 from the configuration of FIG. Specifically, in the physical port P12, the network cable L5 is replaced instead of the network cable L3, and as a result, the physical port P51 of the fifth switch SW5 is connected to the physical port P12. Similarly, in the physical port P14, the network cable L3 is replaced instead of the network cable L5, and as a result, the physical port P31 of the third switch SW3 is connected to the physical port P14.

  Such switching of connection ports is performed for the purpose of facilitating network management, for example, “in the first switch SW1, a plurality of physical ports accommodating the same VLAN are adjacent to each other”. In this embodiment, after the connection port is switched (the network cable is replaced), the resetting process described later is executed, so that the personal computers under the switch connected to the switched port can communicate normally. Can be done (resume). Here, in this embodiment, by using the virtual port described above, the resetting process executed after the connection port is switched is simplified.

A4. Reconfiguration process:
FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the work procedure of the resetting process executed in the first embodiment. After the connection port switching as shown in FIG. 12, the user displays a setting screen on a management terminal (not shown) connected to the first switch SW1, and the physical port and the virtual port are displayed from the setting screen. A setting command for associating is input (step S305).

  FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a command input to the setting screen in the resetting process according to the first embodiment. FIG. 14 shows an input example of a command corresponding to the connection port switching shown in FIG. 12 on the setting screen W1. As shown in FIG. 9 described above, in the initial setting, a command for associating the virtual port VP2 with the physical port P12 and associating the virtual port VP4 with the physical port P14 is input. On the other hand, after switching the connection ports shown in FIG. 12, as shown in FIG. 14, a command for associating the physical port P12 with the virtual port VP4 is input to the area Ar11. Similarly, a command that associates the physical port P14 with the virtual port VP2 is input to the area Ar12. These commands are handled by the administrator by replacing the virtual ports associated with each other before switching the connection ports for the two physical ports P12 and P14 of the first switch SW1. It is judged and input so that it can be attached.

  Returning to FIG. 13, the port virtualization unit 210 updates the virtual port table 310 based on the input command (step S310).

  FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram showing the setting contents of the virtual port table updated when the command shown in FIG. 14 is input. As described above, the command shown in FIG. 14 is a command that associates the physical port P12 with the virtual port VP4 and associates the physical port P14 with the virtual port VP2. Accordingly, as a result of inputting such a command, as shown in FIG. 15, in the virtual port table 310, the input virtual port VPI4 is associated with the input physical port PI2, and the input virtual port VPI2 is associated with the input physical port PI4. .

  As shown in FIG. 13, after the virtual port table 310 is updated, the real physical port conversion unit 240 updates the real physical port conversion table 350 based on the input command (step S315).

  FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram showing the setting contents of the real physical port conversion table updated when the command shown in FIG. 14 is input. As described above, the command shown in FIG. 14 is a command that associates the physical port P12 with the virtual port VP4 and associates the physical port P14 with the virtual port VP2. Therefore, as a result of inputting such a command, as shown in FIG. 16, in the actual physical port conversion table 350, the output physical port PO4 is associated with the output virtual port VPO2, and the output physical port PO2 is associated with the output virtual port VPO4. Attached.

  When the resetting process is completed, the personal computers under the switch connected to the switched port can normally send and receive data. For example, consider a case where data is transmitted from the personal computer PC3 to the personal computer PC1 after the connection port shown in FIG. 12 is switched and the above-described resetting process is performed. In the first switch SW1, when the frame addressed to the personal computer PC1 output from the personal computer PC3 is received by the physical port P14, the destination registration process shown in FIG. 10 and the destination search process shown in FIG. 11 are executed.

  In step S105 of the destination registration process, the input virtual port “VPI2” is determined by referring to the virtual port table 310 after the setting change shown in FIG. 15 based on the input port information (input physical port: PI4). In step S110, the VLAN determination table 320 is referred to based on the VLAN-ID “10” and the virtual port number “VP2 (VPI2)” included in the header information, and the VLAN “10” is determined. Since the entries of VLAN “10”, MAC “A3”, and virtual port “VP2” have already been registered in the destination table 330, the destination registration process ends without adding a new entry.

  In the destination search process, steps S205, 210, and 215 are executed, and the destination table 330 is referred to based on the VLAN value “10” and the destination MAC address “A1” determined in step S105 described above, and is used as an output virtual port. “VP1 (VPO1)” is determined. In step S220, the output physical port “PO1 (P11)” is determined as the output destination physical port based on the updated real physical port conversion table 350 shown in FIG. In step S225, the VLAN-ID conversion table 360 is referred to based on the output virtual ports “VPO1” and VLAN “10”, and the VAN-ID “10” is determined.

  Thus, the frame addressed to the personal computer PC1 output from the personal computer PC3 after the connection port is switched is set to “10” as the VLAN-ID in the first switch SW1 and output from the physical port P11 (output physical port PO1). Is done. Therefore, the personal computer PC1 can receive such a frame as a frame addressed to itself.

  As described above, the command input in the resetting process of the first embodiment is only a setting command for newly associating a physical port and a virtual port with respect to a physical port for which connection port switching has been performed. Further, there are only two tables that are updated by this command, the virtual port table 310 and the real physical port conversion table 350.

A5. Comparative example:
FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram illustrating functional blocks of a switch of a comparative example. A switch SW10 illustrated in FIG. 17 is a conventional switch as a comparative example, and does not include the port virtualization unit 210, the real physical port conversion unit 240, the virtual port table 310, and the real physical port conversion table 350. In other respects, unlike the first switch SW1 shown in FIG. 2, the other configurations are the same as those of the first switch SW1. Specifically, the switch SW10 includes a transfer circuit 700 having physical ports P11 to P14, a header processing unit 800, and a storage unit 900. The header processing unit 800 includes a VLAN determination unit 820, a destination search unit 830, and a VLAN-ID conversion unit 850. The storage unit 900 stores a VLAN determination table 920, a destination table 930, a flooding table 940, and a VLAN-ID conversion table 960.

  The VLAN determination table 920 of the comparative example is different from the VLAN determination table 320 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 4 in that an input physical port is used instead of the input virtual port. The same. The destination table 930 of the comparative example is different from the destination table 330 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 5 in that a physical port is used instead of a virtual port, and other configurations are the same as the destination table 330. The flooding table 940 of the comparative example is different from the flooding table 340 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 6 in that an output physical port is used instead of the output virtual port, and the other configuration is the same as the flooding table 340. is there. The VLAN-ID conversion table 960 of the comparative example is different from the VLAN-ID conversion table 360 of the first embodiment in that an input physical port is used instead of the input virtual port, and the other configuration is the VLAN-ID conversion table. The same as 360.

  FIG. 18 is a first flowchart showing the work procedure of the resetting process executed in the comparative example. FIG. 19 is a second flowchart showing the work procedure of the resetting process executed in the comparative example. After the process shown in FIG. 18 is executed, the process shown in FIG. 19 is executed. In the comparative example, similarly to the embodiment, after the connection port is switched as shown in FIG. 12, the resetting process is executed. In the resetting process, first, the user displays a setting screen on the management terminal connected to the switch SW10, and deletes various commands related to the real physical port before switching (before switching the connection port) A command for setting the same content as the set content for the real physical port after switching is input (step S805).

  FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a command input to the setting screen in the resetting process of the comparative example. FIG. 20 shows input examples of various conventional commands corresponding to the connection port switching shown in FIG. 12 on the setting screen W10. In the setting screen W10, a command for deleting various settings before switching related to the physical port P12 is input to the area Ar81. In the area Ar82, a command for deleting various settings related to the physical port P14 before switching is input. In the area Ar83, a command for adding various settings after switching related to the physical port P12 is input. Specifically, a command for associating VLAN “30, 60” is input to the physical port P12. Similarly, a command for adding various settings after switching related to the physical port P14 is input to the area Ar84. Specifically, a command for associating VLAN “10” is input to the physical port P14.

  As illustrated in FIG. 18, the VLAN determination unit 820 deletes an entry related to the real physical port before switching (before switching connection ports) from among the entries of the VLAN determination table 920 in accordance with the input command (step S810). . When the command shown in FIG. 20 (commands input to the areas Ar81 and Ar82) is input, the VLAN determination unit 820 deletes the entries related to the physical ports P12 and P14 from the VLAN determination table 920.

  In accordance with the input command, the destination search module 830 deletes the entry related to the real physical port before switching (before switching the connection port) from the entries in the destination table 930 (step S815). When the command shown in FIG. 20 (the command input in the areas Ar81 and Ar82) is input, the destination search module 830 deletes the entries related to the physical ports P12 and P14 from the destination table 930.

  The VLAN-ID conversion unit 850 deletes the entry related to the real physical port before switching among the entries of the VLAN-ID conversion table 960 in accordance with the input command (step S820). When the command shown in FIG. 20 (the command input to the areas Ar81 and Ar82) is input, the VLAN-ID conversion unit 850 deletes the entries related to the physical ports P12 and P14 from the VLAN-ID conversion table 960.

  In accordance with the input command, the destination search module 830 deletes the entry related to the real physical port before switching (before switching the connection port) from among the entries in the flooding table 940 (step S825). When the command shown in FIG. 20 (the command input in the areas Ar81 and Ar82) is input, the destination search module 830 deletes the entries related to the physical ports P12 and P14 from the flooding table 940. The above steps S810 to S825 complete the deletion of entries that are unnecessary after connection port switching in each table.

  After step S825, as shown in FIG. 19, the VLAN determination unit 820 adds a new entry related to the switched port in the VLAN determination table 920 in accordance with the input command (step S830).

  The VLAN-ID conversion unit 850 adds a new entry related to the port after switching in the VLAN-ID conversion table 960 according to the input command (step S835).

  The destination search unit 830 adds a new entry related to the port after switching in the flooding table 940 in accordance with the input command (step S840).

  The destination search unit 830 adds a new entry for the port after switching in the destination table 930 according to the input command (step S845).

  As described above, in the switch SW10 of the comparative example, after the connection port is switched, the user changes the command for deleting the entry related to the port before the switching and the same content set in the deleted entry after the switching. And a command to be set in association with the physical port. Therefore, the burden on the user regarding the setting change is large. In addition, in the switch SW10 of the comparative example, according to the input command, an entry related to the port before switching is deleted from each table in each table, and then a new entry related to the port after switching is added to each table. Therefore, it takes a long time to complete the update of all the tables.

  On the other hand, in the first switch SW1 of the first embodiment, the command to be input by the user in the resetting process is only a setting command for newly associating the physical port and virtual port after switching. Therefore, the work burden on the user when switching the connection port is extremely small. In addition, there are only two tables that are updated in the resetting process, the virtual port table 310 and the real physical port conversion table 350. Therefore, the period required to complete the table update is very short. Therefore, in the first switch SW1 of the first embodiment, it is possible to shorten the period until the operation is resumed when the connection port is switched.

  In addition, when an entry including the destination MAC address of the received frame is not registered in the destination table 330, out of the output virtual ports associated with the same VLAN as the VLAN associated with the virtual port that received the packet Since the output virtual ports other than the output virtual port corresponding to the virtual port that received the packet are determined as the virtual ports for outputting the received packet, the unknown device (not registered in the destination table 330) Packets can also be output (relayed) to (device).

  Further, when a destination registration process is executed and a packet is received from an unknown device (a device not registered in the destination table 330), an entry related to the device is automatically added to the destination table 330. As for a client (personal computer) newly participating in the user 10, the user does not have to manually add an entry to the destination table 330, and the work load on the user can be reduced.

B. Second embodiment:
B1. System configuration:
FIG. 21 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of a network system using the packet relay device in the second embodiment. The network system 10a includes a sixth switch SW6, a seventh switch SW7, an eighth switch SW8, and a ninth switch SW9 instead of the five switches SW1 to SW5 as a packet relay device, and each switch SW6. The point where SW9 has a link aggregation function and the determination of the output destination of one logical port (hereinafter referred to as “logical port”) obtained by bundling a plurality of physical ports by this ring aggregation function Unlike the network system 10 of the first embodiment, the other configuration is the same as that of the network system 10 in that it is used in place of the physical port.

  As shown in FIG. 21, the sixth switch SW6 includes the same four physical ports P11 to P14 as the first switch SW1 of the first embodiment. Similarly, the seventh switch SW7 has four physical ports P71, P72, P73 and P74, the eighth switch SW8 has four physical ports P81, P82, P83 and P84, and the ninth switch SW9 has four physical ports P91, P92, P93, and P94 are provided.

  A network cable L7 is connected to the physical port P11 provided in the sixth switch SW6. A network cable L81 is connected to the physical port P12, a network cable L82 is connected to the physical port P13, and a network cable L9 is connected to the physical port P14. The sixth switch SW6 is connected to the other three switches SW7 to SW9. Specifically, the sixth switch SW6 is connected to the seventh switch SW7 via the network cable L7. The sixth switch SW6 is connected to the eighth switch SW8 via the two network cables L81 and L82 and to the ninth switch SW9 via the network cable L9.

  As described above, the sixth switch SW6 and the eighth switch SW8 are connected by the two cables L81 and L82 in order to realize the link aggregation function. That is, the link connected by these two cables is used as one logical line (hereinafter referred to as “logical line”) LAG1, thereby realizing expansion of the communication band and securing of redundancy. At this time, in the sixth switch SW6, the two physical ports P12 and P13 connected to the two network cables L81 and L82 are used as one logical port. Similarly, in the eighth switch SW8, two physical ports P81 and P82 are used as one logical port.

  FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram showing functional blocks of the sixth switch shown in FIG. The sixth switch SW6 includes a point that the header processing unit 200a includes a LAG search unit 260, a point that the line port conversion table 350a is stored in the storage unit 300a instead of the actual physical port conversion table 350, and the storage Unlike the first switch SW1 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the configuration of the part 300a is the same as that of the first switch SW1 in that the LAG table 370 is stored. The LAG search unit 260 is a functional unit that searches for a physical port to which a logical line is connected.

  FIG. 23 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the virtual port table in the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, the input virtual port “VPI2” is associated with the input physical port “PI3”, and the input virtual port “VP3” is associated with the input physical port “PI4”. However, unlike the setting contents of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the other setting contents are the same as those in FIG. Thus, the same input virtual port “VPI2” is associated with two input physical ports “PI2, PI3” because these input physical ports PI2, PI3 are 1 in the logical line LAG1. This is to form one logical port.

  FIG. 24 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the VLAN determination table in the second embodiment. The three entries from the top as counted from the top row shown in FIG. 24 are the same as the setting contents of the first embodiment shown in FIG. The entries in the fourth to sixth stages shown in FIG. 24 are different from the corresponding entries in FIG. Specifically, in the fourth entry, the input virtual port “VPI2”, the VLAN-ID “40”, and the VLAN “40” are associated with each other. In the fifth entry, the input virtual port “VPI3”, VLAN-ID “30”, and VLAN “30”. In the sixth entry, the input virtual port “VPI3”, VLAN-ID “60”, and VLAN “ 60 ”, respectively.

  FIG. 25 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the destination table in the second embodiment. The three entries from the top as counted from the top row shown in FIG. 25 are the same as the setting contents of the first embodiment shown in FIG. The entries from the fourth level to the sixth level shown in FIG. 25 are different from the corresponding entries in FIG. Specifically, in the fourth entry, VLAN “30”, MAC address “A5”, and virtual port “VP3” are associated with each other. In the fifth entry, the VLAN “40”, the MAC address “A4”, and the virtual port “VP2” are used. In the sixth entry, the VLAN “60”, the MAC address “A6”, and the virtual port “VP3” are used. Are associated with each other.

  FIG. 26 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the flooding table in the second embodiment. The two entries from the top shown in FIG. 26 are the same as the setting contents of the first embodiment shown in FIG. The entries from the third level to the fifth level shown in FIG. 26 are different from the corresponding entries in FIG. Specifically, in the entry in the third row, the VLAN “30” and the output virtual port “VPO3” are associated with each other. Further, the VLAN “40” and the output virtual port “VPO2” are associated with each other in the fourth row entry, and the VLAN “60” and the output virtual port “VPO3” are associated with each other in the fifth row entry.

  FIG. 27 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the line port conversion table shown in FIG. In the line port conversion table 350a, the output virtual port and the output line port are associated with each other. The output line port is meant to include an output physical port and an output logical port. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 27, in the initial setting, the output port “VPO1” is associated with the output physical port “PO1” as the output line port. Further, the output port “VPO2” is associated with the logical line “LAG1” as the output line port. Further, the output virtual port “VPO3” is associated with the output physical port “PO4” as the output line port. Here, in the entry in the second row from the top, a logical line number is associated instead of the output logical port. In the second embodiment, as will be described later, the LAG table 370 is used to convert the logical line number to the output line port.

  FIG. 28 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the initial setting contents of the VLAN-ID conversion table in the second embodiment. The three entries from the top as counted from the top row shown in FIG. 28 are the same as the setting contents of the first embodiment shown in FIG. The entries from the fourth level to the sixth level shown in FIG. 28 are different from the corresponding entries in FIG. Specifically, in the fourth entry, the output virtual port “VPO2”, the VLAN “40”, and the VLAN-ID “40” are associated with each other. In the fifth entry, the output virtual ports “VPO3”, VLAN “30”, and VLAN-ID “30” are displayed. In the sixth entry, the output virtual ports “VPO3”, VLAN “60”, and VLAN-ID are displayed. “60” is associated with each other.

  FIG. 29 is an explanatory diagram showing the initial setting contents of the LAG table shown in FIG. The LAG table 370 is a table that is referred to when determining an output destination in the second embodiment, and associates a logical line, the total number of output destinations, and an output physical port. The total number of output destinations means the number of links constituting the logical line (the number of bundled physical lines). As shown in FIG. 29, in the initial state, the LAG 370 is associated with the logical line “LAG1”, the total number of outputs “2”, and the two output physical ports “PO2, PO3”.

  Each of the above-described tables excluding the destination table 330 is manually set by a user (system administrator or the like), like the virtual port table 310 of the first embodiment. For example, this can be realized by the user inputting a command on the setting screen displayed on the management terminal connected to the sixth switch SW6.

  FIG. 30 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a command input to the setting screen at the time of initial setting in the second embodiment. In FIG. 30, a command for initial setting is input on the setting screen W2. In FIG. 30, as in FIG. 9 of the first embodiment, only a part of the commands input at the time of initial setting are shown. In FIG. 30, a command for associating the physical port “P11” with the virtual port “VP1” is input to the area Ar21 in the setting screen W2. Similarly, a command for associating two physical ports “P12, P13” with a virtual port “VP2” is input to the area Ar22. Although omitted in FIG. 30, commands for associating with the virtual port VP3 are also input to the other physical ports P14. By inputting these commands, the virtual port table 310 and the line port conversion table 350a are set.

  In the setting screen W2, a command for associating the virtual port VP1 with the VLAN-ID “10, 20” is input to the area Ar23. It should be noted that the VLAN determination table 320, the flooding table 340, and the VLAN- are input by inputting a command input to an area Ar25, which will be described later, and a command (not shown) that associates the virtual port “VP3” with the VLAN-ID “30, 60”. An ID conversion table 360 is set.

  In the setting screen W2, a command for associating the virtual port VP2 with the logical line LAG1 is input to the area Ar24. The output line ports “PO2, PO3 (P12, P13)” associated with the output virtual port “VPO2 (VP2)” in the line port conversion table 350a are input to the area Ar24 by the above-described command input to the area Ar22. The command is updated to the logical line “LAG1”. In addition, the LAG table 370 is set by the command input to the area Ar22 and the command input to the area Ar24.

  In addition, a command for associating the logical line LAG1 with the VLAN-ID “10, 40” is input to the area Ar25. By inputting such a command, as described above, the settings of the VLAN determination table 320, the flooding table 340, and the VLAN-ID conversion table 360 are realized.

B2. Address search processing:
FIG. 31 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of destination search processing according to the second embodiment. The destination search process of the second embodiment is the same as the destination search of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 11 in that step S220a is executed instead of step S220 and steps S222, S223, and S224 are additionally executed. Unlike the processing, the other processing is the same as in the first embodiment.

  Specifically, when the output virtual port is determined in steps S215 and S235 described above, the real physical port conversion unit 240 stores the line port conversion table 350a based on the output virtual port notified from the destination search unit 230. Referring to the output virtual port, the output virtual port is converted into an output line port (step S220a).

  For example, when data is sent from the personal computer PC1 shown in FIG. 21 to the personal computer PC3, step S215 is executed to notify the output virtual port “VPO2”. Therefore, the real physical port conversion unit 240 refers to the line port conversion table 350a shown in FIG. 27 and converts it to the output destination line “LAG1”.

  The LAG search unit 260 determines whether or not the line port converted in step S220a is a logical port (step S222). If the LAG search unit 260 determines that the line port is a logical port (step S222: YES), the line port ( The LAG table 370 is searched for an entry in which the LAG number) is set (step S223). For example, as described above, if the converted output line port is “LAG1” meaning a logical port, the LAG search unit 260 can find an entry with reference to the LAG table 370 shown in FIG. .

  The LAG search unit 260 determines a physical port for outputting a packet (layer 2 frame) from the physical ports set in the entry found in step S223 based on a predetermined algorithm, and sends it to the transfer circuit 100. Notification is made (step S224). For example, as described above, when an entry in which the logical line LAG1 shown in FIG. 29 is set is found in step S223, two output physical ports PO2 and PO3 are set in this entry. Therefore, the LAG search unit 260 determines one of the two output physical ports PO2 and PO3 as a physical port for outputting a packet. As a predetermined algorithm for determining a physical port, for example, one of two types of hash values (for example, “0” and “1”) is based on path information such as a destination MAC address and a source MAC address. A method can be employed in which a hash value is obtained using a calculated formula and is determined based on the obtained hash value. In addition, for example, a method of selecting a plurality of physical ports in a predetermined order by a round robin method may be employed.

  When the output physical port is determined in step S224, the above-described step S225 is executed, and the VLAN-ID is determined and notified to the transfer circuit 100. Thus, for example, when “PO2” is determined as the physical port for outputting a packet in step S224, and “10” is determined as the VLAN-ID in step S225, the transfer circuit 100 determines that the personal computer PC1. The VLAN-ID “10” is set in the header of the frame received from, and the frame is output from the physical port PO2 (that is, the output port of the physical port P12).

B3. Switch connection port:
FIG. 32 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of the network system after the connection port is switched in the second embodiment. FIG. 32 shows a configuration after the connection ports are switched in the two ports of the sixth switch SW6 from the configuration of FIG. Specifically, in the physical port P11, the network cable L81 is replaced instead of the network cable L7. As a result, the physical port P81 of the eighth switch SW8 is connected to the physical port P11. Similarly, in the physical port P12, the network cable L7 is replaced instead of the network cable L81, and as a result, the physical port P71 of the seventh switch SW7 is connected to the physical port P12.

  In the second embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, after the connection port is switched, the resetting process described later is executed, so that the personal computers under the switch connected to the switched port can be operated normally. Communication can be performed (resumed). In the second embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, the virtual port is used to simplify the resetting process executed after the connection port is switched.

B4. Reconfiguration process:
FIG. 33 is a flowchart showing the work procedure of the resetting process executed in the second embodiment. The reset process of the second embodiment is the reset process of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 13 in that step S315a is executed instead of step S315 and the processes of steps S320 and S325 are additionally executed. Unlike the processing, the other processing is the same as in the first embodiment.

  FIG. 34 is an explanatory diagram showing an input example of the setting command input in step S310 of the resetting process in the second embodiment. FIG. 34 shows an input example of a command corresponding to the connection port switching shown in FIG. 32 on the setting screen W2. As shown in FIG. 30 described above, in the initial setting, a command for associating the virtual port VP1 with the physical port P11 and associating the virtual port VP2 with the physical ports P12 and P13 is input. On the other hand, when the connection ports shown in FIG. 32 are switched, as shown in FIG. 34, a command for associating the physical port P12 and the virtual port VP1 is input to the area Ar31 in the setting screen W2. Similarly, a command for associating the physical port P11 and the virtual port VP2 is input to the area Ar32. The physical port P13 is already associated with the virtual port VP2, and need not be associated again. These commands allow the administrator to replace and associate the virtual ports associated with each other's physical ports before switching the connection ports for the two P11 and P12 of the sixth switch SW6. It is judged and input.

  FIG. 35 is an explanatory diagram showing the setting contents of the virtual port table updated when the command shown in FIG. 34 is input. In the setting contents of the virtual port table 310, entries relating to the two input physical ports “PI1, PI2” are updated (changed) compared to the initial setting contents shown in FIG. Specifically, the input physical port “PI1” is associated with the input virtual port “VPI2”. The input virtual port “VPI1” is associated with the input physical port “PI2”.

  After executing step S310, the real physical port conversion unit 240 updates the line port conversion table 350a based on the input command (step S315a).

  FIG. 36 is an explanatory diagram showing the setting contents of the line port conversion table updated when the command shown in FIG. 34 is input. As described above, the command shown in FIG. 34 is a command that associates the physical port P12 with the virtual port VP1 and associates the physical port P11 with the virtual port VP2. Therefore, as a result of inputting such a command, as shown in FIG. 36, in the line port conversion table 350a, the output physical port PO2 is associated with the output virtual port VPO1. Note that the logical line LAG1 associated with the output virtual port VPO2 is not updated (changed) by the input of the command shown in FIG.

  Based on the input command, the LAG search unit 260 refers to the line port conversion table 350a and the LAG table 370 to determine whether or not the port for which the connection port is to be switched is a physical port constituting a logical port. Determination is made (step S320). For example, in the command input to the area Ar31 illustrated in FIG. 34, the physical port P12 is associated with the virtual port VP1 instead of the physical port P11. In the command input to the area Ar32, the physical port P11 is newly associated with the virtual port VP2 instead of the physical port P12. Therefore, the LAG search unit 260 can specify that the ports for which connection port switching is to be performed are the two physical ports P11 and P12. In addition, by referring to the LAG table 370 shown in FIG. 29, the LAG search unit 260 can determine that the two physical ports P11 and P12 are physical ports constituting the logical line LAG1.

  In step S320 described above, when it is determined that the port for which the connection port is to be switched is a physical port that constitutes a logical port (step S320: YES), the LAG search unit 260 uses the command input in step S305. Based on this, the LAG table 370 is updated (step S325). As shown in FIG. 34, two physical ports P11 and P13 are associated with the virtual port VP2 by the command input to the area Ar32. Here, as shown in FIG. 36, in the line port conversion table 350a, the logical line LAG1 is associated with the virtual port VP2. Therefore, it can be seen from the command input in the area Ar32 that the LAG search unit 260 may associate the two physical ports P11 and P13 with the logical line LAG1.

  FIG. 37 is an explanatory diagram showing the setting contents of the LAG table updated when the command shown in FIG. 34 is input. As described above, based on the command input to the area Ar32 in FIG. 34, the LAG search unit 260 can associate the two physical ports P11 and P13 with the logical line LAG1. As shown in FIG. 8, “PO1” (output port of the physical port P11) and “PO3” (output port of the physical port P13) are associated with the entry of the logical line LAG1 as the output physical port number. ing.

  In step S320 described above, when it is determined that the port for which connection port switching is to be performed is not a physical port constituting a logical port (step S320: NO), the resetting process ends. Therefore, in this case, the LAG table 370 is not updated.

  When the resetting process is completed, the personal computers under the switch connected to the switched port can normally send and receive data. For example, consider the case where data is transmitted from the personal computer PC1 to the personal computer PC3 after the connection port shown in FIG. 32 is switched and the above-described resetting process is performed.

  In step S105 of the destination registration process, the virtual port number “VP1” is determined by referring to the virtual port table 310 after the setting change shown in FIG. 35 based on the input port information (input physical port: PI2). In step S110, the VLAN determination table 320 shown in FIG. 24 is referred to based on the VLAN-ID “10” and the virtual port number “VP1 (VPI1)” included in the header information, and the VLAN “10” is determined. . Since the entries of VLAN “10”, MAC “A1”, and virtual port “VP1” have already been registered in the destination table 330 shown in FIG. 25, the destination registration process ends without adding a new entry.

  In the destination search process, steps S205, S210, and S215 are executed, and the destination table 330 shown in FIG. 25 is referred to based on the VLAN value “10” determined in the destination registration process and the destination MAC address “A3”. Then, “VP2 (VPO2)” is determined as the output virtual port. In step S220a, the line port conversion table 350a shown in FIG. 36 is referred to, and “LAG1” is determined as the line port. Therefore, in step S222, it is determined that “the converted line port is a logical port” (step S222: YES), and step S223 is executed. In step S223, the LAG table after the setting change shown in FIG. 37 is searched for an entry in which “LAG1” is set. In step S224, the two physical ports P12 and P13 set in the entry shown in FIG. One of the physical ports is determined as a physical port that outputs a packet. In step S225, based on the output virtual port “VPO2” and the VLAN “10”, the VLAN-ID conversion table 360 shown in FIG. 28 is referred to, and the VLAN-ID “10” is determined.

  Thus, the frame addressed to the personal computer PC3 output from the personal computer PC1 after the connection port switching is set to “10” as the VLAN-ID in the sixth switch SW6, and the physical port P12 (output physical port PO2) or physical Output from port P13 (output physical port PO3). Therefore, the personal computer PC3 can receive such a frame as a frame addressed to itself.

  The sixth switch SW6 of the second embodiment described above has the same effect as the first switch SW1 of the first embodiment. In addition, in the sixth switch SW6 of the second embodiment, even if a part or all of the physical ports constituting the logical port are the target ports for connection port switching, only a simple command is input, Switching can be realized. The tables updated when the connection port is switched are the virtual port table 310, the line port conversion table 350a, and the LAG table 370. The other four tables 320, 330, 340, and 360 are not updated. can do. Therefore, it is possible to shorten the period until the operation is resumed when the connection port is switched.

C. Variations:
In addition, elements other than the elements claimed in the independent claims among the constituent elements in each of the above embodiments are additional elements and can be omitted as appropriate. The present invention is not limited to the above-described examples and embodiments, and can be implemented in various modes without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the following modifications are possible.

C1. Modification 1:
In each embodiment, the layer 2 switch is employed as the packet relay device, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, instead of the layer 2 switch, any other packet (excluding the layer 2 frame) such as a device that relays the layer 3 packet such as a layer 3 switch or router, a fiber channel switch, an ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) switch, etc. A device that relays a collection of data) can be employed. For example, when a router is used instead of the layer 2 switch, it is preferable to associate interface information (for example, a physical port) that outputs a layer 3 packet with a virtual port. With such a configuration, it is not necessary to update the routing table provided in the layer 3 switch or the router every time the connection port is switched, and the downtime associated with the switching of the connection port can be shortened.

  In addition, the above-described dedicated device for relaying packets, such as a layer 2 switch or a router, may be employed as well as another device having a function for relaying packets. For example, a server device or a storage device can be employed. Specifically, in a configuration in which the server device includes a plurality of input / output interfaces, a failure of a device (for example, another server device) connected to each input / output interface by associating each input / output interface with a virtual port. For example, when the connection interface is switched, the period until the operation is resumed after switching can be shortened. In addition, it is possible to realize holding (not updating) information associated with the port of each device.

C2. Modification 2:
In each embodiment, flooding is performed when no entry including the destination MAC address of the received frame is registered in the destination table in step S210 of the destination search process. However, the present invention is not limited to this. is not. For example, when the destination MAC address is not registered in the destination table, instead of executing flooding, the received packet is discarded, or the received packet is discarded and the information indicating the discard is transmitted to the transmission source. You can also

C3. Modification 3:
In each embodiment, a functional unit (header processing units 200 and 200a and storage units 300 and 300a) that determines an output destination (destination) of a packet and a functional unit that transfers a packet (transfer circuit 100) are in the same case. Instead of being incorporated in the body, these two functional units can be incorporated in different cases. For example, the switch having the transfer circuit 100 and a switch (casing) different from the switch connected to the switch, and a device (for example, a personal computer) including the header processing units 200 and 200a and the storage units 300 and 300a. Computer). In this configuration, the switch and the device having the function of determining the output destination connected to the switch correspond to the packet relay device in the claims.

C4. Modification 4:
In each embodiment, when a destination registration process is executed and a packet is received from a newly connected device, an entry is added to the destination table 330 based on the received packet header information, the received port information, and the like ( However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it is possible to adopt a configuration in which the user registers destination entries related to all assumed terminals in the destination table 330 in advance.

C5. Modification 5:
In each embodiment, the setting screen is displayed on the management terminal connected to the switches SW1 and SW6. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, if the switches SW1 and SW6 are configured to include a display unit (for example, a liquid crystal display) on the front surface of the housing, a configuration in which a setting screen is displayed on the display unit may be employed. The user interface of the setting screen is a CUI (Character-based User Interface), but a GUI (Graphical User Interface) may be employed instead of the CUI.

C6. Modification 6:
In each embodiment, the VLAN is set in the network systems 10 and 10a, but the present invention can be applied to a system in which no VLAN is set instead. In this configuration, for example, the physical port that is the output destination can be determined as follows. First, a destination MAC address and a virtual port are associated in advance as a destination table. When a packet is received, the destination table is referred to, a virtual port to be output is determined based on the destination MAC address of the received packet, and the real physical port conversion table 350, or the line port conversion table 350a and the LAG table 370 are determined. To determine the corresponding physical port. Even in such a configuration, when the connection port is switched, the updating of the destination table can be omitted, and the period until the operation can be resumed can be shortened.

C7. Modification 7:
In the present invention, the configuration of the network system is not limited to the configuration in each embodiment. For example, the number of switches is 5 in the first embodiment and 4 in the second embodiment, but any number can be adopted. In addition, the client connected to each switch is a personal computer, but instead of the personal computer, a server device, a storage device, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a mobile phone terminal, etc. Can be adopted.

C8. Modification 8:
In each embodiment, a part of the configuration realized by software may be replaced with hardware. On the contrary, a part of the configuration realized by hardware may be replaced with software.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10,10a ... Network system 100 ... Transfer circuit 200, 200a ... Header processing part 210 ... Port virtualization part 220 ... VLAN determination part 230 ... Destination search part 240 ... Real physical port conversion part 250 ... VLAN-ID conversion part 260 ... LAG Search unit 300, 300a ... Storage unit 310 ... Virtual port table 320 ... VLAN determination table 330 ... Destination table 340 ... Flooding table 350 ... Real physical port conversion table 350a ... Line port conversion table 360 ... VLAN-ID conversion table 370 ... LAG table SW1 ... 1st switch SW2 ... 2nd switch SW3 ... 3rd switch SW4 ... 4th switch SW5 ... 5th switch SW6 ... 6th switch SW7 ... 7th switch SW8 ... 8th switch SW9 ... 9th switch L2 L5, L7, L81, L82, L9 ... Network cable PC1-PC6 ... Personal computer P11-P14, P21-P24, P31-P34, P41-P44, P51-P54, P71-P74, P81-P84, P91-P94 ... Physical ports Ar1 to Ar4, Ar11, Ar12, Ar21, Ar22, Ar23, Ar24, Ar25, Ar31, Ar32, Ar81, Ar82, Ar83, Ar84 ... area LAG1 ... logical line W1, W2, W10 ... setting screen 700 ... transfer circuit 800 ... Header processing unit 820 ... VLAN determination unit 830 ... Destination search unit 850 ... VLAN-ID conversion unit 900 ... Storage unit 920 ... VLAN determination table 930 ... Destination table 940 ... Flooding table 960 ... VLAN-ID conversion table Le

Claims (10)

A packet relay device,
Multiple physical ports to send and receive packets;
A plurality of logical ports are each logical port a bundle of two or more of the physical ports and virtual ports of multiple, and the port correspondence table associating one-to-one,
A link aggregation table associating each logical port with the two or more physical ports constituting each logical port;
An output destination specifying information used for specifying the destination of the received packet received by any of the logical port of the previous SL multiple logical ports, and virtual port of any of said plurality of virtual ports, the The output destination identification table to be associated,
An output destination specifying information acquisition unit for acquiring the output destination specifying information from the received packet;
Referring to the output destination specifying table, based on the acquired output destination specifying information, an output destination virtual port determining unit that determines an output destination virtual port that is the virtual port that is an output destination of the received packet;
With reference to the port correspondence table, and determines a pre-Symbol logical port that corresponds to the determined output destination virtual port, the physics by referring to the link aggregation table, corresponding to the determined logical port An output destination determining unit that determines a port as an output destination of the received packet;
A packet relay device. The packet relay device according to claim 1,
The output destination specifying information includes at least a destination address of the received packet,
The output destination specifying table includes a destination table that associates at least one of the plurality of virtual ports with a destination address of the received packet,
The output destination virtual port determining unit refers to the output destination specifying table, and determines the virtual port that is the output destination of the received packet based on the destination address of the received packet. The packet relay device according to claim 2, further comprising:
With reference to the port correspondence table, a reception-side virtual port specifying unit for specifying the virtual port corresponding to the previous SL logical port that has received the received packet,
A packet relay unit that relays the received packet to the determined output destination;
With
The output destination specifying information includes at least a destination address of the received packet and a VLAN-ID set in a header of the received packet,
The destination table associates any one of the plurality of virtual ports, the destination address of the received packet, and a VLAN value for identifying a VLAN in the packet relay device,
The output destination specifying table is:
The destination table;
A VLAN determination table associating any one of the plurality of virtual ports with the VLAN-ID of the received packet and the VLAN value;
A VLAN-ID conversion table associating the output destination virtual port, the VLAN value, and the VLAN-ID;
Including
The output destination determining unit refers to the VLAN determination table, and based on the specified receiving virtual port and the VLAN-ID of the received packet, the VLAN destination to which the transmission source of the received packet belongs Determining the VLAN value;
The output destination virtual port determination unit refers to the destination table, and determines the output destination virtual port for the received packet based on the determined VLAN value and the destination address included in the header of the received packet. Determine the port,
The output destination determination unit refers to the VLAN-ID conversion table and uses the VLAN-ID used when outputting the received packet based on the determined output destination virtual port and the determined VLAN value. Determine the ID,
The packet relaying unit writes the VLAN-ID to the determined in a header of the received packet, the physical port or we determined as the output destination, and outputs the received packet, the packet relay apparatus. In the packet relay device according to claim 3,
When the output destination virtual port determination unit refers to the destination table, the determined VLAN value and the destination address of the received packet are associated with any of the virtual ports in the destination table. If not, the virtual port associated with the same VLAN value as the VLAN value associated with the virtual port that received the received packet, and the virtual port that received the received packet A packet relay device that determines all other virtual ports except for as the output destination virtual ports. In the packet relay device according to claim 3 or 4,
When the received packet is received, the output destination virtual port determining unit associates the determined VLAN value and the source address of the received packet with any virtual port in the destination table. is when we do not have, in the destination table, the VLAN value said determined transmission source address of the received packet, and virtual port associated with the prior SL logical port that has received the received packet, the Corresponding packet relay device. The packet relay device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising:
It said port in the corresponding table, a user interface that allows the update of the correspondence between the previous SL and a plurality of logical ports and the plurality of virtual ports, the packet relay apparatus. The packet relay device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The packet relay device, wherein the packet is a layer 2 frame. In a packet relay apparatus having a plurality of physical ports for transmitting and receiving packets, a method for determining an output destination of a received packet,
(A) in the packet relay apparatus, and a plurality of logical ports, and a plurality of virtual ports, associated in a one-to-one step are each logical port a bundle of two or more of the physical ports,
(B) in the packet relay device, associating each logical port with the two or more physical ports constituting each logical port;
( C ) Used in the packet relay device to specify an output destination of a received packet received by any one of the plurality of physical ports or any one of the plurality of logical ports. Associating output destination specifying information with any one of the plurality of virtual ports;
( D ) in the packet relay device, obtaining the output destination specifying information from the received packet;
(E) in the packet relay apparatus, and based on the prior SL acquired output destination specifying information, determines the output destination virtual port is a virtual port for the destination to become of the received packet process,
(F) in the packet relay apparatus, and determines a pre-Symbol logical port that corresponds to the output destination virtual ports before Symbol determined, the physical port corresponding to the determined logical port, the output of the received packet A process to be determined first;
A method comprising: In a packet relay device having a computer and a plurality of physical ports for transmitting and receiving packets, a program for determining an output destination of a received packet,
(A) a plurality of logical ports is a logical port that bundling each two or more of the physical port, a function for associating the plurality of virtual ports, one-to-one,
(B) a function for associating each logical port with the two or more physical ports constituting each logical port;
( C ) Output destination specifying information used for specifying an output destination of a received packet received by any one of the plurality of physical ports or any one of the plurality of logical ports; A function of associating any one of the plurality of virtual ports;
( D ) a function of acquiring the output destination specifying information from the received packet;
(E) before SL on the basis of the acquired output destination specifying information, the ability to determine the virtual port in the form of the output destination virtual port as an output destination of the received packet,
(F) as well as pre-Symbol determines the pre-Symbol logical port that corresponds to the determined output destination virtual port, the physical port corresponding to the determined logical port, a function of determining the output destination of the received packet ,
A program for causing the computer to realize the above.   A computer-readable recording medium on which the program according to claim 9 is recorded.

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