Methods and arrangements in an access system

Abstract

An access system (ACC 1 ) for relating service providers (SP 1 -SPn) to users (U 11 -Um 1 ) includes an edge access server (EAS) connecting the service providers and penults (P 1 -Pk) connecting the users. User devices (UD 11 -UD 14 ) are connected via VLAN:s to a user port (UP 11 ) on the penult. The edge access server has service agents (SA 1 -SAn), an administrator (AD 1 ) and a broadcast handler (BH 1 ), which forms a handling system together with handlers (H 1 -Hk) in the penults. A user (U 11 ) decision including VLAN, service (SP 1 ) and user port (UP 1 ) is sent to the administrator (AD 1 ), which dynamically allocates to the relevant service agent (SA 1 ) a MAC address, defining a relation (R 11 ). A user device (UD 1 ) broadcasts a DHCP request unicasted together with user port (UP 11 ) to the broadcast handler (BH 1 ). The user device (UD 11 ) gets its IP address and IP address to the service sgent (SAl). The device (UD 11 ) broadcasts an ARP request which is unicasted by the penult (P 1 ), to get the MAC address to the service agent (SA 1 ). The MAC address has an internal structure, describing the switching route from source to destination.

1 . A method of switching in an access network, the access network including non-addressable nodes and being suitable for transmitting frames from an addressable source node to an addressable destination node, the frame including an address field and a payload field, the method including: 
 generating a route description over at least a part of the route through the access network from the source node to the destination node, the route description including port identities for ports on the non-addressable nodes, on which ports the nodes have to forward the frames;    allocating a locally administrated address to the destination node in accordance with the route description;    informing the source node about the destination node address;    writing in the address field of the frame to be transmitted the destination node address;    writing a direct route description in the address field of the frame to be transmitted by writing the generated route description.    
   
   
       2 . A method of switching in an access network, the access network including non-addressable nodes and being suitable for transmitting frames from an addressable source node to an addressable destination node, the frame including an address field and a payload field, the method including: 
 generating a route description over at least a part of the route through the access network from the source node to the destination node, the route description including port identities for ports on the non-addressable nodes, on which ports the nodes have to forward the frames;    allocating a locally administrated address to the destination node in accordance with the route description;    informing the source node about the destination node address;    writing in the address field of the frame to be transmitted the destination node address;    writing an indirect route description by writing in the address field of the frame to be transmitted an indication pointing out where the generated route description is to be found in the network.    
   
   
       3 . The method according to  claim 2 , wherein the source node is a user and the destination node is a service agent of a service provider.  
   
   
       4 . The method according to  claim 2 , wherein the source node is a service agent of a service provider and the destination node is a user.  
   
   
       5 . An arrangement for switching in an access network, the access network including non-addressable nodes and being suitable for transmitting frames from an addressable source node to an addressable destination node, the frame including an address field and a payload field, wherein 
 the address of the destination node is locally administrated;    the source node has information about the destination node address;    the address field of the frame to be transmitted has the destination node address;    the address field of the frame to be transmitted has a direct route description of at least a part of the route through the access network from the source node to the destination node, the direct route description including port identities for ports on the non-addressable nodes on which ports the nodes have to forward the frame.    
   
   
       6 . An arrangement for switching in an access network, the access network including non-addressable nodes and being suitable for transmitting frames from an addressable source node to an addressable destination node, the frame including an address field and a payload field, wherein 
 the address of the destination node is locally administrated;    the source node has information about the destination node address;    the address field of the frame to be transmitted has the destination node address;    the address field of the frame to be transmitted has an indication pointing out where an indirect route description of at least a part of the route through the access network from the source node to the destination node is to be found in the access network, the indirect route description including port identities for ports on the non-addressable nodes on which ports the nodes have to forward the frame.    
   
   
       7 . The arrangement according to  claim 6 , wherein the source node is a user and the destination node is a service agent of a service provider.  
   
   
       8 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the source node is a service agent of a service provider and the destination node is a user.  
   
   
       9 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the source node is a user and the destination node is a service agent of a service provider.  
   
   
       10 . The arrangement according to  claim 5 , wherein the source node is a user and the destination node is a service agent of a service provider.