IDENTIFYING NATed DEVICES FOR DEVICE-SPECIFIC TRAFFIC FLOW STEERING

Abstract

The present disclosure describes methods and apparatus for differentiating subscriber devices of a subscriber hidden by a network address translation device and enables traffic flow steering on a per device basis rather than a per subscriber basis. Identification of subscriber devices is achieved by assigning a reserved set of external ports to each subscriber device. Different service paths can be defined for different subscriber devices to provide a subscriber with a different experience for each subscriber device of the subscriber.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method implemented by a network address translation device in a private communication network of enabling device-specific traffic flow steering, in an external network, of traffic associated with one of a plurality of subscriber devices in the private communication network, the method comprising:
 reserving, for a first subscriber device associated with a first device identity, a set of external ports associated with a public IP address of the network address translation device;   receiving, from the external network, a list of devices identities for one or more subscriber devices among the plurality of subscriber devices, each subscriber device in said list of devices having a defined device-specific service path;   determining if the first device identity associated with the first subscriber device is included in the received list of device identities;   in response to determining that the first device identity associated with the first subscriber device is included in the list of device identities, sending the reserved set of external ports for the first subscriber device and associated IP address to the external network to enable traffic traversing the reserved set of ports to be steered according to a device-specific service path defined for the first subscriber device; and   in response to determining that the first identity associated with the first subscriber device is not included in the list of device identities, sending the reserved set of external ports for the first subscriber device and associated IP address to the external network to enable traffic traversing the reserved set of ports to be steered according to a default service path defined for the first subscriber device.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein reserving, for a first subscriber device associated with a first device identity, a set of external ports associated with a public IP address of the network address translation device comprises reserving the set of external ports for the first subscriber device responsive to attachment by the first subscriber device to the network address translation device. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein receiving, from a network node in the external network, a list of devices identities for one or more subscriber devices comprises receiving the list of devices responsive to attachment by the network address translation device to the external network. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein sending the reserved set of external ports for the first subscriber device to the external network comprises sending a device connect message to the external network, said device connect message including the reserved set of ports and device identity of the first subscriber device. 
     
     
         5 . A method implemented by a network node in an external communication network of enabling device-specific traffic flow steering, in the external network, of traffic associated with one of a plurality of subscriber devices, in a private network, the method comprising:
 sending, to a network address translation device in the private network, an expression of interest message including a list of devices identities for one or more subscriber devices among the plurality of the subscriber devices in which an interest is expressed and for which a device-specific service path has been defined; and   receiving, from the network address translation device, a set of reserved ports associated with a public IP address of the network address translation device for at least one subscriber device, wherein traffic from the at least one subscriber device traversing the set of reserved ports is steered according to the defined device-specific service path if the at least one subscriber device is identified in the expression of interest message and wherein traffic from the at least one subscriber device traversing the set of reserved ports is steered according to a default service path if the at least one subscriber device is absent from the expression of interest message.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , further comprising identifying subscriber devices of the subscriber for which a device-specific service path has been defined. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein identifying the subscriber devices of the subscriber for which a device-specific service path has been defined comprises:
 receiving an attach message from the network address translation device;   authenticating, responsive to the attach message, the network address translation device by performing an authentication procedure with an authentication function in the external network; and   obtaining, during the authentication procedure, a list of subscriber devices with associated device identities and service paths from the authentication function.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein receiving, from the network address translation device, a set of reserved ports associated with a public IP address of the network address translation device for at least one subscriber device comprises receiving a device connect message from the network address translation device, said device connect message including a device identity for a connecting subscriber device and the set of reserved ports for the connecting subscriber device. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 5 , further comprising sending, responsive to attachment of the network address translation device, a subscriber connect message to a network controller, said subscriber connect message including a subscriber identity and a list of subscriber devices associated with the subscriber identity and corresponding service paths for the subscriber devices. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 5 , further comprising sending a device connect message to a network controller when a subscriber device connects to the external network, said device connect message comprising a device identity for the connecting subscriber device and the set of reserved ports for the subscriber device and associated IP address. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , further comprising configuring, responsive to the device connect message, a steering network to steer traffic traversing the set of reserved ports according to a device-specific service path defined for the subscriber device. 
     
     
         12 . A network address translation device in a private communication network for enabling device-specific traffic flow steering, in an external network, of traffic associated with one of a plurality of subscriber devices in the private communication network, said network address translation device comprising:
 a first interface circuit for communicating with subscriber devices in the private network;   a second interface circuit for communicating with an external network; and   a processing circuit connected to the first and second communication interfaces, the processing circuit being configured to:
 reserve, for the first subscriber device associated with a first device identity, a set of external ports associated with a public IP address of the network address translation device; 
 receive, from the external network, a list of devices identities for one or more subscriber devices among the plurality of the subscriber devices, each subscriber device in said list of devices having a defined device-specific service path; 
 determine if the first device identity associated with the first subscriber device is included in the received list of device identities; 
 in response to determining that the first device identity associated with the first subscriber device is included in the list of device identities, sending the reserved set of external ports for the first subscriber device and associated IP address to the external network to enable traffic traversing the reserved set of ports to be steered according to the device-specific service path defined for the first subscriber device; and 
 in response to determining that the first identity associated with the first subscriber device is not included in the list of device identities, sending the reserved set of external ports for the first subscriber device and associated IP address to the external network to enable traffic traversing the reserved set of ports to be steered according to a default service path defined for the first subscriber device. 
   
     
     
         13 . The network address translation device of  claim 12 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to reserve the set of external ports for the first subscriber device responsive to attachment by the first subscriber device to the network address translation device. 
     
     
         14 . The network address translation device of  claim 12 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to receive the list of subscriber devices responsive to attachment by the network address translation device to the external network. 
     
     
         15 . The network address translation device of  claim 12 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to send the reserved set of external ports for the first subscriber device to the external network in a device connect message, the device connect message including the reserved set of external ports and device identity of the first subscriber device. 
     
     
         16 . The network address translation device of  claim 12 , wherein the network address translation device comprises a residential gateway device. 
     
     
         17 . A network node in an external network of enabling device-specific traffic flow steering, in the external network, of traffic associated with one of a plurality of subscriber devices in a private network, the network node comprising:
 an interface circuit for connecting to an external network and communicating with devices in the external network; and   a processing circuit connected to the interface circuit, the processing circuit being configured to:
 send, to a network address translation device in the private network, an expression of interest message including a list of devices identities for one or more subscriber devices among the plurality of the subscriber devices in which an interest is expressed and for which a device-specific service path has been defined; and 
 receive, from the network address translation device, a set of reserved ports associated with a public IP address of the network address translation device for at least one subscriber device, wherein traffic from the at least one subscriber device traversing the set of reserved ports is steered according to the defined device-specific service path if the at least one subscriber device is identified in the expression of interest message and wherein traffic from the at least one subscriber device traversing the set of reserved ports is steered according to a default service path if the at least one subscriber device is absent from the expression of interest message. 
   
     
     
         18 . The network node of  claim 17 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to identify subscriber devices of the subscriber for which a device-specific service path has been defined. 
     
     
         19 . The network node of  claim 17 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to:
 receive an attach message from the network address translation device;   authenticate, responsive to the attach message, the network address translation device by performing an authentication procedure with an authentication function in the external network; and   obtain, during the authentication procedure, a list of subscriber devices with associated device identities and service paths from the authentication function.   
     
     
         20 . The network node of  claim 17 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to receive the set of reserved external ports in a device connect message when a subscriber connects to an external network, the device connect message including a device identity for a connecting subscriber device and the set of reserved external ports for the connecting subscriber device and associated IP address. 
     
     
         21 . The network node of  claim 17 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to send, responsive to attachment of the network address translation device, a subscriber connect message to a network controller, the subscriber connect message including a subscriber identity and a list of subscriber devices associated with the subscriber identity and corresponding service paths for the subscriber devices. 
     
     
         22 . The network node of  claim 17 , wherein the processing circuit is further configured to send a device connect message to a network controller when a subscriber device connects to the external network, the device connect message comprising a device identity for the connecting subscriber device and set of reserved ports for the subscriber device. 
     
     
         23 . The network node of  claim 17 , wherein the network node comprises an Internet Protocol (IP) edge node.