CN101511132B - Method and system for forwarding data message - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a method for transmitting a data message and a system thereof, wherein, the method includes steps as follows: receiving a data message based on a wireless agreement from a wireless interface of a first entity; transmitting the data message into the data message based on a wire agreement, and sending the data message based on the wire agreement to a second entity according with an exchanging equipment connected with the line interface of the first entity; receiving the data message based on wire agreement from the wire interface of the second entity; transmitting the data message based on the wire agreement into the data message based on the wireless agreement, and sending the data message based on the wireless agreement through the wireless interface of the second entity; wherein, at least one entity of the first entity and the second entity contains the wireless interface for supporting Mesh network agreement. The method and the system can avoid the entity in Mesh network providing service through the wireless interface by using time division method in prior art which reduces time delay for transporting information and increasing througout of a wireless backhaul linkage.

Description

A data packet forwarding method and system

technical field

The invention relates to the field of network technology, in particular to a data message forwarding method and system.

Background technique

At present, the entity in the ordinary wireless local area network (WLAN) is mainly a wireless access point (AP: Access Point), where the AP is downlink, that is, for the station (STA) to provide wireless access, that is, to provide the station with 802.11a in the WLAN /b/g protocol access service, while the uplink is wired transmission through the switch. In this way, there will be complicated wiring in the whole network, which will affect the performance of the network. Therefore, people are more and more eager for a technology in which both downlink access and uplink transmission are wireless.

With the development of network communication technology, a new network technology, that is, wireless mesh (Mesh) network, has emerged. In a Mesh network, both downlink access and uplink transmission can be wireless. Wherein, the Mesh network is also called a multi-hop network, which is a completely different network technology from the traditional wireless network. Entities in the Mesh network can serve as gateways to realize interconnection between wired networks and wireless networks, and provide 802.11 access services.

If both downlink access and uplink transmission are wireless in the Mesh network, one solution is to replace the existing common physical AP in the Mesh network with a Mesh network access point (MPAP: Mesh AP), that is, the AP provides 802.11a The access service of the /b/g protocol, while the MP provides uplink wireless transmission through its included wireless interface supporting the Mesh protocol. This solution needs to replace the AP with an MPAP, which greatly wastes the original AP. Moreover, since the MPAP provides multiple wireless interfaces, its market price is several times that of the AP, which greatly increases the investment cost of the entire process.

With the continuous development of Mesh networks and APs, the downlink wireless access and uplink wireless transmission in the Mesh network can be realized by upgrading the APs, specifically including: the wireless interface of the upgraded AP is provided with the original 802.11a/ The b/g protocol access service also supports the Mesh network protocol at the same time. The Mesh network protocol can specifically be the 802.11s protocol. In this way, the wireless interface of the AP is provided with services in a time-division manner, that is, the wireless interface of the AP is in the Working under 802.11s for the first preset time provides uplink transmission work, and working under 802.11a/b/g for the second preset time provides downlink user access work.

It can be seen that although the existing method can realize both downlink access and uplink transmission in a wireless manner, the wireless interface of the AP is used to provide services in a time-division manner, which greatly reduces the service quality and further increases the delay of information transmission.

Contents of the invention

In view of this, the present invention provides a data packet forwarding method and system, so as to reduce the time delay of information transmission.

A kind of forwarding method of data message, this method is applied in Mesh network, comprises:

a) receiving a data packet based on a wireless protocol from a wireless interface of the first entity;

b), converting the data message into a data message based on a wired protocol, and sending the data message based on a wired protocol to a second entity through a switching device connected to the wired interface of the first entity;

c) receiving the data packet based on the wire protocol from the wire interface of the second entity;

d), converting the data message based on the wired protocol into a data message based on the wireless protocol, and sending the data message based on the wireless protocol through the wireless interface of the second entity;

Wherein, at least one of the wireless interface of the first entity and the wireless interface of the second entity is a wireless interface supporting a wireless mesh network protocol.

A data packet forwarding system, comprising: a first entity, a second entity, and a switching device; wherein,

The first entity is configured to receive a data packet based on a wireless protocol through its own wireless interface, convert the data packet into a data packet based on a wired protocol, and send the data packet based on a wired protocol through its own wired interface send a message to the switching device;

The switching device is connected to the first entity through the wired interface, and is configured to send and receive the data message based on the wired protocol to the second entity;

The second entity is connected to the switching device through its own wired interface, and is used to receive the data message based on the wired protocol through the wired interface of itself; convert the data message based on the wired protocol into a data message based on the wired protocol The data message of the wireless protocol, the data message based on the wireless protocol is sent out through its own wireless interface;

Wherein, at least one of the wireless interface of the first entity and the wireless interface of the second entity is a wireless interface supporting a wireless mesh network protocol.

As can be seen from the above, in the forwarding method and system of a data message provided by the present invention, the data message based on the wireless protocol is received from the wireless interface of the first entity; the data message is converted into a data message based on the wired protocol Send the data message based on the wired protocol to the second entity through the switching device connected to the wired interface of the first entity; receive the data message based on the wired protocol from the wired interface of the second entity; converting the data message based on the wired protocol into a data message based on the wireless protocol, and sending the data message based on the wireless protocol through the wireless interface of the second entity; wherein, the wireless interface of the first entity and the second entity At least one of the wireless interfaces of the two entities is a wireless interface that supports the wireless mesh Mesh network protocol; avoiding the use of time division by the entity AP in the Mesh network in the prior art to provide services through the wireless interface, reducing the delay of information transmission, The throughput of the wireless backhaul link is greatly improved.

Further, in the present invention, the information exchange between the first entity and the second entity in the Mesh network does not always use the wireless interface in the prior art, thereby avoiding the fact that the entities in the Mesh network only use the wireless interface for uplink transmission The operation can solve the defect of insufficient radio frequency ports in the prior art.

Further, in the present invention, the first entity and the second entity are not required to be MPs, and they can also be ordinary APs, or MPs on the user's live network upgraded through software upgrades, wherein the first entity and the second entity The number of wireless interfaces included in the entity can be one or more, so that the user's investment cost can be greatly reduced.

Description of drawings

Fig. 1 is the basic flowchart of the data packet forwarding method provided by the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a detailed flowchart of a data packet forwarding method provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is another detailed flow chart of the data packet forwarding method provided by the embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 4 is the flow chart that joins virtual MP that the embodiment of the present invention provides;

Figure 5a is a flow chart of the Leader in the virtual MP leaving the virtual MP according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 5b is a flowchart of a subordinate in a virtual MP leaving a virtual MP according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a structural diagram of a data packet forwarding system provided by an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed ways

In order to make the object, technical solution and advantages of the present invention clearer, the present invention will be described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 1 , FIG. 1 is a basic flowchart of a data packet forwarding method provided by an embodiment of the present invention. This method can be applied to a Mesh network, as shown in Figure 1, the method mainly includes the following steps:

Step 101: Receive a data packet based on a wireless protocol from a wireless interface of a first entity.

Here, the above-mentioned first entity may have various forms, for example, it may be a common AP, or an MP. Wherein, when the first entity is an AP, the number of wireless interfaces included in the AP may be 1 or multiple; and when the first entity is an MP, the number of wireless interfaces included in the MP is 1 One, or more than one. The embodiments of the present invention are not specifically limited.

Preferably, if the above-mentioned first entity is an MP, wherein, if the MP only includes a wireless interface supporting the Mesh network protocol (the network protocol may specifically be the 802.11s protocol) and more than one wired interface, the MP may support the Mesh The wireless interface of the network protocol receives the data packet; after that, step 102 is directly executed. Of course, if the MP includes at least two wireless interfaces supporting the Mesh network protocol and more than one wired interface, the MP can receive data packets through one of the wireless interfaces supporting the Mesh network protocol; If the outgoing interface is another wireless interface, the data packet is directly sent through the other wireless interface; if the outgoing interface is a wired interface, step 102 is performed.

Of course, if the first entity is an AP, if the AP only includes one wireless interface supporting a wireless access protocol (the wireless access protocol may specifically be an 802.11a/b/g protocol) and more than one wired interface, Then the AP can receive the data message through the wireless interface supporting the wireless access protocol, and then directly execute step 102 . Of course, if the AP includes at least two wireless interfaces supporting the wireless access protocol and more than one wired interface, the AP can receive data packets through one of the wireless interfaces supporting the Mesh network protocol; after that, it is determined to send the data packet If the outgoing interface is another wireless interface, the data packet is directly sent through the other wireless interface; if the outgoing interface is a wired interface, step 102 is performed.

Step 102: Convert the data message into a data message based on the wire protocol, and send the data message based on the wire protocol to the second entity through a switching device connected to the wired interface of the first entity.

Here, the wired interface in step 102 is the outgoing interface determined in step 101 . The data message received in step 101 is a data message based on the wireless protocol, which needs to be converted when it is sent to the switching device, that is, the data message based on the wireless protocol is converted into a data message based on the wired protocol, specifically, The format of the data packet received in step 101 is converted into a format supported by the switching device. For example, if the format of the above-mentioned received data message corresponds to the 802.11s protocol, then the format of the data message is converted to a format supported by the switching device (preferably, the format supported by the switching device is a corresponding 802.3 protocol); if the above-mentioned received The format of the data message corresponds to the 802.11a/b/g protocol, and then the format of the data message is converted into a format supported by the switching device (preferably, the format supported by the switching device corresponds to the 802.3 protocol).

It should be noted that, in the embodiment of the present invention, the foregoing switching device may have various implementation forms, for example, it may be an Ethernet switch, etc., which is not specifically limited in the embodiment of the present invention.

Step 103, receiving the data packet based on the wire protocol from the wire interface of the second entity.

Here, the wired interface of the above-mentioned second entity is a wired interface connected to the switching device, wherein, the second entity can have various forms, for example, it can be a common AP, or an MP, etc., wherein, when the second When the entity is an AP, the number of wireless interfaces included in the AP may be one or multiple; and when the second entity is an MP, the number of wireless interfaces included in the MP may be one or Multiple. The embodiments of the present invention are not specifically limited.

Step 104: Convert the data packet based on the wired protocol into a data packet based on the wireless protocol, and send the data packet based on the wireless protocol through the wireless interface of the second entity.

Here, if the wireless interface of the above-mentioned second entity is a wireless interface supporting the Mesh protocol, then in this step, the data packet based on the wired protocol is converted into a data packet based on the wireless protocol. The format of the text (this format is the format supported by the switching device, specifically, it can correspond to the 802.3 protocol) is converted into the format corresponding to the transmission in the Mesh network (specifically, the format corresponding to 802.11s). The wireless interface sends data packets.

If the wireless interface of the above-mentioned first entity is a wireless interface that supports the wireless access protocol, then in this step, the data message based on the wired protocol is converted into a data message based on the wireless protocol. format (the format is the format supported by the switching device, specifically corresponding to the 802.3 protocol) is converted to a supported format (the format is specifically the format corresponding to the 802.11a/b/g protocol), and then, through the wireless access protocol supported The wireless interface sends the converted data packets.

It should be noted that, regardless of whether the first entity and the second entity are APs or MPs, when implementing the embodiment of the present invention, it is necessary to ensure that at least one of the wireless interface of the first entity and the wireless interface of the second entity supports The wireless interface of the Mesh network protocol.

In this way, the forwarding operation of the data packet provided by the embodiment of the present invention is realized.

In order to make the embodiments of the present invention more clear, the above methods will be described in detail below in conjunction with specific embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 2, FIG. 2 is a detailed flowchart of data message forwarding provided by an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, both the first entity and the second entity are MPs. If the MP includes at least two wireless interfaces supporting the Mesh protocol and more than one wired interface, for the convenience of description, the first entity MP can be referred to as MP1 for short. , the second entity MP is referred to as MP2 for short, as shown in Figure 2, the process may include the following steps:

Step 201, make MP1 and MP2 join the same virtual MP.

In this embodiment, the virtual MP is essentially a preset group that can include multiple entities. Preferably, before step 201 is performed, it may be determined in advance whether to form a virtual MP in the Mesh network according to actual conditions, and when it is determined that a virtual MP needs to be formed, each member included in the virtual MP may be determined. For example, MP1 is a dual-frequency device, and it needs to perform uplink communication with multiple adjacent MPs (such as MP2, MP3, and MP4) at the same time. In order to avoid channel competition, the four MPs (MP1, MP2, MP3, and MP4) is formed into a virtual MP, and the virtual MP is identified. Generally, it is required that the identification methods of each virtual MP in the Mesh network be unified.

Usually, in order to ensure that each member determined above can join its corresponding virtual MP, it is necessary to configure corresponding parameters for each member in advance, where the parameter corresponds to a certain role, for example, if an entity needs to be a leader in the virtual MP If the leader role is used, configure the parameter information corresponding to the leader role for the entity. If an entity needs to act as a subordinate role in the virtual MP, the parameter information of the corresponding subordinate role is configured for the entity. It should be noted that, in this embodiment, when configuring parameters for entities in the Mesh network, it is necessary to ensure that any entity in the Mesh network can only be added to one virtual MP, and cannot be added to more than two virtual MPs at the same time. .

The above step 201 makes MP1 and MP2 join the same virtual MP, which can be executed according to the roles played by MP1 and MP2. Wherein, if MP1 takes the role of leader in a virtual MP, then MP2 needs to join MP1 to take the role of leader in the virtual MP; if MP2 acts as a leader in a virtual MP, then MP1 needs to join the virtual MP in which MP2 acts as a leader; it should be noted that, in the embodiment of the present invention, there is usually only one The active leader.

In this way, through the above operations, it can be ensured that MP1 and MP2 are added to the same virtual MP. As for the operation flow of how to join the virtual MP, please refer to the flow shown in FIG. 4 below, which will not be repeated here.

In step 202, MP1 receives a data packet based on a wireless protocol through its own wireless interface.

Here, based on the wireless protocol, it can specifically be based on the 802.11s protocol that supports the Mesh network; preferably, the above-mentioned data message can carry the destination address, and since MP1 includes at least two wireless interfaces that support the Mesh network protocol, step 202 is specifically: MP1 receives the data message through a wireless interface supporting the Mesh network protocol corresponding to the destination address.

Step 203, MP1 judges the outbound interface for sending the datagram according to the destination address carried in the datagram, if the outbound interface is a wired interface, then perform step 204, if the outbound interface is a wireless interface, then send the datagram through the wireless interface Received datagram.

In the embodiment of the present invention, all members in the virtual MP are connected to the same switching device. In the embodiment of the present invention, it is assumed that the switching device is an Ethernet switch. Wherein, the Ethernet switch can be connected with multiple virtual MPs. For each virtual MP, wireless backhaul links are not established between all members, but are forwarded through Ethernet switches, that is, each member in the virtual MP is connected to the same Ethernet switch, when the members Ethernet switches can provide channels for members when communication between them is required. However, when a member in the virtual MP needs to communicate with a member other than the virtual MP, it should be handled according to the prior art, that is, the wireless interface is used for communication. It should also be noted that, in order to ensure wider application of virtual MPs, each member in a virtual MP can also have a certain degree of independence, which is specifically manifested in that it can independently discover neighbors other than the virtual MP where it is located, and establish The wireless backhaul link and mutual authentication are not particularly limited in this embodiment.

In step 204, MP1 converts the received data message based on the wireless protocol into a data message based on the wired protocol, and sends the converted data message to MP2 through the Ethernet switch connected to the wired interface in step 203.

Here, since the data message received by MP1 in step 202 is based on the wireless protocol, specifically the 802.11s protocol corresponding to the Mesh network. Since step 203 determines that the outgoing interface for sending the data message is a wired interface, the data message needs to be converted, that is, the data message based on the 802.11s protocol is converted into a data message based on the wired protocol, specifically Converting the format of the data packet supporting the 802.11s protocol into a format supporting the 802.3 protocol; wherein, the 802.3 protocol is a wired protocol supported by the Ethernet switch.

It should be noted that, in this embodiment, if MP1 only includes one wireless interface and more than one wired interface, step 203 can be omitted, and step 204 is replaced by: MP1 converts the received data message based on wireless protocol into For the data message of the protocol, the wired interface is determined according to the destination address carried in the data message, and the converted data message is sent to MP2 through the Ethernet switch connected to the wired interface. That is to say, if MP1 includes only one wireless interface, it is not necessary to perform the determination of the outgoing interface in step 203 in this embodiment, and it is sufficient to directly perform the above-mentioned replaced step 204 .

Step 205, MP2 receives the converted data message based on the wired protocol through its own wired interface connected to the Ethernet switch.

Step 206, MP2 converts the received data packet into a data packet based on the wireless protocol.

Therefore, since the data packet received by MP2 is sent by the Ethernet switch, the data packet is a data packet based on the wire protocol. Therefore, if MP2 needs to send the received data packet in the Mesh network, it needs to The data message is converted into a wireless protocol-based data message transmitted in the Mesh network, specifically the format of the data message from the Ethernet switch (this format is a format supported by the Ethernet switch, specifically, it can support the 802.3 protocol format) to the format corresponding to transmission in the Mesh network, that is, the format that supports the 802.11s protocol.

In step 207, MP2 determines the corresponding wireless interface according to the destination address carried in the data message, and sends the data message converted in step 206 through the determined wireless interface.

When other entities in the Mesh network receive the data packet sent in step 207, the entity continues to forward the data packet according to the operations from step 202 to step 207 until it reaches the destination address.

It should be noted that, in the foregoing embodiment, both the first entity and the second entity are MPs. Preferably, in the embodiment of the present invention, one of the above-mentioned first entity and the second entity may be an AP, and the other entity may be an MP, for example, the first entity is an AP, and the second entity is an MP, wherein the AP may be A common AP that has not been upgraded can include more than one wireless interface supporting the 802.11a/b/g protocol and more than one wired interface, and an MP can include more than one wireless interface supporting the Mesh network protocol and more than one wired interface. In this embodiment, if the AP includes a wireless interface supporting the 802.11a/b/g protocol and more than one wired interface, and the MP includes a wireless interface supporting the Mesh network protocol and a wired interface, then as shown in Figure 3, the flow process May include the following steps:

In step 301, the AP and the MP are added to the same virtual MP.

In step 302, the AP receives the data message based on the wireless protocol sent by the station through its own wireless interface.

Here, the wireless protocol in step 302 may specifically be a wireless access protocol (the wireless access protocol may specifically be an 802.11a/b/g protocol); preferably, the above-mentioned data message may carry a destination address, and since the AP only It includes a wireless interface supporting the 802.11a/b/g protocol, so step 202 is specifically that the AP receives the data message through its own wireless interface supporting the 802.11a/b/g protocol corresponding to the destination address.

Step 303, the AP converts the received data message into a format based on the wired protocol, determines the wired interface for sending the data message according to the above destination address, and sends the converted data through the switching device connected to the determined wired interface The message is sent to the MP.

Here, since the data message received by the AP in step 302 is based on the wireless access protocol, specifically the 802.11a/b/g protocol. The outgoing interface determined by the AP to send the data message is a wired interface. Therefore, the data message needs to be converted, that is, the data message based on the 802.11a/b/g protocol is converted into a data message based on the wired protocol. The document specifically converts the format of the data packet supporting the 802.11s protocol into a format supporting the 802.3 protocol; wherein, the 802.3 protocol is a wired protocol supported by the switching device. Here, the switching device may specifically be an Ethernet switch.

It should be noted that, in this embodiment, the AP may also include at least two wireless interfaces supporting the 802.11a/b/g protocol, then step 303 may be replaced by: the AP judges and sends the data according to the destination address carried in the above data message The outbound interface of the message, if the outbound interface is a wired interface, the converted data message is sent to the MP through the switching device connected to the wired interface, and if the outbound interface is another wireless interface, the A radio interface sends and receives datagrams.

In step 304, the MP receives the converted data message based on the wired protocol through the wired interface connected to the switching device.

In step 305, the MP converts the received data packet into a data packet based on the wireless protocol.

Here, step 305 specifically converts the format of the data packet supporting the 802.3 protocol into a format supporting the 802.11s protocol.

Step 306, the MP determines the corresponding wireless interface according to the destination address carried in the data message, and forwards the data message converted in step 305 in the Mesh network through the determined wireless interface

In this way, the forwarding of the data message provided by the embodiment of the present invention is realized.

Referring to FIG. 4, FIG. 4 is an operation flowchart of adding to a virtual MP provided by an embodiment of the present invention. Wherein, the above-mentioned first entity may be an entity acting as a leader in a virtual MP, or the second entity may be an entity acting as a leader in a virtual MP, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 4, the process may include the following steps:

In step 401, the entity acting as the leader sends virtual MP information in the Mesh network.

Here, for ease of description, the entity that acts as a leader is referred to as Leader for short. Among them, there are many ways for the Leader to send the virtual MP information in the Mesh network, for example, the wired interface may be used to send the virtual MP information or the wireless interface may be used to send the virtual MP information. Among them, using the wired interface, the Leader can send virtual MP information to a specific entity; while using the wireless air interface, the Leader can directly carry the virtual MP information to be sent in the 802.11 Beacon message or Probe response message in the Mesh network sent in.

Preferably, the above-mentioned parameter information of the Leader configuration may include: the identity of the virtual MP where the Leader is located, the maximum number of members that the Virtual MP where the Leader is located can support, and the method for the Leader to perform security authentication on members joining the virtual MP where the Leader is located and parameters etc. Wherein, the above virtual MP information carries the identifier of the virtual MP where the Leader itself is located.

Preferably, in order to ensure that each entity that wants to join the virtual MP where the Leader is located knows the current member information of the virtual MP, the above virtual MP information may further include: a current member list of the virtual MP. Wherein, the list may include status information of each member, the number of Radios, etc., which are not specifically limited in this embodiment.

In step 402, the entity that has received the aforementioned virtual MP information determines whether it needs to join the virtual MP where the Leader is located, and if so, executes step 403, otherwise, ignores the virtual MP information.

Here, the parameter information configured for the entity acting as a subordinate role may include: parameters indicating the working mode of enabling the virtual MP or disabling the working mode of the virtual MP, and parameters indicating the forced joining of a certain virtual MP or indicating It is not mandatory to add parameters to a certain virtual MP. Usually, when configuring parameters for a subordinate entity, it can be configured according to the actual situation. For example, if it is desired that the entity does not join any virtual MP, configure parameters indicating that the entity does not enable any virtual MP working mode. Otherwise, the configuration indicates that the entity enables the parameters corresponding to the working mode of a certain virtual MP that needs to be added; if you want to force the entity to join a specific virtual MP, when configuring parameters for the entity, the configuration indicates that it needs to be forced The entity joins the parameters of a specific virtual MP, such as configuring the identity corresponding to the specific virtual MP that needs to be forced to join for the entity; correspondingly, if you want the entity to be selected completely according to the protocol interaction between the various entities in the Mesh network When adding a specific virtual MP, when configuring parameters for the entity, the configuration indicates that you do not want to force the entity to join the parameters of a specific virtual MP.

Usually, in a virtual MP, there is only one leader that is active at any time. In order to avoid affecting the normal operation of the entire virtual MP when the leader is not working, a backup of the current leader can be set. In this way, when the leader is not working, The function of the leader can be smoothly switched to the backup. Therefore, for an entity that is preparing to backup as a Leader, its configuration parameters need to include parameters indicating that the backup Leader is enabled, in addition to the above-mentioned parameter information corresponding to the following roles.

Preferably, the virtual MP information sent in the above step 401 may also include: (1) Protocol version information used to realize communication between members in the virtual MP, specifically the version number of the protocol. Those skilled in the art should know that each member of the virtual MP needs to use a protocol to exchange information, wherein the version number is a basic content information of the protocol. (2) The maximum number of members supported by the virtual MP. (3) The current number of members of the virtual MP. (4) Any one or combination of security authentication methods and parameters for members.

In this way, the entity that receives the above virtual MP information in step 402 determines whether it needs to join the virtual MP where the Leader is located, and may specifically consider one or more of the following factors:

Whether the protocol version information supported (configured) matches the protocol version information contained in the above virtual MP information; whether the current virtual MP load is allowed, that is, whether the current number of members of the virtual MP contained in the virtual MP information does not exceed the above virtual MP The maximum number of members supported; and whether it supports the security authentication method for members contained in the above virtual MP information;

If both are yes, it is determined that the virtual MP where the leader is located currently needs to be added; otherwise, it is determined that the virtual MP where the leader is currently not to be added.

Step 403, sending a joining message to the above-mentioned Leader.

Here, in order to avoid air interface competition, in this step, a join message may be sent to the Leader through a wired channel provided by the switching device. Wherein, the joining message carries the ID of the entity sending the joining message (for example, the Mac address of the MP), security authentication parameters, and the like.

It should be noted that in a virtual MP, there is only one Leader that is active at any time, so the entity that sends the join message in this step needs to further determine whether the virtual MP it wants to join is currently Only one Leader is active, if so, send a join message to the Leader, otherwise, according to the preset election principle (such as electing the entity with the lowest Mac address as the Leader from the member list carried by the virtual MP information), Afterwards, a Join message is sent to the elected Leader.

In step 404, the leader receives the join message, and judges whether the security authentication parameters carried in the join message support the configured security authentication method for members. If yes, execute step 405; otherwise, execute step 406.

Here, the method for judging whether the security authentication parameters carried in the join message support the configured security authentication for members by itself may specifically be to judge whether the security authentication parameters carried in the join message are consistent with the configured security authentication for members by itself. parameter match.

In step 405, the leader allows the entity sending the joining message to join the virtual MP where it is located, so that the entity can join the virtual MP where it is located. End the process.

In step 406, the entity sending the join message is not allowed to join the virtual MP where it is located. End the process.

In this way, through the above steps, the entity sending the joining message becomes a member of the virtual MP. Afterwards, the Leader synchronizes the information among the members in the virtual MP. The information synchronization between the members in the virtual MP can be realized periodically or triggered by an event (such as a new neighbor is discovered), which is not specifically limited in this embodiment. Here, the Leader synchronizing the information among the members in the virtual MP may include: the Leader synchronously obtains the state information of each member, wherein, for each member, the state information may include the number of radios of the member, the number of radios of the member not in the virtual MP The neighbor information of the member and the access user information of the member, etc. Preferably, if the virtual MP information sent in step 401 also includes: the current member list of the virtual MP, then in this step, the Leader updates the stored member list of the virtual MP by using the obtained state information. In addition, it should be noted that if roaming occurs, the Leader synchronizing the information among members in the virtual MP may also include: the Leader synchronizes data related to user roaming among corresponding MPs before and after roaming. For example, if the client roams from MP1 to the area corresponding to MP2, when MP1 needs to send data information to MP2, the Leader will inform MP1 that it does not need to send information to MP2, but directly sends it to the next hop of MP2. Synchronization of data related to user roaming between MPs.

In addition, in order to facilitate the management of virtual MP information, preferably, in this embodiment, the Leader can also periodically send handshake messages to each member in the virtual MP, wherein the way the Leader sends handshake messages can be similar to the prior art, I won't go into details here.

So far, according to the above steps, each entity in the Mesh network can join its corresponding virtual MP.

It should be noted that the virtual MP is only a concept proposed by the embodiment of the present invention, and this embodiment does not require any physical changes to the entities added to the virtual MP.

It should also be noted that, in this embodiment, after the entity in the above-mentioned Mesh network joins the corresponding virtual MP, it is not always in the virtual MP, and it can also leave the virtual MP. Therefore, if a member in the virtual MP needs to leave the virtual MP, the operations shown in Fig. 5a and Fig. 5b can be performed.

Referring to FIG. 5 a , FIG. 5 a is a flowchart of a leader in a virtual MP leaving a virtual MP according to an embodiment of the present invention. Then as shown in Figure 5a, the process may include the following steps:

Step 501a, when the Leader in the virtual MP is about to leave the virtual MP, determine whether there is a backup of the Leader in the current member of the virtual MP, if yes, perform step 502a, otherwise, perform step 503a.

Here, when the subordinates in the virtual MP do not regularly receive the handshake message from the Leader, it is determined that the Leader will leave the virtual MP.

Step 502a, when the number of backups is 1, use the backup as the leader in the virtual MP; when the number of backups is greater than 1, elect one of the backups as the leader in the virtual MP.

Here, when the number of the above-mentioned determined backups is greater than 1, electing one from the backup as the Leader in the virtual MP can have multiple implementation forms, such as selecting a backup with a low Media Access Control (Mac: Media accesscontrol) address as the Leader ; Or select a backup with a high Mac address as the LeaderMP, which is not limited in this embodiment.

Step 503a, elect one from all the current members of the virtual MP as the leader of the virtual MP.

From all the current members of the virtual MP, one can be elected as the Leader in the virtual MP, and there can be multiple implementation forms, such as selecting a member with a low Mac address as the Leader; or selecting a member with a high Mac address as the Leader. This embodiment does not limited.

Referring to FIG. 5b, FIG. 5b is a flowchart of an entity in a subordinate role in a virtual MP leaving the virtual MP according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 5b, for the convenience of description, the entity in the subordinate role that will leave is referred to as subordinate 1 for short, and the process may include the following steps:

In step 501b, subordinate 1 sends a leave message to the Leader in the virtual MP where it is located.

In step 502b, the Leader receives the leaving message, and notifies the leaving message of the subordinate 1 to the non-leaving members of the virtual MP.

Here, the security method in the prior art may be adopted to ensure the security of the notified subordinate 1 leaving message.

Preferably, in this embodiment of the present invention, backup among members can also be preset. In this way, when a member in the subordinate role leaves, the Leader selects the backup of the leaving member in the virtual MP where it is located, so that the configuration of the leaving member (such as the SSID of wireless access) is enabled on the selected backup, In this way, it can be guaranteed that a certain member's offline will not affect the service provision of the current virtual MP. Therefore, this embodiment may continue to execute step 503b to step 504b.

In step 503b, the leader determines whether there is a backup of subordinate 1 among the current members of the virtual MP, and if so, executes step 504b; otherwise, terminates the service corresponding to subordinate 1.

Step 504b, enable the configuration of the subordinate 1 on the backup. End the process.

Usually, there is generally 1 backup for subordinates. Of course, if some special circumstances cause the number of backups of subordinates to be greater than 1, one can be elected as a backup of the subordinate who leaves according to the actual situation (wherein, the principle of election can have various forms, such as selecting the MAC address in the backup the lowest; or the highest, etc.). Therefore, what is described in this embodiment is only an example, and should not be construed as a limitation.

To sum up, it can be seen that in the embodiment of the present invention, the virtual MP is managed as a logical whole, wherein, in the management process, the Leader will act as the spokesperson of the virtual MP and maintain the management data of the entire virtual MP and the information in the virtual MP. Administrative data for all members. In this way, as long as the Leader is accessed in this embodiment, the number of radios of the virtual MP (the sum of the radio numbers of all MPs included in the virtual MP), the number of neighbors (the number of radios found by all the MPs included in the virtual MP) can be obtained sum of the number of neighbors), etc.

The method provided by the embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, and the system provided by the embodiment of the present invention will be described below.

Referring to FIG. 6, FIG. 6 is a structural diagram of a data packet forwarding system provided by an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 6 , the system includes: a first entity 601 , a second entity 602 and a switching device 603 .

Wherein, the first entity 601 is configured to receive a data packet based on a wireless protocol through its own wireless interface, convert the data packet into a data packet based on a wired protocol, and send the data packet based on a wired protocol through its own wired interface message to the switching device.

The switching device 603 is wired to the first entity 601 through the wired interface, and is configured to send and receive the data packet based on the wired protocol to the second entity 602 .

The second entity 602 is connected to the switching device 603 through its own wired interface, and is used to receive the data message based on the wired protocol through the wired interface of itself; convert the data message based on the wired protocol into a data message based on the wireless protocol The data packet based on the wireless protocol is sent out through its own wireless interface.

Wherein, at least one of the wireless interface of the first entity 601 and the wireless interface of the second entity 602 is a wireless interface supporting the Mesh network protocol.

Preferably, as shown in FIG. 6 , the first entity 601 may include: a first receiving unit 6011 , a first judging unit 6012 , a first converting unit 6013 and a first forwarding unit 6014 .

Wherein, the first receiving unit 6011 is configured to receive a data packet based on a wireless protocol through a wireless interface.

The first judging unit 6012 is used to judge the outgoing interface for sending the data packet according to the destination address of the data packet received by the first receiving unit 6011, and if the outgoing interface is a wired interface, then send a conversion notification to the first converting unit 6013 ; If the outbound interface is a wireless interface, send a first forwarding notification to the first forwarding unit 6014 .

The first conversion unit 6013 is configured to convert the data packet into a data packet based on the wire protocol after receiving the conversion notification, and send the second forwarding notification to the first forwarding unit 6014 . Here, for example, the first receiving unit 6011 has received a data message based on the Mesh network protocol, wherein the Mesh network protocol can specifically be an 802.11s protocol; then the first converting unit 6013 converts the data message into a data message based on a wired protocol Wherein, the wired protocol may be the 802.3 protocol; preferably, in the embodiment of the present invention, the first converting unit 6013 converts the data packet into a data packet based on the wired protocol, specifically, the format of the received data packet is given by Support 802.11s protocol conversion to support 802.3 protocol.

The first forwarding unit 6014 is configured to receive the first forwarding notification, and forward the data packet received by the first receiving unit 6011 through the wireless interface determined by the first judging unit 6012; The switching device connected to the wired interface determined by a judging unit 6012 sends the wire protocol-based data packet converted by the first converting unit 6013 to the second entity 602 .

Preferably, if the first entity 601 is an MP, the first entity 601 includes at least two wireless interfaces supporting the Mesh network protocol, and if the outgoing interface determined by the first judging unit 6012 is another wireless interface, then the first The forwarding unit 6014 sends the data packet received by the first receiving unit 6011 through the other wireless interface; or,

If the first entity 601 is an AP, the wireless interface is a wireless interface based on a wireless access protocol, and if the outgoing interface determined by the first judging unit 6012 is the wireless interface, the first forwarding unit 6014 sends the first receiving unit 6011 Received data packets are sent out through the wireless interface.

Preferably, as shown in FIG. 6 , the second entity 602 may include: a second receiving unit 6021 , a second converting unit 6022 and a second forwarding unit 6023 .

Wherein, the second receiving unit 6021 is configured to receive the data message based on the wired protocol through a wired interface connected to the switching device;

The second converting unit 6022 is configured to convert the data packet based on the wired protocol received by the second receiving unit 6021 into a data packet based on the wireless protocol.

The second forwarding unit 6023 is configured to send the data packet based on the wireless protocol converted by the second converting unit 6022 through its own wireless interface.

Here, the switching device 603 may specifically be an Ethernet switch.

Preferably, the first entity 601 and the second entity 602 are in the same virtual MP, wherein at least one of the first entity 601 and the second entity 602 is configured as a leader, and the entity configured as the leader represents the virtual MP MP interacts with network management devices. Wherein, the virtual MP is essentially a pre-set group that can include multiple entities.

If the first entity 601 is configured as a leader of a virtual MP, the first forwarding unit 6014 is further configured to send virtual MP information in the Mesh network; the second entity 602 may further include: a second judging unit 6024 .

The second receiving unit 6021 is also configured to receive the virtual MP information;

The second judging unit 6024 is configured to determine whether to join the virtual MP according to the virtual MP information received by the second receiving unit 6021, and if so, determine to become a member of the virtual MP.

Of course, if the second entity 602 is configured as the leader of a virtual MP, the second forwarding unit 6023 is also used to send virtual MP information in the Mesh network;

The first receiving unit 6011 is also configured to receive the virtual MP information;

The first judging unit 6012 is further configured to determine whether to join the virtual MP according to the virtual MP information received by the first receiving unit 6011, and if yes, become a member of the virtual MP.

Wherein, the above virtual MP information includes member information that has been added to the virtual MP.

Preferably, the above-mentioned virtual MP information may also include: protocol version information adopted when communicating among members in the virtual MP, the maximum number of members supported by the virtual MP, the current number of members of the virtual MP, and security authentication methods for members Any one or combination of multiples;

The first judging unit 6012 or the second judging unit 6024 determines whether to add a virtual MP according to the virtual MP information, including one or more of the following three kinds of judgments:

judging whether the supported protocol version information matches the protocol version information included in the virtual MP information; and judging whether the current number of virtual MP members included in the virtual MP information does not exceed the maximum number of members supported by the virtual MP; and Judging whether it supports the security authentication method for members included in the virtual MP information;

If yes, it is determined that the virtual MP needs to be added; otherwise, it is determined that the virtual MP does not need to be added.

Preferably, if the first entity 601 is configured as the leader of a virtual MP, the first receiving unit 6011 is also used to receive the leaving information sent by the entity leaving the virtual MP; the first forwarding unit 6014 is also used to determine the Whether there is currently a backup of the leaving entity in the virtual MP, and if so, triggering the configuration of the leaving entity to be enabled on the backup; and publishing the leaving message received by the first receiving unit 6011 in the virtual MP.

If the second entity is configured as the leader of a virtual MP, the second receiving unit 6021 is also used to receive the leaving information sent by the entity leaving the virtual MP; the second forwarding unit 6023 is also used to determine the current Whether there is a backup of the leaving entity, and if so, triggering the configuration of the leaving entity to be enabled on the backup; and publishing the leaving message received by the second receiving unit 6021 in the virtual MP.

As can be seen from the above, in the forwarding method and system of a data message provided by the present invention, the data message based on the wireless protocol is received from the wireless interface of the first entity; the data message is converted into a data message based on the wired protocol Send the data message based on the wired protocol to the second entity through the switching device connected to the wired interface of the first entity; receive the data message based on the wired protocol from the wired interface of the second entity; converting the data message based on the wired protocol into a data message based on the wireless protocol, and sending the data message based on the wireless protocol through the wireless interface of the second entity; wherein, the wireless interface of the first entity and the second entity At least one of the wireless interfaces of the two entities is a wireless interface that supports the Mesh network protocol; like this, when the first entity is an AP that includes a wireless interface, the present invention sends a data message to the second entity through a switching device connected to the AP. Two entities, after that, the second entity sends the data message through its own wireless interface, so that the forwarding of the data message in the Mesh network is realized, and the entity AP in the Mesh network in the prior art is prevented from using the time-division method to provide the data message through the wireless interface. service, which reduces the delay of information transmission and greatly improves the throughput of the wireless backhaul link.

Further, in the present invention, each entity in the virtual MP is not required to be a multi-radio MP, which may include one wireless interface, or may include more than two wireless interfaces, which are not specifically limited in the embodiment of the present invention, and each The entity can be an MP on the user's live network upgraded through a software upgrade, or a common AP. In this way, the user's investment cost can be greatly reduced, a low-cost multi-radio MP is realized, and the application versatility of the multi-radio MP is further improved.

Further, the present invention enables the entities in the Mesh network to not always use the wireless interface for uplink transmission by enabling wired transmission between entities in the same virtual MP, thereby avoiding that the entities in the Mesh network only use The uplink transmission operation of the wireless interface can solve the defect of insufficient wireless radio frequency ports in the prior art.

Furthermore, in the embodiment of the present invention, the virtual MP is centrally managed as a whole, and the entity acting as the leader in the virtual MP interacts with the network management device on behalf of the virtual MP, thereby simplifying the device and network manage.

The above descriptions are only preferred embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent replacements, improvements, etc. made within the spirit and principles of the present invention shall be included in the present invention. within the scope of protection.

Claims (26)

1. A method for forwarding a data packet is characterized in that the method comprises the following steps:

a) receiving a data message based on a wireless protocol from a wireless interface of a first entity;

b) converting the data message into a data message based on a wired protocol, and sending the data message based on the wired protocol to a second entity through switching equipment connected with a wired interface of a first entity;

c) receiving the data message based on the wired protocol from the wired interface of the second entity;

d) converting the data message based on the wired protocol into a data message based on a wireless protocol, and sending the data message based on the wireless protocol out through a wireless interface of a second entity;

wherein at least one of the wireless interface of the first entity and the wireless interface of the second entity is a wireless interface supporting a wireless Mesh network protocol.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising a step x) between said steps a) and b):

and B), judging an outgoing interface for sending the data message according to the destination address of the received data message, and executing the step b) if the outgoing interface is the wired interface in the step b).

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the first entity is a Mesh network access point MP, wherein the first entity comprises at least two wireless interfaces supporting Mesh network protocol, and if the determination result of the outgoing interface in step x) is another wireless interface, the data packet is sent out through the another wireless interface.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the first entity is a wireless access point AP, the wireless interface is a wireless interface based on a wireless access protocol, and if the determination result of the outgoing interface in step x) is the wireless interface, the data packet is sent out through the wireless interface.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless interfaces of the first entity and the second entity are both Mesh protocol based wireless interfaces; or,

the wireless interface of the first entity is a wireless interface based on a wireless access protocol, and the wireless interface of the second entity is a wireless interface based on a Mesh protocol.

6. The method of any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the switching device is an Ethernet switch.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first entity and the second entity are in a same virtual MP, wherein one of the first entity and the second entity is configured as a leader, and wherein the entity configured as the leader interacts with a network management device on behalf of the virtual MP.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the process of the first entity and the second entity forming the same virtual MP comprises:

if the role pre-configured by the first entity is a leader role in a virtual MP, adding a second entity into the virtual MP of which the first entity plays the leader role; or,

and if the role pre-configured by the second entity is a leader role in a virtual MP, adding the first entity into the virtual MP of which the second entity plays the leader role.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein joining the virtual MP comprises:

an entity playing a role of a leader sends virtual MP information in a Mesh network, wherein the virtual MP information contains member information joined to the virtual MP; and the entity receiving the virtual MP information determines whether the virtual MP needs to be added currently or not according to the virtual MP information, and if so, the entity is added into the virtual MP.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the virtual MP information further comprises: protocol version information adopted when the members in the virtual MP communicate with each other, the maximum member number supported by the virtual MP, the current member number of the virtual MP and any one or more combinations of the security authentication methods for the members;

the determining whether the virtual MP needs to be added at present according to the virtual MP information includes one or a combination of more of the following three determinations:

judging whether the protocol version information supported by the virtual MP information is matched with the protocol version information contained in the virtual MP information; judging whether the number of the current virtual MP members contained in the virtual MP information does not exceed the maximum number of the members supported by the virtual MP; judging whether the virtual MP information supports a member security authentication method contained in the virtual MP information;

if so, determining that the virtual MP needs to be added currently; otherwise, determining that the virtual MP does not need to be added currently.

11. The method of any of claims 8 to 10, wherein the joining to the virtual MP comprises:

sending a joining message to the entity taking the role of the leader, wherein the joining message carries the security authentication parameters supported by the entity sending the joining message;

and the entity taking the role of the leader receives the joining message, judges whether the safety authentication parameters carried by the joining message support the configured safety authentication method of the entity to the member, and if so, adds the entity sending the joining message into the virtual MP to become the member of the virtual MP.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein if an entity of the virtual MP other than the entity that assumes the leader role needs to leave the virtual MP, the method further comprises: the entity to leave sends leaving information to the entity taking on the role of leader; the entity taking the role of leader receives the leaving information and announces the leaving message of the entity in the virtual MP.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the entity assuming the leader role advertising in the virtual MP that the entity departs further comprises: the entity acting as a leader determines whether a backup of the departing entity currently exists in the virtual MP, and if so, enables configuration of the departing entity on the backup.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein if an entity in the virtual MP that plays a leader role leaves the virtual MP, the method further comprises:

if the number of the backups of the entity which currently plays the role of the leader in the virtual MP is 1, taking the backups as the entity which plays the role of the leader in the virtual MP; when the number of the backups is more than 1, one entity is selected from the backups as an entity which plays the role of a leader in the virtual MP; otherwise, when the backup of the entity taking the role of the leader does not exist in the virtual MP, selecting one entity taking the role of the leader in the virtual MP from all the members currently contained in the virtual MP.

15. A system for forwarding data packets, the system comprising: a first entity, a second entity and a switching device; wherein,

the first entity is used for receiving a data message based on a wireless protocol through a wireless interface of the first entity, converting the data message into a data message based on a wired protocol, and sending the data message based on the wired protocol to the switching equipment through a wired interface of the first entity;

the switching equipment is connected with the first entity through the wired interface and is used for sending the received data message based on the wired protocol to the second entity;

the second entity is connected with the switching equipment through a wired interface of the second entity and is used for receiving the data message based on the wired protocol through the wired interface of the second entity; converting the data message based on the wired protocol into a data message based on a wireless protocol, and sending the data message based on the wireless protocol out through a wireless interface of the data message;

wherein at least one of the wireless interface of the first entity and the wireless interface of the second entity is a wireless interface supporting a wireless Mesh network protocol.

16. The forwarding system of claim 15 wherein the wireless interfaces of the first and second entities are both Mesh protocol based wireless interfaces; or,

the wireless interface of the first entity is a wireless interface based on a wireless access protocol, and the wireless interface of the second entity is a wireless interface based on a Mesh protocol.

17. The forwarding system of claim 16, wherein the first entity comprises:

a first receiving unit, configured to receive a data packet based on a wireless protocol through a wireless interface;

a first judging unit, configured to judge, according to a destination address of the data packet received by the first receiving unit, an outgoing interface that sends the data packet, and if the outgoing interface is a wired interface, send a conversion notification to the first converting unit; if the output interface is a wireless interface, sending a first forwarding notification to a first forwarding unit;

the first conversion unit is used for converting the data message into a data message based on a wired protocol after receiving the conversion notice, and sending a second conversion notice to the first conversion unit;

the first forwarding unit is used for receiving the first forwarding notification and forwarding the data message received by the first receiving unit through the wireless interface judged by the first judging unit; and the switching equipment is used for receiving a second forwarding notice and sending the data message which is converted by the first conversion unit and is based on the wired protocol to a second entity through the switching equipment connected with the wired interface judged by the first judgment unit.

18. The forwarding system of claim 17, wherein the first entity is a Mesh network access point MP, wherein the first entity includes at least two wireless interfaces supporting a Mesh network protocol, and if the outgoing interface determined by the first determining unit is another wireless interface, the first forwarding unit sends the data packet received by the first receiving unit through the another wireless interface; or,

the first entity is a wireless access point AP, the wireless interface is a wireless interface based on a wireless access protocol, and if the outgoing interface determined by the first determining unit is the wireless interface, the first forwarding unit sends the data packet received by the first receiving unit through the wireless interface.

19. The forwarding system of claim 18 wherein the second entity comprises:

a second receiving unit, configured to receive the data packet based on the wired protocol through a wired interface connected to the switching device;

a second conversion unit, configured to convert the data packet based on the wired protocol received by the second receiving unit into a data packet based on a wireless protocol;

and the second forwarding unit is used for sending the data message based on the wireless protocol converted by the second conversion unit out through a wireless interface of the second forwarding unit.

20. The forwarding system of claim 15 wherein the switching device is an ethernet switch.

21. The forwarding system of claim 19, wherein the first entity and the second entity are in the same virtual MP, wherein one of the first and second entities is configured as a leader, and wherein the entity configured as the leader interacts with a network management device on behalf of the virtual MP.

22. The forwarding system of claim 21, wherein the first forwarding unit is further configured to send virtual MP information in the Mesh network if the first entity is configured as a leader of a virtual MP; wherein the virtual MP information contains member information which is added to the virtual MP;

the second entity further comprises: a second judgment unit;

the second receiving unit is further configured to receive the virtual MP information;

the second judging unit is configured to determine whether the virtual MP needs to be added according to the virtual MP information received by the second receiving unit, and if so, determine that the virtual MP is a member of the virtual MP.

23. The forwarding system of claim 21, wherein the second forwarding unit is further configured to send virtual MP information in the Mesh network if the second entity is configured as a leader of a virtual MP; wherein the virtual MP information contains member information which is added to the virtual MP;

the first receiving unit is further configured to receive the virtual MP information;

the first judging unit is further configured to determine whether the virtual MP needs to be added according to the virtual MP information received by the first receiving unit, and if so, determine that the virtual MP is a member of the virtual MP.

24. The forwarding system of claim 22 or 23, wherein the virtual MP information further comprises: protocol version information adopted when the members in the virtual MP communicate with each other, the maximum member number supported by the virtual MP, the current member number of the virtual MP and any one or more combinations of the security authentication methods for the members;

the first judging unit or the second judging unit determines whether the virtual MP needs to be added according to the virtual MP information, wherein the determination includes one or more of the following three judgments:

judging whether the supported protocol version information is matched with the protocol version information contained in the virtual MP information; judging whether the number of the current virtual MP members contained in the virtual MP information does not exceed the maximum number of the members supported by the virtual MP; judging whether the virtual MP information supports a member security authentication method contained in the virtual MP information;

if so, determining that the virtual MP needs to be added; otherwise, it is determined that the virtual MP does not need to be added.

25. The forwarding system of claim 21, wherein if the first entity is configured as a leader of a virtual MP, the first receiving unit is further configured to receive leaving information sent by entities leaving the virtual MP; the first forwarding unit is further configured to determine whether a backup of the departing entity currently exists in the virtual MP, and if so, trigger configuration of the departing entity to be enabled on the backup; and publishing the leave message received by the first receiving unit in the virtual MP.

26. The forwarding system of claim 21, wherein the second receiving unit is further configured to receive leaving information sent by an entity leaving a virtual MP if the second entity is configured as a leader of the virtual MP; the second forwarding unit is further configured to determine whether a backup of the leaving entity currently exists in the virtual MP, and if so, enable configuration of the leaving entity on the backup; and disclosing the leave message received by the second receiving unit in the virtual MP.

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