Method and system relating service providers to clients in a access network using dynamically allocated mac addresses

Abstract

An access system (ACC1) for relating service providers (SP1-SPn) to users (U11-Um1) includes an edge access server (EAS) connecting the service providers and penults (P1-Pk) connecting the users. User devices (UD11-UD14) are connected via VLAN:s to a user port (UP11) on the penult. The edge access server has service agents (SA1-SAn), an administrator (AD1) and a broadcast handler (BH1), which forms a handling system together with handlers (H1-Hk) in the penults. A user (U11) decision including VLAN, service (SP1) and user port (UP11) is sent to the administrator (AD1), which dynamically allocates to the relevant service agent (SA1) a MAC address, defining a relationship (R11). A user device (UD11) broadcasts a DHCP request unicasted together with user port (UP11) to the broadcast handler (BH1). The user device (UD11) gets its IP address and IP address to the service agent (SA1). The device (UD11) broadcasts an ARP request which is unicasted by the penult (P1), to get the MAC address to the service agent (SA1). The relations (R11, R21) are secure and can easily

1 - 24 . (canceled)  
   
   
       25 . An access system for communication between service providers and users via service access relations, the system including: 
 an edge access server having at least one service agent with a connection for one of the service providers;    at least one node having at least one user port for one of the users; and    an interconnecting arrangement, supporting exchanging of Ethernet frames, interconnecting the edge access server and the at least one node, the edge access server being arranged to dynamically allocate unique Ethernet MAC addresses to at least a part of the service agents, the unique Ethernet MAC addresses defining each one service access relation with one of the user ports,    
   
   
       26 . An access system for communication between service providers and users via service access relations, the system including: 
 an edge access server having at least one service agent with a connection for one of the service providers;    at least one node having at least one user port for one of the users; and    an interconnecting arrangement, supporting exchanging of Ethernet frames, interconnecting the edge access server and the at least one node, the edge access server being arranged to dynamically allocate at least one Ethernet MAC address to each one of at least a part of the service agents, the edge access server also being arranged both to bind said Ethernet MAC addresses to the service access relations to the user ports and to bind relation identifiers to said service access relations, said identifier appearing in a header of a transmitted Ethernet frame.    
   
   
       27 . An access system for communication between service providers and users via service access relations, the system including: 
 an edge access server having at least one service agent with a connection for one of the service providers;    at least one node supporting multicast access having at least one user port for at least one user Ethernet VLAN, and    an interconnecting arrangement, supporting exchanging of Ethernet frames, interconnecting the edge access server and the at least one node, said arrangement including switches supporting multicast, the edge access server being arranged to dynamically allocate Ethernet MAC addresses to at least one of the service agents, the Ethernet MAC address defining a multicast service access relation with at least one of the user ports, the edge access server being arranged to bind one and the same identification of one of the user Ethernet VLANs to the multicast service access relation, said user Ethernet VLAN identification being intended for the users participating in the multicast service.    
   
   
       28 . The access system according to  claim 25 , said user port being intended for at least one user Ethernet VLAN, the edge access server being arranged to bind also an identification of one of the user Ethernet VLANs on said user port to the service access relation.  
   
   
       29 . The access system according to  claim 27  including a register in the edge access server for the service access relations, the register including the service agent MAC address, the user port and the identification of the user Ethernet VLAN.  
   
   
       30 . The access system according to  claim 27 , further including: 
 a handling system with a handler attributed to the at least one node and a broadcast handler attributed to the service agents;    the handler being arranged to receive a broadcast service attachment request from a user device having a user MAC address, the request including the user Ethernet VLAN identification; and    the handler in the at least one node being arranged both to add to said service attachment request an identification of the user port and to send the request with the user port identification to the broadcast handler.    
   
   
       31 . The access system according to  claim 30 , wherein: 
 the broadcast handler is arranged to identify the user port and the Ethernet VLAN identification and the corresponding one of the service agent MAC addresses;    the broadcast handler is arranged to find the relevant service agent via the service agent MAC address; and    said service agent is arranged to allocate an IP address for said user device having said user MAC address.    
   
   
       32 . The access system according to  claim 31 , wherein said service agent is arranged to transmit to said user device, via the service access relation, both said allocated user device IP address and its own IP address.  
   
   
       33 . The access system according to  claim 29 , wherein: 
 the handler is arranged to receive from the user device a broadcast address resolution protocol broadcast message including the Ethernet VLAN identification;    the handler is arranged to add to said address resolution broadcast message an identification of the user port; and    the handler is arranged to transmit said address resolution broadcast message with the user port identification to the broadcast handler.    
   
   
       34 . The access system according to  claim 33 , wherein: 
 the broadcast handler is adapted to identify the user port and the Ethernet VLAN identification and to find the relevant service agent MAC address;    the broadcast handler is adapted to transmit the service agent MAC address to the handler in the at least one node; and    the handler is arranged to transmit the service agent MAC address to the user device.    
   
   
       35 . The access system according to  claim 34 , including, in the handler, a handler register including the user port and the Ethernet VLAN identification pointing out the service agent MAC address.  
   
   
       36 . The access system according to  claim 35 , wherein: 
 the handler is arranged to receive from the user device an address resolution protocol broadcast message including the Ethernet VLAN identification;    the handler is arranged to find in the handler register the relevant service agent MAC address; and    the handler is adapted to transmit the service agent MAC address to the user device.    
   
   
       37 . A method in an access system for communication between service providers and users, the system including: 
 an edge access server having at least one service agent with a connection intended for one of the service providers;    at least one penult having at least one user port intended for one of the users; and    an interconnecting arrangement, supporting exchanging of Ethernet frames, interconnecting the edge access server and the penults, the method including:    dynamically allocating in the edge access server unique Ethernet MAC addresses to at least a part of the service agents; and    binding the unique service agent MAC addresses to solely each one service access relation with one of the user ports.    
   
   
       38 . A method in an access system for communication between service providers and users, wherein the system includes an edge access server having at least one service agent with a connection intended for one of the service providers, at least one node having at least one user port intended for one of the users, and an interconnecting arrangement supporting exchanging of Ethernet frames, interconnecting the edge access server and the at least one node, the method comprising the steps of: 
 dynamically allocating in the edge access server at least one Ethernet MAC address to each one of at least a part of the service agents;    binding said Ethernet MAC addresses to the service access relations to the user ports; and    binding relation identifiers to said service access relations, said identifier appearing in a header of a transmitted Ethernet frame.    
   
   
       39 . A method in an access system for communication between service providers and users via service access relations, wherein the system includes an edge access server having at least one service agent with a connection intended for one of the service providers, at least one node supporting multicast access having at least one user port intended for at least one user Ethernet VLAN, and an interconnecting arrangement, supporting exchanging of Ethernet frames, interconnecting the edge access server and the at least one node, said arrangement including switches supporting multicast, the method comprising the steps of: 
 dynamically allocating in the edge access server Ethernet MAC addresses to at least one of the service agents, the Ethernet MAC address defining a multicast service access relation with at least one of the user ports; and    binding one and the same identification of one of the user Ethernet VLANs to the multicast service access relation, said user Ethernet VLAN identification being intended for the users participating in the multicast service.    
   
   
       40 . The method according to  claim 37 , wherein said user port is intended for at least one user Ethernet VLAN, the method further comprising the step of binding an identification of one of the user Ethernet VLANs on said user port to the service access relation.  
   
   
       41 . The method according to  claim 39 , further comprising the step of creating a register in the edge access server for the service access relations, the register including the service agent MAC address, the user port and the identification of the user Ethernet VLAN.  
   
   
       42 . The method according to  claim 41 , wherein the access system further includes a handling system with a handler attributed to the at least one nqde and a broadcast handler attributed to the service agents, the method further comprising the steps of: 
 receiving in the handler a broadcast service attachment request from a user device having a user MAC address, the request including the user Ethernet VLAN identification;    adding to said service attachment request an identification of the user port, the adding performed in the handler in the at least one node; and    sending the request with the user port identification to the broadcast handier.    
   
   
       43 . The method according to  claim 42 , the method further comprising the steps of: 
 identifying in the broadcast handler the user port and the Ethernet VLAN identification;    identifying the one of the service agent MAC addresses that corresponds to the user port and the Ethernet VLAN identification;    finding the relevant service agent via the service agent MAC address; and    allocating in said relevant service agent an IP address to said user device having said user MAC address.    
   
   
       44 . The method according to  claim 43 , further comprising the step of transmitting, via the service access relation, both said allocated user device IP address and an IP address for the allocating service agent to said user device.  
   
   
       45 . The method according to  claim 44 , further comprising the steps of 
 receiving in the handler, from the user device, a broadcast address resolution protocol broadcast message including the Ethernet VLAN identification;    adding to the message an identification of the user port; and    transmitting from the handler said address resolution broadcast message with the user port identification to the broadcast handler.    
   
   
       46 . The method according to  claim 45 , further comprising the steps of: 
 noting in the broadcast handler the user port and the Ethernet VLAN identification;    finding the relevant service agent MAC address;    transmitting the service agent MAC address to the handler in the at least one node; and    transmitting from the handier the service agent MAC address to the user device.    
   
   
       47 . The method according to  claim 46 , further comprising the step of creating in the handler a handler register including the user port and the Ethernet VLAN identification pointing out the service agent MAC address.  
   
   
       48 . The method according to  claim 47 , further comprising the steps of: 
 receiving in the handler, from the user device, an address resolution protocol broadcast message including the Ethernet VLAN identification;    finding in the handler register the relevant service agent MAC address; and    transmitting from the handler the service agent MAC address to the user device.