Abstract: In an embodiment, a method is provided for transferring network traffic for multi-homed devices. In this method, capacity information is received from a network device. This capacity information identifies a network capacity of the network device. Upon detection of network traffic to exceed a threshold, an excess capacity of the network device is identified based on the capacity information. A portion of the network traffic is then transferred to the network device by way of a link aggregation protocol, and the portion of network traffic is transferred based on the identified excess capacity of the network device.

Abstract: Automatically managing network addresses in a managed access environment is described. A managed access environment is defined as one in which a service provider delegates responsibility for a portion of their address space to an access provider, which is responsible for distributing the addresses to devices used by subscribers of the service provider. An aspect of the invention allows rule-action associations to be defined. The method includes accessing network address utilization data and evaluating rule conditions in relation to the utilization data. When a rule condition is met, an associated address management action is executed. Different embodiments of the invention provide execution of different actions, such as allocating, reconfiguring, and reclaiming addresses from a service provider's address space.

Abstract: Techniques for configuring a customer premises equipment connected to a network of a network service provider include receiving configuration information at a distributed component on the network from a central unit on the network. The distributed component also receives from the customer premises equipment a request for values of configuration parameters that determine network properties for the customer premises equipment. The distributed component generates a set of values for the configuration parameters based on the request and the configuration information received from the central unit. The set of values are sent from the distributed component to the customer premises equipment. A system using these techniques is scalable with increasing numbers of customer premises equipments simultaneously requesting values for configuration parameters and is robust in face of equipment failure at a distributed component or at the central unit or both.

Abstract: A method for automatically managing network addresses in a managed access environment is described. A managed access environment is defined as one in which a service provider delegates responsibility for a portion of their address space to an access provider, which is responsible for distributing the addresses to devices used by subscribers of the service provider. An aspect of the invention allows rule-action associations to be defined. The method includes accessing network address utilization data and evaluating rule conditions in relation to the utilization data. When a rule condition is met, an associated address management action is executed. Different embodiments of the invention provide execution of different actions, such as allocating, reconfiguring, and reclaiming addresses from a service provider's address space.

Abstract: This invention provides for an apparatus and method to associate a subscriber with one of many port bundles in an aggregation device. The method reserves one of the port bundles for the subscriber if the subscriber was not assigned a port bundle, changes the original source port number in a data packet to a port bundle number, modifies the subscriber address to an assigned aggregation address, and issues a request to a remote management device for authentication of the subscriber. Once a response is received from the management device including the authentication or unauthentication of the subscriber, the subscriber is mapped with the reserved port bundle in a port bundle object and the reserved port bundle is then assigned to the subscriber.

Abstract: A device and method is provided for finding a specific material superimposed on an unknown background when the locations of the specific material and the background are unknown, for example, inside an item of baggage. The invention comprises exposing an area of an item to be inspected to x-rays of two substanitally different energies, making effective use of the characteristic material specific differences in photoelectric effect scattering and Compton scattering, and comparing the pairwise differential attenuation of the x-rays at nearby exposed subareas to determine whether differences in attenuation can be attributed to the presence of different amounts of the specific material overlying the respective subareas. The most probable subareas are indicated on a standard image on a monitor as being the most likely location of the overlying specific material.

Abstract: A device and method is provided for finding a specific material superimposed on an unknown background when the locations of the specific material and the background are unknown, for example, inside an item of baggage. The invention comprises exposing an area of an item to be inspected to x-rays of two substanitally different energies, making effective use of the characteristic material specific differences in photoelectric effect scattering and Compton scattering, and comparing the pairwise differential attenuation of the x-rays at nearby exposed subareas to determine whether differences in attenuation can be attributed to the presence of different amounts of the specific material overlying the respective subareas. The most probable subareas are indicated on a standard image on a monitor as being the most likely location of the overlying specific material.