Abstract: An arrangement where a primary traffic management device includes ports that are connected to a network, and a backup device that is connected to the primary device and also to the network provides effective backup support. When a port of the primary become non-operational, a port of the backup device is enlisted to serve the function of the non-operational port, leaving the remaining port of the primary, as well as all of the processors to continue operating normally, employing whatever data has been accumulated in the primary. The enlisting is accomplished through a Layer 2 switch within the primary device and a Layer 2 switch within the secondary device.

Abstract: In illustrative embodiments, equivalent network processing of packets is performed at a single node instead of at a large number of special purpose nodes. A single-pass pipelined packet scan at the single node permits required actions to be taken in an integrated manner to avoid repetitive processing. Processing is conveniently accomplished in separate stateless and stateful segments, with state-related information derived during the stateless packet scan segment tagged to processed packets as required for subsequent stateful processing.