Abstract: A network switch, configured for performing layer 2 and layer 3 switching in an Ethernet (IEEE 802.3) network without blocking of incoming data packets, includes a network switch port having a port filter configured for evaluating an incoming data packet on an instantaneous basis. The filter is configured for determining the presence of prescribed layer 3 information in a received data packet. The port filter also signals a switch fabric of the network switch to learn the IP-MAC association of the data packet. The port filter determines whether or not the data packet is part of the data traffic between connected subnetworks of the network switch. With the port filter in the above configuration, the network is enabled to perform layer 3 and layer 2 switching for 100 Mbps and gigabit networks without blocking in the network switch.

Abstract: A network switching system configured for evaluating an incoming data packet including layer 3 information having an Internet Protocol (IP) header and an IP checksum. The system includes a buffer memory and network switch. The network switch includes a media access control (MAC) module having a receive data portion and a transmit data portion. The receive data portion is configured to extract the IP checksum from the IP header and to validate the IP checksum. A queue block is configured to send the IP checksum to the buffer memory for storage therein. A layer 3 internal rules checker is configured to receive layer 3 information and to modify the IP header based on a field of the IP header. The internal rules checker generates an identifier indicating the field needs to be changed.

Abstract: An apparatus is configured for testing a light emitting diode interface. The apparatus includes an integrated network device having a configuration register and logic for generating LED outputs based on detected network events and stored configuration register values. A light emitting diode is associated with the register. A processor is configured to send a signal to the integrated network device to set the configuration register to cause operation of the light emitting diode independent of network events. Hence, a light emitting diode interface of an integrated network device such as a network switch can be tested without sending data packets to the network device.

Abstract: A notification architecture utilizes multiple processes configured for managing notification operations based on reception of SMTP-based messages within IMAP based message stores. The notification architecture includes a notification process, configured for receiving notification messages for respective subscribers from messaging sources according to a prescribed open protocol such as Internet Protocol. The notification process accesses subscriber profile information from an open protocol-based subscriber directory based on the received notification messages. The subscriber directory is controlled by a directory management process, configured for storing subscriber notification preference information in an open protocol-based subscriber directory (such as LDAP). The directory management process stores, as a first object class, notification attributes for respective notification types, each notification attribute specifying for the corresponding notification type a corresponding notification device tag.

Abstract: An arrangement for implementing a network in an ISDN-based customer premises having a four-wire ISDN S0 bus. The ISDN-based customer premises includes a Network Termination Basic Access (NTBA) that interfaces between the residential customer premises and the public switched telephone network or a similar connector for internal S0-Busses within a PBX system by mapping the two-wire ISDN signal onto the four-wire bus. A low pass filter is added to the two-wire send path to eliminate high frequency noise caused by harmonic reflections of the ISDN-based signals on the four-wire bus. Filters are also coupled between each ISDN device and the four-wire S0 bus, ensuring that the four-wire S0 bus is isolated from the ISDN devices to optimize transmission of the higher frequency home network signals.

Abstract: A microprocessor EMI shield is configured for isolating EMI emissions from the microprocessor, and grounding any electric potential caused by EMI emissions detected by the microprocessor heat sink. The microprocessor EMI shield includes a low-impedance conductive surface sufficient for conducting electric potential induced based on EMI emissions from the microprocessor. The microprocessor EMI shield also includes an array of apertures for accommodating the respective microprocessor pins. The array of apertures includes a first group of apertures for accommodating the microprocessor non-ground pins, each having a spaced diameter for avoiding contact with the corresponding non-ground microprocessor pin, and a second group of apertures for accommodating the microprocessor ground pins.

Abstract: A web-based voice messaging system uses an application server, configured for executing a voice application defined by XML documents, that accesses subscriber attributes from a standardized information database server (such as LDAP), and messages from a standardized messaging server (such as IMAP). The application server, upon receiving a request from a browser serving a subscriber, accesses an IP based messaging server to obtain a stored message for the subscriber from a second party. The stored message identifies a text-based form. The application server converts the text-based form into an audible format. The application server generates an HTML document to present to the subscriber the form in audible format with audible prompts, based on the HTTP request and the text-based form. The application server then updates the text-based form based on an input from the subscriber. Thus, text-based forms can be retrieved and acted on via a telephone.

Abstract: A processor-based system configured for searching in dynamically balanced trees is configured for linking the most often-searched elements of the tree to optimize search performance. Data elements include pointers for a tree-based index ordering and a doubly-linked list based index ordering. A background process links the most often-searched elements according to the linked list ordering and maintains the linked list ordering by first determining those elements having the highest importance values, defined as a number of times an element is successfully searched relative to aging or decay function. The linked list ordering is then arranged based on descending importance values. Each element also includes a go-to-tree flag, indicating to a search engine the point at which it is no longer beneficial to continue searching according to the doubly-linked list ordering.

Abstract: A unified web-based voice messaging system provides voice application control between a web browser and an application server via an hypertext transport protocol (HTTP) connection on an Internet Protocol (IP) network. The application server executes the voice-enabled web application by runtime execution of extensible markup language (XML) documents that define the voice-enabled web application to be executed. Each voice application operation can be defined as any one of a user interface operation, a logic operation, or a function operation. Each XML document includes XML tags that specify the user interface operation, the logic operation and/or the function operation to be performed within a corresponding voice application operation, the XML tags being based on prescribed rule sets that specify the executable functions to be performed by the application runtime environment.

Abstract: An executable process, configured for storing and retrieving data from a storage medium having a prescribed storage definition, is configured for converting an array having a prescribed data structure into a string having array descriptors that specify the prescribed data structure. The array descriptors are used to identify for each a element its corresponding element name and element value. The array descriptors also identify for each element its relative depth within the array, for example whether a given array element is a subelement of another array element. Hence, the array can be stored and recovered from the storage medium without modification of the prescribed storage definition and without loss of the data structure of the array.

Abstract: A home network environment is implemented in a customer premises having a Private Branch Exchange (PBX) for outputting analog telephone signals onto twisted pair wiring arranged in a star topology, by adding a high pass filter in parallel along the twisted pair wiring. The high pass filter enables transmission of network data signals between the telephone line pairs connected to the PBX, without interference of the switching operations by the PBX of analog telephone signals. The high pass filter may be implemented within the PBX as an improved PBX system that accommodates home networking, or alternatively the high pass filter may be added externally to the PBX system as a retrofit operation for existing customer premises.

Abstract: A router is configured for sending and receiving data packets on an InfiniBand™ network and acts as a bridge between an IP network and the InfiniBand™ network. The router is configured to receive an Internet Protocol (IP) data packet having an IP header including a type of service (TOS) field having a differentiated services code point indicative of layer 3 priority data of the IP packet . The router includes a mapping table having multiple entries, each entry specifying a differentiated services code point and a corresponding service level. The controller is configured for parsing the TOS field and determining the service level for the differentiated services level. The controller outputs the IP packet on the InfiniBand™ network within an InfiniBand™ packet according to the determined services level.

Abstract: A transparently-bridged wide area network connecting Ethernet/IEEE 802.3-based local area networks uses redundant proxy devices one each LAN for internetwork communications. The proxy devices on a given LAN, implemented as data link switching (DLSw) devices, mediate for proxy services by generation and maintenance of a token between the proxy devices capable of providing the corresponding proxy services. In the case of transfer of a data frame, a proxy device having received a frame from an end station determines whether any other proxy device possess a token authorizing the establishment of a circuit connection via a wide area network for transfer of the frame to another local area network. If the proxy devices determines that another proxy device possess the token, the proxy device lacking the token drops the frame. If the proxy device possesses the token, then the frame can be transferred via the wide area network.

Abstract: An integrated device includes an external memory interface that includes address decoding logic configured for identifying a destination device register based on register address information retrieved from an external memory. The external memory interface, upon identifying the destination device register, loads the destination device register with register data read from the external memory, for example contiguously following the corresponding register address information. Hence, the integrated device can be programmed on a per register basis, without the necessity of an EEPROM map.

Abstract: A power line filter connected to single-phase power lines (110-230 VAC, 50-60 Hz) enables transmission of HomePNA-type home network signals between network nodes connected to the main power lines as a network medium. The filter includes fuse resistors (R1, R2) that limit the current from the main power line, a transit diode circuit that clamps the bolts to a prescribed limit, eliminating energy that may be present in main power spikes. A pair of X2-type capacitors pass the 1 MHz or higher HomePNA signals, while rejecting the 50-60 Hz main power signal. A choke-type inductor eliminates any residual high voltage signals in the 50-60 Hz range by short circuiting the power signals, while maintaining a high impedance at the 1 MHz range, enabling the HomePNA signals to be safely passed to the RJ-11 connector of a physical layer transceiver of the Home Network Node.

Abstract: A transparently-bridged wide area network connecting Ethernet/IEEE 802.3-based local area networks uses redundant proxy devices on each LAN for internetwork communications. The proxy devices on a given LAN, implemented as data link switching (DLSw) devices, identify amongst each other a master proxy device for mediating services to be provided to an end station on the local area network. Each proxy device connected to the local area network sends a request to the identified master proxy device in response to detecting a frame transmitted by an end station on the local area network, for permission to establish a circuit connection for transfer of the frame via a wide area network. The master proxy device, based on prescribed criteria, selects one of the proxy devices for transferring the frame, and sends a grant response to the selected proxy device.

Abstract: A pipelined alignment shifter allows transfer of strings of bytes between memories which are non-aligned in computer systems or serial communications and networking with the memories arranged in N fields of B bits, where N and B are integers. The shifter has B copies of N-1 storage elements connected to N copies of N to 1 (N:1) multiplexers. An enable signal E is commonly transmitted to each copy of N-1 storage elements to cause each N-1 storage element, e.g., a latch or a register, to output a previously stored input and to store a corresponding input. A selection signal S indicative of the offset difference between the memories is commonly transmitted to each copy of N:1 multiplexer for realignment of non-aligned boundaries in data transfer mechanisms such as Direct Memory Access (DMA) controllers.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for arbitration among users for a resource has a single shared user request line over which each of the users asserts request signals for use of the resource. Dynamic priority assignment is provided, in which the sequence of users is changed as a function of the last user to use the resource. A time multiplexed format for arbitration is followed, with each user keeping track of which user's turn it is to request use of the resource. This prevents starvation of an individual user and allows great flexibility in assigning priority to the users, while reducing pin counts and signal traces.