Abstract: The disclosed computer-implemented method may include (1) identifying, in kernel space on a network device, a packet that is destined for a remote device, (2) passing, along with the packet, metadata for the packet to a packet buffer in kernel space on the network device, (3) framing, by the kernel module in kernel space, the packet such that the packet egresses via a tunnel interface driver on the network device, (4) encapsulating, by the tunnel interface driver, the packet with the metadata, and then (5) forwarding, by the tunnel interface driver, the packet to the remote device based at least in part on the metadata with which the packet was encapsulated. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.

Abstract: Techniques are described for reusing downstream-assigned labels when establishing a new label switched path (LSP) between an ingress router and an egress router prior to tearing down an existing LSP using make-before-break (MBB) procedures for the Resource Reservation Protocol (RSVP). In one example, a router receives, a first message requesting establishment of an LSP including a tunnel identifier pair. The router compares the tunnel identifier pair for the requested LSP to existing LSP information stored at the router. Based on a determination that the tunnel identifier pair for the requested LSP is the same as a tunnel identifier pair for an existing LSP, the router assigns a label used by the router to identify incoming traffic associated with the requested LSP that is the same as a previously allocated label for the existing LSP without updating labels in a forwarding table of a forwarding plane of the router.

Abstract: In some embodiments, an apparatus includes a reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM). The ROADM has a wavelength selective switch (WSS) that does not perform power equalization when the WSS is operative. The ROADM also has a first pre-amplifier, a first channel power equalizer operatively coupled to the first pre-amplifier, a second pre-amplifier operatively coupled to the first channel power equalizer and the WSS, a first post-amplifier operatively coupled to the WSS, a second channel power equalizer operatively coupled to the first post-amplifier, and a second post-amplifier operative coupled to the second channel power equalizer.

Abstract: In some embodiments, a system includes a super-channel multiplexer (SCM) and an optical cross connect (OXC) switch. The SCM is configured to multiplex a set of optical signals into a super-channel optical signal with a wavelength band. The OXC switch is configured to be operatively coupled to the SCM and a reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM) degree. The OXC switch is configured to be located between the SCM and the ROADM degree and the OXC switch, the SCM, and the ROADM degree are configured to be included in a colorless, directionless, and contentionless (CDC) optical network. The OXC switch is configured to switch, based on the wavelength band, the super-channel optical signal to an output port from a set of output ports of the OXC switch. The OXC switch is configured to transmit the super-channel optical signal from the output port to the ROADM degree.

Abstract: In one example, a network management system (NMS) is configured to enable a target network device to support one more network services by generating a translation template to map a vendor neutral model to a device specific model. The NMS determines similarity scores between nodes in the vendor neutral model and nodes in the device specific model. Based on the similarity scores, the NMS generates a translation template from the vendor neutral model to the device specific model. Using the translation template, the NMS may configure the target network device to support the one or more network services.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention describe apparatuses, optical systems, and methods for utilizing a dynamically reconfigurable optical transmitter. A laser array outputs a plurality of laser signals (which may further be modulated based on electrical signals), each of the plurality of laser signals having a wavelength, wherein the wavelength of each of the plurality of laser signals is tunable based on other electrical signals. An optical router receives the plurality of (modulated) laser signals at input ports and outputs the plurality of received (modulated) laser signals to one or more output ports based on the tuned wavelength of each of the plurality of received laser signals. This reconfigurable transmitter enables dynamic bandwidth allocation for multiple destinations via the tuning of the laser wavelengths.

Abstract: The disclosed apparatus may include a fluid-cooled plate that may be thermally coupled to a first electronic component for cooling the first electronic component by way of a cooling fluid, and a gas-cooled plate physically coupled to the fluid-cooled plate. The gas-cooled plate may be thermally coupled to a second electronic component for cooling the second electronic component by way of a gas. The gas-cooled plate may be separated from the fluid-cooled plate by a gap. Various other apparatuses, systems, and methods are also disclosed.

Abstract: The disclosed apparatus may include (1) a housing unit that houses an optical transducer within a telecommunications device, (2) a heatsink that is coupled to a movable shaft secured to a joint within the telecommunications device, and (3) a coil spring that (A) is coupled to the movable shaft secured to the joint within the telecommunications device and, when released, (B) applies a force that presses the heatsink against the optical transducer to ensure that the heatsink is thermally coupled to the optical transducer. Various other apparatuses, systems, and methods are also disclosed.

Abstract: Techniques are described for reusing downstream-assigned labels when establishing a new instance of a label switched path (LSP) prior to tearing down an existing instance of the LSP using make-before-break (MBB) procedures for RSVP. The techniques enable a routing engine of any non-ingress router along a path of the new LSP instance to reuse a previously allocated label for the existing LSP instance as the downstream assigned label for the new LSP instance when the paths of the existing LSP instance and the new LSP instance overlap. In this way, the non-ingress router does not need to update a label route in its forwarding plane for the reused label. When the new LSP instance completely overlaps the existing LSP instance, an ingress router of the LSP may avoid updating an ingress route in its forwarding plane for applications that use the LSP.

Abstract: The disclosed apparatus may include (1) a Field-Replaceable Unit (FRU) that (A) is designed to mate with a backplane of a telecommunications system and (B) facilitates communication among computing devices within a network and (2) at least one helical ejector that (A) is coupled to the FRU, (B) fastens to a housing of the telecommunications system to enable the FRU to mate with the backplane of the telecommunications system, and (C) includes at least one spring that, when the helical ejector is fastened to the housing of the telecommunications system, applies a force on the FRU that pushes the FRU toward the backplane of the telecommunications system. Various other apparatuses, systems, and methods are also disclosed.

Abstract: The disclosed apparatus may include (1) a first heatsink that is coupled to a first component of a multichip module, (2) a second heatsink that is (A) coupled to a second component of the multichip module and (B) physically separated from the first heatsink by at least a certain amount of clearance, and (3) a coil spring that (A) encompasses the second heatsink, (B) resides within the certain amount of clearance that separates the first and second heatsinks from one another, and (C) prevents at least some electromagnetic radiation from leaking via the certain amount of clearance that separates the first and second heatsinks from one another. Various other apparatuses, systems, and methods are also disclosed.

Abstract: The disclosed apparatus may include a processing unit may manage memory in connection with a computing device by (1) searching a root index of a root node for a bit indicating that a specific lookup index within the root node corresponds to a leaf node that references an unallocated memory location, (2) identifying, within the specific lookup index, a bit indicating that a specific leaf node references the unallocated memory location, (3) searching a leaf index of the specific leaf node for a bit indicating that a specific object within the leaf node corresponds to the unallocated memory location, (4) identifying, within the specific object, a bit that corresponds to a specific memory location and indicates that the specific memory location is currently unallocated, and then (5) allocating the specific memory location for use by the computing device. Various other apparatuses, systems, and methods are also disclosed.

Abstract: The disclosed method may include (1) receiving, at a route server that serves an Internet exchange, a request from an autonomous system to join the Internet exchange, (2) obtaining, from the autonomous system, a policy that defines which routes pertaining to the autonomous system are to be shared with additional autonomous systems that have joined the Internet exchange, (3) obtaining, from the autonomous system, a plurality of routes pertaining to the autonomous system, (4) storing, at the route server, the plurality of routes pertaining to the autonomous system, and then (5) advertising at least a portion of the plurality of routes to at least one of the additional autonomous systems in accordance with the policy obtained from the autonomous system. Various other apparatuses, systems, and methods are also disclosed.

Abstract: The problem of excessive BGP updates to update the AIGP cost is systems with excessively changing IGP metrics is solved by (1) monitoring AIGP value changes over a given time period, (2) determining whether or not the AIGP value changes over the given period of time are excessive (e.g., are greater than a predetermined threshold), (3) responsive to a determination that the AIGP changes over the given period of time are not excessive, use the actual AIGP value in the AIGP protocol, but otherwise, responsive to a determination that the AIGP changes over the given period of time are excessive, (i) setting (e.g., locking) the AIGP value to a predetermined or derived value (and using the set or locked AIGP value in advertisements) for a second period of time (regardless of whether or not the actual AIGP value changes during the second period of time), and (ii) using the set (e.g., locked) AIGP value in the AIGP protocol.

Abstract: Techniques are disclosed for implementing scalable policies across a plurality of categories that support application workloads. In one example, a policy controller assigns to the plurality of categories tags specifying one or more of a plurality of dimensions. The policy controller distributes a plurality of policies to policy agents for the plurality of categories. Each policy includes one or more policy rules, and each policy rule includes one or more tags specifying one or more of the plurality of dimensions. For each policy rule, the policy agents allow or deny a traffic flow between objects that belong to categories of the plurality of categories described by the one or more dimensions of a respective tag of the policy rule.

Abstract: A device may include a power supply module (PSM). The PSM may receive information regarding one or more programmable restrictions associated with a power supply. The PSM may receive a measurement of voltage associated with the power supply. The PSM may determine a current associated with the power supply based on the one or more programmable restrictions, the measurement of voltage, and a first amount of power associated with the power supply. The PSM may cause a load associated with the power supply to be adjusted based on determining the current without removing power for a connection between the power supply and a power source associated with the power supply. The PSM may cause the power supply to provide a second amount of power based on causing the load associated with the power supply to be adjusted.

Abstract: In some examples, a network device is configured to obtain a set of N paths between a pair of nodes of a network topology model for a network of routers interconnected by a plurality of links in a network topology, where N>2, and configured to, for each label switched path from a plurality of label switched paths to be routed to the network topology: in response to identifying, from the set of N paths, a path for the label switched path that has capacity for a required bandwidth of the label switched path, deduct the required bandwidth of the label switched path from one or more links of the path of the network topology model to modify the network topology model and output data to the network for programming the label switched path in the network on the path; and in response to failing to identify a path for the label switched path from the set of N paths, add the label switched path to a set of failed label switched paths.

Abstract: In some embodiments, a non-transitory processor-readable medium storing code representing instructions to be executed by a processor comprises code to cause the processor to determine, during a calibration of a coherent optical transmitter, a set of parameters associated with each tributary channel by sending a first signal to a digital signal processor (DSP) to adjust a scale factor of that tributary channel. The scale factor is associated with a tap characteristic of a finite impulse response (FIR) filter of the DSP. The code further causes the processor to determine a power imbalance between two tributary channels based on the set of parameters associated with each tributary channel. The code further causes the processor to send a second signal to the coherent optical transmitter to adjust a set of operational settings of the coherent optical transmitter based on the power imbalance and the set of parameters associated with each tributary channel.

Abstract: A device may receive a trained data model that has been trained using historical link quality information associated with a set of links. The device may determine, after receiving the trained data model, link quality information associated with a link that is actively supporting traffic. The device may classify the link by using the link quality information as input for the data model. The data model may classify the link into a class of a set of classes associated with measuring link quality. The device may determine an actual quality level of the link. The device may selectively update the class of the link after determining the actual link quality of the link. The device may perform one or more actions associated with improving link quality based on classifying the link and/or selectively updating the class of the link.

Abstract: In general, techniques are described for performing flow timeout control within a network. A device comprising a processor may be configured to perform the techniques. The processor may be configured to, as one example, determine, from a first packet of a packet flow, a minimum timeout value for the packet flow indicative of a time duration during which a first computing device will not send a keep-alive message to prevent the packet flow from timing out. The processor may then determine an intermediate timeout value for the packet flow based on a comparison of the minimum timeout value to a maximum timeout value, and specify the intermediate timeout value in a second packet of the packet flow sent by the second network device to the first network device in response to the first packet.