US 11,991,144 B2
Seamless MAC address rotation in multi-link device using multiple IP stacks
Jerome Henry, Pittsboro, NC (US); Robert Edgar Barton, Richmond (CA); Stephen Michael Orr, Wallkill, NY (US); and Malcolm Muir Smith, Richardson, TX (US)
Assigned to CISCO TECHNOLOGY, INC., San Jose, CA (US)
Filed by Cisco Technology, Inc., San Jose, CA (US)
Filed on Apr. 28, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/731,335.
Prior Publication US 2023/0353532 A1, Nov. 2, 2023
Int. Cl. H04L 61/2596 (2022.01); H04L 61/251 (2022.01); H04L 61/5069 (2022.01); H04L 69/14 (2022.01)
CPC H04L 61/2596 (2013.01) [H04L 61/251 (2013.01); H04L 61/5069 (2022.05); H04L 69/14 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method comprising:
at a multi-link device (MLD) configured for multi-link operation:
establishing a first Internet Protocol (IP) stack of a first IP type and configured with a first IP address of the first IP type, wherein the first IP stack is associated to a first MLD media access control (MAC) address of a first station of the MLD;
establishing a second IP stack of a second IP type and configured with a second IP address of the second IP type, wherein the second IP stack exists concurrently with the first IP stack and is associated to a second MLD MAC address of a second station of the MLD;
bundling a first link MAC address configured on a first physical interface and a second link MAC address configured on a second physical interface under one or more of the first MLD MAC address and the second MLD MAC address; and
exchanging, with a peer MLD, IP traffic using the first physical interface and the second physical interface and one or more of (i) the first IP stack and the first MLD MAC address, and (ii) the second IP stack and the second MLD MAC address;
rotating the second link MAC address to a third link MAC address.