WO2010127599A1 - Quick recovery method for a multicast service after break, apparatus and gateway device thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a quick recovery method for a multicast service after break, wherein the method includes: after being restarted, a gateway device queries whether there is multicast service information on demand in a multicast client; if there is multicast service information on demand in the multicast client, the multicast client replies a response join message to the gateway device; according to the reply from the multicast client, the gateway device requests and establishes the multicast service. In order to realize the scheme mentioned above, the present invention provides a quick recovery apparatus for a multicast service after break, wherein the apparatus includes: a gateway device and a multicast client. Correspondingly, the present invention also provides a quick recovery gateway device for a multicast service after break, wherein the gateway device includes: a multicast management module and a multicast client query module. The present invention enables a gateway device to establish multicast service automatically and quickly after the gateway device is restarted, so as to recover the multicast connection relation rapidly.

Description

 Method, device and gateway device for quickly recovering after multicast service disconnection

 The present invention relates to the field of multicast services, and in particular, to a method, a device, and a gateway device for quickly recovering a multicast service after disconnection. Background technique

 Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) is a television broadcast service media based on network protocol (IP). It is a product of the convergence of the communications industry with the broadcasting and media industries. IPTV is rapidly evolving due to its good interactivity and personalization, and is welcomed by many users.

 However, the IPTV multicast service mechanism also has an immature aspect. For example, when performing a multicast service, the gateway device restarts during multicast playback due to configuration, adjustment, power failure, etc., and the multicast service will immediately After the gateway device is restored to normal state, the set-top box (STB) cannot receive the multicast device data in a timely manner, and the multicast data is still received. . After the timeout period of the multicast client is reached, the multicast service can be re-established. After the user finds that the program is interrupted, the user can manually perform the on-demand broadcast to re-establish the multicast service, that is, the on-demand broadcast on the STB. Back to normal. For example, when a user uses STB to watch TV at home, during the IPTV program playback, when the gateway device loses power due to user misoperation, etc., the IPTV program is immediately interrupted; after the user discovers, the gateway device is restored. After the power is connected, the gateway device will restart after 2 minutes. However, the STB will still be in an interrupted state and cannot be restored to normal immediately. Instead, the user needs to reconfigure the multicast connection through the remote control of the STB to restore the group. Broadcast business.

It can be seen that when the gateway device restarts abnormally, the entire multicast service needs to wait for a long time to wait for the timeout period to be reached, or the user can only recover when the user interferes. This gives the multicast industry using IPTV. Users of the service have brought great inconvenience. Summary of the invention

 In view of this, the main purpose of the present invention is to provide a method, a device, and a gateway device for quickly recovering after a multicast service is disconnected. After the gateway device is restarted, the group can be automatically and quickly established without user intervention. Broadcast services to quickly restore multicast connections.

 To achieve the above objective, the present invention discloses a method for quickly recovering a multicast service after disconnection, including: after the gateway device restarts, querying whether the multicast client has the on-demand multicast service information; the multicast client exists. When the multicast service information is requested, the gateway device returns a response join message; and according to the response join message, the gateway device requests and establishes a multicast service.

 The querying the multicast client for the presence of the on-demand multicast service information is: sending a query message to the multicast client; the multicast client checks whether it has an on-demand according to the query message received by the multicast client. Multicast business information. The requesting and establishing the multicast service by the gateway device is: after the gateway device receives the response join message, parsing the response join message, constructing a multicast join request of the corresponding multicast service request, and transmitting the packet to the streaming media The server sends the multicast join message to request to establish a corresponding multicast service. After receiving the multicast join message, the streaming media server sends a multicast data packet corresponding to the multicast service request. The gateway device forwards the multicast data packet to the multicast client to establish a multicast service.

 In the above method, the gateway device forwards the multicast data packet to the multicast client: the gateway device analyzes and determines the multicast source corresponding to the multicast data packet, and determines the multicast forwarding table according to the multicast forwarding table. The multicast source finds the corresponding multicast client, and forwards the multicast data packet to the multicast client; the multicast forwarding table records the multicast client that the gateway device parses from the response join message. The association between the IP address and the multicast group address corresponding to the multicast service.

In order to implement the foregoing method, the present invention provides a device for quickly recovering a multicast service after disconnection, including: a gateway device and a multicast client; wherein, after the restart, the gateway device is configured to query whether the multicast client has on-demand broadcast Multicast service information, and according to the reply of the multicast client A multicast request should be added to the multicast service. The multicast client is configured to reply to the gateway device with a response to the multicast service when it has the multicast service information.

 The device further includes: a streaming media server, configured to receive a multicast service request of the gateway device, and provide a multicast data packet corresponding to the multicast service request. The gateway device is specifically configured to send a query message to the multicast client after the restart, and the multicast client is configured to check whether the multicast service information of the on-demand service exists according to the query message.

 Correspondingly, the present invention further provides a gateway device that is quickly restored after the multicast service is disconnected, and includes: a multicast management module and a multicast client query module; wherein, the multicast management module is configured to: after the gateway device is restarted, The multicast client querying module is configured to query whether the multicast client has the on-demand multicast service information, and when the multicast client query module queries the multicast client for the on-demand multicast service information, requests and establishes the group. The multicast client query module is configured to query whether the multicast client has on-demand multicast service information.

 In the above gateway device, the multicast management module includes: an initialization unit, a message processing unit, where the initialization unit is configured to notify the multicast client query module to query whether the multicast client has an on-demand after the gateway device is restarted. The multicast service information is used by the packet processing unit to request and establish a multicast service when the multicast client query module queries the multicast service information that the multicast client has on-demand. The packet processing unit is configured to receive and parse the multicast response join message and the multicast data packet sent by the streaming media server, and obtain the multicast service information; The module further includes a forwarding unit, where the forwarding unit is configured to record an association between an IP address of the multicast client to which the packet processing unit is parsed and a multicast group address that is broadcast by the multicast client to the multicast forwarding table. The multicast forwarding packet is forwarded to the streaming server according to the multicast forwarding table, and the multicast data packet is forwarded to the multicast client.

It can be seen from the above technical solution that, when the gateway device is powered off and restarted, the present invention enables the gateway multicast device to send a multicast query (Query) message to enable the downlink multicast client to reply to the multicast join report message. So that the gateway device actively informs the STB after the power failure is restarted. The multicast service connection is newly established, and the multicast service is quickly restored.

 Therefore, after the user connects the multicast client to the gateway device, even if the gateway device is disconnected and restarted during playback, the multicast service can be re-established without user intervention, and the multicast connection relationship can be quickly restored. . The invention can not only improve the reliability of the gateway device, but also facilitate the user to use the multicast service to a greater extent. The problem that the multicast service cannot be recovered immediately is solved fundamentally, and the problem of waiting timeout or user intervention in the process of multicast service recovery is eliminated. DRAWINGS

 FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system architecture of a general multicast service;

 2 is a schematic flowchart of Embodiment 1 of a method for quickly recovering a multicast service after disconnection according to the present invention; FIG. 3 is a schematic flowchart of Embodiment 2 of a method for quickly recovering a multicast service after disconnection according to the present invention; Schematic diagram of the device structure for fast recovery after the broadcast service is disconnected. detailed description

 The basic idea of the present invention is: After the gateway device is restarted, the multicast Query message is automatically sent to the multicast client, and the multicast client responds to the Report message after receiving the Query message, and re-establishes the multicast connection relationship. Therefore, the purpose of quickly recovering the multicast service is achieved.

 It should be noted that the Query message, the Report message, and the multicast data message are all multicast protocol messages. However, in order to make the description of the embodiments clearer, the Report message is based on the Report. The object to be sent and received and the content of the packet are classified into: a report message, a multicast report message, and a response report message. The on-demand report message is a request message that the multicast client applies to the gateway device to join the multicast service; the multicast report message is a multicast service request message sent by the gateway device to the streaming media server; The response report message is a response message of the Query message sent by the gateway device to the multicast client.

In addition, each multicast source includes one or more multicast services, namely: at the gateway device One or more multicast groups exist in the corresponding one multicast source, and each multicast group corresponds to a specific multicast service. Therefore, each multicast group address is its corresponding multicast service address.

 First, the working mechanism of the IPTV multicast service is introduced. As shown in FIG. 1, the system architecture of the multicast service includes: a streaming media server 101, an Internet 102, a gateway device 103, and a multicast client 104. The multicast client 104 accesses the Internet 102 through the gateway device 103 and contacts the streaming server 101 to carry out multicast services. The streaming server 101 provides multicast data corresponding to the multicast source to the multicast client 104, and the multicast client 104 can be an STB, a personal computer (PC), a mobile phone, or the like.

 The following takes the STB as the gateway device to carry out the multicast service as an example. The working mechanism of the IPTV multicast service includes: on-demand programming, exit-on-demand, and forwarding of programs. The STB sends an on-demand report message to the gateway device, and the on-demand report message includes an association between the IP address of the STB and the multicast group address; the gateway device receives the STB. When the report message is requested, the association between the IP address of the STB and the multicast group address is obtained, and the association between the IP address of the STB and the multicast group address is recorded in the group. Broadcast in the forwarding table. Moreover, the gateway device also checks whether other multicast client endpoints broadcast the program of the multicast source. If not, the gateway device actively sends a multicast Report message to the streaming media server to request the multicast service; If another multicast client endpoint broadcasts the program of the multicast source, the gateway device does not need to send the multicast report packet to the streaming media server again, and directly adds the multicast of the multicast source to the multicast forwarding table. A record of the client's IP address.

 It should be noted that the multicast forwarding table is used to record the association between the IP address of the multicast client and the multicast group address requested by the multicast client; the multicast report packet includes the IP address of the gateway device and The multicast group address requested by the gateway device.

When the STB exits the on-demand broadcast, the STB sends an on-demand exit (Quit) to the gateway device, and after receiving the on-demand Quit packet, the gateway device parses and confirms the information, and obtains the IP address and the multicast group address of the STB. The relationship between the two, and find the IP address corresponding to the STB from the multicast forwarding table. The association between multicast group addresses and the record of the association relationship is cleared. Moreover, the gateway device also checks whether the multicast source corresponding to the STB has other multicast clients. If not, it indicates that the multicast device does not have the multicast client on-demand the program of the multicast source. The gateway device sends a multicast Quit packet to the multicast source; if another multicast client is on-demand the program of the multicast source, the gateway device does not perform any processing on the multicast source.

 After the gateway device forwards the program message of the multicast source, the gateway device receives the program of the multicast source, and then queries the multicast forwarding table to find the IP address of the STB corresponding to the multicast source, and sends the packet to the STB. Forwarding the program message of the multicast source; if there are multiple multicast clients, the gateway device copies the program message of the multicast source and forwards the program message to multiple multicast clients synchronously.

 The present invention will be further described in detail with reference to the drawings and specific embodiments.

 In this embodiment, after the gateway device is abnormally powered off and restarted, the multicast service recovery process is taken as an example to describe the implementation process of the fast recovery after the multicast service is disconnected. Referring to FIG. 2, the implementation process of the first embodiment of the method for quickly recovering the multicast service after the disconnection of the present invention is shown, which mainly includes the following steps: Step 201: After the gateway device is restarted, the multicast service information of the multicast client is required to be queried. Proactively send Query messages to the multicast client;

 After the gateway device is restarted, it enters the normal working state and needs to be initialized. However, because the gateway device is restarted, the multicast forwarding table before the restart is cleared, and the connection of the multicast service needs to be re-established. The multicast client cannot immediately re-send the on-demand report message of the multicast connection without manual intervention. This requires the gateway device to initiate the request for querying the multicast client, that is, to query the multicast of the multicast client. Business information.

 The multicast service information of the querying multicast client is: the gateway device sends a Query message to the multicast client according to the multicast protocol, and all the multicast clients that are connected are required to reply. The Query message mainly queries whether the multicast client has on-demand multicast service information.

It should be noted that the Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP, Internet Group Management) Protocol is a type of multicast protocol. The IGMP is used as an example to describe the multicast protocol. The IGMP is used to establish and maintain a multicast relationship between a multicast client and a gateway device directly adjacent to it. . The gateway device can learn the on-demand situation of the multicast client hanged on it through the IGMP-based Query message. The multicast client stores the multicast service information that is requested by the multicast client, such as the multicast group address, that is, the multicast source address corresponding to the multicast service.

 For example, the gateway device sends an IGMP Query message to each internal network interface, and each multicast client that has a multicast service connected to its internal network interface returns a response report message. However, because the gateway device does not know how many multicast clients are currently on the internal network interface, the destination IP address of the IGMP Query message is set to 224.0.0.1, and the IGMP multicast group address corresponds to the multicast service. The multicast source address is 0. In this way, all the multicast clients connected to the gateway device can receive the Query message and the purpose of querying all the multicast services that are disconnected.

 Step 202: After receiving the Query message, the multicast client checks whether there is on-demand multicast service information. If there is no on-demand multicast service information, step 203 is performed; if there is on-demand multicast service information, Perform step 204;

 Step 203: The multicast client does not have to reply to the gateway device, and the multicast client ends the current process.

 Step 204: The multicast client that has the on-demand multicast service information returns a response to the gateway device.

 After receiving the Query message, if the multicast client has the on-demand multicast service information, the multicast client replies to the gateway device in response to the Repor message. The response report includes the information such as the multicast address of the multicast client and the multicast group address corresponding to the multicast service that is requested, so that the gateway device re-establishes the interrupted multicast connection by using the response report packet. Enable the multicast service to be re-launched.

The response report message replied by the multicast client includes: The multicast group address is the multicast industry. The corresponding multicast source address, such as the class D address: 224.223.0.100; and the IP address of the multicast client, such as the IP address of the PC or STB.

 Step 205: After receiving the response report message, the gateway device sends a multicast report message corresponding to the multicast service request to the streaming media server.

 After receiving the response report message of the multicast client, the gateway device parses the response report message to obtain the multicast service information, the IP address of the multicast client, and the multicast group address corresponding to the multicast service. . And the gateway device records the association relationship between the obtained multicast group address and the IP address of the multicast client in a multicast forwarding table, where the multicast forwarding table records and updates the multicast group address and the multicast client. IP address association. And the gateway device obtains the multicast service information, the multicast group address, and the IP address of the multicast client that are multicast by the multicast client according to the response to the response, and constructs a multicast join request for the corresponding multicast service request. Message. Then, the gateway device requests the corresponding multicast source to establish a multicast service, that is, sends the multicast report message to the streaming media server. The gateway device obtains and reports the multicast group address in the response report packet to obtain the multicast data of the interrupted multicast service. In this way, the streaming server can be requested to re-establish the multicast service according to the response report message.

 The multicast forwarding table is used to record the association between the multicast source and the multicast client, and the gateway device is configured to search for the IP address and the multicast group address of the multicast client. The multicast report packet records the gateway device. The IP address and the multicast group address requested by the gateway device; the corresponding multicast service request refers to the multicast service corresponding to the multicast source in the response report message.

 Step 206: After receiving the multicast report message requested by the multicast service, the streaming media server delivers the multicast data packet of the requested multicast service.

 The streaming server searches for the multicast data corresponding to the multicast service in the multicast report message, and delivers the multicast data to the gateway device in the form of a multicast data packet.

Step 207: The gateway device forwards the multicast data packet delivered by the streaming media server to the multicast client to establish a multicast service. The gateway device forwards the multicast data packet according to the multicast forwarding table, that is, analyzes the data packet and determines the multicast source corresponding to the multicast data packet; the gateway device further determines the multicast source according to the The multicast source finds the multicast client corresponding to the multicast source, and forwards the multicast data packet to the multicast client, so as to quickly establish a multicast service.

 It can be seen that after the gateway device is abnormal, the first embodiment of the foregoing method implements fast recovery of the multicast service.

 The following describes the implementation process of the second embodiment of the method for quickly recovering the multicast service after the disconnection of the multicast service, in combination with the different division of the gateway device and the specific multicast client. In this embodiment, the multicast client uses a set-top box as an example. The gateway device includes: a multicast management module and a multicast client query module, as shown in FIG. 3, which mainly includes the following steps:

 Step 301: The multicast management module initializes, and requests to query multicast service information of the multicast client.

 After the gateway device is restarted, it enters the normal working state. The multicast management module on the gateway device enters the initialization working phase. The multicast management module actively requests the multicast client query module to query the multicast service information of the multicast client.

 Step 302: The multicast client query module sends a Query message.

 The multicast client query module sends a Query message to all multicast clients connected to the local area network (LAN) side of the gateway device.

 Step 303: After receiving the Query message, the multicast client returns a response report to the multicast management module on the gateway device.

 After receiving the Query message, the multicast client finds that it has the multicast service information on demand, and then sends a response report message to the multicast management module on the gateway device.

 The response report is used to re-establish a multicast connection, and the response report includes: a multicast group address and an IP address of the multicast client.

Step 304: The multicast management module parses the received response report message to the streaming media server. Send a multicast Report message and request to re-run the multicast service.

 After receiving the response report message, the multicast management module parses the response report message, records the obtained multicast group address and the IP address of the multicast client in the multicast forwarding table, and then sends the response to the streaming server. A multicast report packet is sent, and the multicast service is required to be re-established. The multicast forwarding table is maintained by the multicast management module.

 Step 305: After receiving the multicast report message, the streaming media server sends a multicast data packet to the multicast management module of the gateway device.

 Step 306: After receiving the multicast data packet, the multicast management module forwards the multicast data packet to the multicast client.

 After receiving the multicast data packet, the multicast management module analyzes the multicast data to determine a multicast source from which the multicast data originates, and finds a corresponding according to the multicast forwarding table and the multicast source. The multicast client forwards the multicast data to the corresponding multicast client, thereby quickly recovering the multicast service.

 For the above embodiments, for the sake of brevity, they are all described as a series of action combinations, but those skilled in the art should understand that the present invention is not limited by the described order of actions, because according to the present invention, These steps can be performed in other orders or at the same time.

 In order to implement the foregoing method, the present invention further provides a device and a gateway device for quickly recovering after the multicast service is disconnected. As shown in FIG. 4, the device includes: a gateway device 402 and a multicast client 403;

 The gateway device 402 is configured to: after the restart, query whether the multicast client has the on-demand multicast service information, and join the packet according to the response replied by the multicast client to request and establish the multicast service;

 The multicast client 403 is configured to reply to the gateway device 402 in response to the report message when it has the multicast service information on demand.

The above apparatus further includes a streaming media server 401, the streaming media server 401 is configured to receive the The multicast service request of the gateway device 402 is sent, and the multicast data packet corresponding to the multicast service request is sent to the gateway device 402. The multicast service request is sent when the gateway device 402 requests the streaming media server 401 to establish a multicast service, that is, a multicast Repor message.

 In the above device, the gateway device 402 is specifically configured to send a Query message to the multicast client 403 after the restart. The multicast client 403 is specifically configured to check whether there is on-demand multicast service information after receiving the Query message of the gateway device 402.

 Further, the gateway device 402 includes: a multicast management module 4021 and a multicast client query module 4022;

 The multicast management module 4021 is configured to notify the multicast client query module 4022 to query whether the multicast client 403 has on-demand multicast service information after the gateway device 402 is restarted. The multicast management module 4021 is further configured to request and establish a multicast service when the multicast client query module 4022 queries the multicast client 403 to have on-demand multicast service information.

 The multicast client query module 4022 is configured to query whether the multicast client 403 has the on-demand multicast service information.

 In the above gateway device 402, the multicast management module 4021 includes: an initialization unit, a "meman processing unit, and a forwarding unit;

 An initializing unit, configured to notify the multicast client query module 4022 to query whether the multicast client 403 has on-demand multicast service information after the gateway device is restarted;

 The message processing unit is configured to request and establish a multicast service when the multicast client query module queries the multicast service information of the multicast client to be on-demand, that is, specifically: receiving and parsing the multicast client The reported multicast response report message and the multicast data message delivered by the streaming media server to obtain multicast service information;

a forwarding unit, configured to record, in the multicast forwarding table, an IP address of the multicast client 403 to which the processing unit is parsed and a multicast group address that the multicast client 403 broadcasts, and The multicast forwarding table forwards the multicast Report message to the streaming server and transfers it to the multicast client. Send multicast data packets.

 The multicast forwarding table records the association between the multicast source and the multicast client 403, that is, the association between the IP address of the multicast client 403 and the multicast group address. When the gateway device 402 is restarted and the multicast forwarding table is cleared, the multicast client query module 4022 sends a Query message to the multicast client 403. After receiving the Query message, the multicast client 403 immediately reports the response to the report. Packets, which quickly restore multicast services.

 In the above embodiments, the descriptions of the various embodiments are different, and the details are not described in detail in an embodiment, and the related descriptions of other embodiments may be referred to. The above is only the preferred embodiment of the present invention, and is intended to illustrate and explain the present invention, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It is intended that any modifications and equivalents of the present invention are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

Claim  A method for quickly recovering a multicast service after disconnection, the method comprising: after the gateway device restarts, querying whether the multicast client has the on-demand multicast service information; the multicast client has an on-demand broadcast When the multicast service information is received, the response message is sent to the gateway device;  And the gateway device requests and establishes a multicast service according to the response joining message.  The method for quickly recovering a multicast service after disconnection according to claim 1, wherein the querying the multicast client for the on-demand multicast service information is:  Send a query message to the multicast client;  The multicast client checks whether there is on-demand multicast service information according to the query packet it receives.  The method for quickly recovering a multicast service after disconnection according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the gateway device requests and establishes a multicast service as:  After receiving the response join message, the gateway device parses the response join message, constructs a multicast join message corresponding to the multicast service request, and sends the multicast join message to the streaming media server, requesting to establish Corresponding multicast service;  After receiving the multicast join message requested by the multicast service, the streaming media server sends a multicast data packet corresponding to the multicast service request;  The gateway device forwards the multicast data packet to the multicast client to establish a multicast service. The method for quickly recovering a multicast service after the disconnection of the multicast service according to claim 3, wherein the gateway device forwards the multicast data packet to the multicast client as:  The gateway device analyzes and determines the multicast source corresponding to the multicast data packet, and finds a corresponding multicast client by using the determined multicast source according to the multicast forwarding table, and forwards the group to the multicast client. Broadcast data message; The multicast forwarding table records the multicast client that the gateway device parses from the response join message. The association between the IP address of the client and the multicast group address corresponding to the multicast service.  A device for quickly recovering a multicast service after being disconnected, comprising: a gateway device and a multicast client; wherein  The gateway device is configured to query the multicast client for the on-demand multicast service information after the restart, and join the packet request according to the response of the multicast client to establish a multicast service; the multicast client uses When the multicast service information that is on demand is present in itself, the response is added to the gateway device to join the message.  The device of claim 5, wherein the device further comprises:  And a streaming media server, configured to receive a multicast service request of the gateway device, and provide a multicast data corresponding to the multicast service request.  The apparatus for fast recovery after the disconnection of the multicast service according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the gateway device is specifically configured to send a query message to the multicast client after the restarting; The multicast client is configured to check whether the multicast service information of the on-demand service exists according to the query packet.  A gateway device that is quickly restored after the multicast service is disconnected, and is characterized in that: the multicast management module and the multicast client query module;  The multicast management module is configured to notify the multicast client querying module to query whether the multicast client has the on-demand multicast service information after the gateway device is restarted, and query the multicast client in the multicast client query module. The multicast service is requested and established when the multicast service information is requested. The multicast client query module is configured to query whether the multicast client has the on-demand multicast service information. The gateway device of the fast recovery after the disconnection of the multicast service according to claim 8, wherein the multicast management module comprises: an initialization unit, a text processing unit, wherein the initialization unit is configured to be at the gateway device After restarting, notify the multicast client to query the module query. Whether the multicast client has on-demand multicast service information;  The packet processing unit is configured to request and establish a multicast service when the multicast client query module queries the multicast service information that the multicast client has on-demand.  The gateway device of the fast recovery of the multicast service after the disconnection of the multicast service according to claim 9, wherein the packet processing unit is configured to receive and parse the multicast response join message reported by the multicast client. The multicast data packet sent by the streaming media server obtains the multicast service information; the multicast management module further includes a forwarding unit, where the forwarding unit is configured to parse the packet processing unit to the multicast client. The association between the IP address and the multicast group address that is broadcasted by the multicast client is recorded in the multicast forwarding table, and the multicast forwarding table is forwarded to the streaming server according to the multicast forwarding table, and the multicast client is forwarded to the multicast client. Forward multicast data.