KR100505992B1 - Method and apparatus for dual internet service provider system - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system and a method for providing multiple Internet services, wherein a plurality of Internet service providers provide Internet services to user PCs provided with Internet services of respective providers using one optical coaxial mixed network connected to a backbone network. In the multi-Internet service providing system that can be used, separate routing means and DHCP server for each Internet service provider, and by the CMTS to route the data of each subscriber to the online network of the service provider to improve the efficiency of the transmission network It is an object of the present invention to provide a multi-Internet service providing system and a method of providing a stable service by increasing the number of Internet service providers and reducing the connection between online networks.

Description

Multiple Internet Service Provision System and Provision Method {METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DUAL INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDER SYSTEM}

The present invention relates to a multiple Internet service providing system and a method of providing the service. More specifically, a plurality of Internet service providers provide Internet service to each subscriber belonging to each service provider using one optical coaxial mixed network connected to the backbone network. In the multiple Internet service providing system to provide a multi-Internet service providing system and a method for providing a stable service by increasing the efficiency of the transmission network and at the same time reducing the mutual influence between a plurality of Internet service providers. It is about.

Modern society is often represented by information society, and all modern people live in the rapidly changing wave of information society. In particular, the development of multimedia technology is accelerating this information society.

Such a multimedia system is emerging as the biggest concern in the current network market, and is one of the ways to solve the explosive interest and demand of the multimedia and the Internet. The number of Internet service providers that provide high-speed Internet service using Hybrid Fiber Coaxial has increased.

HFC stands for Hybrid Fiber Coaxial Cable, a communication technology in which fiber and coaxial cables are used in different parts of the network.

HFC can replace CATV transmission network feeder section with optical cable, that is, it connects with fiber cable from broadcasting station to fiber node, and the line from optical distribution point to subscriber uses coaxial cable. .

It uses optical cables from cable headends to optical distribution points that provide services from 500 to 2000 nodes. Most HFC networks have a bandwidth of 750MHz and are connected to a cable modem or set-top box from one optical distribution point to the subscriber. The characteristics of the HFC network are as follows.

First, using fiber optic cables as backbone pipes can transmit more data than just coaxial cables.

Second, the high bandwidth can support interactive data sent and received by the user.

Third, the infrastructure part where the fiber optic cable is installed has higher reliability than the coaxial cable. Reliability is of greater importance in an interactive data transmission environment.

Fourth, some characteristics of the optical fiber cable can be transmitted closer to the user without replacing the existing coaxial cable, which is always installed in the enterprise or home.

1 is a view showing the configuration of an Internet service providing system of a single Internet service provider through the HFC network according to the prior art.

As shown in FIG. 1, the Internet service providing system of a single Internet service provider provided through the HFC network according to the prior art is characterized in that the cable modem provided in each terminal PC includes an HFC network and an optical network termination device (ONU). : Connected to the Cable Modem Termination System (CMTS) through the Optical Node Unit, and when the normal connection between the cable modem and the CMTS is completed, the IP address of the Internet service provider subscribed to by the user of the cable modem is the DHCP server (DHCP). Server: By being allocated to the cable modem side by the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol Server, it is possible to communicate with the external online network, that is, the backbone network, through the Internet network of the Internet service provider.

However, in the case of such a system, in order to provide Internet access services to the service users by using the HFC network, each Internet service provider must establish a separate system for each Internet service provider. There is a problem that the system construction cost in proportion. In addition, as each Internet service provider operates its own system, it is necessary to allocate frequency bands to a plurality of Internet service providers, resulting in a shortage of limited frequency bands of only 5 to 42 MHz. In the case of an ISP system using the same communication protocol, the connection time between the CMTS and the cable modem is delayed, and when one of the plurality of CMTS fails, the cable modem connected to the failed CMTS connects to another CMTS. As a result, there was a problem that the performance of the normal CMTS is degraded.

2 is an example of configuration diagram of a multi-internet service providing system proposed to solve the above problems.

In the multiple Internet service providing system having the configuration as shown in Fig. 2, cable modems are connected to a plurality of PCs, and each cable modem is connected to the CMTS through the HFC network, and is connected to an IP address allocation means consisting of a DHCP server and a hub. Information about each IP address and information about each cable modem used by a plurality of Internet service providers is stored. Routing means, that is, a router recognizes the IP address of each cable modem and recognizes the recognized IP address. By properly transmitting and receiving data from each cable modem to the on-line network side of the Internet service provider to be used, a plurality of Internet service providers can simultaneously provide each Internet service using one HFC network.

However, the multiple Internet service providing system according to the prior art as shown in FIG. 2 has the following problems.

First, multiple internet service providers share one hub, router, and DHCP server in common, so that even if one of the online networks of each internet service provider fails, the entire network connected to the external online network, that is, the backbone network, is There is a problem that the overall stability of the system is reduced because the network is not available.

Second, since information about each Internet service provider and a user who uses the service of each provider is managed integrally in one DHCP server, there is a problem that the security of the information is insufficient.

Third, since the routing means, that is, the router, provides the Internet access service to each subscriber PC of the plurality of Internet service providers, there is a vulnerability in that the entire network cannot be used when the router fails.

The present invention has been conceived to solve the above problems, and provides an Internet service to a user PC provided with the Internet service of each provider using one optical coaxial mixed network in which a plurality of Internet service providers are connected to the backbone network. In the multi-Internet service providing system that can be used, separate routing means and DHCP server for each Internet service provider, and by the CMTS to route the data of each subscriber to the online network of the service provider to improve the efficiency of the transmission network It is an object of the present invention to provide a multi-Internet service providing system and a method of providing a stable service by increasing the number of Internet service providers and reducing the connection between online networks.

In order to achieve the above object, a multi-internet service providing system according to the present invention, a plurality of Internet service providers using one optical fiber coaxial cable (HFC) connected to a backbone network (HFC) A plurality of online networks connected to a backbone network, a plurality of routing means connected to each of the online networks, and each of the routing means to provide an Internet service, and a private IP for each Internet service provider. A plurality of IP address assignment means for storing an address, a public IP address and MAC address information of a subscriber cable modem, and a cable modem termination system (CMTS) connected to the plurality of routing means and a high-speed Ethernet network to transmit and receive data. And an optical coaxial mixed network connected to the CMTS, a plurality of cable modems connected to the optical coaxial mixed network, and each of the cable modems. It may comprise a plurality of network terminals.

At this time, each of the IP address assignment means checks whether the cable modem is its Internet service subscriber side based on the media access control address of the cable modem, and if it is the subscriber's MAC address, Gives a private IP address, ignores access from the cable modem when not a subscriber MAC address, and the CMTS recognizes a public IP address assigned to the cable modem and transmits and receives online data transmitted and received from the cable modem. It is preferable to transmit and receive to and from the backbone network through the online network of the specific IP address assignment means assigned the public IP address.

The routing means may be an L3 switch or a gigabit switch, and the IP address assignment means may be a DHCP server.

Next, a system for providing multiple Internet services according to the present invention for providing a plurality of Internet service providers by using one optical fiber coaxial cable (HFC) connected to a backbone network. In the multiple Internet service providing method using the IP address allocation means, the IP address assignment means allocates a private IP address to a subscriber-side cable modem based on the MAC information stored in the IP address assignment means. An IP address assignment step of allocating a public IP address by the IP address assignment means to the cable modem connected to the address assignment means; An ISP designation step of the CMTS designating a high speed Ethernet network of an Internet service provider to be used by the cable modem based on the public IP address assigned to the cable modem; The cable modem is connected to the backbone network through the high-speed Ethernet network designated in the ISP designation step, and includes an Internet service providing step of transmitting and receiving information with an external Internet network.

At this time, the IP address assignment step includes: a first step of transmitting an IP address assignment request signal packet from the cable modem to each IP address assignment means; A second step of determining, by each IP address assignment means, whether the signal packet is transmitted from the cable modem or from the network terminal connected to the cable modem, based on the IP address allocation request signal packet; Each of the IP address assignment means assigns its own private IP address to the cable modem when the signal packet is transmitted from the cable modem, and has the MAC address information of the cable modem. If the MAC packet does not have MAC address information, the signal packet is ignored. If the signal packet is transmitted from the network terminal connected to the cable modem, if the MAC packet has MAC address information of the cable modem, It is preferable to further include a third step of assigning its own public IP address and ignoring the signal packet when it does not have the MAC address information of the cable modem.

Hereinafter, an embodiment to which a multi-internet service providing system and a method according to the present invention are applied to two Internet service providers will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

3 is a block diagram showing an example of a multiple Internet service providing system according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 3, the multiple Internet service providing system according to the present invention includes a plurality of online networks 374 and 384 connected to a backbone network and a plurality of routing means 371 and 381 connected to each of the online networks 374 and 384. And a plurality of IP address allocating means (372, 382) connected to each of the routing means 371 and 381, each of which stores its own private IP address, public IP address, and MAC address information of the subscriber's cable modem for each Internet service provider. And a cable modem termination system (CMTS) 30 connected to the plurality of routing means 371 and 381 and a high speed Ethernet network 37 and 38 to transmit and receive data, and an optical coaxial mixed network connected to the CMTS 30. (31,32,33,34), a plurality of cable modems (35,36) connected to the optical coaxial mixed network (31,32,33,34) and a plurality of network terminals (351,361) connected to the respective cable modems ) Will be made.

In the present embodiment, two Internet service providers (ISPs) are assumed. Therefore, the first online network 374, the first routing means 371, and the first IP address allocating means are provided for the components of the two Internet service providers. 372, the second online network 384, the second routing means 381, and the second IP address assignment means 382 will be referred to. Also, on the subscriber side, a single subscriber is assumed for each Internet service provider, and the cable modem and network terminal of the subscriber of the first Internet service provider side are assigned to the first cable modem 35, the first network terminal 351, and the first. 2 The cable modem and the network terminal of the subscriber of the Internet service provider side will be referred to as the second cable modem 36 and the second network terminal 361.

The first cable modem 35 and the second cable modem 36 connected to the first network terminal 351 and the second network terminal 361 respectively transmit and receive various online data including text, voice, and video. It is connected to each IP address assignment means (372, 382) through an optical coaxial mixed network (HFC), a cable modem termination system (CMTS), and routing means 371, 381, in which an optical cable and a coaxial cable are used.

In this case, an L3 switch or a gigabit switch may be applied to the routing means 371 and 381.

4 and 5 show a configuration example in the case where an L3 switch and a gigabit switch are applied as routing means, respectively.

 An L3 Ethernet switch is an Ethernet switch that supports IP routing, and is actually the same as a router that supports an Ethernet interface. However, the term L3 switch has been invented and used to emphasize that vendors of network equipment make IP routing as fast as a switch for marketing purposes. On the other hand, a gigabit switch can also be applied as a routing means, and has a high performance of packet routing at a switching speed, complete compatibility with an existing network, ease of management, and economy of a system.

Meanwhile, as the IP address assignment means 372 and 382, a DHCP server (dynamic host configuration protocol server) configured with an L3 switch or a gigabit switch can be applied. In this embodiment, a DHCP server is adopted as the IP address assignment means 372 and 382. The case will be described by way of example.

At this time, the first IP address assigning means 372 and the second IP address assigning means 382 respectively include a private IP address, a public IP address and a corresponding IP address used by the first Internet service provider and the second Internet service provider. MAC information about the subscriber cable modem is stored in advance. This is necessary when a service user wants to transmit / receive online data with a backbone network through a cable modem, and grasp information on the cable modem to allocate an appropriate unofficial or public IP address. That is, when the subscriber of the first Internet service provider wants to use the Internet through the online network 374 of the first Internet service provider, the first IP address assignment means 372 allocates the public IP.

For example, when the second cable modem 36 transmits a signal packet for requesting IP allocation to the first IP address assignment means 372, the first IP address assignment means 372 refers to previously stored information. Check whether the second cable modem 36 is a subscriber of the first Internet service provider. Since the second cable modem 36 is assumed to be a subscriber of the second Internet service provider, the first IP address assignment means 372 ignores the access of the second cable modem 36 in the present invention. In addition, when the second cable modem 36 transmits a signal packet requesting IP allocation to the second IP address assignment means 382, the second IP address assignment means 382 checks the MAC information from the signal packet. For example, if the subscriber is found to be a subscriber, the private IP and the public IP are assigned to the second cable modem 36 so as to be connected to the backbone network.

In the present embodiment, the data stored by the IP address assignment means for reference in determining whether the subscriber is based on the media access control (MAC) information, which is information on the data layer address of the cable modem, in addition to the Internet service provider Tag information assigned to the subscriber's cable modem may be included.

Next, the role of the CMTS will be described.

After the public IP address is assigned to the network terminal 361 connected to the second cable modem 36 as described above, the user of the network terminal 361 is an IP address or a domain name of a host to be transmitted or received using protocols such as http and ftp. When attempting to connect by inputting the, the connection is made to the backbone network 39 via the routing means 371 and 381 and the online networks 374 and 384. Here, the CMTS 30 recognizes the public IP address assigned to the network terminal 361, and then judges the IP address allocation means assigned to the public IP address to transmit and receive data to the appropriate fast ethernet side. You will specify the path. In this embodiment, since the second IP address assignment means assigns a public IP address, the transmission / reception data path is designated to the second high speed Ethernet network 38.

As described above, in the present invention, a separate high speed Ethernet network, a routing means, a DHCP server, and an ISP online network for each Internet service provider routed by the CMTS are used. In contrast, the stability of the system is greatly improved.

6 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a method for providing multiple Internet services according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 6, the method for providing multiple Internet services according to the present invention includes an IP address assignment step 60, an ISP designation step 61, and an Internet service provision step 62.

First, in the IP address assignment step 60, the IP address assignment means assigns a private IP address to a subscriber side cable modem based on the MAC information stored in the IP address assignment means, and then receives the private IP address. The IP address assignment means assigns a public IP address to the cable modem connected to the IP address assignment means.

Next, in the ISP designation step 61, the CMTS designates the high speed Ethernet network of the Internet service provider to be used by the cable modem based on the public IP address assigned to the cable modem.

Thereafter, in the Internet service providing step 62, the cable modem is connected to the backbone network through the high-speed Ethernet network designated in the ISP designation step, thereby transmitting and receiving information with an external Internet network.

7 is a flowchart illustrating the IP address allocation step in more detail.

The IP address assignment step 60 is subdivided into three substeps as shown in FIG.

That is, in the first step 70, an IP address assignment request signal packet is transmitted from the cable modem to each IP address assignment means.

Next, in the second step 71, each IP address assignment means is sent from the cable modem based on an IP address assignment request signal packet, or from the network terminal connected to the cable modem. It will be judged.

In the third step 72, the case is divided according to whether the signal packet is transmitted from the cable modem and whether the cable modem or the network terminal connected to the cable modem that transmitted the signal packet is stored as a subscriber of the Internet service provider. .

That is, each IP address assignment means assigns its private IP address to the cable modem when the signal packet is transmitted from the cable modem (721), and if the signal packet has the MAC address information of the cable modem (721). If the modem does not have the MAC address information, the signal packet is ignored (722), and if the signal packet is transmitted from the network terminal connected to the cable modem, if it has the MAC address information of the cable modem Assigns its own public IP address to the cable modem (723), and if the cable modem does not have the MAC address information, ignores the signal packet (724), thereby avoiding the on-line network of each Internet service provider. The subscriber's transmission and reception data can be transmitted.

In the above embodiment, only the case where the multiple Internet service providing system and the method according to the present invention are applied to two Internet service providers (ISP) has been described as an example, but the same can also be applied to three or more Internet service providers. However, due to the limitation of the processing capacity of the central processing unit (CPU) of the CMTS according to the current technology level, it is difficult to implement a system in which more than three Internet service providers share the same optical coaxial mixed network to provide Internet services. Since is not the subject of the discussion of this specification, it is excluded.

In addition, as another embodiment, it is possible to configure the multiple Internet service providing system according to the present invention so that each cable modem is embedded in a digital set-top box.

In this case, the multi-internet service providing system according to the present invention provides various contents (movies, education, seminar materials, games, sports, etc.) in Full-Motion TV image quality, and provides NVOD, VOD, VOD service (VOD service: video-on-demand service) that provides various types of services such as PPV, data broadcasting and high speed internet access service, and synchronous interface with broadcasting to enable news, diary, stock, shopping, etc. Various digital media services such as Internet TV service that provides various contents and information, or Internet telephony service, which is a service that modulates voice into a data signal using VoIP technology to make a call through the Internet line. It can also be applied to implementing a digital media center (DMC) that can be provided.

When using the multiple Internet service providing system and method according to the present invention as described above, a plurality of Internet service providers using one optical fiber coaxial cable (HFC) connected to a backbone network (HFC) In the multiple Internet service providing system to provide the Internet service to the user PC receiving the Internet service of each provider, each Internet service provider operates a separate routing means and DHCP server, and by each CMTS By routing the data to the online network of the service provider, it is possible to increase the efficiency of the transmission network and at the same time reduce the association between the online networks of the plurality of Internet service providers, thereby achieving a stable service.

1 is a view showing the configuration of an Internet service providing system of a single Internet service provider through the HFC network according to the prior art;

2 is an example of configuration diagram of a multi-internet service providing system proposed to solve the above problems;

3 is a block diagram showing an example of a multiple Internet service providing system according to the present invention;

4 is a configuration example in which an L3 switch is applied as a routing means;

5 is a configuration example in which a gigabit switch is applied as a routing means;

6 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a method for providing multiple Internet services according to the present invention;

7 is a flowchart illustrating the IP address allocation step in more detail.

Claims (6)

A plurality of online networks connected to a backbone network by a plurality of Internet service providers to provide an Internet service by using one optical fiber coaxial cable (HFC) connected to a backbone network; A plurality of routing means connected to each of the networks and a plurality of routing means connected to each of the routing means, each of which stores its own private IP address, public IP address, and MAC address information of the subscriber's cable modem for each Internet service provider; A cable modem termination system (CMTS) for transmitting and receiving data through IP address assignment means, each routing means and a high-speed Ethernet network, an optical coaxial mixing network connected to the CMTS, and a plurality of cable modems connected to the optical coaxial mixing network And a plurality of network terminals connected to the cable modems, respectively. Each of the IP address assignment means checks whether or not the cable modem is its Internet service subscriber side based on the media access control address of the cable modem, and if the subscriber's MAC address is a private IP address. If it is not the subscriber MAC address, access from the cable modem is ignored. The CMTS recognizes a public IP address assigned to the cable modem, and transmits and receives online data transmitted and received from the cable modem to and from the backbone network through an online network of a specific IP address assignment unit assigned the public IP address. Multiple Internet service providing system, characterized in that. The method of claim 1, And said routing means is an L3 switch. The method of claim 1, And said routing means is a gigabit switch. The method of claim 1, The IP address assignment means is a multiplex Internet service providing system, characterized in that the DHCP server. Multiple Internet by the multiple Internet service providing system of claim 1 for providing a plurality of Internet service providers by using a single fiber optic coaxial cable (HFC) connected to a backbone network (HFC) As a service provision method, The cable modem for allocating a private IP address to a subscriber side cable modem based on the MAC information stored in the IP address assignment means, and then connecting to the IP address assignment means for which the private IP address has been allocated. An IP address assignment step of allocating a public IP address by the IP address assignment means; An ISP designation step of the CMTS designating a high speed Ethernet network of an Internet service provider to be used by the cable modem based on the public IP address assigned to the cable modem; And an internet service providing step of connecting the cable modem to the backbone network through the high speed ethernet network designated in the ISP designation step, for transmitting and receiving information with an external internet network. The method of claim 5, The IP address assignment step, A first step of transmitting an IP address allocation request signal packet from the cable modem to each IP address allocation means; A second step of determining, by each IP address assignment means, whether the signal packet is transmitted from the cable modem or from the network terminal connected to the cable modem, based on the IP address allocation request signal packet; Each of the IP address assignment means assigns its own private IP address to the cable modem when the signal packet is transmitted from the cable modem, and has the MAC address information of the cable modem. If the MAC packet does not have MAC address information, the signal packet is ignored. If the signal packet is transmitted from the network terminal connected to the cable modem, if the MAC packet has MAC address information of the cable modem, And a third step of allocating its own public IP address and ignoring the signal packet when it does not have MAC address information of the cable modem.