REPROGRAMMABLE HARDWARE FOR EXAMINING NETWORK STREAMING DATA TO DETECT REDEFINABLE PATTERNS AND DEFINE RESPONSIVE PROCESSING

摘要

A reprogrammable packet processing system for processing streams is disclosed. A reprogrammable data processor is programmed to determine whether a stream of data includes a string that matches a specific data pattern. If so, the data processor performs a specified action. The data processor is reprogrammable to search packets for the presence of different data patterns and/or perform different actions when a matching string is detected. A reconfiguration device receives input from a user specifying the data pattern and action, processes the input to generate the configuration information necessary to reprogram the data processor, and transmits the configuration information to the packet processor for reprogramming thereof.