Computing the widest shortest path in high-speed networks

摘要

A method and system is described for determining the optimal path for routing a communication in a communication network between a source node and at least one destination node. The determination is based upon evaluation of the path offering the widest bandwidth in the direction of data transmission, the lowest additive cost, and the lowest hop count. Each link of the network is associated with at least a restrictive cost and an additive cost reflecting selected link characteristics. A path is characterized by a restrictive cost and an additive cost derived from the link costs of its component links. A connection to be routed identifies a source node, a destination node and a maximum restrictive cost allowed for routing the connection. All acceptable paths from the source node to all the other nodes of the network are determined and stored. These paths deemed acceptable and are stored if they have the lowest restrictive cost that allows the routing of the connection, and if they have the lowest additive cost and minimum hop count. Finally, from the plurality of stored acceptable paths, the path that originates from the source node and terminates at the destination node is selected as the optimal path to route the connection.