Forwarding Database

1 . A method, comprising:

receiving, at a router, a message comprising a routing address;

determining a mask length for a mask;

applying the mask in accord with the mask length to the routing address to determine a masked address; and

performing an exact match on the masked address.

2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising, routing the message in accordance with the exact match on the masked address.

3 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

comparing the mask length and a longest prefix length; and

in response to the comparison, routing the message in accordance with a longest prefix match.

4 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising comparing the address to a local prefix for the router.

5 . The method of claim 4 , where the local routing prefix is associated with a determined routing action listed in a local route table.

6 . The method of claim 5 , where the local route table includes listings for multiple protocols.

7 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising storing a route for the exact match of the masked address.

8 . The method of claim 7 , where storing the route comprises storing the route with an exact match key for the exact match of the masked address.

9 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining a source of the message in accordance with the exact match on the masked address.

10 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising classifying the address via a routing classifier, to determine a routing type.

11 . The method of claim 10 , where performing the exact match on the masked address comprises, responsive to the classification:

performing the exact match on a first bit of the address; and

applying a wildcard to a most significant bit different from the first bit.

12 . An apparatus, comprising:

a network interface configured to:

receive a message comprising a routing address; and

forward the message in accord with a route; and

logic, operatively connected to the network interface, the logic configured to:

apply a mask to the routing address to determine a masked address; and

perform an exact match on the masked address.

13 . The apparatus of claim 12 , where the logic is further configured to:

determine an exact match length for the exact match;

perform a longest prefix match on the routing address to determine a longest prefix length;

when the longest prefix length is longer than the exact match length, determine the route in accord with the longest prefix match; and

when the longest prefix length is shorter than the exact match length, determine the route in accord with the exact match.

14 . The apparatus of claim 12 , where:

the routing address comprises a first bit and a second bit; and

the logic is further configured to:

apply a wildcard to the first bit to apply the mask; and

perform the exact match on the second bit.

15 . The apparatus of claim 14 , where:

the first bit comprises a most significant bit; and

the second bit is different from the first.

16 . The apparatus of claim 14 , where:

the second bit comprises a most significant bit; and

the second bit is different from the first.

17 . The apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising a local route table; and

where the logic is further configured to compare the routing address to a local route prefix associated with an entry in the local route table.

18 . A method, comprising:

receiving, at a router, a message comprising a routing address;

performing a longest prefix match on the routing address to determine a longest prefix length;

applying a mask to the routing address to determine a masked address;

performing an exact match on the masked address;

determining a mask length for the mask; and

comparing the mask length and the longest prefix length.

19 . The method of claim 18 , where performing the exact match on the masked address comprises determining an exact match key associated with a stored exact match route.

20 . The method of claim 19 , further comprising forwarding the message in accord with the stored exact match route responsive to the comparison.