Host discovery across different address spaces

1. A method comprising:

providing, at a first node, a request message for transmission via a network to a second node, the transmission performed exclusively using a first network address format, the request message identifying the second node using a first network address compliant with the first network address format, the request message comprising an Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) header, a type parameter therein identifying the request message as a host discovery request message, the type parameter having a value heretofore not allocated by the ICMP;

receiving, at the first node, a host discovery reply message from the second node responsive to the host discovery request message, the host discovery reply message having the first network address format and including information representative of a second network address of the second node, the second network address having a second network address format different than the first network address format;

extracting the information representative of the second network address from the host discovery reply message; and

storing the information representative of the second network address at a datastore associated with the first node.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first network address format is associated with a first address space and the second network address format is associated with a second address space larger than the first address space.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first network address format comprises an Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) network address format and the second network address format comprises an Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) network address format.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

generating, at the second node, the host discovery reply message responsive to receiving the host discovery request message; and

transmitting, via the network, the host discovery reply message from the second node to a network address of the first node, the network address having the first network address format.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

transmitting, via the network, a message from the first node to the second node using the second network address.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein:

the type parameter has a value greater than decimal eighteen; and

the host discovery reply message comprises an ICMP message, a data payload therein containing the information representative of the second network address.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein transmitting the host discovery request message comprises transmitting the host discovery request message as part of a sweep of a specified address range of the network, the specified address range having the first network address format.

8. A method comprising:

receiving, at a second node, a request message transmitted from a first node via a network, the transmission performed exclusively using a first network address format, the request message identifying the second node using a first network address compliant with the first network address format, the second node configured to recognize the first network address, and wherein the request message comprises an Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) header, a type parameter therein identifying the request message as a host discovery request message, the type parameter having a value heretofore not allocated by the ICMP;

generating, at the second node, a host discovery reply message responsive to receiving the host discovery request message, the host discovery reply message having the first network address format and including information representative of the second network address of the second node, the second network address having a second network address format different than the first network address format; and

transmitting, via the network, the host discovery reply message from the second node to a network address of the first node, the transmission performed exclusively using the first network address format.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the first network address format is associated with a first address space and the second network address format is associated with a second address space larger than the first address space.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the first network address format comprises an Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) network address format and the second network address format comprises an Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) network address format.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein:

the type parameter has a value greater than decimal eighteen; and

the host discovery reply message comprises an ICMP message, a data payload therein containing the information representative of the second network address.

12. A first information handling system comprising:

a network interface adapted to couple to a network having a first network address format; and

a host discovery agent coupled to the network interface, the host discovery agent configured to:

provide a request message to the network interface for transmission to a first network address, the first network address associated with a second information handling system, the first network address having the first network address format that is used throughout the transmission, and wherein the request message comprises an Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) header, a type parameter therein identifying the request message as a host discovery request message;

receive from the network interface a host discovery reply message from the second information handling system responsive to the host discovery request message, the host discovery reply message having the first network address format and including information representative of a second network address of the second information handling system, the second network address having a second network address format different than the first network address format; and

store the information representative of the second network address at a datastore of the first information handling system.

13. The first information handling system of claim 12 , wherein the first network address format is associated with a first address space and the second network address format is associated with a second address space larger than the first address space.

14. The first information handling system of claim 12 , wherein the first network address format comprises an Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) network address format and the second network address format comprises an Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) network address format.

15. The first information handling system of claim 12 , further comprising:

at least one processor; and

wherein the host discovery agent comprises a set of executable instructions stored in a memory and executable by the at least one processor.

16. The first information handling system of claim 12 , wherein:

the type parameter has a value greater than decimal eighteen; and

the host discovery reply message comprises an ICMP message, a data payload therein containing the information representative of the second network address.

17. The first information handling system of claim 12 , wherein the host discovery agent is configured to transmit the host discovery request message as part of a sweep of a specified address range of the network, the specified address range having the first network address format.

18. A first information handling system comprising:

a network interface adapted to couple to a network; and

a host discovery agent coupled to the network interface, the host discovery agent configured to:

receive from the network interface a request message transmitted from a second information handling system, the transmission performed exclusively using a first network address format, the request message identifying the first information handling system using a first network address compliant with the first network address format, and wherein the request message comprises an Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) header, a type parameter therein identifying the request message as a host discovery request message;

generate a host discovery reply message responsive to receiving the host discovery request message, the host discovery reply message having the first network address format and including information representative of a second network address of the first information handling system, the second network address having a second network address format different than the first network address format; and

provide the host discovery reply message to the network interface for transmission to a network address of the second information handling system, the network address having the first network address format.

19. The first information handling system of claim 18 , wherein the first network address format is associated with a first address space and the second network address format is associated with a second address space larger than the first address space.

20. The first information handling system of claim 18 , wherein the first network address format comprises an Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) network address format and the second network address format comprises an Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) network address format.

21. The first information handling system of claim 18 , further comprising:

at least one processor; and

wherein the host discovery agent comprises a set of executable instructions stored in a memory and executable by the at least one processor.

22. The first information handling system of claim 18 , wherein:

the type parameter has a value greater than decimal eighteen; and

the host discovery reply message comprises an ICMP ECHO message, a data payload therein containing the information representative of the second network address.