Patent attributes
An arrangement and method for relieving the traffic load on an edge node in a broadband Ethernet-based access network, which normally employs traffic separation such that all traffic is routed via the edge node. Peer-to-peer traffic between end users places a large burden on the capacity of the edge node. The edge node identifies peer-to-peer traffic and generates address conversion information for access nodes connected to the end users concerned. The access nodes identify packets forming part of the peer-to-peer connection, modify address information to conceal the address of the source end user from the destination end user, and vice versa, and reroute the packets through the access network to the destination end user without passing through the edge node.
