Wegsucher mit niederteilbaren Mehrfachsprungnachrichten für brückenähnliche Datenbeförderung

An apparatus for forwarding a data packet from a first link to a second link, first parses a data link destination address field of a packet to be forwarded. The apparatus then decides, responsive to a content of the data link destination address field as determined by the parsing, whether to forward the packet as a bridge or to forward the packet as a router. Further, the apparatus sends a redirect message to update the data link layer destination address used by the originating station to contain the data link layer address of the destination station where the destination station is on a link remote from the link of the originating station. When a first data packet is forwarded from a first link to a second link, the apparatus behaves as a router by forwarding based upon parsing the Network Layer Header. The apparatus then passes the data link address of the receiving end station to the transmitting end station. Subsequent packets sent by the transmitting end station to the receiving end station then have the data link address of the receiving end station written into the Data Link Destination address field of the Data Link Header of the packet. For the subsequent packets the apparatus then behaves as a bridge by forwarding the subsequent packets based upon parsing of only the Data Link Header. For forwarding of subsequent packets, the apparatus is advantageously fast, in accordance with bridge operation.