Method, system, and product for alleviating router congestion

Abstract

A method, system, and product are described for alleviating router congestion when the router is processing packets transmitted by computer systems having a congestion notification capability. The router marks packets transmitted between a first computer system and a second computer system when the first and second computer systems have the congestion notification capability. The marking indicates that the router is moderately congested. A marked packet is then received by the first computer system. The router then drops packets transmitted by the first computer system when the packets were transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to the field of computer systems and, more specifically to computer systems including a method, system, and apparatus for alleviating router congestion when the router is processing packets transmitted by computer systems having a congestion notification capability.

2. Description of the Related Art

When TCP/IP is used for data transmission between computer systems, the transmitted data is routed through intermediate routers. These routers may experience congestion. When the router is severely congested, the router will drop packets indiscriminately in order to reduce the congestion and to indicate to the sending computer systems that the router is congested.

When the router is only moderately congested, a method of congestion notification has been proposed which requires the marking of packets to indicate congestion to the sending computer systems. An addition to the TCP/IP protocol, called Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN), has been proposed as a method of indicating congestion to the sending computer systems. The ECN describes a method of marking packets in order to provide an indication of moderate congestion prior to the router actually dropping packets. Each packet includes an ECN bit and a Congestion Experienced (CE) bit in the IP header of the packet. The ECN bit may be set by the sender to indicate that the sender and receiver of this packet have the ECN capabilities. The CE bit is set by the router through which a packet passed when the router is experiencing moderate congestion.

When a router which utilizes the ECN protocol is moderately congested, the router will mark and pass packets having the ECN bit set, and will drop packets which do not have the ECN bit set. Therefore, packets transmitted by senders which have the ECN capability receive preference over packets transmitted by senders which do not have the ECN capability.

When senders are notified that a router has become moderately congested, the senders should either cease or slow transmissions in order to relieve the congestion. If a sender without the ECN capability continues to transmit packets, these packets will be dropped. If a sender having the ECN capability continues to transmit packets, its packets will not be dropped until the router becomes severely congested. Therefore, it is possible for senders having the ECN capability to abuse the ECN protocol by continuing to transmit packets even after being notified that the router is moderately congested.

Therefore, a need exists for a system, method, and product for reducing preferential treatment given to packets transmitted by computer systems having a congestion notification capability.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a method, system, and product for alleviating router congestion when the router is processing packets transmitted by computer systems having a congestion notification capability. Routers receive packets transmitted by senders which are capable of receiving a notification that the router is moderately congested. The routers also receive packets from senders which do not have a capability of receiving such a notification.

When a router is moderately congested, the router will mark packets which were transmitted by senders which have the congestion notification capability. The marking indicates that the router is moderately congested. The receiving computer system then receives the packet and is thus notified that the router is congested. The receiving computer system will respond to the received packet by transmitting a packet, such as an acknowledgment, back to the sending computer system. This acknowledgment packet will similarly be marked by the router when the acknowledgment packet is forwarded by the router. When the sending computer system receives this acknowledgment packet which has been marked by the router, the sending computer system is thus notified that the router is moderately congested. The sending computer system then should take an action to reduce the router's congestion, such as by stopping or postponing transmitting packets utilizing this router. If the sending computer system continues to transmit packets utilizing the router after the sender has been notified that the router is congested, the router will alleviate its congestion by dropping these packets transmitted by a sender which has been notified that the router is congested.

Thereafter, the router will monitor the packets that it receives to determine whether any of these packets were transmitted by senders which have the congestion notification capability and which have already been notified that the router is moderately congested. If the router receives packets from senders which have this capability but have ignored the notification and have continued to transmit packets despite the notification, the router will drop these packets until it reaches a state where congestion clears or when the router is free of congestion.

Packets transmitted by senders having congestion notification but which have ignored the notification are dropped. Packets from senders which have the congestion notification but which have not yet been notified that the router is congested will continue to be forwarded. Packets from senders which do not have the congestion notification capability are dropped.

In order for the router to determine whether a sender having the congestion notification capability has been notified that the router is moderately congested, the router maintains a listing of identifiers, which may be maintained in a table. Each identifier identifies a TCP connection between a sending computer system and a receiving computer system.

The listing of unique identifiers identifies TCP session connections. Each TCP session connection is uniquely identified by a unique identifier. Each packet includes this unique identifier.

When the router receives a packet from a computer system having the congestion notification capability, the router will first check its list of identifiers to determine whether the identifier which identifies this computer system's connection is listed. If the router does not find the identifier in the list which identifies the connection between this sending computer system and a receiving computer system, the router will mark the packet, store a copy of the identifier in the list, and store the current time in the list along with the identifier.

If the router does find the identifier in the list, the router will retrieve the time stored in the list with the identifier. The router then determines a round trip time which is the time required for a packet to be transmitted from the sending computer to the receiving computer and back to the sending computer. The router then calculates a transmission time which is the round trip time added to the time stored in the listing.

When the current time is greater than the transmission time, the means that enough time has passed for the sending computer system to receive an acknowledgment packet from the receiving computer system which has been marked by the router and thus have been notified that the router is moderately congested. Therefore, if the current time is greater than the transmission time, the router will drop the packet because the sending computer system is presumed to have been notified that the router is moderately congested.

When the current time is less than the transmission time, the means that not enough time has passed for the sending computer system to receive an acknowledgment packet from the receiving computer system which has been marked by the router. In this case the sending computer system could not have been notified that the router is moderately congested. Therefore, if the current time is less than the transmission time, the router will forward the packet because the sending computer system has not been notified that the router is congested.

When a router goes back to the normal non-congested state, the list of identifiers is deleted. The router will start building a new list when moderate congestion occurs again.

The above as well as additional objectives, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed written description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The novel features believed characteristic of the invention are set forth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 depicts a block diagram of a data processing system in which the present invention may be implemented;

FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of a computer system which may be utilized as a server computer system in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3 depicts a block diagram of a computer system which may be utilized as a client computer system in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a high level flow chart which depicts a router selectively discarding packets in order to alleviate router congestion when the router is processing packets transmitted by senders which have a congestion notification capability in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 5 is a flowchart depicting a router selectively discarding packets in order to alleviate router congestion when the router is processing packets transmitted by senders having a congestion notification capability in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A preferred embodiment of the present invention and its advantages are better understood by referring to the figures, like numerals being used for like and corresponding parts of the accompanying figures.

The invention is preferably realized using a well-known computing platform, such as an IBM RS/6000 server running the IBM AIX operating system. However, it may be realized in any computer system platforms, such as an IBM personal computer running the Microsoft Windows operating system or a Sun Microsystems workstation running operating systems such as UNIX or LINUX or a router system from Cisco or Juniper, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

With reference now to the figures, FIG. 1 depicts a pictorial representation of a network of data processing systems in which the present invention may be implemented. Network data processing system 100 is a network of computers in which the present invention may be implemented. Network data processing system 100 contains a network 102, which is the medium used to provide communications links between various devices and computers connected together within network data processing system 100. Network 102 may include connections, such as wire, wireless communication links, or fiber optic cables.

In the depicted example, a server 104 is connected to network 102 along with storage unit 106. In addition, clients 108, 110, and 112 also are connected to network 102. These clients 108, 110, and 112 may be, for example, personal computers or network computers. In the depicted example, server 104 provides data, such as boot files, operating system images, and applications to clients 108-112. Clients 108, 110, and 112 are clients to server 104. Network data processing system 100 may include additional servers, clients, and other devices not shown. In the depicted example, network data processing system 100 is the Internet with network 102 representing a worldwide collection of networks and gateways that use the TCP/IP suite of protocols to communicate with one another. At the heart of the Internet is a backbone of high-speed data communication lines between major nodes or host computers, consisting of thousands of commercial, government, educational and other computer systems that route data and messages. Of course, network data processing system 100 also may be implemented as a number of different types of networks, such as for example, an intranet, a local area network (LAN), or a wide area network (WAN). FIG. 1 is intended as an example, and not as an architectural limitation for the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, a block diagram of a data processing system that may be implemented as a server, such as server 104 in FIG. 1, is depicted in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Data processing system 200 may be a symmetric multiprocessor (SMP) system including a plurality of processors 202 and 204 connected to system bus 206. Alternatively, a single processor system may be employed. Also connected to system bus 206 is memory controller/cache 208, which provides an interface to local memory 209. I/O bus bridge 210 is connected to system bus 206 and provides an interface to I/O bus 212. Memory controller/cache 208 and I/O bus bridge 210 may be integrated as depicted.

Peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus bridge 214 connected to I/O bus 212 provides an interface to PCI local bus 216. A number of modems may be connected to PCI bus 216. Typical PCI bus implementations will support four PCI expansion slots or add-in connectors. Communications links to network computers 108-112 in FIG. 1 may be provided through modem 218 and network adapter 220 connected to PCI local bus 216 through add-in boards.

Additional PCI bus bridges 222 and 224 provide interfaces for additional PCI buses 226 and 228, from which additional modems or network adapters may be supported. In this manner, data processing system 200 allows connections to multiple network computers. A memory-mapped graphics adapter 230 and hard disk 232 may also be connected to I/O bus 212 as depicted, either directly or indirectly.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the hardware depicted in FIG. 2 may vary. For example, other peripheral devices, such as optical disk drives and the like, also may be used in addition to or in place of the hardware depicted. The depicted example is not meant to imply architectural limitations with respect to the present invention.

The data processing system depicted in FIG. 2 may be, for example, an IBM RISC/System 6000 system, a product of International Business Machines Corporation in Armonk, N.Y., running the Advanced Interactive Executive (AIX) operating system.

With reference now to FIG. 3, a block diagram illustrating a data processing system is depicted in which the present invention may be implemented. Data processing system 300 is an example of a client computer. Data processing system 300 employs a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) local bus architecture. Although the depicted example employs a PCI bus, other bus architectures such as Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) and Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) may be used. Processor 302 and main memory 304 are connected to PCI local bus 306 through PCI bridge 308. PCI bridge 308 also may include an integrated memory controller and cache memory for processor 302. Additional connections to PCI local bus 306 may be made through direct component interconnection or through add-in boards. In the depicted example, local area network (LAN) adapter 310, SCSI host bus adapter 312, and expansion bus interface 314 are connected to PCI local bus 306 by direct component connection. In contrast, audio adapter 316, graphics adapter 318, and audio/video adapter 319 are connected to PCI local bus 306 by add-in boards inserted into expansion slots. Expansion bus interface 314 provides a connection for a keyboard and mouse adapter 320, modem 322, and additional memory 324. Small computer system interface (SCSI) host bus adapter 312 provides a connection for hard disk drive 326, tape drive 328, and CD-ROM drive 330. Typical PCI local bus implementations will support three or four PCI expansion slots or add-in connectors.

An operating system runs on processor 302 and is used to coordinate and provide control of various components within data processing system 300 in FIG. 3. The operating system may be a commercially available operating system, such as Windows 2000, which is available from Microsoft Corporation. An object oriented programming system such as Java may run in conjunction with the operating system and provide calls to the operating system from Java programs or applications executing on data processing system 300. “Java” is a trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. Instructions for the operating system, the object-oriented operating system, and applications or programs are located on storage devices, such as hard disk drive 326, and may be loaded into main memory 304 for execution by processor 302.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the hardware in FIG. 3 may vary depending on the implementation. Other internal hardware or peripheral devices, such as flash ROM (or equivalent nonvolatile memory) or optical disk drives and the like, may be used in addition to or in place of the hardware depicted in FIG. 3. Also, the processes of the present invention may be applied to a multiprocessor data processing system.

As another example, data processing system 300 may be a stand-alone system configured to be bootable without relying on some type of network communication interface, whether or not data processing system 300 comprises some type of network communication interface. As a further example, data processing system 300 may be a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) device, which is configured with ROM and/or flash ROM in order to provide non-volatile memory for storing operating system files and/or user-generated data.

The depicted example in FIG. 3 and above-described examples are not meant to imply architectural limitations. For example, data processing system 300 also may be a notebook computer or hand held computer in addition to taking the form of a PDA. Data processing system 300 also may be a kiosk or a Web appliance.

FIG. 4 is a high level flow chart which depicts a router selectively discarding packets from senders which continue to transmit utilizing moderately congested routers despite being notified that the router is congested in accordance with the present invention. The process starts as depicted by block 400 and thereafter passes to block 402 which illustrates a router receiving a packet. Next, block 404 depicts a determination of whether or not the router is moderately congested. If a determination is made that the router is not moderately congested, the process passes to block 406 which illustrates the router forwarding the packet and clearing a list of unique identifiers. The process then passes to block 402.

Referring again to block 404, if a determination is made that the router is moderately congested, the process passes to block 408 which depicts a determination of whether or not the packet was transmitted by a sender having a capability of receiving congestion notifications, such as ECN. If a determination is made that this sender does not have a congestion notification capability, the process passes to block 410 which illustrates the router dropping the packet. The process then passes back to block 402.

Referring again to block 408, if a determination is made that this sender does have a congestion notification capability, the process passes to block 412 which depicts the router getting the unique identifier which identifies the TCP session connection to which this packet belongs. Each TCP session will have an associated unique identifier which uniquely identifies the session. Every packet will have information that identifies its associated TCP session. Next, block 414 illustrates the router searching its listing of unique identifiers. Thereafter, block 416 depicts a determination of whether or not the unique identifier which identifies this packet's TCP session is stored in the list. If a determination is made that the unique identifier which identifies this packet's TCP session was not found in the list, the process passes to block 418 which depicts the router storing the unique identifier which identifies this packet's TCP session in the listing. The current time (t) is also stored in the listing along with the unique identifier for this packet's session. The process then passes to block 420 which illustrates the router marking the packet according to congestion notification protocols, such as ECN, as having passed through a moderately congested router. This marked packet is then forwarded to its intended receiver. The process then passes back to block 402.

Referring again to block 416, if a determination is made that the unique identifier which identifies this packet's session was found in the listing, the router retrieves the time (t) stored in the listing with the unique identifier which identifies this packet's session. Next, block 422 depicts the router calculating a transmission time. The transmission time is the time stored with this listing plus the estimated round trip time for a packet. Next, block 424 depicts a determination of whether or not the current time is greater than the transmission time. If a determination is made that the current time is greater than the transmission time, the process passes back to block 410. Referring again to block 424, if a determination is made that the current time is not greater than the transmission time, the process passes to block 420.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart depicting a router selectively discarding packets in order to alleviate router congestion when the router is processing packets transmitted by senders having a congestion notification capability in accordance with the present invention. First, a router receives packets (step 500). If the router is severely congested (step 502), packets are dropped (step 516) and the process terminates thereafter. If the router is not severely congested (step 502), and if the router free of congestion (step 504), then packets are passed (step 514) and the process terminates. If the router is not free of congestion (step 504) and not severely congested, then the router is moderately congested (step 506) as it has already been determined that the router is not severely congested and is not free of congestion. A determination is then made whether the sender has explicit congestion notification (ECN) (step 508). If the sender does not have explicit congestion notification, then packets are dropped (step 516) and the process terminates thereafter. If the sender does have explicit congestion notification, then the sender is notified that the router is moderately congested (step 510). The router may pass packets from a sender with explicit congestion notification if the router is moderately congested. The term “may pass” means that the router is capable of passing packets, even if the router is experiencing congestion. A determination is then made whether the sender takes action to reduce the router's congestion (step 512). If the sender does take action, then the process terminates. If the sender ignores the notification, then packets from that sender are dropped (step 516), with the process terminating thereafter.

As used herein, the term “severely congested” refers to a router condition in which a router drops packets indiscriminately because the router is so flooded with packets that the router is incapable of forwarding all the packets it receives. The term “drops packets indiscriminately” means that the router drops packets without regard to the source of the packet or the type of packet. As used herein, the term “free of congestion” refers to a router condition in which a router can forward all packets that it receives and that most packets are forwarded without delays caused by congestion. As used herein, the term “moderately congested” refers to a router condition in which a router may delay forwarding packets, or may drop certain packets because the router is receiving too many packets for the router to pass packets as efficiently as when the router is free of congestion. However, the router is capable of forwarding at least some packets, perhaps all packets, when the router is moderately congested. Thus, in relative terms, “severely congested” refers to a level of congestion that is greater than “moderately congested.” Similarly, “moderately congested” refers to a level of congestion that is greater than “free of congestion.” The “level of congestion” refers to a state in a router that occurs when the router receives too many packets for the router to handle with maximum efficiency. For example, a router that is “free” of congestion is able to process 100% of all packets arriving at that router with maximum efficiency.

The invention can take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment or an embodiment containing both hardware and software elements. In a preferred embodiment, the invention is implemented in software, which includes but is not limited to firmware, resident software, microcode, etc.

Furthermore, the invention can take the form of a computer program product accessible from a computer-usable or computer-readable medium providing program code for use by or in connection with a computer or any instruction execution system. For the purposes of this description, a computer-usable or computer readable medium can be any apparatus that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transport the program for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

The medium can be an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system (or apparatus or device) or a propagation medium. Examples of a computer-readable medium include a semiconductor or solid state memory, magnetic tape, a removable computer diskette, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a rigid magnetic disk and an optical disk. Current examples of optical disks include compact disk—read only memory (CD-ROM), compact disk—read/write (CD-R/W) and DVD.

A data processing system suitable for storing and/or executing program code will include at least one processor coupled directly or indirectly to memory elements through a system bus. The memory elements can include local memory employed during actual execution of the program code, bulk storage, and cache memories which provide temporary storage of at least some program code in order to reduce the number of times code must be retrieved from bulk storage during execution.

Input/output or I/O devices (including but not limited to keyboards, displays, pointing devices, etc.) can be coupled to the system either directly or through intervening I/O controllers.

Network adapters may also be coupled to the system to enable the data processing system to become coupled to other data processing systems or remote printers or storage devices through intervening private or public networks. Modems, cable modem and Ethernet cards are just a few of the currently available types of network adapters.

It is important to note that while the present invention has been described in the context of a fully functioning data processing system, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the processes of the present invention are capable of being distributed in the form of a computer readable medium of instructions and a variety of forms and that the present invention applies equally regardless of the particular type of signal bearing media actually used to carry out the distribution. Examples of computer readable media include recordable-type media such a floppy disc, a hard disk drive, a RAM, and CD-ROMs and transmission-type media such as digital and analog communications links.

The description of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention, the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

Claims

1. A method of alleviating congestion in a router, said method comprising: receiving packets at the router, wherein the packets are transmitted by at least one computer system having a congestion notification capability; notifying the at least one computer system that the router is moderately congested, wherein the router may pass packets having an explicit congestion notification bit set when the router is moderately congested, and wherein when the router is severely congested the router will drop packets indiscriminately; and dropping packets having the explicit congestion notification bit set after the step of notifying and while the router is moderately congested.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of notifying further comprises the step of marking packets transmitted by the at least one computer system to indicate that the router is moderately congested.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising: determining whether the at least one computer system has received a notification in response to the step of notifying, wherein determining whether the at least one computer system has received a notification is performed using a listing of computer system identifiers.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising: receiving a packet transmitted by a first computer system at the router; determining whether the packet was transmitted subsequent to a receipt by the first computer system of a marked packet, wherein the step of determining whether the packet was transmitted subsequent to a receipt by the first computer system is performed using the router; dropping the packet in response to a determination that the packet was transmitted by the first computer system subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet, wherein the step of dropping is performed using the router; and forwarding the packet in response to a determination that the packet was not transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet, wherein the step of forwarding is performed using the router.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the step of determining whether the packet was transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet further comprises: determining whether an identifier which identifies a connection between the first computer system and a second computer system is stored in a list of identifiers within the router, wherein determining whether the identifier is stored in a list of identifiers is performed in response to each receipt by the router of a packet transmitted by the first computer system; and in response to a determination that the identifier which identifies the connection is stored in the list, determining that the packet was transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising: in response to a determination that the identifier which identifies the connection is not stored in the list, determining that the packet was not transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet; and storing the identifier in the list within the router.

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising: including with the identifier a time stamp indicating a current time the packet was received by the router.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the step of determining whether the packet was transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet further comprises: determining whether the identifier is stored in the list, wherein the step of determining whether the identifier is stored is performed in response to each receipt by the router of a second packet transmitted by the first computer system; and in response to a determination that the identifier which identifies the connection is included in the list, determining that the second packet was transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the step of in response to a determination that the identifier which identifies the connection is included in the list, determining that the second packet was transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet further comprises: calculating a transmission time in response to a receipt of the second packet; determining whether a current time is greater than the transmission time; in response to a determination that the current time is greater than the transmission time, determining that the second packet was transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet; and in response to a determination that the current time is equal to or less than the transmission time, determining that the second packet was not transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising: calculating the transmission time by adding the time stamp to a round trip time, the round trip time being a time required for a packet to travel from the first computer system to the second computer system and back to the first computer system.

11. A computer program product comprising: a computer usable medium having computer usable program code for alleviating congestion in a router, said computer program product including: computer usable program code for receiving packets at the router, wherein the packets are transmitted by at least one computer system having a congestion notification capability; computer usable program code for notifying the at least one computer system that the router is moderately congested, wherein the router may pass packets having an explicit congestion notification bit set when the router is moderately congested, and wherein when the router is severely congested the router will drop packets indiscriminately; and computer usable program code for dropping packets having the explicit congestion notification bit set after notifying the at least one computer system that the router is moderately congested and while the router is moderately congested.

12. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising: computer usable program code for determining whether the at least one computer system has received a notification in response to the step of notifying, wherein determining whether the at least one computer system has received a notification is performed using a listing of computer system identifiers.

13. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising: computer usable program code for receiving a packet transmitted by a first computer system at the router; computer usable program code for determining whether the packet was transmitted subsequent to a receipt by the first computer system of a marked packet, wherein determining whether the packet was transmitted subsequent to a receipt by the first computer system is performed using the router; computer usable program code for dropping the packet in response to a determination that the packet was transmitted by the first computer system subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet, wherein dropping the packet is performed using the router; and computer usable program code for forwarding the packet in response to a determination that the packet was not transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet, wherein forwarding of the packet is performed using the router.

14. The computer program product of claim 13 wherein determining whether the packet was transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet further comprises: computer usable program code for determining whether an identifier which identifies a connection between the first computer system and a second computer system is stored in a list of identifiers within the router, wherein determining whether the identifier is stored in a list of identifiers is performed in response to each receipt by the router of a packet transmitted by the first computer system; and computer usable program code for, in response to a determination that the identifier which identifies the connection is stored in the list, determining that the packet was transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet.

15. A router system for alleviating congestion, the router system comprising at least one router adapted to perform the steps of: receiving packets at the at least one router, wherein the packets are transmitted by at least one computer system having a congestion notification capability; notifying the at least one computer system that the at least one router is moderately congested, wherein the at least one router may pass packets having an explicit congestion notification bit set when the at least one router is moderately congested, and wherein when the at least one router is severely congested the at least one router will drop packets indiscriminately; and dropping packets having the explicit congestion notification bit set after the step of notifying and while the at least one router is moderately congested.

16. The router system of claim 15 wherein the at least one router is further adapted to perform the steps of: receiving a packet transmitted by a first computer system; determining whether the packet was transmitted subsequent to a receipt by the first computer system of a marked packet; dropping the packet in response to a determination that the packet was transmitted by the first computer system subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet; and forwarding the packet in response to a determination that the packet was not transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet.

17. The router system of claim 16 wherein the at least one router is further adapted to perform the steps of: determining whether an identifier which identifies a connection between the first computer system and a second computer system is stored in a list of identifiers within the at least one router, wherein the step of determining whether an identifier is stored in a list of identifiers is performed in response to each receipt by the at least one router of a packet transmitted by the first computer system; and in response to a determination that the identifier which identifies the connection is stored in the list, determining that the packet was transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet.

18. The router system of claim 16 wherein the at least one router is further adapted to perform the steps of: determining that the packet was not transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet; and storing the identifier in the list within the at least one router.

19. The router system of claim 18 wherein the at least one router is further adapted to perform the step of: including with the identifier a time stamp indicating a current time the packet was received by the at least one router.

20. The router system of claim 19, wherein the at least one router is further adapted to perform the steps of: determining whether the identifier is stored in the list in response to each receipt by the at least one router of a second packet transmitted by the first computer system; and in response to a determination that the identifier which identifies the connection is included in the list, determining that the second packet was transmitted subsequent to the receipt of the marked packet.