IP多播

部分转载自：http://www.firewall.cx/networking-topics/general-networking/107-network-multicast.html

剩下的基本参考谢希仁计算机网络7th

1. 基本概念

IP多播直观上可以按照下图理解，源主机只需要发送一份数据，而网络中的路由器在转发该数据时需要将它复制多份，分别发给在该个多播组内的所有主机。也就是说，IP多播必须依赖于多播路由器，这些路由器具有识别多播包的功能，当然，多播路由器也能转发单播包。

我们知道，ip网络中每个主机都有自己唯一的IP地址（为简化问题，这里忽略NAT，只考虑公共IP），那如何让一个多播数据包到达该多播组内的多台主机呢？肯定不能将这么多主机的ip地址都写入该多播数据包的目的ip包头域（长度限制），而是在该多播数据包的目的ip地址域中写入D类地址（224.0.0.0—239.225.225.225 前4bit固定为1110），每个D类地址对应一个多播组，则D类地址可以标志2^28个多播组。因此，多播数据包与一般的单播广播数据包的区别是它的目的ip地址为D类地址，并且ip首部中的协议字段为2，表明采用的是IGMP网际组管理协议。（需要注意的是多播数据包的目的ip地址实际上不可能对应某一台真实存在的主机的ip地址，也就是说该目的ip地址永远不可能作为源地址，即多播ip地址只能用于目的ip地址，不能用于源ip地址）

ip多播可以分为两种，一种是在本地局域网上进行硬件多播，第二种是在互联网的范围内进行多播。第二种最后还是需要依赖于把多播数据包在局域网上用硬件多播交付给多播组的所有成员。

2. 硬件多播

关于硬件多播，这篇文章讲得很好：http://www.firewall.cx/networking-topics/general-networking/107-network-multicast.html

A multicast is similar to a broadcast in the sense that its target is a number of machines on a network, but not all. Where a broadcast is directed to all hosts on the network, a multicast is directed to a group of hosts. The hosts can choose whether they wish to participate in the multicast group (often done with the Internet Group Management Protocol), whereas in a broadcast, all hosts are part of the broadcast group whether they like it or not!

As you are aware, each host on an Ethernet network has a unique MAC address, so here's the million dollar question: How do you talk to a group of hosts (our multicast group), where each host has a different MAC address, and at the same time ensure that the other hosts, which are not part of the multicast group, don't process the information ? You will soon know exactly how all this works.（解释一下标红：现在局域网大部分采用的都是以太网标准，共享信道）

To keep things in perspective and make it easy to understand, we are going to concentrate only on an Ethernet network using the IP protocol, which is what 80-90 % of home networks and offices use.

BREAKING THINGS DOWN...

In order to explain Multicasting the best I can and to make it easier for you