Method, apparatus, and system for measuring network delay

• US 10,374,925 B2
• Filed: 03/26/2015
• Issued: 08/06/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Fang, Wei, Liu, Hongming, Chang, Wenjun
• Primary Examiner(s): Nawaz, Asad M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Harley, Jason A
• Application Number:
  US14/669,513
• Publication Number:
  US 20150207712A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,594 Days
• Field of Search: 370252
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0852 Delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/106 using time related information in packets, e.g. by adding timestamps
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 7/0037 Delay of clock signal

Abstract

A method, an apparatus, and a system for measuring a network delay are disclosed. The method includes: acquiring delay measurement information obtained by measuring a service flow by at least one target logical port TLP, where the delay measurement information includes: timestamp information, a service flow identifier, and a TLP identifier; and transmitting the delay measurement information to a measurement control point MCP, so that the MCP determines details about a network delay according to the timestamp information, the service flow identifier, and the TLP identifier. Embodiments of the present application further provide an apparatus and a system for measuring a network delay. Embodiments of the present application achieve direct and accurate delay measurement of a service flow in scenarios of point to point transmission or point to multipoint transmission on the network, and reflect details about a real delay of the service flow.

Claims

1. A method for measuring a network delay of a network, comprising:

acquiring, by a data collecting point (DCP) managing an upstream target logical port (TLP), transmit-end delay measurement information obtained by measuring a service flow by the upstream TLP that is transmitted through the network, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information comprises transmit-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of the service flow, and a TLP identifier of the upstream TLP, and wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information is corresponding to a data packet including a delay measurement flag ;

acquiring, by a DCP managing a downstream TLP, receive-end delay measurement information obtained by measuring the service flow by the downstream TLP, wherein the receive-end delay measurement information comprises receive-end timestamp information, the service flow identifier of the service flow, and a TLP identifier of the downstream TLP, and wherein the receive-end delay measurement information is corresponding to the data packet including the delay measurement flag;

transmitting, by the DCP managing the upstream TLP, the transmit-end delay measurement information to a measurement control point (MCP); and

transmitting, by the DCP managing the downstream TLP, the receive-end delay measurement information to the MCP;

wherein, the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information are used to determine a network delay of the network.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

when a measurement period for measuring the service flow ends, acquiring, by the DCP managing the upstream TLP, a measurement period identifier of the measurement period;

transmitting, by the DCP managing the upstream TLP, the measurement period identifier to the MCP; and

acquiring, by the DCP managing the downstream TLP, start time of the measurement period, wherein if a difference between the start time and the receive-end timestamp information is not more than a preset duration, the receive-end delay measurement information corresponds to the measurement period identifier, and if the difference between the start time and the receive-end timestamp information is greater than the preset duration, the measurement period identifier is increased by 1, the timestamp information corresponds to a next measurement period, and the measurement period identifier is transmitted to the MCP.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the preset duration is ⅔

of a duration of the measurement period.

4. The method according to claim 2, further comprising:

performing, by the DCP managing the upstream TLP, time synchronization with the upstream TLP by using at least one of the Network Time Protocol (NTP) and an IEEE 1588v2 clock;

performing, by the DCP managing the downstream TLP, time synchronization with the downstream TLP by using at least one of the NTP and an IEEE 1588v2 clock; and

performing, by the DCP managing the upstream TLP, time synchronization with the DCP managing the downstream TLP by using at least one of the NTP and an IEEE 1588v2 clock.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

acquiring, by the DCP managing the downstream TLP, a measurement packet transmitted by the upstream TLP and received by the downstream TLP, and arrival timestamp information of the measurement packet, which is generated when the measurement packet arrives at the downstream TLP, wherein the measurement packet comprises;

transmit-end timestamp information; and

determining, by the DCP managing the downstream TLP, whether the arrival timestamp information and the receive-end timestamp information correspond to a preset duration range; and

if the arrival timestamp information and the receive-end timestamp information correspond to the preset duration range, determining that the transmit-end timestamp information and the receive-end timestamp information correspond to a same data packet, and transmitting a result of the determining to the MCP.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information further comprises:

service flow characteristic information of the service flow and a transmit-end fragment reassembly identifier of a data packet of the service flow; and

the receive-end delay measurement information further comprises;

the service flow characteristic information of the service flow and the receive-end fragment reassembly identifier.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein, within each measurement period one data packet is added with the delay measurement flag.

8. A method for measuring a network delay of a network, comprising:

determining, by an upstream target logical port (TLP), a service flow that is transmitted through the network is a target service flow according to service flow characteristic information of the service flow;

adding, by the upstream TLP, a delay measurement flag to a data packet of the service flow;

acquiring, by the upstream TLP, transmit-end delay measurement information of the data packet to which the delay measurement flag is added, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information comprises transmit-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of the service flow, and a TLP identifier of the upstream TLP; and

indentifying, by a downstream TLP, the data packet to which the delay measurement flag is added;

acquiring, by a downstream TLP, receive-end delay measurement information of the data packet, wherein the receive-end delay measurement information comprises receive-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of the service flow, and a TLP identifier of the downstream TLP.

9. The method according to claim 8,

before the adding the delay measurement flag to the data packet of the target service flow, the method further comprises:

performing, by the upstream TLP, time synchronization with the DCP managing the upstream TLP by using at least one of the Network Time Protocol (NTP) and an IEEE 1588v2 clock; and

before identifying the data packet to which the delay measurement flag is added, performing, by the downstream TLP, time synchronization with the DCP managing the downstream TLP by using at least one of the NTP and an IEEE 1588v2 clock;

the method further comprises;

acquiring, by the upstream TLP, a measurement period identifier corresponding to the delay measurement flag; and

acquiring, by the downstream TLP, start time of each measurement period within the measurement period, and when identifying, within each measurement period, the data packet to which the delay measurement flag is added, acquiring the measurement period identifier corresponding to the delay measurement flag.

10. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

transmitting, by the upstream TLP, a measurement packet to the downstream TLP, wherein the measurement packet comprises;

transmit-end timestamp information;

receiving, by the downstream TLP, the measurement packet, generating arrival timestamp information of the measurement packet, and transmitting the measurement packet and the arrival timestamp information to the DCP managing the downstream TLP.

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information further comprises:

the service flow characteristic information and a transmit-end fragment reassembly identifier of the data packet; and

the receive-end delay measurement information further comprises;

the service flow characteristic information and the receive-end fragment reassembly identifier.

12. The method according to claim 8, wherein the adding, by an upstream TLP, a delay measurement flag to the data packet of the target service flow comprises:

adding the delay measurement flag in at least one of;

a reserved bit of type of service TOS and a reserved bit of Flags in an IP header of the data packet.

13. The method according to claim 8, wherein the determining the service flow that is transmitted through the network is the target service flow comprises:

determining the service flow is the target service flow according to at least two tuples in a quintuple of the service flow.

14. The method according to claim 8, wherein, within each measurement period one data packet is added with the delay measurement flag by the upstream TLP.

15. A method for measuring a network delay of a network, comprising:

receiving, by a measurement control point (MCP), transmit-end delay measurement information transmitted by a data collecting point (DCP) corresponding to an upstream target logical port (TLP) and receive-end delay measurement information transmitted by a DCP corresponding to a downstream TLP, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information comprises;

transmit-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of a service flow which is transmitted through the network, and a TLP identifier of the upstream TLP; and

the receive-end delay measurement information comprises;

receive-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of the service flow, and a TLP identifier of the downstream TLP, and wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information are corresponding to a data packet including a delay measurement flag; and

determining, by the MCP, network delay of the network according to the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information.

16. The method according to claim 15, further comprising:

receiving, by the MCP, a measurement period identifier transmitted by the DCP managing the upstream TLP;

receiving, by the MCP, a measurement period identifier transmitted by the DCP managing the downstream TLP;

determining, by the MCP according to the measurement period identifier transmitted by the DCP managing the upstream TLP and the measurement period identifier transmitted by the DCP managing the downstream TLP, whether the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information correspond to a same measurement period; and

determining, by the MCP, the network delay according to the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information, when the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information correspond to a same measurement period.

17. The method according to claim 15, the receiving, by the measurement control point (MCP), the transmit-end delay measurement information transmitted by a data collecting point (DCP) comprises:

receiving, by the MCP, the transmit-end delay measurement information transmitted by the DCP corresponding to the upstream TLP; and

receiving, by the MCP, the receive-end delay measurement information that is determined as corresponding to a same data packet as the transmit-end delay measurement information and is transmitted by the DCP corresponding to the downstream TLP.

18. The method according to claim 15, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information further comprises service flow characteristic information of the service flow, and a transmit-end fragment reassembly identifier of a data packet in the service flow, and

wherein the receive-end delay measurement information further comprises:

the service flow characteristic information, and the receive-end fragment reassembly identifier; and

the method further comprises;

determining, by the MCP, according to the service flow characteristic information and the fragment reassembly identifier from the DCP corresponding to the upstream TLP, the service flow characteristic information and the fragment reassembly identifier from the DCP corresponding to the downstream TLP, that the transmit-end timestamp information and the receive-end timestamp information are timestamp information corresponding to a same data packet.

19. The method according to claim 15, wherein, within each measurement period one data packet is added with the delay measurement flag.

20. A data collecting point (DCP), comprising:

a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising computer-executable instructions; and

a processor in communication with the non-transitory computer readable medium, wherein

when the DCP is a DCP managing an upstream TLP, the processor executes the instructions to;

acquire transmit-end delay measurement information obtained by measuring a transmitted service flow by the upstream TLP that is transmitted through a network, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information comprises transmit-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of the transmitted service flow, and a TLP identifier of the upstream TLP, and wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information is corresponding to a data packet including a delay measurement flag; and

transmit the transmit-end delay measurement information to the MCP;

when the DCP is a DCP managing a downstream TLP, the processor executes the instructions to;

acquire receive-end delay measurement information obtained by measuring a received service flow by the downstream TLP that is transmitted through the network, wherein the receive-end delay measurement information comprises receive-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of the received service flow, and a TLP identifier of the downstream TLP, and wherein the receive-end delay measurement information is corresponding to a data packet including a delay measurement flag; and

transmitting the receive-end delay measurement information to the MCP,

wherein, the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information are used to determine a network delay of the network.

21. The DCP according to claim 20, wherein the processor further executes the instructions to:

when the DCP is the DCP managing the upstream TLP, and when a first measurement period for measuring the transmitted service flow ends, acquire a first measurement period identifier of the first measurement period, and transmit the first measurement period identifier to the MCP;

when the DCP is the DCP managing the downstream TLP, when a second measurement period for measuring the received service flow starts, acquire start time of the second measurement period, wherein if a difference between the start time and the receive-end timestamp information is not more than a preset duration, the receive-end delay measurement information corresponds to a second measurement period identifier of the second measurement period, and if the difference between the start time and the receive-end timestamp information is greater than the preset duration, the second measurement period identifier is increased by 1, the receive-end timestamp information corresponds to a next measurement period, and the second measurement period identifier is acquired; and

transmit the second measurement period identifier to the MCP.

22. The DCP according to claim 21, wherein the preset duration is ⅔

of a duration of the second measurement period.

23. The DCP according to claim 21, wherein when the DCP is the DCP managing the upstream TLP, the processor further executes the instructions to:

perform time synchronization with the upstream TLP by using at least one of the Network Time Protocol (NTP) and an IEEE 1588v2 clock, and perform time synchronization between the DCP and another DCP managing a corresponding downstream TLP by using at least one of the NTP and an IEEE 1588v2 clock, and

wherein when the DCP is the DCP managing the downstream TLP, the processor executes the instructions to;

perform time synchronization with the downstream TLP by using at least one of the NTP and an IEEE 1588v2 clock, and perform time synchronization between the DCP and another DCP managing a corresponding upstream TLP by using at least one of the NTP and an IEEE 1588v2 clock.

24. The DCP according to claim 20, wherein when the DCP is the DCP managing the downstream TLP, the processor further executes the instructions to:

acquire a measurement packet transmitted by another upstream TLP and received by the downstream TLP, and arrival timestamp information of the measurement packet, which is generated when the measurement packet arrives at the downstream TLP, wherein the measurement packet comprises transmit-end timestamp information;

determine whether the arrival timestamp information and the receive-end timestamp information correspond to a preset duration range;

when the arrival timestamp information and the receive-end timestamp information correspond to the preset duration range, determine that the transmit-end timestamp information in the measurement packet and the receive-end timestamp information correspond to a same data packet; and

transmit a result of the determining to the MCP.

25. The DCP according to claim 20, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information further comprises:

transmit-end service flow characteristic information and a transmit-end fragment reassembly identifier, and-wherein the receive-end delay measurement information further comprises receive-end service flow characteristic information and a receive-end fragment reassembly identifier.

26. The DCP according to claim 20, wherein, within each measurement period one data packet is added with the delay measurement flag.

27. A target logical port (TLP), comprising:

a port;

a processor in communication with the port,

wherein when the TLP is an upstream TLP, the processor is configured to;

determine a first service flow transmitted through the port is a target service flow according to service flow characteristic information of the first service flow;

add a first delay measurement flag to a first data packet of the first service flow; and

acquire transmit-end delay measurement information of the first data packet to which the first delay measurement flag is added, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information comprises transmit-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of the first service flow, a TLP identifier of the TLP;

wherein when the TLP is a downstream TLP, the processor is configured to;

identify a second data packet to which a second delay measurement flag is added, acquire receive-end delay measurement information of the second data packet, and wherein the receive-end delay measurement information comprises receive-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of a service flow that is transmitted through the port and comprises the second data packet, and a TLP identifier of the TLP.

28. The TLP according to claim 27, wherein:

when the TLP is the upstream TLP, the processor is further configured to;

add the first delay measurement flag to the data packet of the target service flow, perform time synchronization with the DCP managing the upstream TLP by using at least one of the Network Time Protocol (NTP) and an IEEE 1588v2 clock; and

acquire a measurement period identifier corresponding to the first delay measurement flag, and

wherein when the TLP is the downstream TLP, the processor is further configured to;

identify the second data packet to which the second delay measurement flag is added, perform time synchronization with the DCP managing the downstream TLP by using at least one of the NTP and an IEEE 1588v2 clock; and

acquire a measurement period identifier corresponding to the second delay measurement flag and start time of each measurement period.

29. The TLP according to claim 27, wherein

when the TLP is the upstream TLP, the processor is further configured to:

transmit a first measurement packet to another downstream TLP, wherein the first measurement packet comprises;

transmit-end timestamp information, and

wherein when the TLP is the downstream TLP, the processor is further configured to;

receive a second measurement packet from another upstream TLP;

generate arrival timestamp information of the second measurement packet; and

transmit the second measurement packet and the arrival timestamp information to the DCP managing the downstream TLP.

30. The TLP according to claim 27, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information further comprises transmit-end service flow characteristic information and a transmit-end fragment reassembly identifier, and wherein the receive-end delay measurement information further comprises receive-end service flow characteristic information and a receive-end fragment reassembly identifier.

31. The TLP according to claim 27, wherein the determining the first service flow is the target service flow comprises:

determining the first service flow is the target service flow according to at least two tuples in a quintuple of the first service flow.

32. The TLP according to claim 27, wherein, within each measurement period one data packet is added with the delay measurement flag by the upstream TLP.

33. A measurement control point (MCP), comprising:

a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising computer-executable instructions; and

a processor in communication with the non-transitory computer readable medium, wherein

the processor executes the instructions to;

receive transmit-end delay measurement information transmitted by a data collecting point (DCP) corresponding to an upstream target logical port (TLP) and receive-end delay measurement information transmitted by a DCP corresponding to a downstream TLP, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information comprises transmit-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of a service flow that is transmitted through a network, and a TLP identifier of the upstream TLP, and wherein the receive-end delay measurement information comprises receive-end timestamp information, a service flow identifier of the service flow, and a TLP identifier of the downstream TLP, and wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information are corresponding to a data packet including a delay measurement flag; and

determine a network delay of the network according to the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information.

34. The MCP according to claim 33, wherein the processor executes the instructions to:

receive a measurement period identifier transmitted by the DCP managing the upstream TLP, and a measurement period identifier transmitted by the DCP managing the downstream TLP;

determine, according to the measurement period identifier transmitted by the DCP managing the upstream TLP and the measurement period identifier transmitted by the DCP managing the downstream TLP, whether the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information correspond to a same measurement period; and

determine the network delay according to the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information, when the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information correspond to a same measurement period.

35. The MCP according to claim 33, wherein the receiving the transmit-end delay measurement information transmitted by the data collecting point (DCP) comprises:

receiving the transmit-end delay measurement information transmitted by the DCP corresponding to the upstream TLP, and the receive-end delay measurement information that is determined as corresponding to a same data packet as the transmit-end delay measurement information and is transmitted by the DCP corresponding to the downstream TLP.

36. The MCP according to claim 33, wherein the transmit-end delay measurement information further comprises transmit-end service flow characteristic information and a transmit-end fragment reassembly identifier, wherein the receive-end delay measurement information further comprises receive-end service flow characteristic information and a receive-end fragment reassembly identifier, and

wherein the processor executes the instructions to:

determine, according to the transmit-end service flow characteristic information, the transmit-end fragment reassembly identifier, the receive-end service flow characteristic information, and the receive-end fragment reassembly identifier, whether the transmit-end timestamp information and the receive-end timestamp information are timestamp information corresponding to a same service flow; and

determine the a network delay according to the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information, when the transmit-end delay measurement information and the receive-end delay measurement information are timestamp information corresponding to a same service flow.

37. The TLP according to claim 33, wherein, within each measurement period one data packet is added with the delay measurement flag.