Dynamic creation and management of ephemeral coordinated feedback instances

• US 10,523,569 B2
• Filed: 09/20/2018
• Issued: 12/31/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2015
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Fan, James W., Aaron, Jeffrey A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tokuta, Shean
• Application Number:
  US16/137,000
• Publication Number:
  US 20190020591A1
• Time in Patent Office: 467 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/20 Traffic policing

Abstract

Concepts and technologies disclosed herein are directed to the dynamic creation and management of ephemeral coordinated feedback instances. In accordance with one aspect disclosed herein, a system can receive a feedback instance creation request. The feedback instance creation request can be received from a policy engine in response to the policy engine attempting to satisfy a policy request. The system can examine the feedback instance creation request to determine an objective to be met by a new feedback instance model. The system can build a specification for the new feedback instance model. The specification can be built in accordance with a feedback instance building policy. The system can create the new feedback instance model in accordance with the specification. The system can store the new feedback instance model and a unique identifier associated with the new feedback instance model in a feedback instance model repository.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a processing unit; and

a memory unit that stores instructions that, when executed by the processing unit, cause the processing unit to perform operations comprising

building a specification for a feedback instance model, wherein the specification identifies actors, input for the feedback instance model, and operational parameters,

creating the feedback instance model in accordance with the specification for the feedback instance model,

providing the feedback instance model to a non-active feedback instance model storage of a feedback instance model repository that communicates with the memory unit, wherein the feedback instance model is in a non-active state within the non-active feedback instance model storage,

activating a feedback instance based upon the feedback instance model that is in accordance with the operational parameters, wherein a model identifier of the feedback instance model is moved to an active feedback instance model storage, and

determining that the feedback instance that is active cannot be utilized to satisfy a policy request received from a policy requestor.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise monitoring one or more anomalies related to virtual network functions associated with a network in which the feedback instance is utilized.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving a feedback instance modification request to modify the feedback instance that active, wherein the feedback instance modification request is received from a policy engine in response to the policy engine attempting to satisfy the policy request, and

examining the feedback instance modification request to determine a modified objective to be met, wherein the modified objective cures a deficiency of the feedback instance.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein building the specification for the feedback instance model comprises building the specification for the feedback instance model in accordance with a feedback instance building policy.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the operations further comprise, in accordance with the feedback instance building policy:

identifying any of the actors to be utilized in the feedback instance model, wherein the actors include at least one or more of an orchestrator, a cloud resource controller, the policy engine, a virtual router, a software-defined network controller, an analytics module, an access control server, a virtual function controller;

identifying any input for the feedback instance model;

identifying any of the operational parameters and values for the operational parameters for the feedback instance model; and

identifying an analytics application.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the operations further comprise, in accordance with the feedback instance building policy, establishing a model usage for the feedback instance model.

7. The system of claim 3, wherein the operations further comprise:

extending, using an extensibility policy, the specification used to create the feedback instance so as to create a modified specification that accommodates the modified objective to cure the deficiency of the feedback instance; and

modifying the feedback instance in accordance with the modified specification so as to create a modified feedback instance that cures the deficiency of the feedback instance.

8. A computer-readable storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processing unit of a system, cause the system to perform operations comprising:

building a specification for a feedback instance model, wherein the specification identifies actors, input for the feedback instance model, and operational parameters,

creating the feedback instance model in accordance with the specification for the feedback instance model,

providing the feedback instance model to a non-active feedback instance model storage of a feedback instance model repository, wherein the feedback instance model is in a non-active state within the non-active feedback instance model storage,

activating a feedback instance based upon the feedback instance model that is in accordance with the operational parameters, wherein a model identifier of the feedback instance model is moved to an active feedback instance model storage, and

determining that the feedback instance that is active cannot be utilized to satisfy a policy request received from a policy requestor.

9. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise monitoring one or more anomalies related to virtual network functions associated with a network in which the feedback instance is utilized.

10. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving a feedback instance modification request to modify the feedback instance that active, wherein the feedback instance modification request is received from a policy engine in response to the policy engine attempting to satisfy the policy request; and

examining the feedback instance modification request to determine a modified objective to be met, wherein the modified objective cures a deficiency of the feedback instance.

11. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein building the specification for the feedback instance model comprises building the specification for the feedback instance model in accordance with a feedback instance building policy.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the operations further comprise, in accordance with the feedback instance building policy:

identifying any of the actors to be utilized in the feedback instance model, wherein the actors include at least one or more of an orchestrator, a cloud resource controller, the policy engine, a virtual router, a software-defined network controller, an analytics module, an access control server, a virtual function controller;

identifying any input for the feedback instance model;

identifying any of the operational parameters and values for the operational parameters for the feedback instance model; and

identifying an analytics application.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise, in accordance with the feedback instance building policy, establishing a model usage for the feedback instance model.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise:

extending, using an extensibility policy, the specification used to create the feedback instance so as to create a modified specification that accommodates the modified objective to cure the deficiency of the feedback instance; and

modifying the feedback instance in accordance with the modified specification so as to create a modified feedback instance that cures the deficiency of the feedback instance.

15. A system comprising:

a processing unit; and

a memory unit that stores instructions that, when executed by the processing unit, cause the processing unit to perform operations comprising;

building a specification for a feedback instance model, wherein the specification identifies actors associated with the feedback instance model, input for the feedback instance model, and operational parameters,

creating the feedback instance model in accordance with the specification for the feedback instance model,

providing the feedback instance model to a non-active feedback instance model storage of a feedback instance model repository that communicates with the memory unit, wherein the feedback instance model is in a non-active state within the non-active feedback instance model storage,

verifying that the actors associated with the feedback instance model are available and running on a network,

in response to the verifying, activating a feedback instance based upon the feedback instance model that is in accordance with the operational parameters, wherein a model identifier of the feedback instance model is moved to an active feedback instance model storage, and

determining that the feedback instance that is active cannot be utilized to satisfy a policy request received from a policy requestor.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise monitoring the feedback instance based upon a predefined operational parameter.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein creating the feedback instance based upon the feedback instance model comprises interfacing with an actor that is included as part of the feedback instance model to establish a connection to the actor, wherein the actor can include at least one or more of an orchestrator, a cloud resource controller, a policy engine, a virtual router, a software-defined network controller, an analytics module, an access control server, a virtual function controller.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise

receiving a feedback instance modification request to modify the feedback instance that active;

examining the feedback instance modification request to determine a modified objective to be met, wherein the modified objective cures a deficiency of the feedback instance; and

providing, based on the feedback instance modification request, a feedback instance modification realization request to a feedback instance orchestrator and controller, wherein the feedback instance modification realization request includes the model identifier of the feedback instance model.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the operations further comprise

extending, using an extensibility policy, the specification used to create the feedback instance so as to create a modified specification that accommodates the modified objective to cure the deficiency of the feedback instance;

and

modifying the feedback instance model associated with the model identifier so as to create a modified feedback instance model.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the operations further comprise retrieving the modified feedback instance model from the active feedback instance model storage;

modifying the feedback instance in accordance with the modified feedback instance model so as to create a modified feedback instance that cures the deficiency of the feedback instance;

validating the modified feedback instance; and

deploying the modified feedback instance.