Method and apparatus for monitoring and maintaining user-perceived quality of service in a communications network

• US 20040078733A1
• Filed: 06/19/2003
• Published: 04/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Computer Associates Think Inc. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Computer Associates Think Inc. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Lewis, Lundy M.
• Granted Patent: US 7,689,857 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 714/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0631 using root cause analysis; using analysis of correlation between notifications, alarms or events based on decision criteria, e.g. hierarchy, tree or time analysis
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/16 using machine learning or artificial intelligence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5009 Determining service level performance parameters or violations of service level contracts, e.g. violations of agreed response time or mean time between failures [MTBF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5025 by proactively reacting to service quality change, e.g. by reconfiguration after service quality degradation or upgrade
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5032 Generating service level reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5067 Customer-centric QoS measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5087 wherein the managed service relates to voice services management of VoIP services H04M7/0081
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/509 wherein the managed service relates to media content delivery, e.g. audio, video or TV
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/11 Identifying congestion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/12 Avoiding congestion; Recovering from congestion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/19 at layers above the network layer network arrangements for networked applications for scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/24 Traffic characterised by specific attributes, e.g. priority or QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/30 in combination with information about buffer occupancy at either end or at transit nodes

Abstract

A method and apparatus for managing data, voice, application, and video services allows anticipation of poor quality of service from a remote management station, in order to allow correction of the cause before the end user perceives service quality degradation. Specific system phenomena are identified that coincide with user-perceived service degradation in a particular network. The network is then monitored for the occurrence of those phenomena. Incipient or existing user-perceived quality of service degradation is inferred from the occurrence of one or more of those phenomena and action is taken to avoid and/or correct the degraded service quality condition. In a preferred embodiment, as many of the steps as possible are performed automatically by a network management system. In one embodiment, a close correlation is assumed between application data buffer over-extension and poor quality of service from a user'"'"'s point of view. In this embodiment, a monitor is placed on the application data buffer that raises an alarm for a network management system whenever the buffer is close to over-extension or an algorithm identifies a trend towards over-extension.

Claims

1. A method for remote detection of degraded Quality of Service in a communications network and associated systems comprising, in combination, the steps of:

identifying one or more system phenomena that coincide with the onset of quality of service degradation;

monitoring said network for an occurrence of one of said phenomena; and

raising an alarm if an occurrence is detected.

2. The method of claim 1, further including the step of taking corrective action to avoid said quality of service degradation.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein one or more of said steps of identifying, monitoring, and raising are performed via a network management system.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein one or more of said steps of identifying, monitoring, raising, and taking corrective action are performed via a network management system.

5. An apparatus for remote detection of degraded Quality of Service in a communications network and associated systems comprising, in combination:

means for identifying one or more system phenomena that coincide with the onset of quality of service degradation;

at least one correlated phenomenon monitor for monitoring said network for an occurrence of one or more of said phenomena; and

alarm-raising mechanism.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, further including means for taking corrective action to avoid said quality of service degradation.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein one or more of said means for identifying, said phenomenon monitor, and said alarm-raising mechanism are part of a network management system.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein one or more of said means for identifying, said phenomenon monitor, said alarm-raising mechanism, and said means for taking corrective action are part of a network management system.

9. A method for remote detection of degraded Quality of Service in a communications network and associated systems comprising, in combination, the steps of:

establishing an application data buffer re-flush monitor;

monitoring said network for a threshold occurrence of application data buffer re-flush; and

raising an alarm if a threshold occurrence is detected.

10. The method of claim 9, further including the step of taking corrective action to avoid said quality of service degradation.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein one or more of said steps of establishing, monitoring, and raising are performed via a network management system.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein one or more of said steps of establishing, monitoring, raising, and taking corrective action are performed via a network management system.