Methods and Systems of Network Management

• US 20070097884A1
• Filed: 11/28/2006
• Published: 05/03/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Behi, Fariborz, Cooper, Martin, Chewning, Ward III
• Granted Patent: US 7,720,074 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/254
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2856 Access arrangements, e.g. Internet access asynchronous transfer mode networks H04L12/5601; broadband local area networks H04L12/2801; optical access or distribution networks H04Q11/0067; access to open networks H04L12/5691; digital subscriber line end-user equipment and bit-level processing of data on a PSTN-based network H04M11/00; home network gateways H04L12/2834; wireless access networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0806 for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0886 Fully automatic configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/32 Specific management aspects for broadband networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5054 Automatic deployment of services triggered by the service manager, e.g. service implementation by automatic configuration of network components
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/507 Filtering out customers affected by service problems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/091 Measuring contribution of individual network components to actual service level

Abstract

A network management system (NMS) automatically models a path for a customer'"'"'s services from a terminating unit through elements typically on a link-by-link basis, across networks if appropriate, to a network service provider (NSP) or Internet service provider (ISP). The path may be a private virtual circuit or connection (PVC), and it may traverse an “overall network” including other networks such as an asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) service or sub-networks. To model a path, the NMS creates a topology including the elements and links in the overall network and respective features, functions, characteristics, and capacities thereof. The topology allows the NMS to speedily, efficiently, and automatically provision a customer'"'"'s service from the terminating unit to connection to the customer'"'"'s selected NSP or ISP for Internet access.

Claims

1. A network management system for modeling a path for a customer'"'"'s services from a terminating unit through elements on a link-by-link basis, across networks, to a network service provider (NSP) or Internet service provider (ISP), the network management system comprising:

a network creator for creating a topology including the elements and links in the networks, the topology including the respective features, functions, characteristics, and capacities of the elements and of the links; and

a service order receiver/mapper for receiving a service order from a customer for service provisioning of the customer from a terminating unit to a service provider of global communications services, and for mapping information from the service order onto the topology so as to create a private virtual circuit (PVC) from the terminating unit of the customer to the service provider of the global communications services.