Method and System for Automated Network Operations

• US 20110153788A1
• Filed: 12/23/2009
• Published: 06/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: VAN DER MERWE, Jacobus, Chen, Xu, Mao, Zhuoqing
• Application Number:
  US12/646,492
• Publication Number:
  US 20110153788A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/221
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4843 by program, e.g. task dispatcher, supervisor, operating system

Abstract

A system includes a memory storing a set of instructions executable by a processor. The set of instructions is operable to receive a process for accomplishing a network management task, the process including a plurality of events including configuration changing events and condition checking events; receive parameters related to the task; include the parameters in the process; and execute the process.

Claims

1. A system comprising a memory storing a set of instructions executable by a processor, the set of instructions being operable to:

receive a process for accomplishing a network management task, the process including a plurality of events including configuration changing events and condition checking events;

receive parameters related to the task;

include the parameters in the process; and

execute the process.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions are further operable to:

receive a record of an execution of the network management task by a user; and

generate the process based on the record.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the execution of the process includes interfacing with network devices to instruct the network devices to perform functionality included in the process.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the functionality is a configuration of the network devices.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions are further operable to:

monitor the execution of the process; and

record information from the process when a failure of the process occurs.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions are further operable to:

expose information related to the process for an external entity to consume.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the instructions are further operable to:

receive a policy mechanism; and

combine a first process and a second process into a composed process based on the policy mechanism.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the process is embodied as an active document.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the active document includes action nodes corresponding to the configuration changing events and condition nodes corresponding to the condition checking events.

10. A system comprising a memory storing a set of instructions executable by a processor, the set of instructions being operable to:

record an execution of a network management task by a user, the execution comprising a communication between the user and a network component;

extract, from the recording of the task, a plurality of events, the plurality of events including one of a configuration changing event and a condition checking event; and

generate, from the events, a process for accomplishing the network management task, the process including the plurality of events.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the task is a network management task.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the recording the execution includes recording a command sent by the user and recording state information of the network component.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the instructions are further operable to:

store the process in a process library.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein extracting the plurality of events includes identifying an event and determining whether the event is a configuration changing or a condition checking event.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the determining includes evaluating a console mode.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein extracting the plurality of events includes combining a plurality of commands executed within a same console to form an event.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein the process is modeled by a Petri net.

18. A system, comprising:

means for receiving a process for accomplishing a network management task, the process including a plurality of events including configuration changing events and condition checking events;

means for receiving parameters related to the task;

means for including the parameters in the process; and

means for executing the process.

19. The system of claim 18, further comprising:

means for receiving a record of an execution of the network management task by a user; and

means for generating the process based on the record.