BUSINESS PROCESSES TRACKING

• US 20120066370A1
• Filed: 09/09/2010
• Published: 03/15/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/09/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Micro Focus LLC (Open Text Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Abraham, Maurice Haman, Ramraj, Anupriya, Shanks, Craig Robert
• Granted Patent: US 8,924,537 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/01 Customer relationship services
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/6418 Hybrid transport

Abstract

Systems, methods, and machine readable and executable instructions are provided for business process tracking. Business process tracking can include collecting data from network traffic. Instances of the data can include a number of events, a session identifier, and user information. The data can be filtered to a reduced number of events with a network monitoring engine. A number of business process event identifiers corresponding to the reduced number of events can be defined in a network adaptor. An individual instance of the business process can be distinguished according to the session identifier and the user information. The individual instance of the business process can be tracked independent of a number of applications running on the network.

Claims

1. A method for business process tracking, comprising:

collecting data from network traffic, wherein instances of the data include a number of events, a session identifier, and user information;

filtering the data to a reduced number of events with a network monitoring engine;

defining a number of business process event identifiers corresponding to the reduced number of events in a network adaptor;

distinguishing an individual instance of the business process according to the session identifier and the user information; and

tracking the individual instance of the business process independent of a number of applications running on the network.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein tracking the individual instance of the business process independent of the number of applications running on the network comprises tracking the individual instance of the business process without instrumenting the number of applications running on the network.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein collecting the network traffic includes one of:

collecting the network traffic with a network monitoring probe; and

mirroring the network traffic to the network monitoring engine.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the method includes:

storing the data in a network monitoring database; and

extracting data corresponding to the reduced number of events from the network monitoring database with the network adaptor.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the method includes modeling the business process, wherein modeling includes:

identifying a number of actual business process activities comprising the business process; and

correlating the number of actual business process activities with the number of business process event identifiers.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the method includes sequencing the number of business process event identifiers with the network adaptor to correspond to a sequence of a number of actual business process activities.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the method includes monitoring a plurality of requests and responses sent over transmission control protocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP) on the network with a network monitoring probe.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

collecting data from the network traffic includes collecting data from the network traffic with a plurality of network monitoring probes; and

filtering the data collected by the plurality of network monitoring probes with the network monitoring engine.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein tracking the individual instance of the business process includes:

setting a performance indicator and a threshold for the performance indicator for the individual instance of the business process; and

alerting in response to the threshold being breached.

10. A tangible medium storing a set of machine readable instructions for business process tracking, which when executed by a machine, cause the machine to:

distinguish a plurality of instances of a business process according to a plurality of events, session identifiers, and user information in a plurality of instances of data collected from network traffic by a network monitoring probe;

wherein the plurality of instances of data are filtered to a reduced number of events; and

wherein the reduced number of events correspond to a number of defined business process event identifiers; and

track the plurality of instances of the business process independent of receiving data from instruments associated with a number of applications running on the network.

11. The medium of claim 10, wherein the instructions cause the machine to set performance indicators for one or more of a flow rate, a value, a timing, and a backlog of the plurality of instances of the business process.

12. The medium of claim 10, wherein the number of business process event identifiers are sequenced to correspond to a sequence of a number of actual business process activities.

13. A system for business process tracking, comprising:

a network monitoring probe to collect data from network traffic, wherein instances of the data include a number of events, a session identifier, and user information;

a network monitoring engine to filter the data to a reduced number of events;

a network monitoring database to store the data;

a network adaptor to;

store a number of defined business process event identifiers corresponding to the reduced number of events;

extract data corresponding to the reduced number of events from the network monitoring database; and

sequence the number of business process event identifiers to correspond to a sequence of a number of actual business process activities;

a business process engine to;

distinguish an individual instance of the business process according to the session identifier and the user information; and

track the individual instance of the business process independent of a number of applications running on the network.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the business process engine tracks the individual instance of the business process without receiving data from instruments associated with the number of applications.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the business process engine distinguishes and tracks a plurality of instances of the business process and sets performance indicators for one or more of a flow rate, a value, a timing, and a backlog of the plurality of instances of the business process.