VIRTUAL HOSTING DEVICE AND SERVICE TO PROVIDE SOFTWARE-DEFINED NETWORKS IN A CLOUD ENVIRONMENT

• US 20160088092A1
• Filed: 09/23/2014
• Published: 03/24/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Digital Porpoise LLC (Digital Realty Trust, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Nuvem Networks, Inc.
• Inventors: CARDONA-GONZALEZ, LEE, PULLEY, ROBERT E., RILEY, PATRICK D.
• Granted Patent: US 9,531,814 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/141 Setup of application sessions admission control or resource allocation in data switching networks H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/60 Subscription-based services using application servers or record carriers, e.g. SIM application toolkits

Abstract

A hosting system to facilitate a customer of an operator of the system to connect to a cloud provider, the system including: a first cloud exchange co-located with and connected to first cloud provider equipment; a second cloud exchange co-located with and connected to second cloud provider equipment, wherein the first cloud provider equipment and the second cloud provider equipment are of a same cloud provider but at different geographically spaced locations or the first cloud provider equipment is of a different cloud provider than that of the second cloud provider equipment, and wherein the first cloud exchange is connected to the second cloud exchange; and a non-transitory computer readable medium including computer program instructions, the instructions configured to facilitate the configuration of a software-defined network including the first cloud exchange and/or second cloud exchange, wherein the network connects the customer to the first cloud provider equipment and/or the second cloud provider equipment.

Claims

1-13. -13. (canceled)

14. A hosting system to provide a software-defined network as a service, the system comprising:

physical network and/or computer equipment, of an operator of the system, co-located with and connected to equipment of a cloud provider that provides cloud services to a customer of the operator of the system;

a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising computer program instructions, the instructions configured to;

configure a virtual networking device on the physical network and/or computer equipment of the operator of the system and/or on physical network and/or computer equipment, at a location of the equipment of the cloud provider, of the customer of the operator of the system, the virtual networking device configured to provide a networking function used to switch, route, forward, filter and/or modify data communications traffic,

receive a software-defined network specification from the customer of the operator of the system, the specification comprising an operating parameter associated with a software-defined network, and

create and/or modify, based on the received specification, a software-defined network on a network of physical equipment, wherein the software-defined network includes the virtual networking device and connects equipment of the customer, at a location of the customer, to the cloud provider equipment and wherein the software-defined network comprises a software-based abstraction of a network on the network of physical equipment.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to allow the customer to disconnect from the cloud provider and connect to another cloud provider connected to the system.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to provide a web portal or an application programming interface to the customer for the customer to configure the software-defined network.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to allow the customer to include the cloud provider and another cloud provider in the software-defined network.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to make available a plurality of virtual networking devices for use by the customer and to receive a specification of the software-defined network from the customer, wherein the software-defined network includes the plurality of virtual networking devices.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to interact with a cloud provider application programming interface to connect the software-defined network to the cloud provider equipment and/or to manage network traffic from the software-defined network to the cloud provider equipment.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to allow access to the software-defined network based upon multi-factor authentication and based upon geolocation information of a token device in relationship to geolocation of a customer'"'"'s virtual networking device.

21. The system of claim 14, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to provide a personal identification code to a token device, wherein the personal identification code is hidden or locked at the token device until authorization information is provided at the token device.

22. The system of claim 14, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to provide a hidden or locked personal identification code and to allow re-establishment of access to the software-defined network upon receipt of the personal identification code unhidden or unlocked without receipt of a user name and/or user password at the time of re-establishment.

23. The system of claim 14, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to provide an application programming interface (API), wherein the API allows a method call that merely specifies:

a type of the method, a target resource for the method, an identification code for an item of the target resource where the API implements specification of a particular item of the resource in the method call, and an identification of an API version where the API implements specification of the API version in the method call; and

that includes an API body specifying at least a parameter and/or a value where the API implements specification of a parameter and/or a value in the method call.

24-25. -25. (canceled)

26. A method of providing a software-defined network as a service, the method comprising:

configuring, by a computer system, a virtual networking device on physical network and/or computer equipment, of an operator of the service, co-located with and connected to equipment of a cloud provider that provides cloud services to a customer of the operator of the service and/or on physical network and/or computer equipment, at a location of the equipment of the cloud provider, of the customer of the operator of the service, the virtual networking device configured to provide a networking function used to switch, route, forward, filter and/or modify data communications traffic;

receiving, by the computer system, a software-defined network specification from the customer of the operator of the service, the specification comprising an operating parameter associated with a software-defined network, and

creating and/or modifying, by the computer system and based on the received specification, a software-defined network on a network of physical equipment, wherein the software-defined network includes the virtual networking device and connects equipment of the customer, at a location of the customer, to the cloud provider equipment and wherein the software-defined network comprises a software-based abstraction of a network on the network of physical equipment.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising interacting, by the computer system, with a cloud provider application programming interface to connect the software-defined network to the cloud provider equipment and/or to manage network traffic from the software-defined network to the cloud provider equipment.

28. The method of claim 26, further comprising allowing, by the computer system, access to the software-defined network based upon multi-factor authentication and based upon geolocation information of a token device in relationship to geolocation of a customer'"'"'s virtual networking device.

29. The method of claim 26, further comprising providing, by the computer system, a personal identification code to a token device, wherein the personal identification code is hidden or locked at the token device until authorization information is provided at the token device.

30. The method of claim 26, further comprising providing, by the computer system, a hidden or locked personal identification code to a user and allowing re-establishment of access to the software-defined network upon receipt of the personal identification code unhidden or unlocked without receipt of a user name and/or user password at the time of re-establishment.

31. The method of claim 26, further comprising allowing, by the computer system, the customer to disconnect from the cloud provider and connect to another cloud provider.

32. The method of claim 26, further comprising allowing, by the computer system, the customer to include the cloud provider and another cloud provider in the software-defined network.

33. The method of claim 26, further comprising making available, by the computer system, a plurality of virtual networking devices for use by the customer and receiving a specification of the software-defined network from the customer, wherein the software-defined network includes the plurality of virtual networking devices.

34. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising computer program instructions to enable provision of a software-defined network as a service, the instructions configured to:

configure a virtual networking device on physical network and/or computer equipment, of an operator of the service, co-located with and connected to equipment of a cloud provider that provides cloud services to a customer of the operator of the service and/or on physical network and/or computer equipment, at a location of the equipment of the cloud provider, of the customer of the operator of the service, the virtual networking device configured to provide a networking function used to switch, route, forward, filter and/or modify data communications traffic;

receive a software-defined network specification from the customer of the operator of the service, the specification comprising an operating parameter associated with a software-defined network, and

create and/or modify, based on the received specification, a software-defined network as a service on a network of physical equipment, wherein the software-defined network includes the virtual networking device and connects equipment of the customer, at a location of the customer, to the cloud provider equipment and wherein the software-defined network comprises a software-based abstraction of a network on the network of physical equipment.

35. The medium of claim 34, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to allow the customer to disconnect from the cloud provider and connect to another cloud provider.

36. The medium of claim 34, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to allow the customer to include the cloud provider and another cloud provider in the software-defined network.

37. The medium of claim 34, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to make available a plurality of virtual networking devices for use by the customer and to receive a specification of the software-defined network from the customer, wherein the software-defined network includes the plurality of virtual networking devices.

38. The medium of claim 34, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to interact with a cloud provider application programming interface to connect the software-defined network to the cloud provider equipment and/or to manage network traffic from the software-defined network to the cloud provider equipment.

39. The medium of claim 34, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to allow access to the software-defined network based upon multi-factor authentication and based upon geolocation information of a token device in relationship to geolocation of a customer'"'"'s virtual networking device.

40. The medium of claim 34, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to provide a personal identification code to a token device, wherein the personal identification code is hidden or locked at the token device until authorization information is provided at the token device.

41. The medium of claim 34, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to provide a hidden or locked personal identification code and to allow re-establishment of access to the software-defined network upon receipt of the personal identification code unhidden or unlocked without receipt of a user name and/or user password at the time of re-establishment.

42. The medium of claim 34, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to provide an application programming interface (API), wherein the API allows a method call that merely specifies:

a type of the method, a target resource for the method, an identification code for an item of the target resource where the API implements specification of a particular item of the resource in the method call, and an identification of an API version where the API implements specification of the API version in the method call; and

that includes an API body specifying at least a parameter and/or a value where the API implements specification of a parameter and/or a value in the method call.

43-45. -45. (canceled)

46. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising computer program instructions, the instructions configured to:

receive a specification, by a customer of an operator of physical network and/or computer equipment co-located with and connected to equipment of a cloud provider that provides cloud services to the customer, of a topology, or portion thereof, of a software-defined network; and

form and/or modify, based on the received specification, a software-defined network on a network of physical equipment in accordance with the topology or portion thereof, wherein the software-defined network includes a virtual networking device on physical network and/or computer equipment of the operator that is co-located with and connected to the cloud provider equipment and/or on physical network and/or computer equipment, at a location of equipment of the cloud provider, of the customer of the operator, wherein the software-defined network connects equipment of the customer, at a location of the customer, to the cloud provider equipment and wherein the software-defined network comprises a software-based abstraction of a network on the network of physical equipment and the virtual networking device is configured to provide a networking function used to switch, route, forward, filter and/or modify data communications traffic.

47. The medium of claim 46, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to allow the customer to disconnect from the cloud provider and connect to another cloud provider.

48. The medium of claim 46, wherein the computer program instructions are further configured to allow the customer to include the cloud provider and another cloud provider in the software-defined network.