System and method for monitoring quality of service over network

• US 6,078,953 A
• Filed: 12/29/1997
• Issued: 06/20/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Emc IP Holding Company LLC (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Ukiah Software, Inc. (Open Text Corporation)
• Inventors: Putta, Sanjeev R., Vaid, Aseem, Pandit, Atul, Rakoshitz, Gregory
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, VIET DUY
• Application Number:
  US08/999,044
• Time in Patent Office: 904 Days
• Field of Search: 709/102, 709/103, 709/230, 709/238, 709/239, 709/240, 709/249, 709/223, 709/224, 709/232, 370/229, 370/235, 370/396, 370/401, 370/428, 370/230, 370/412, 370/413, 370/468, 370/469, 713/201
• US Class Current: 709/223
• 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 12/2872 Termination of subscriber connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0896 Bandwidth or capacity management, i.e. automatically increasing or decreasing capacities flow or congestion control using dynamic resource allocation, e.g. in-call renegotiation, H04L47/76
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5003 Managing SLA; Interaction between SLA and QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5029 Service quality level-based billing, e.g. dependent on measured service level customer is charged more or less
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/18 Protocol analysers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2441 relying on flow classification, e.g. using integrated services [IntServ]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/90 Buffering arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 49/9023 for implementing a jitter-buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/163 In-band adaptation of TCP data exchange; In-band control procedures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A method and system (100) for controlling quality of service within a network of computers. The method includes a step of providing a network of computers, each being coupled to each other to form a local area network. The network of computers has a firewall server (110) coupled to the network of computers and a traffic management tool coupled to the firewall server. The method also includes implementing traffic control for incoming and outgoing information using a combination of flow control and queuing techniques.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring quality of service within a network of computers, said system comprising:

a network of computers, each being coupled to each other to form a local area network;

a link coupled to said network of computers;

a traffic management tool coupled to said link, said traffic management tool configured to receive a flow of information, the flow of information including TCP based information and non-TCP based information, said traffic management tool comprising a flow control module and a queuing control module, wherein the flow control module is configured to transfer said TCP based information and the queuing control module is configured to transfer said non-TCP based information.

2. The system of claim 1 further comprising a router between said link and said network of computers.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein said link includes an incoming flow of information selected from source, destination, application, file type, or URL.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein said traffic management tool implements traffic control using one or more policies in the presence of traffic congestion or competition.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein said one of said policies is bandwidth guarantee, said bandwidth guarantee providing a selected bandwidth for a selected traffic class.

8. The system of claim 6 wherein said one of said policies is bandwidth limit, said bandwidth limit providing a bandwidth limit for a selected traffic class.

9. The system of claim 6 wherein said one of said policies is setting priorities, said setting priorities establishing an order for allocating bandwidth for selected classes.

10. The system of claim 6 wherein said one of said policies is admission control, said admission control establishing conditions for selectively admitting a service.

3. A method of managing information at a gateway site for improving quality of service to a network of computers, said method comprising:

providing a flow of information to a bandwidth management tool disposed at a server;

classifying said flow information into at least a first portion and a second portion, the first portion including TCP based information and the second portion including non-TCP based information;

applying flow control to said first portion of said information to be transferred to a first user location at said local area network; and

queuing said second portion of said information to be transferred to a second user location at said local area network.

11. The method of claim 3 wherein said second portion of said information is selected from RVSP or IPSEC (e.g., non-TCP on top of ITP).

12. The method of claim 3 wherein said flow of information is classified IP packets.

13. The method of claim 3 wherein said first user location is the same as said second user location.

14. The method of claim 3 wherein said step of applying flow control occurs in an intelligent adaptation engine.

15. The method of claim 3 wherein said step of queuing occurs in an intelligent adaptation engine.

16. The method of claim 3 wherein said second portion of said information is substantially free from a TCP protocol.

4. A system for managing information at a gateway site for improving quality of service to a network of computers, said system comprising a computer memory comprising:

a first code directed to classifying a flow information into at least a rst portion and a second portion, said first portion including TCP based information and said second portion including non-TCP based information;

a second code directed to applying flow control to said first portion of said information to be transferred to a first user location; and

a third code directed to queuing said second portion of said information to be transferred to a second user location.