Network management system

• US 6,285,688 B1
• Filed: 09/27/1999
• Issued: 09/04/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: MCI Communications Corporation (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Henderson, Gregory Scott, Cooley, Von A., Sanders, Ed J. Jr., Perry, Wayne B., Franklin, Thomas Dennie
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, HUY DUY
• Application Number:
  US09/406,456
• Time in Patent Office: 708 Days
• Field of Search: 370/503, 370/507, 370/516, 370/504, 375/356, 375/362, 375/364, 375/371
• US Class Current: 370/516
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 3/0688 Change of the master or reference, e.g. take-over or failure of the master
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0233 Object-oriented techniques, for representation of network management data, e.g. common object request broker architecture [CORBA]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/024 using relational databases for representation of network management data, e.g. managing via structured query language [SQL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/052 using standardised network management architectures, e.g. telecommunication management network [TMN] or unified network management architecture [UNMA]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0663 Performing the actions predefined by failover planning, e.g. switching to standby network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/08 Configuration management of networks or network elements address allocation H04L61/50
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0813 characterised by the conditions triggering a change of settings
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0866 Checking the configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0873 Checking configuration conflicts between network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0879 Manual configuration through operator
• 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 41/145 involving simulating, designing, planning or modelling of a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/147 for predicting network behaviour
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/20 Network management software packages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5009 Determining service level performance parameters or violations of service level contracts, e.g. violations of agreed response time or mean time between failures [MTBF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5019 Ensuring fulfilment of SLA
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5067 Customer-centric QoS measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 : Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0079 : involving restoration of networks, e.g. disaster recovery, self-healing networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/0083 : Network planning or design; Modelling of planned or existing networks

Abstract

A system and method for managing a telecommunications network. The system and method employs a network management architecture that provides an overlay in which network management functions are performed. The network management architecture includes a workstation function that provides a graphical user interface (GUI) for a user to interact with an object model of the physical telecommunications network, a telecommunications network management subsystem that provides an object model of the network including object models of network equipment and connectivity between the equipment, a database subsystem that stores “current” and “future” views of the network, and an object request broker that translates objects from a first object-oriented paradigm to a second object-oriented paradigm for use by the GUI. The network management architecture facilitates network design by determining network performance metrics. The network architecture can also be used to assess the performance of a given network configuration by virtue of simulation. The network architecture can also be used to initialize switchover logic for network restoration.

Claims

1. A method for prioritizing a plurality of synchronization paths in a telecommunications network, wherein each of the plurality of synchronization paths connects a given user of timing to a source clock, comprising the steps of:

identifying the plurality of synchronization paths;

calculating a quality metric for each identified synchronization path, wherein said quality metric is a measure of cumulative phase disruption of intervening network elements in a synchronization path; and

selecting a primary syschronization path and a secondary sychronization path based on said quality metric calculated for each identified sychronization path.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of calculating a quality metric for each identified synchronization path includes the step of determining a value corresponding to a degradation of synchronization per mile of optical fiber.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of calculating a quality metric for each identified synchronization path further includes the step of determining a value corresponding to degradation caused by regeneration elements along one of the plurality of synchronization paths.

4. A system for prioritizing a plurality of synchronization paths in a telecommunication network, wherein each of the plurality of synchronization paths connects a given user of timing to a source clock, comprising:

identifying means for identifying the plurality of synchronization paths;

calculating means for calculating a quality metric for each identified synchronization path, wherein said quality metric is a measure of cumulative phase disruption of intervening network elements in a synchronization path; and

selecting means for selecting a primary synchronization path and a second synchronization path based on said quality metric calculated for each identified synchronization path.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the source clock is a Stratum-1 source clock.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein said calculating means includes means for determining a value corresponding to a degradation of synchronization per mile of optical fiber.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein said calculating means further includes means determining a value corresponding to degradation caused by regeneration elements along one of the plurality of synchronization paths.