Directory enabled policy management tool for intelligent traffic management

• US 6,502,131 B1
• Filed: 12/04/1998
• Issued: 12/31/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Emc IP Holding Company LLC (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Novell Incorporated (Open Text Corporation)
• Inventors: Vaid, Aseem, Rakoshitz, Gregory, Putta, Sanjeev
• Primary Examiner(s): Dinh, Dung C.
• Application Number:
  US09/205,063
• Time in Patent Office: 1,488 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223, 709/224, 709/225, 709/226, 709/228, 709/229, 709/232, 709/233, 709/234, 345/326, 345/329, 345/331
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/16 in which the return channel carries supervisory signals, e.g. repetition request signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1854 Scheduling and prioritising arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• 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 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5019 Ensuring fulfilment of SLA
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/045 for graphical visualisation of monitoring data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/06 Generation of reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/067 using time frame reporting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0829 Packet loss
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0852 Delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0864 Round trip delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/087 Jitter
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0876 Network utilisation, e.g. volume of load or congestion level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0894 Packet rate
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/106 using time related information in packets, e.g. by adding timestamps
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/12 Network monitoring probes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/11 : Identifying congestion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/193 : at the transport layer, e.g. TCP related
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/20 : Traffic policing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/2441 : relying on flow classification, e.g. using integrated services [IntServ]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/283 : in response to processing delays, e.g. caused by jitter or round trip time [RTT]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/323 : Discarding or blocking control packets, e.g. ACK packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/02 : for separating internal from external traffic, e.g. firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 : Protocols

Abstract

A method and system (100) for monitoring or profiling quality of service within one or more information sources in 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 distributed traffic management tool coupled to the firewall server. The method also includes implementing traffic monitoring or profiling of incoming and outgoing information from one of the information sources.

Claims

1. A graphical user interface for monitoring and managing a flow of information, said graphical user interface, comprising:

said graphical user interface executing on a computer coupled between a local network and a remote network, said flow of information passing through said computer, said graphical user interface having

a first module for monitoring and measuring said flow of information, and wherein said flow of information is classified into a traffic classification;

a second module for implementing traffic control and managing bandwidth of said flow of information;

a third module, coupled to said first and second module, for implementing policy in said first and second modules, wherein said policy defines specific limitations or parameters for said flow of information and said bandwidth of said flow of information;

a display comprising at least a first portion and a second portion, said first portion comprising a graphical representation of said flow of information, said second portion comprising text describing aspects of said flow of information;

a first dialog box for modifying presentation of traffic flow measurements and modifying said policy in response to said measurements; and

whereupon said display also outputs a network location from one of a plurality of selected locations for said flow of information.

2. The interface of claim 1 wherein said graphical representation comprises a chart of bandwidth consumption.

3. The interface of claim 2 wherein said bandwidth consumption is a plot of bandwidth consumed against time for said network location.

4. The interface of claim 2 wherein said bandwidth consumption is a plurality of plots, each of said plots representing consumed bandwidth against time.

5. The interface of claim 2 wherein said flow of information comprises one of a plurality of traffic classes.

6. The interface of claim 1 wherein said graphical representation comprises a plot of failure rates against time.

7. The interface of claim 1 wherein said graphical representation comprises a plot of delay rates against time.

8. The interface of claim 1 wherein said display is outputted on a computer monitor.

9. The interface of claim 1 wherein said display is a real-time display of a portion of said flow of information.

10. The interface of claim 1 wherein said network location is selected from a graphical representation or text.

11. The graphical user interface of claim 1, further comprising a second dialog box for adding additional graphical charts to said first portion.

12. The graphical user interface of claim 1, further comprising a save option wherein said first portion and said second portion may be saved to computer readable memory for later retrieval.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein said charting bandwidth consumption further comprises plotting bandwidth consumed against time for said network location.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein said charting bandwidth consumption comprises plotting a plurality of plots, each of said plots representing consumed bandwidth against time.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein said flow of information comprises one of a plurality of traffic classes.

25. The graphical user interface of claim 11, further comprising a second dialog box for adding additional graphical charts to said first portion.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein said graphically representing further comprises charting bandwidth consumption.

27. The method of claim 25 wherein said graphically representing further comprises plotting failure rates against time.

28. The method of claim 25 wherein said graphically representing further comprises plotting delay rates against time.

29. The method of claim 25 wherein said displaying further comprises outputting on a monitor coupled with said computer.

30. The method of claim 25 wherein said displaying further comprises real-time displaying of a portion of said flow of information.

31. The method of claim 25 further comprising selecting said network location from a graphical representation or text.

32. The method of claim 25, further comprising modifying, through data entry into a second dialog box, said graphically representing said flow of information in said first portion.

33. A node for executing the method according to claim 25.

34. A communication network comprising at least one node according to the method of claim 25.

35. A computer-readable medium comprising:

instructions and data written thereon, said instructions and data containing information for the method of claim 25.

36. Electromagnetic signals travelling over a computer network comprising:

said electromagnetic signals carrying information for the method of claim 25.

16. A method for use of a graphical user interface for monitoring and managing a flow of information, said method, comprising:

executing said graphical user interface on a computer coupled between a local network and a remote network, said flow of information passing through said computer, said graphical user interface having a first module, a second module, and a third module;

monitoring and measuring said flow of information by executing said first module, and wherein said flow of information is classified into a traffic classification;

implementing traffic control and managing bandwidth of said flow of information by executing said second module;

implementing policy in said first and second modules, by executing said third module, wherein said policy defines specific limitations or parameters for said flow of information and said bandwidth of said flow of information;

displaying, in at least a first portion and a second portion, information about said flow of information, wherein said displaying comprises graphically representing said flow of information on said first portion, and textually describing aspects of said flow of information on said second portion;

modifying, through data entry into a first dialog box, presentation of traffic flow measurements and modifying said policy in response to said measurements; and

outputting a network location from one of a plurality of selected locations for said flow of information.

17. A computer network system, comprising:

a computer, said computer coupled between a local network and a remote network, a flow of information passing through said computer; and

a real-time distributed bandwidth profiling tool executing on said computer, said real-time bandwidth profiling tool having

a first module for monitoring and measuring said flow of information, and wherein said flow of information is classified into a traffic classification;

a second module for implementing traffic control and managing bandwidth of said flow of information;

a third module, coupled to said first and second module, for implementing policy in said first and second modules, wherein said policy defines specific limitations or parameters for said flow of information;

a graphical user interface, said graphical user interface comprising at least a first portion and a second portion, said first portion comprising a graphical representation of said flow of information, said second portion comprising text information describing said flow of information; and

a first dialog box for modifying said first portion, whereupon said flow of information is derived from one of a plurality of selected network locations distributed over said computer network.

18. The computer network system of claim 17 wherein said graphical representation comprises bandwidth consumption.

19. The computer network system of claim 18 wherein said bandwidth consumption is a plot of bandwidth consumed against time.

20. The computer network system of claim 18 wherein said bandwidth consumption is a plurality of plots, each of said plots representing consumed bandwidth against time.

21. The computer network system of claim 18 wherein said flow of information comprises one of a plurality of traffic classes.

22. The computer network system of claim 17 wherein graphical representation is selected from a plot of failure rates against time or a plot of delay rates against time.

23. The computer network system of claim 17 wherein said graphical representation is selected from a graph, a histogram, a bar chart, and a pie chart.

24. The graphical user interface of claim 17, further comprising a save option wherein said first portion and said second portion may be saved to computer readable memory for later retrieval.