Method for analyzing the quality of telecommunications switch command tables

• US 6,636,877 B1
• Filed: 09/21/1999
• Issued: 10/21/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Verizon Laboratories Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Laboratories Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Doleac, John S., Freebersyser, William T., Jack, Carolyn M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu, Kim
• Assistant Examiner(s): FLEURANTIN, JEAN B
• Application Number:
  US09/400,050
• Time in Patent Office: 1,491 Days
• Field of Search: 707/9-10, 707/104.1, 707/202-203, 707/200, 455/439, 379/83, 379/85-87, 379/88.17, 379/88.18, 379/88.27, 379/88.28, 709/203
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/76 Adapting program code to run in a different environment; Porting
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/54 in which the logic circuitry controlling the exchange is centralised
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99954 Version management

Abstract

The system automatically generates electronic commands necessary to modify or provision different types of program control switches as may be included in a public switch telephone network. A data schema and organization of tables and data structures provide for command generation for each of the different switch types. Additionally, a self-modifying dynamic data structure is used as a common area to communicate information between various programs and formulate the commands due to a limited number of parameters used to communicate information between programs that generate the command for the switches. A technique for verifying switch commands automatically generated by a second new provisioning system is described. A technique is described for automatically extracting switch specific commands and options as generated by a first system for use in populating data stores used in a second system for command generation.

Claims

1. A method executed in a computer system of verifying generated commands, the method comprising:

providing first commands generated by a first system;

generating a subset of the first commands generated by the first system;

recording the subset of first commands in a log file, the first commands being associated with at least one switch type;

sorting the subset of first commands by switch type;

providing data used by a second system to generate second commands; and

for a switch type in the log file, determining whether the data used by the second system corresponds to first commands associated with the switch type, wherein a correspondence between the data and the first commands is indicative of the second system being capable of generating at least one second command equivalent to first commands associated with the switch type.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the subset of first commands includes successfully executed switch commands.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first system is a system for generating first switch commands for a telecommunications network and the second system is a system for generating second switch commands for the telecommunications network, the second switch commands being equivalent to the first switch commands.

4. The method of claim 1, further including:

determining a list of switch identifiers, the switch identifiers identifying switches included in a telecommunications network; and

including at least one portion of the data used by the second system into at least one hash table, the at least one portion based on the list of switch identifiers.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether the data used by the second system corresponds to first commands associated with the switch type includes:

for a first switch command included in the subset, using the at least one hash table to identify parameters associated with the first switch command;

replacing identified parameters with at least one character representing identification in at least one hash table; and

determining that the second system is capable of generating the first switch command by determining that the parameters associated with the first switch command have been identified in at least one hash table.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the at least one character includes at least one of a null character, a comma, and a blank character.

7. The method of claim 5, further including:

generating a summary for a switch identifier, the summary including parameters of first switch commands that have not been identified in at least one hash table.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the data used by the second system are stored in a database used by the second system, and wherein the data include at least one of command parameters and programs used to generate second switch commands.

9. A system for verifying generated commands used in a computer system, the system comprising:

means for providing first commands generated by a first system;

means for generating a subset of the first commands generated by the first system;

means for recording the subset of first commands in a log file, the first commands being associated with at least one switch type;

means for sorting the subset of first commands by switch type;

means for providing data used by a second system to generate second commands; and

for a switch type in the log file, means for determining whether the data used by the second system corresponds to first commands associated with the switch type, wherein a correspondence between the data and the first commands is indicative of the second system being capable of generating at least one second command equivalent to first commands associated with the switch type.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the subset of first commands includes successfully executed switch commands.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the first system is a system for generating first switch commands for a telecommunications network and the second system is a system for generating second switch commands for the telecommunications network, the second switch commands being equivalent to the first switch commands.

12. The system of claim 9, further including:

means for determining a list of switch identifiers, the switch identifiers identifying switches included in a telecommunications network; and

means for including at least one portion of the data used by the second system into at least one hash table, the at least one portion based on the list of switch identifiers.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein means for determining whether the data used by the second system corresponds to first commands associated with the switch type includes:

for a first switch command included in the subset, means for using the at least one hash table to identify parameters associated with the first switch command;

means for replacing identified parameters with at least one character representing identification in at least one hash table; and

means for determining that the second system is capable of generating the first switch command by determining that the parameters associated with the first switch command have been identified in at least one hash table.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the at least one character includes at least one of a null character, a comma, and a blank character.

15. The system of claim 13, further including:

means for generating a summary for a switch identifier, the summary including parameters of first switch commands that have not been identified in at least one hash table.

16. The system of claim 9, wherein the data used by the second system are stored in a database used by the second system, and wherein the data include at least one of command parameters and programs used to generate second switch commands.

17. A system for verifying commands, the system comprising:

machine executable instructions for providing first commands generated by a first system;

machine executable instructions for generating a subset of the first commands generated by the first system;

machine executable instructions for recording the subset of first commands in a log file, the first commands being associated with at least one switch type;

machine executable instructions for sorting the subset of first commands by switch type;

machine executable instructions for providing data used by a second system to generate second commands; and

for a switch type in the log file, machine executable instructions for determining whether the data used by the second system corresponds to first commands associated with the switch type, wherein a correspondence between the data and the first commands is indicative of the second system being capable of generating at least one second command equivalent to first commands associated with the switch type.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the subset of first commands includes successfully executed switch commands.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the first system is a system for generating first switch commands for a telecommunications network and the second system is a system for generating second switch commands for the telecommunications network, the second switch commands being equivalent to the first switch commands.

20. The system of claim 17, further including:

machine executable instructions for determining a list of switch identifiers, the switch identifiers identifying switches included in a telecommunications network; and

machine executable instructions for including at least one portion of the data used by the second system into at least one hash table, the at least one portion based on the list of switch identifiers.

21. The system of claim 17, wherein machine executable instructions for determining whether the data used by the second system corresponds to first commands associated with the switch type include:

for a first switch command included in the subset, machine executable instructions for using the at least one hash table to identify parameters associated with the first switch command;

machine executable instructions for replacing identified parameters with at least one character representing identification in at least one hash table; and

machine executable instructions for determining that the second system is capable of generating the first switch command by determining that the parameters associated with the first switch command have been identified in at least one hash table.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the at least one character includes at least one of a null character, a comma, and a blank character.

23. The system of claim 21, further including:

machine executable instructions for generating a summary for a switch identifier, the summary including parameters of first switch commands that have not been identified in at least one hash table.

24. The method of claim 17, wherein the data used by the second system are stored in a database used by the second system, and wherein the data include at least one of command parameters and programs used to generate second switch commands.