Network usage monitoring device and associated method

• US 7,020,082 B2
• Filed: 05/04/2001
• Issued: 03/28/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nomadix, Inc. (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nomadix, Inc. (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Short, Joel E., Bhagavath, Vijay K., Garg, Anurag K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Ajit
• Application Number:
  US09/849,551
• Publication Number:
  US 20020021665A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,789 Days
• Field of Search: 370/252, 370/253, 370/229, 370/230, 370/235, 370/236, 370/389, 370/401, 715/736, 715/735, 709/232, 709/223, 709/224, 709/225, 709/235
• US Class Current: 370/230
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/028 by filtering
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/106 using time related information in packets, e.g. by adding timestamps
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring

Abstract

A network usage monitoring module is provided for monitoring network usage at a network access point, i.e. network traffic aggregation point, typically at a gateway device or a similar network interface device. As such, the network usage monitoring module can monitor the usage of a number of network users who are attempting to access various network services provided via the gateway device. Thus, the usage information collected by the usage monitoring module is considerably more robust than that offered by conventional monitoring techniques. As such, the information is considerably more valuable to network service providers, network users, network beneficiaries and the like. In addition, the usage monitoring method and apparatus offers a number of particular features to improve the monitoring process as well as the value of the usage information that is collected.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring communication network usage comprising:

a gateway device operating at a network access point that executes a usage monitoring module that captures all request packets transmitted from a plurality of network users and all response packets transmitted from a plurality of network services;

wherein the usage monitoring module filters the captured packets to extract usage monitoring data therefrom; and

a usage monitoring database in communication with said usage monitoring module that receives the filtered usage monitoring data from the usage monitoring module and stores the data associated with the user request packets and network response packets, wherein the usage monitoring database stores user monitoring information for network addresses that have only been accessed by a user no more than a predetermined minimum number of times.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the usage monitoring module filters the captured packets to extract network addresses and the usage monitoring database stores the network addresses.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the network addresses further comprise URLs (Uniform Resource Locators).

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the usage monitoring module filters the captured packets to extract usage monitoring data comprising at least one type of data chosen from the group consisting of user identification, network addresses, packet timestamp, referring network address, content-type, content length, response status code and user query string.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the usage monitoring module performs navigational sequencing on captured packets so as to monitor a sequence of network addresses accessed by a user.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the usage monitoring module performs a status code check on network service response packets to verify that a user has access to a requested network service address so that only data associated with accessible network services is stored in the usage monitoring database.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the usage monitoring database further comprises a user request database that temporarily stores user request data prior to receiving a response from a requested network service.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the predetermined minimum number of times is one.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the usage monitoring database further comprises a designated network address database that stores network addresses that have been designated for navigational sequencing.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the usage monitoring module is adapted to receive the network addresses that have been designated for navigational sequencing from a usage monitoring client.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the usage monitoring module defines the network addresses that have been designated for navigational sequencing based on the frequency that a user accesses the network address.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the usage monitoring database further comprises a primary database that stores the data associated with the user request packets and network response packets.

13. The system of claim 1, further comprising an insertion server in communication with the usage monitoring database that provides network users with targeted information based on network user usage monitoring data.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the insertion server further comprises an advertisement insertion server that provides network users with targeted advertisements based on network user usage monitoring data.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the insertion server further comprises a survey insertion server that provides network users with targeted surveys based on network user usage monitoring data.

16. A method for providing usage monitoring in a communications network, the method comprising:

capturing all data packets being transmitted from a plurality of users and a plurality of network services at a gateway device disposed at a network point of access;

filtering the captured packets to provide for usage monitoring data at the gateway device; and

storing the usage monitoring data in a usage monitoring database, wherein storing the usage monitoring data comprises storing the user monitoring data for network addresses that have only been accessed by a user no more than a predetermined minimum number of times.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein filtering the captured packets to provide usage monitoring data further comprises filtering the captured packets to extract usage monitoring data comprising at least one type of data chosen from the group consisting of user identification, network addresses, packet timestamp, referring network address, content-type, content length, response status code and user query string.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein storing the usage monitoring data in a usage monitoring database, further comprises storing the usage monitoring data in a temporary database prior to storing the usage monitoring data in a primary database.

19. A method for providing usage monitoring in a communications network, the method comprising:

capturing a transmitted data packet at a gateway device disposed at a network point of access;

determining, at the gateway device, if the transmitted data packet is a user generated request data packet;

storing the transmitted data packet in a first database if the transmitted data packet is determined to be a user generated request data packet; and

transferring the transmitted data packet from the first database to a second database if the transmitted data packet is matched with an accessible network service response data packet, wherein the second database stores the transmitted data packet and the matched network service response data packet if a determination is made that the user has not exceeded a predetermined number of network service address accesses.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein capturing a transmitted data packet at a network point of access further comprises capturing a transmitted data packet at a network gateway device.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein storing the transmitted data packet in a first database if the transmitted data packet is determined to be a user generated request data packet further comprises storing the transmitted data packet in a first temporary database if the transmitted data packet is determined to be a user generated request data packet.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein the second database comprises a primary database that stores the transmitted data packet and the matched network service response data packet if a determination is made that the user has exceeded a predetermined number of network service address accesses.

23. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

determining if the transmitted data packet exceeds a session flow limit so as to warrant storage of the first transmitted data packet in the first database.

24. A method for navigational sequence usage monitoring in a communications network, the method comprising:

designating network addresses requiring navigational sequencing;

capturing, at a network point of access, a user transmitted data packet associated with a network address;

determining if the network address associated with the captured user transmitted data packet is a designated network address; and

storing a predetermined number of network addresses that are accessed proximate the designated network address as a navigational sequence if a determination is made that network address associated with the captured user transmitted data packet is a designated network address, wherein storing a predetermined number of network addresses that are accessed proximate the designated network address as a navigational sequence further comprises storing a predetermined number of network addresses that are accessed either subsequent to or prior to the access of the designated network address as a navigational sequence.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein storing a predetermined number of network addresses that are accessed proximate the designated network address as a navigational sequence further comprises storing a predetermined number of network addresses that are accessed subsequent to and prior to the access of the designated network address as a navigational sequence.

26. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

determining if the user tat sent the user transmitted data packet has accessed a designated network address in a predetermined number of previous network address accesses; and

adding the network address from the user transmitted data packet to a navigational sequencing list if a determination is made that the user has accessed a designated address in the predetermined number of previous network address accesses.

27. The method of claim 24, further comprising storing the designated network address in a database.

28. The method of claim 24, wherein designating network addresses requiring navigational sequencing is based upon determining the most frequently accessed network addresses.

29. The method of claim 24, wherein designating network addresses requiring navigational sequencing is based upon network addresses accessed a predetermined number of times.

30. The method of claim 24, wherein designating network addresses requiring navigational sequencing is based upon usage monitoring client selected network addresses.