Adaptive, application-aware selection of differentiated network services
First Claim
1. In a network environment including a computer network operable to provide differentiated services to data flows based on tags or other identifiers associated with the packets in the data flows, wherein the differentiated services comprise a first service level and a second service level;
- a method comprising;
monitoring the performance of a network application involving the transfer of packets between a first set of hosts and a second set of hosts over the computer network; and
conditionally designating the packets for a selected service level supported by the computer network based on the monitored performance of the network application.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Methods, apparatuses and systems that dynamically adjust the selection of differentiated network services for selected classes of traffic in response to changing network conditions or application performance levels. In one implementation, the present invention allows for a differentiated network services scheme that adapts to existing network conditions and, in one implementation, selects higher, generally more expensive classes of differentiated network service for certain data flows when the performance of selected applications degrades below a threshold level. The present invention, in one implementation, allows for bandwidth cost savings without sacrificing application performance.
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Citations
29 Claims
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1. In a network environment including a computer network operable to provide differentiated services to data flows based on tags or other identifiers associated with the packets in the data flows, wherein the differentiated services comprise a first service level and a second service level;
- a method comprising;
monitoring the performance of a network application involving the transfer of packets between a first set of hosts and a second set of hosts over the computer network; and conditionally designating the packets for a selected service level supported by the computer network based on the monitored performance of the network application. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
- a method comprising;
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13. In a network environment including a computer network implementing a plurality of label-switched paths, a method comprising:
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marking, by default, packets associated with a network application for transfer over a first label-switched path of the computer network; monitoring the performance of the network application involving the transfer of packets between a first set of hosts and a second set of hosts over the computer network; and conditionally marking packets associated with the network application for transfer over a second label switched path in response to a degradation in performance of the network application. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. In a computer network environment comprising a computer supporting a plurality network service classes, and interconnecting a first set of hosts and a second set of hosts, a method comprising
classifying data flows transmitted between the first set of hosts and the second set of hosts into one or more traffic classes; -
designating the data flows for a default service level supported by the computer network based on the identified traffic class; monitoring the performance of selected traffic classes; and upgrading the service class applied to a first traffic class in the selected traffic classes upon detection of a degradation in performance of the first traffic class. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25)
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26. An apparatus facilitating the management of network traffic transmitted over a differentiated services network, comprising
a packet processor operative to detect data flows in network traffic traversing a communications path, the data flows each comprising at least one packet; -
parse at least one packet associated with a data flow into a flow specification, a traffic classification database operative to store at least one traffic class including a traffic class identifier and at least one attribute defining the traffic class; compare attributes stored in association with traffic class identifiers to attributes of a data flow to match a traffic class that corresponds to the data flow; an application performance monitoring module operative to monitor the performance of at least one traffic class by maintaining at least one measurement parameter characterizing the transfer of packets between a first set of hosts and a second set of hosts over the computer network; and conditionally designate at least one monitored traffic class for a selected service level supported by the differentiated services network based on the monitored performance of the traffic class; and a traffic policy module operative to mark data flows with the at least one traffic class for the selected service level across the differentiated services network designated by the application performance monitoring module. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29)
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Specification