Centralized management of quality of service (QoS) information for data flows

• US 7,747,728 B1
• Filed: 08/21/2008
• Issued: 06/29/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Juniper Networks Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Juniper Networks Incorporated
• Inventors: Sullivan, Brian M., Radulescu-Banu, Cristina M., Peterson, Eric L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Donaghue; Larry
• Assistant Examiner(s): TAYLOR, NICHOLAS R
• Application Number:
  US12/195,808
• Time in Patent Office: 677 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0883 Semiautomatic configuration, e.g. proposals from system
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0889 Techniques to speed-up the configuration process
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5022 by giving priorities, e.g. assigning classes of service
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0272 Virtual private networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0892 by using authentication-authorization-accounting [AAA] servers or protocols

Abstract

Techniques are described for centralized management of quality of service (QoS) characteristics of network data flows. A service management system maintains a database that associates access information, such as a username and password, with QoS information. A router or other network device associates a data flow with access information, and queries the service management system with the access information to obtain the QoS information. The router forwards data of the data flow in accordance with the QoS information obtained from the service management system. As the access information may be a username and password, an existing system, such as a Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) system, may easily be adapted for use as the service management system. As a result, QoS information may easily be centrally managed for numerous routers or other network devices.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

maintaining, within a router, a data structure that associates routes through a network with access information for retrieving interface parameters from an external service management system, wherein the data structure associates service profile identifiers corresponding with respective services provided by the router with the access information;

receiving, with the router, a routing protocol packet from a second router, wherein the routing protocol packet includes routing information that specifies at least one route through the network;

selecting, from the data structure, the access information associated with the route specified by the routing information, wherein selecting the access information comprises associating the route with one of the service profile identifiers without specifying an individual user and retrieving access information for the respective service provided by the router based on the service profile identifier associated with the route;

querying the external service management system with the selected access information to obtain interface parameters for instantiating an interface;

instantiating at least one interface within the router based on the interface parameters obtained from the external service management system; and

forwarding data of a data flow associated with the route specified by the routing information with the at least one interface of the router that was instantiated using the interface parameters obtained from the external service management system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein querying the external service management system with the selected access information to obtain interface parameters for instantiating an interface comprises querying the external service management system with the selected access information to obtain interface parameters for instantiating an interface to support a quality of service (QoS) level.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein querying the external service management system comprises logging into the external service management system with the access information.

4. The method claim 1, wherein each of the respective services is associated with a different QoS level.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the service profile identifier comprises at least a portion of the access information.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein associating the route with one of the service profile identifiers comprises one of:

applying route map logic to compare a Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) community of a BGP packet with the selection criteria to associate the route specified by the routing information with the corresponding service profile identifier;

or

applying route map logic to compare a description of a Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) packet with the selection criteria to associate an MPLS path specified by the routing information with the corresponding service profile identifier.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the access information includes at least one of a username, a password, and a domain associated with a service provided by the router without specifying an individual network user.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the routing protocol packet specifies at least one route of a virtual private network (VPN).

9. The method of claim 1, wherein querying the service management system comprises querying a Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) server.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, with the router, a second routing protocol packet that specifies a second route through the network;

selecting, from the data structure, second access information associated with the second route specified by the routing information of the second routing protocol packet;

querying the external service management system with the second access information to obtain second interface parameters for instantiating a second interface;

instantiating the second interface within the first router based on the second interface parameters obtained from the external service management system; and

forwarding data of the second data flow associated with the second route specified by the routing information with the second interface of the first router configured using the second interface parameters, wherein the second data flow and the first data flow are associated with a common virtual private network (VPN) site.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the first interface parameters support a first quality of service (QoS) level and the second interface parameters support a second QoS level.

12. A network device comprising:

a control unit that;

maintains a data structure that associates routes through a network with access information for retrieving interface parameters from an external service management system, wherein the control unit maintains the data structure to associate service profile identifiers corresponding with respective services provided by the network device with access information,

receives a routing protocol packet from a second router that includes routing information that specifies at least one route through the network,

associates the route with one of the service profile identifiers,

selects, from the data structure, the access information associated with the route specified by the routing information by at least retrieving access information for the respective service provided by the router based on the service profile identifier associated with the route, and

queries the external service management system with the selected access information to obtain interface parameters for instantiating an interface; and

an interface through which the control unit forwards data of a data flow associated with the route specified in the routing information, wherein the interface is configured based on the interface parameters obtained from the external service management system.

13. The device of claim 12, wherein the control unit queries the external service management system with the selected access information to obtain interface parameters for instantiating an interface to support a quality of service (QoS) level.

14. The device claim 12, wherein each of the respective services is associated with a different QoS level.

15. The device of claim 12, wherein the control unit associates the route with one of the service profile identifiers by:

applying route map logic to compare a Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) community of a BGP packet with the selection criteria to associate the route specified by the routing information with the corresponding service profile identifier;

or

applying route map logic to compare a description of a Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) packet with the selection criteria to associate an MPLS path specified by the routing information with the corresponding service profile identifier.

16. The device of claim 12

wherein the interface comprises a first interface configured based on first interface parameters obtained from the external service management system and through which the control unit forwards data of a first data flow associated with the first route specified in the routing information of the first routing communication packet,

wherein the control unit receives a second routing protocol packet from the second router that includes routing information that specifies a second route through the network, selects the access information associated with the second route specified by the routing information of the second routing protocol packet, and queries the external service management system with the selected access information to obtain second interface parameters for instantiating a second interface,

the device further comprising a second interface configured based on the second interface parameters obtained from the external service management system and through which the control unit forwards data of a second data flow associated with the second route specified in the routing information, wherein the second data flow and the first data flow are associated with a common virtual private network (VPN) site.

17. The device of claim 16, wherein the first interface parameters support a first quality of service (QoS) level and the second interface parameters support a second QoS level.

18. The device of claim 12, wherein the access information includes at least one of a username, a password, and a domain associated with a service provided by the router without specifying an individual network user.

19. A computer-readable storage medium encoded with instructions for causing one or more programmable processors to:

maintain a data structure that associates routes through a network with access information for retrieving interface parameters from an external service management system, wherein the data structure associates service profile identifiers corresponding with respective services provided by the router with the access information;

receive a routing protocol packet from a router, wherein the routing protocol packet includes routing information that specifies at least one route through the network;

select, from the data structure, the access information associated with the route specified by the routing information, wherein selecting the access information comprises associating the route with one of the service profile identifiers without specifying an individual user and retrieving access information for the respective service provided by the router based on the service profile identifier associated with the route;

query the external service management system with the selected access information to obtain interface parameters for instantiating an interface;

instantiate at least one interface based on the interface parameters obtained from the external service management system; and

forward data of a data flow associated with the route specified by the routing information with the at least one interface that was instantiated using the interface parameters obtained from the external service management system.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein the instructions for causing the one or more programmable processor to query the external service management system with the selected access information to obtain interface parameters for instantiating an interface further comprise instructions for causing the one or more programmable processors to query the external service management system with the selected access information to obtain interface parameters for instantiating an interface to support a quality of service (QoS) level.