Supporting network self-healing and optimization

• US 7,969,879 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2007
• Issued: 06/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Purpura, William J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ly; Anh-Vu H
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jiang; Charles C
• Application Number:
  US11/702,746
• Publication Number:
  US 20070274337A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,603 Days
• Field of Search: 370/241, 370/252, 370/464, 370/465, 370/468, 709223-226
• US Class Current: 370/230.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/00 Arrangements for maintenance, administration or management of data switching networks, e.g. of packet switching networks
• 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

Abstract

A method of managing a network includes configuring nodes and applications of the network to refer to the same framework of predefined network capabilities. Each of the applications is configured to implement one or more of the capabilities. Each of the applications also is configured to negotiate, as to each of the capabilities, with the nodes to obtain a network resource to support the capabilities. Each node is configured to negotiate, after an application obtains a network resource, with other nodes to optimize network resource allocation. This method provides a framework for application self-healing and network optimization that can improve network performance.

Claims

1. A method of managing a network including a plurality of nodes and a plurality of applications of the nodes, the method comprising:

predefining interoperability as a first capability of an ordered relationship hierarchy of network capabilities providable by the applications, and predefining each of the other network capabilities as dependent on one or more preceding capabilities in the hierarchy;

attributing one or more of the predefined capabilities to each of the applications;

configuring each of the applications to negotiate, as to each of the one or more network capabilities attributed to the application, with the nodes to obtain a network resource to support the one or more capabilities attributed to the application, the negotiating performed in a sequence determined by the hierarchy; and

configuring each node to negotiate, after an application obtains a network resource, with other nodes to optimize network resource allocation, the negotiating performed to obtain a resolution of a change in a network capability such that the resolution supports any and all capabilities provided in the network and upon which the changed network capability is dependent.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein configuring each node to negotiate to optimize network resource allocation comprises configuring each node to negotiate, as to each network capability attributed to the node, with the other nodes in a sequence determined by the hierarchy.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein configuring each node to negotiate to optimize network resource allocation comprises configuring each node to use modeling of each of the network capabilities attributed to the node to evaluate resource allocation to each of the network capabilities attributed to the node.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein a plurality of the nodes are ad-hoc nodes.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising configuring each node to:

begin negotiation with another node with reference to a highest one of the capabilities for which the node seeks a network resource; and

continue the negotiation with reference to each capability underlying the highest one of the capabilities for which the node seeks a network resource.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the applications is configured to implement one or more of the capabilities subject to one or more predefined capability-specific performance parameters, the method comprising configuring the nodes to obtain a network resource to support the one or more capabilities in accordance with one or more of the one or more performance parameters.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising predefining the other network capabilities of the hierarchy as information assurance, data management, knowledge management, and collaboration in communities of interest.

8. A network comprising:

a plurality of nodes and a plurality of applications of the nodes, each node and application configured in the network with reference to a framework predefining an ordered relationship hierarchy of network capabilities providable by the applications, in which at least the lowest-order network capability is required by higher-ordered network capabilities in the hierarchy, each application being attributed with one or more of the network capabilities;

each application having a control matrix based on the framework and in which network resources being used by the one or more of the network capabilities attributed to the application are monitored specifically as to each of the one or more network capabilities attributed to the application as the application executes in the network;

each application further configured to implement one or more of the network capabilities attributed to the application subject to one or more performance parameters defined for the one or more network capabilities attributed to the application;

each node further configured to;

negotiate, as to each of the network capabilities attributed to the node via applications of the node, with other nodes to obtain network resources to support one or more of the network capabilities attributed to the node in accordance with one or more of the one or more performance parameters; and

negotiate, as to each network capability attributed to the node, with other nodes to optimize network resource allocation across the network after a network resource is obtained.

9. The network of claim 8, wherein each node is configured to use modeling of the predefined network capabilities attributed to the node to evaluate resource allocation to each capability.

10. The network of claim 9, wherein each node is configured to use the modeling to obtain static and dynamic balance of the resources.

11. The network of claim 8, wherein each node is configured to evaluate a priority associated with one of the capabilities to optimize the network resource allocation.

12. The network of claim 8, wherein the network capabilities of the hierarchy are predefined as interoperability, information assurance, data management, knowledge management, and collaboration in communities of interest.

13. A network comprising:

a plurality of nodes and a plurality of applications of the nodes, each node and application configured in the network with reference to a framework predefining an ordered relationship hierarchy of network capabilities providable by the applications, in which at least the lowest-order network capability is required by higher-ordered network capabilities in the hierarchy, each application being attributed with one or more of the network capabilities;

each node having a control matrix based on the framework and in which network resources being used by the one or more of the network capabilities attributed to applications of the node are monitored specifically as to each of the one or more network capabilities attributed to the node as the applications execute in the network;

each application further configured to implement one or more of the capabilities attributed to the application subject to one or more performance parameters defined for the one or more capabilities attributed to the application;

each node further configured to;

for each capability attributed to applications of the node, determine a cumulative value of resource allocation to the applications of the node specific to each of the attributed capabilities; and

negotiate, for and specific to each capability attributed to the node via applications of the node, with other nodes to optimize the cumulative values for all of the nodes.

14. The network of claim 13, wherein each node is further configured to modify a functionality level of an application to optimize the cumulative value.

15. The network of claim 13, wherein each node is further configured to modify usage of a resource to optimize the cumulative value.

16. The network of claim 15, wherein the resource is one of bandwidth, storage, processing and an input/output port.

17. The network of claim 13, wherein each application is further configured to negotiate with a node that includes the application for a change in allocation of a resource to a capability attributed to the application in accordance with the one or more performance parameters.

18. A method of optimizing a network including a plurality of applications, the method comprising:

predefining interoperability as a first capability of an ordered relationship hierarchy of network capabilities providable by the applications, and predefining each of the other network capabilities as dependent on one or more preceding capabilities in the hierarchy;

attributing one or more of the predefined capabilities to each of the applications;

for each application, specifying one or more performance parameters for each capability attributed to the application from the hierarchy of capabilities;

for each application and for and specific to each attributed capability, one or more nodes of the network making available one or more network resources to the application;

for each capability in the hierarchy, one or more nodes of the network determining a cumulative value of resource usage across the network for each network resource assigned to the applications; and

for one capability in the hierarchy, one or more nodes of the network modifying a functionality level of one of the performance parameters to optimize the cumulative value.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising using capability-based modeling to determine the cumulative value of resource usage.

20. A method of optimizing a network having a plurality of applications hosted on a plurality of nodes, the method performed by the nodes and comprising:

attributing one or more network capabilities to the applications from a framework predefining an ordered relationship hierarchy of network capabilities providable by the applications, in which at least the lowest-order network capability is required by higher-ordered network capabilities in the hierarchy;

for each of the applications, identifying one or more performance parameters for each network capability attributed to the application and assigning one or more functionality levels for each network capability attributed to the application;

negotiating for a resource with applications and nodes in the network to acquire the resource for a selected capability of a given application based on each performance parameter identified for the selected capability, one of the functionality levels assigned for the selected capability, and a priority corresponding to the resource and to the selected capability; and

negotiating, as to each attributed capability in the framework, with the applications and nodes to optimize allocation of resources across the network;

the negotiating performed in iterations the numbers of which are determined based on the order of the capabilities in the ordered relationship hierarchy.