Statistical, signature-based approach to IP traffic classification

• US 8,031,599 B2
• Filed: 12/10/2009
• Issued: 10/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Duffield, Nicholas G., Spatscheck, Oliver, Sen, Subhabrata, Roughan, Matthew
• Primary Examiner(s): Phillips; Hassan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mais; Mark A
• Application Number:
  US12/635,127
• Publication Number:
  US 20100085889A1
• Time in Patent Office: 663 Days
• Field of Search: 370/229, 370/230, 370/230.1, 370/234, 370/235, 370/235.1, 370/237, 370/238, 370/241, 370/242, 370/244, 370/245, 370/250, 370/231, 370/232, 370/233, 370/252, 370/253
• US Class Current: 370/230.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/142 using statistical or mathematical methods
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5022 by giving priorities, e.g. assigning classes of service

Abstract

A signature-based traffic classification method maps traffic into preselected classes of service (CoS). By analyzing a known corpus of data that clearly belongs to identified ones of the preselected classes of service, in a training session the method develops statistics about a chosen set of traffic features. In an analysis session, relative to traffic of the network where QoS treatments are desired (target network), the method obtains statistical information relative to the same chosen set of features for values of one or more predetermined traffic attributes that are associated with connections that are analyzed in the analysis session, yielding a statistical features signature of each of the values of the one or more attributes. A classification process then establishes a mapping between values of the one or more predetermined traffic attributes and the preselected classes of service, leading to the establishment of QoS treatment rules.

Claims

1. A method for assigning packets belonging to traffic of a network to one of preselected classes of service, comprising the steps of

in a training session

observing values of preselected traffic attributes of traffic data flows in a preselected corpus of traffic data of said network that are known to belong to specific ones of said classes of service;

performing statistical analysis of the observed preselected traffic attributes of traffic data flows, relative to said known classes of service, and

creating a set of rules, based on said statistical analysis, that enable mapping a given traffic flow to one of said specific classes of service based on values of said preselected traffic attributes in said given traffic flow;

following said training session

receiving a packet that belongs to a flow of a connection, and

assigning the packet to one of said classes of service, in accordance with said set of rules, based on one or more of said preselected traffic attributes that pertain to said packet where said step of performing statistical analysis, comprises forming a vector of statistics, S^c (i), is formed for each connection i, where the elements of the vector are said preselected traffic features, and executing the following pseudocode;