Managing quality of service in a communication network for applications

• US 8,089,986 B2
• Filed: 07/01/2009
• Issued: 01/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Adamczyk, Maria, Anschutz, Thomas Arnold, Shrum, Jr., Edgar Vaughan, Wright, Steven Allan, Zhang, Li
• Primary Examiner(s): Mui, Gary
• Application Number:
  US12/496,028
• Publication Number:
  US 20090285218A1
• Time in Patent Office: 916 Days
• Field of Search: 370/468, 370/230, 370/235, 370/230.1, 370/395.2, 370/395.21, 370/252, 370/253, 709224-226
• US Class Current: 370/468
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 3/16 in which the time allocation to individual channels within a transmission cycle is variable, e.g. to accommodate varying complexity of signals, to vary number of channels transmitted H04J3/17, H04J3/24 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/15 in relation to multipoint traffic arrangements for broadcast or multicast in data networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/805 QOS or priority aware

Abstract

Quality of Service (QoS) in a communication network is managed. A service provider requests a level of QoS for communication in the communication network using a QoS request. The requested level of QoS may be allocated to the service provider based on the QoS request. The service provider may make the QoS request on its own initiative and/or in response to a request from an application that is hosted by the service provider. A QoS level may then be allocated to the service provider and/or to particular applications that are hosted by the service provider.

Claims

1. A communication network comprising:

a network service manager that is configured to receive quality of service requests from a service provider for each of a plurality of applications that are hosted by the service provider and that will communicate data packets across the communication network, configured to determine what quality of service is available in the communication network, the network service manager is further configured to allocate a level of network communication quality of service to particular ones of the applications of the service provider in response to corresponding quality of service requests for the particular applications and the quality of service that is determined to be available in the communication network, and the network service manager is further configured to manage network communication quality of service that is provided by the communication network to network communications from the individual applications of the service provider in response to the network communication quality of service levels allocated to the respective individual applications.

2. The communication network of claim 1, further comprising:

a wide area network,

wherein the network service manager is configured to manage network communication quality of service that is provided by the wide area network to network communications from the individual applications of the service provider in response to the network communication quality of service levels allocated to the respective individual applications.

3. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to separately receive a quality of service requests from and allocate a level of network communication quality of service to different ones of the applications of the service provider.

4. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to allocate a level of network communication quality of service to a particular one of the applications of the service provider in response to a quality of service request that is received from the particular application.

5. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to allocate a network capacity level for communications by a particular one of the applications of the service provider in response to a quality of service request that is received from the particular application, and to constrain network communications by the particular one of the applications of the service provider to the allocated network capacity level.

6. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to allocate a communication priority level for communications through a wide area network from a particular one of the applications of the service provider in response to a quality of service request that is received from the particular application, and to prioritize communications by the particular one of the applications of the service provider through the wide area network in response to the allocated communication priority level.

7. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to allocate an allowed information delay level for communications through a wide area network from a particular one of the applications of the service provider in response to a quality of service request that is received from the particular application, and to manage latency for communications by the particular one of the applications of the service provider through the wide area network in response to the allocated allowed information delay level.

8. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to allocate an allowed information loss rate for communications through a wide area network from a particular one of the applications of the service provider in response to a quality of service request that is received from the particular application, and to manage the information loss rate for communications by the particular one of the applications of the service provider through the wide area network in response to the allocated allowed information loss rate.

9. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to allocate an allowed packet size for communications through a wide area network from a particular one of the applications of the service provider in response to a quality of service request that is received from the particular application, and to constrain communications by the particular one of the applications of the service provider through the wide area network in response to the allocated allowed packet size.

10. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to allocate a transmission unit size for packets communicated through a wide area network from a particular one of the applications of the service provider in response to a quality of service request that is received from the particular application, and to constrain packet size in communications by the particular one of the applications of the service provider through the wide area network in response to the allocated maximum transmission unit size.

11. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to respond to a quality of service request that is received from a particular one of the applications of the service provider by modifying a profile of information that is communicated as a header portion of a packet by a particular one of the applications of the service provider through the communication network.

12. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager comprises a digital subscriber line service manager.

13. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to validate a quality of service request received from a particular one of the applications of the service provider by comparing the quality of service request to a digital subscriber line session data store.

14. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to validate a quality of service request received from a particular one of the applications of the service provider in response to a protocol identifier identified in a known field in a data packet that transported the quality of service request from the application to the network service manager.

15. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to validate a quality of service request received from a particular one of the applications of the service provider in response to a source address and a destination address identified in a known field in a data packet that transported the quality of service request from the application to the network service manager.

16. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to validate a quality of service request received from a particular one of the applications of the service provider in response to a source port number and/or a destination port number identified in a known field in a data packet that transported the quality of service request from the application to the network service manager.

17. The communication network of claim 1, further comprising:

a broadband remote access server,

wherein the network service manager is configured to notify the broadband remote access server of the levels of network communication quality of service allocated to particular applications of the service provider.

18. The communication network of claim 1, further comprising:

a routing gateway,

wherein the network service manager is configured to notify the routing gateway of the levels of network communication quality of service allocated to particular applications of the service provider.

19. The communication network of claim 1, wherein the network service manager is configured to notify individual applications of the service provider of the levels of network communication quality of service that have been allocated thereto.

20. A communication network comprising:

a network service manager that is configured to allocate a different network communication quality of service level to each one of a plurality of internet protocol addresses associated with different applications of a service provider by evaluating quality of service that is available in the communication network and by allocating a level of network communication quality of service to the IP addresses associated with particular ones of the applications of the service provider in response to a quality of service request that is received from each of the particular applications and the evaluation of the quality of service available in the communication network, and is configured to manage network communication quality of service that is provided by the communication network to network communications from individual ones of the applications in response to the network communication quality of service levels allocated to the associated IP addresses.