Providing quality of service (QOS) using multiple service set identifiers (SSID) simultaneously

• US 8,184,530 B1
• Filed: 09/08/2006
• Issued: 05/22/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: T-Mobile Innovations LLC (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Communications Company LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Swan, Tim L., McKinney, David Uel
• Primary Examiner(s): Harper, Kevin C
• Assistant Examiner(s): Baron, Henry
• Application Number:
  US11/530,191
• Time in Patent Office: 2,083 Days
• Field of Search: 370/401, 370/328, 370/331, 370/332, 370/465
• US Class Current: 370/230
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0272 Virtual private networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/164 at the network layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/02 Protecting privacy or anonymity, e.g. protecting personally identifiable information [PII]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/73 Access point logical identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/24 Negotiating SLA [Service Level Agreement]; Negotiating QoS [Quality of Service]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/12 Setup of transport tunnels
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/18 Service support devices; Network management devices

Abstract

Quality of Service (QoS) is provided to a secure data tunnel such an IPsec tunnel using information about the tunnel and the underlying data session to formulate a set of bandwidth requirements. A policy server operates to receive the information to create the set of bandwidth requirements which are enforced by a termination device. The termination device sets the bandwidths. QoS can be provided on a static or continuous basis. QoS can be provided on a dynamic basis. QoS can be provided at different levels depending on the type of data session. Multiple QoS can be provided for multiple data sessions existing simultaneously using multiple SSIDs.

Claims

1. A computer system having a processor and a memory, the computer system operable to execute a method for dynamically providing QoS to one or more applications in one or more secure data tunnels in one or more networks, comprising:

(a) upon an initialization or a startup of an endpoint device or of an application in the endpoint device, transmitting an SSID to a modem;

(b) with the SSID at the modem, creating a secure data tunnel between the endpoint device and one or more computing devices;

(c) receiving, at a first member of the one or more computing devices, a first information set associated with the secure data tunnel;

(d) providing the first information set and a second information set to a policy server;

(e) receiving an indication at a second member of the one or more computing devices of the application in the secure data tunnel wherein the second member provides at least one of a bandwidth information and an IP address of the endpoint device to the policy server;

(f) with the first information set, the second information set, and at least one of the bandwidth information and the IP address of the endpoint device, determining one or more bandwidth requirements from one or more policies based in the policy server;

(g) providing the one or more bandwidth requirements to at least one of another policy server and a termination device wherein the another policy server communicates with the termination device when the another policy server receives the one or more bandwidth requirements wherein the termination device establishes one or more bandwidths for the secure data tunnel; and

repeating steps (a)-(g) wherein one or more SSIDs, one or more applications, and one or more secure data tunnels exist simultaneously.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising receiving another indication at the second member that the application is no longer in the secure data tunnel wherein the second member provides a QoS teardown request to the policy server.

3. The system of claim 2, further comprising providing from the policy server to at least one of the another policy server and the termination device a delete request wherein the delete request removes the allocated one or more bandwidths for the secure data tunnel.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the application is selected from a group including a telephone call.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the telephone call is selected from a group including data packets and an RTP stream.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the secure data tunnel is selected from a group including a VPN.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the VPN is selected from a group including IPsec, SSL, TLS, and L2TP.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the first information set is selected from a group including an IP address assigned by a NAT router and a port assigned by the NAT router.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the second information set is selected from a group including an IP address assigned by a home agent and a port assigned by the home agent.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the endpoint device is selected from a group including a mobile phone, a PDA, and a laptop computer.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein receiving the indication comprises receiving at least one of a SIP message, an RTP message, and an H.323 message.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein determining one or more bandwidth requirements comprises determining at least one of an upstream bandwidth requirement and a downstream bandwidth requirement.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the termination device is selected from a group including a CMTS.

14. A computer system having a processor and a memory, the computer system operable to execute a method for simultaneously providing different levels of QoS to different data sessions in a secure data tunnel in one or more networks, comprising:

establishing, by a home agent, the secure data tunnel between an endpoint device and a home agent;

receiving, at the home agent, a first information set associated with the secure data tunnel;

providing the first information set and a second information set to a policy server;

receiving one or more indications at an application server respectively of one or more data sessions in the secure data tunnel wherein the application server provides at least one of a bandwidth information and an IP address of the endpoint device to the policy server;

determining at the application server one or more data types respectively for the one or more data sessions simultaneously in the secure data tunnel wherein a first data type corresponds to a first data session and a second data type corresponds to a second data session;

with the first information set, the second information set, the one or more data types, and at least one of the bandwidth information and the IP address of the endpoint device, determining one or more bandwidth requirements from one or more policies based in the policy server; and

providing the one or more bandwidth requirements to at least one of another policy server and a termination device wherein the another policy server communicates with the termination device when the another policy server receives the one or more bandwidth requirements wherein the termination device establishes one or more bandwidths for each of the one or more data sessions in the secure data tunnel.

15. The system of claim 14, further comprising receiving one or more other indications at the application server that the one or more data sessions are no longer in the secure data tunnel wherein the application server provides one or more QoS teardown requests to the policy server.

16. The system of claim 15, further comprising providing from the policy server to at least one of the another policy server and the termination device one or more delete requests wherein the one or more delete requests remove the allocated one or more bandwidths for the respective one or more data sessions in the secure data tunnel.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein determining at the application server the one or more data types comprise reading one or more information in a header of a set of packets in each of the one or more data sessions.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the one or more information in the header are established by at least one of an endpoint device and a software client in the endpoint device.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein determining at the application server the one or more data types comprise receiving one or more SSIDs from the endpoint device.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the one or more data sessions are selected from a group including a telephone call an email, a video, and an internet browser session.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the telephone call is selected from a group including data packets and an RTP stream.

22. The system of claim 14, wherein the secure data tunnel is selected from a group including a VPN.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the VPN is selected from a group including IPsec, SSL, TLS, and L2TP.

24. The system of claim 14, wherein the first information set is selected from a group including an IP address assigned by a NAT router and a port assigned by the NAT router.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the second information set is selected from a group including an IP address assigned by a home agent and a port assigned by the home agent.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the endpoint device is selected from a group including a mobile phone, a PDA, and a laptop computer.

27. The system of claim 14, wherein receiving the indication comprises receiving at least one of a SIP message, an RTP message, and an H.323 message.

28. The system of claim 14, wherein determining one or more bandwidth requirements comprises determining at least one of an upstream bandwidth requirement and a downstream bandwidth requirement.

29. The system of claim 14, wherein the termination device is selected from a group including a CMTS.