Network capacity management system and method

• US 8,659,996 B2
• Filed: 09/17/2004
• Issued: 02/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: LYFT Incorporated
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Manthoulis, Orestis, Rele, Amit, Schine, Bruce Alden, Armanino, Frederick Michael, Rozema, John G., Wong, Peter A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Steven H
• Assistant Examiner(s): Baron, Henry
• Application Number:
  US10/943,776
• Publication Number:
  US 20060072463A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,448 Days
• Field of Search: 370/241, 370/229, 370/230.1, 370/236, 709/246, 709/223
• US Class Current: 370/229
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0853 by actively collecting configuration information or by backing up configuration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0856 by backing up or archiving configuration information
• 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 network capacity management system and method are disclosed. In one form, a capacity management system for use with an optical network includes a network capacity management engine operable to actively access a network element. The system further includes a network-based application interface associated with the network capacity management engine. The application may facilitate providing information associated with a network element to a user in near real-time.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

providing, in a map-like format, via a web-based user interface to a display device of an access device, a graphical representation of a portion of a metropolitan area ethernet optical network, wherein the metropolitan area ethernet optical network includes a plurality of network elements, wherein the map-like format identifies a plurality of regions of a portion of the metropolitan area ethernet optical network,

wherein a first region of the plurality of regions corresponds to a provider edge-customer location equipment region and is displayed as a first circular region in the graphical representation, wherein a second region of the plurality of regions corresponds to a provider edge-point of presence region and is displayed as a second circular region that is within the first circular region in the graphical representation, wherein a third region of the plurality of regions corresponds to a core region and is displayed as a third circular region that is within the second circular region in the graphical representation, wherein the first region, the second region, and the third region are concurrently displayed in a first window of the graphical representation,

wherein a plurality of selectable elements related to the plurality of network elements are displayed in a second window of the graphical representation, wherein the plurality of selectable elements includes a capacity level element, a traffic utilization element a network element status element, a report generation element, and a threshold levels element;

wherein each of the plurality of regions identifies a network element of the plurality of network elements, wherein each of the plurality of regions includes a particular network element that is ethernet over multiprotocol label switching capable, and wherein the particular network element that is ethernet over multiprotocol label switching capable comprises a label edge router coupled to an ethernet over multiprotocol label switching network;

in response to an event, receiving, at the access device, a first selection of a first network element of the plurality of network elements, wherein the first network element is associated with a first vendor and is displayed within the first window;

communicating from the access device an inquiry to access operational status information obtained from the first network element;

in response to the first selection, updating the first window to display a first representation of the first network element, wherein the first representation includes an operational status of the first network element in a particular graphical format, and wherein the particular graphical format is determined based on a comparison of the operational status to an operational threshold;

receiving, at the access device, a second selection of a selectable element of the plurality of selectable elements, the selectable element within the second window;

communicating from the access device a second inquiry to access information associated with the selectable element from a server; and

in response to the second selection, displaying the information associated with the selectable element in a third window of the graphical representation.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the operational status information includes near-real time information obtained by directly accessing the first network element via a network management engine.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the operational status information is obtained from a database storing the operational status information.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

periodically accessing the first network element to obtain updated operational status information; and

storing the updated operational status information at the database.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the operational status includes exhaust status and trunk utilization by the first network element.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the operational status includes a switch status of the first network element.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the operational status includes processing utilization by the first network element.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the operational status includes memory utilization by the first network element.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising presenting, via the web-based user interface to the display device of the access device, information associated with the first network element in response to a command received by the access device, wherein the information associated with the first network element further includes a port inventory and configuration data of for each port in the port inventory and a card inventory and configuration data of each card.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the operational threshold includes an exhaustion threshold.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the operational status is graphically presented in a particular color based on a margin between the operational status and the exhaustion threshold.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein a first color indicates an adequate margin between the operational status and the exhaustion threshold, a second color indicates that the operational status is approaching the exhaustion threshold, and a third color indicates that the operational status has reached the exhaustion threshold.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the first color is green, the second color is yellow, and the third color is red.

18. The method of claim 14, further comprising communicating a message when the exhaustion threshold has been reached.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the message includes one of an email message, a page, and a textual message.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the metropolitan area ethernet optical network includes an ethernet over multiprotocol label switching network.

21. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving a status inquiry with respect to the first network element; and

in response to the status inquiry, launching a network discovery module to request the operational status information from the first network element.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein each region of the plurality of regions includes a plurality of selectable elements, wherein each selectable element of the plurality of selectable elements represents a sub-region.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

receiving a selection of a selectable element of the plurality of selectable elements; and

in response to the selection, initiating a zoom-in command to update the graphical representation to include information associated with the selectable elements.

24. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

receiving a selection of a selectable element of the plurality of selectable elements; and

in response to the selection, initiating a zoom-out command to update the graphical representation to include information associated with the selectable element.

25. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

receiving a selection of a selectable element of the plurality of selectable elements; and

in response to the selection, initiating a traverse command to update the graphical representation to include information associated with the selectable element.

30. The method of claim 13, wherein the information associated with the first network element presented via the web-based user interface in response to the command received by the access device further includes a software inventory.

9. A computer-readable storage device storing instructions executable by a processor to perform operations including:

providing, in a map-like format, via a web-based user interface, a graphical representation of a portion of a metropolitan area ethernet optical network, wherein the metropolitan area ethernet optical network includes a plurality of network elements, wherein the map-like format identifies a plurality of regions of a the portion of the metropolitan area ethernet optical network,

wherein a first region of the plurality of regions corresponds to a provider edge-customer location equipment region and is displayed as a first circular region in the graphical representation, wherein a second region of the plurality of regions corresponds to a provider edge-point of presence region and is displayed as a second circular region that is within the first circular region in the graphical representation, wherein a third region of the plurality of regions corresponds to a core region and is displayed as a third circular region that is within the second circular region in the graphical representation, wherein the first region, the second region, and the third region are concurrently displayed in a first window of the graphical representation,

wherein a plurality of selectable elements related to the plurality of network elements are displayed in a second window of the graphical representation, wherein the plurality of selectable elements includes a capacity level element, a traffic utilization element, a network element status element, a report generation element, and a threshold levels element;

wherein each of the plurality of regions identifies a network element of the plurality of network elements, wherein each of the plurality of regions includes a particular network element that is ethernet over multiprotocol label switching capable, wherein the particular network element that is ethernet over multiprotocol label switching capable comprises a label edge router coupled to an ethernet over multiprotocol label switching network;

in response to an event, receiving a first selection of a first network element of the plurality of network elements, wherein the first network element is associated with a first vendor and is displayed within the first window;

communicating an inquiry to access operational status information obtained from the first network element;

in response to the first selection, updating the first window to display a first representation of the first network element, wherein the first representation includes an operational status of the first network element in a particular graphical format, and wherein the particular graphical format is determined based on a comparison of the operational status to an operational threshold;

receiving, a second selection of a selectable element of the plurality of selectable elements, the selectable element within the second window;

communicating a second inquiry to access information associated with the selectable element from a server; and

in response to the second selection, displaying the information associated with the selectable element in a third window of the graphical representation.

10. The computer-readable storage device of claim 9, wherein the operations further include allowing a network management engine to directly access the first network element to obtain near-real time operational status information.

11. The computer-readable storage device of claim 9, wherein the operations further include presenting, via the web-based user interface, information associated with discarded packets of the first network element in response to a received command for detailed information about the first network element.

12. The computer-readable storage device of claim 9, wherein the operations further include:

periodically accessing the first network element to obtain updated operational status information; and

storing the updated operational status information at a database.

26. The computer-readable storage device of claim 9, wherein each region of the plurality of regions includes a plurality of selectable elements, wherein each selectable element of the plurality of selectable elements represents a sub-region.

27. The computer-readable storage device of claim 26, wherein the operations further include:

receiving a selection of a selectable element of the plurality of selectable elements; and

in response to the selection, initiating a zoom-in command to update the graphical representation to include information associated with the selectable element.

28. The computer-readable storage device of claim 26, wherein the operations further include:

receiving a selection of a selectable element of the plurality of selectable elements; and

in response to the selection, initiating a zoom-out command to update the graphical representation to include information associated with the selectable element.

29. The computer-readable storage device of claim 26, wherein the operations further include:

receiving a selection of selectable element of the plurality of selectable elements; and

in response to the selection, initiating a traverse command to update the graphical representation to include information associated with the selectable element.

31. The computer-readable storage device of claim 9, wherein the operations further include presenting, via the web-based user interface to a display device of an access device, information associated with the first network element in response to a command received by the access device for information, wherein the information associated with the first network element presented via the web-based user interface in response to the command received by the access device further includes a port inventory and configuration data of each port in the port inventory and a card inventory and configuration data of each card.

32. The computer-readable storage device of claim 31, wherein the information associated with the first network element presented via the web-based user interface in response to the command received by the access device further includes a software inventory.