Methods and systems for automatically rerouting logical circuit data

• US 8,730,795 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2013
• Issued: 05/20/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2003
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Rakuten Group, Inc.
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Taylor, William, Massengill, David, Hollingsworth, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Ngo, Ricky
• Assistant Examiner(s): Liu, Ben H
• Application Number:
  US14/038,187
• Publication Number:
  US 20140025988A1
• Time in Patent Office: 236 Days
• Field of Search: 370/225
• US Class Current: 370/225
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2002 where interconnections or communication control functionality are redundant flexible arrangements for bus networks involving redundancy H04L12/40176
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2007 using redundant communication media
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3006 where the computing system is distributed, e.g. networked systems, clusters, multiprocessor systems multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46; allocation of resources G06F9/50
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3409 for performance assessment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/22 using redundant apparatus to increase reliability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4641 Virtual LANs, VLANs, e.g. virtual private networks [VPN] LAN interconnection over a bridge based backbone H04L12/462; encapsulation techniques H04L12/4633; routing of packets H04L45/00; packet switches H04L49/00; virtual private networks for security H04L63/0272
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/065 involving logical or physical relationship, e.g. grouping and hierarchies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0659 by isolating or reconfiguring faulty entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0661 by reconfiguring faulty entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/22 Alternate routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/28 using route fault recovery

Abstract

An example involves identifying a failure of a dedicated logical circuit connecting a host device to a remote device to communicate data that originates and terminates only at the host and remote devices. When a first logical circuit identifier of the dedicated logical circuit does not match a second logical circuit identifier of a logical failover circuit comprising an alternate communication path for communicating the data: the second logical circuit identifier is renamed to identify the logical failover circuit using the first logical circuit identifier when the logical failover circuit is a dedicated logical failover circuit to communicate only when the dedicated logical circuit fails, and the dedicated logical circuit is renamed to identify the dedicated logical circuit using the second logical circuit identifier when the logical failover circuit is to communicate regardless of failure of the dedicated logical circuit.

Claims

1. A method of automatically rerouting logical circuit data, the method comprising:

identifying a failure of a dedicated logical circuit connecting a host device to a remote device to communicate data that originates and terminates only at the host device and the remote device;

when a first logical circuit identifier of the dedicated logical circuit does not match a second logical circuit identifier of a logical failover circuit comprising an alternate communication path for communicating the data;

renaming the second logical circuit identifier of the logical failover circuit to identify the logical failover circuit using the first logical circuit identifier of the dedicated logical circuit when the logical failover circuit is a dedicated logical failover circuit used to communicate only when the dedicated logical circuit fails, and

renaming the dedicated logical circuit to identify the dedicated logical circuit using the second logical circuit identifier of the logical failover circuit when the logical failover circuit is used to communicate regardless of the failure of the dedicated logical circuit; and

rerouting the data to the logical failover circuit without manual intervention.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the dedicated logical circuit is in a multiprotocol label switching standard network.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising making a real-time offer to a customer of the dedicated logical circuit after identifying the failure of the dedicated logical circuit and before rerouting the data, the real-time offer being to reroute the data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the dedicated logical circuit traverses a first local access and transport area, a first inter-exchange carrier, and a second local access and transport area.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the logical failover circuit traverses a second inter-exchange carrier, a third local access and transport area, a third inter-exchange carrier, and the second local access and transport area, wherein rerouting the data to the logical failover circuit comprises rerouting the data via the second inter-exchange carrier, the third local access and transport area, and the third inter-exchange carrier to bypass the first inter-exchange carrier.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the identifying of the failure of the dedicated logical circuit is performed by a network management system in communication with the first and second local access and transport areas via management trunks and separate from switches of the dedicated logical circuit used to communicate the data.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second logical circuit identifiers are at least one of virtual path identifiers or virtual circuit identifiers.

8. An apparatus to automatically reroute logical circuit data, the apparatus comprising:

a processor; and

a memory to store machine readable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising;

identifying a failure of a dedicated logical circuit connecting a host device to a remote device to communicate data that originates and terminates only at the host device and the remote device;

when a first logical circuit identifier of the dedicated logical circuit does not match a second logical circuit identifier of a logical failover circuit comprising an alternate communication path for communicating the data;

renaming the second logical circuit identifier of the logical failover circuit to identify the logical failover circuit using the first logical circuit identifier of the dedicated logical circuit when the logical failover circuit is a dedicated logical failover circuit used to communicate only when the dedicated logical circuit fails, and

renaming the dedicated logical circuit to identify the dedicated logical circuit using the second logical circuit identifier of the logical failover circuit when the logical failover circuit is used to communicate regardless of the failure of the dedicated logical circuit; and

rerouting the data to the logical failover circuit without manual intervention.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the dedicated logical circuit is in a multiprotocol label switching standard network.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise, upon identifying the failure of the dedicated logical circuit and prior to rerouting the data, making a real-time offer to a customer of the dedicated logical circuit to reroute the data.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the dedicated logical circuit traverses a first local access and transport area, a first inter-exchange carrier, and a second local access and transport area.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the logical failover circuit traverses a second inter-exchange carrier, a third local access and transport area, a third inter-exchange carrier, and the second local access and transport area, wherein the network management module is to reroute the data to the logical failover circuit to reroute the data via the second inter-exchange carrier, the third local access and transport area, and the third inter-exchange carrier to bypass the first inter-exchange carrier.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising a logical element module in communication with the first and second local access and transport areas via management trunks and separate from switches of the dedicated logical circuit used to communicate the data, the logical element module to store status information generated by the switches, wherein the processor is further to request the status information from the logical element module and to identify the failure of the dedicated logical circuit based on the status information.

14. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the first and second logical circuit identifiers are at least one of virtual path identifiers or virtual circuit identifiers.

15. A computer readable storage device comprising instructions which, when executed, cause a machine to perform a method comprising:

identifying a failure of a dedicated logical circuit connecting a host device to a remote device to communicate data that originates and terminates only at the host device and the remote device;

when a first logical circuit identifier of the dedicated logical circuit does not match a second logical circuit identifier of a logical failover circuit comprising an alternate communication path for communicating the data;

renaming the second logical circuit identifier of the logical failover circuit to identify the logical failover circuit using the first logical circuit identifier of the dedicated logical circuit when the logical failover circuit is a dedicated logical failover circuit used to communicate only when the dedicated logical circuit fails, and

renaming the dedicated logical circuit to identify the dedicated logical circuit using the second logical circuit identifier of the logical failover circuit when the logical failover circuit is used to communicate regardless of the failure of the dedicated logical circuit; and

rerouting the data to the logical failover circuit without manual intervention.

16. The computer readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the dedicated logical circuit is in a multiprotocol label switching standard network.

17. The computer readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the method further comprises, upon identifying the failure of the dedicated logical circuit and prior to rerouting the data, making a real-time offer to a customer of the dedicated logical circuit to reroute the data.

18. The computer readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the dedicated logical circuit traverses a first local access and transport area, a first inter-exchange carrier, and a second local access and transport area.

19. The computer readable storage device of claim 18, wherein the logical failover circuit traverses a second inter-exchange carrier, a third local access and transport area, a third inter-exchange carrier, and the second local access and transport area, and wherein instructions stored on the computer readable medium, when executed, cause the machine to reroute the data to the second inter-exchange carrier, the third local access and transport area, and the third inter-exchange carrier to bypass the first inter-exchange carrier.

20. The computer readable storage device of claim 18, wherein the identifying of the failure is performed by a network management system in communication with the first and second local access and transport areas via management trunks and separate from switches of the dedicated logical circuit used to communicate the data.