Method, policy request router, and machine-readable hardware storage device to select a policy server based on a network condition to receive policy requests for a duration

• US 8,880,666 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2010
• Issued: 11/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Aaron, Jeffrey A., Streijl, Robert C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Murray, Daniel C
• Application Number:
  US12/915,672
• Publication Number:
  US 20120110128A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,467 Days
• Field of Search: 709/219, 709/223, 709/226, 709/228, 726/1
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/028 for synchronisation between service call and response
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/302 Route determination based on requested QoS
• 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 47/20 Traffic policing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/781 Centralised allocation of resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/805 QOS or priority aware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1008 based on parameters of servers, e.g. available memory or workload monitoring of computer activity G06F11/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/101 based on network conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1021 based on client or server locations
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1027 Persistence of sessions during load balancing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1029 using data related to the state of servers by a load balancer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1036 Load balancing of requests to servers for services different from user content provisioning, e.g. load balancing across domain name servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences

Abstract

Example methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture to route policy requests are disclosed. A disclosed example method includes receiving, at a policy request router, a policy request from a policy requestor, applying, at the policy request router, a rule to a parameter representing a network condition to select a policy server for the policy request, and sending from the policy request router to the policy requestor an identifier representing the policy server, the policy requestor to send the policy request to the policy server based on the identifier, the policy server to enforce a policy associated with the policy request.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

applying, at a policy request router, a rule based on a parameter representing a network condition to select a first policy server for a first policy request received from a policy requestor;

sending from the policy request router to the policy requestor a first duration and a first identifier representing the first policy server, the policy requestor to send the first policy request to the first policy server based on the first identifier, the first policy server to enforce a first policy associated with the first policy request, the policy requestor to send first subsequent policy requests after the first policy request to the first policy server based on the first identifier until the first duration has expired and to send a second subsequent policy request to the policy request router after the first duration has expired; and

when the second subsequent policy request is received from the policy requestor at the policy request router, sending from the policy request router to the policy requestor a second duration and a second identifier representing a second policy server, the second policy server different from the first policy server.

2. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

applying, at the policy request router, a second rule based on a second parameter representing a second network condition to select the second policy server when the second subsequent policy request is received from the policy requestor, the second rule being different from the first rule, the second policy server to enforce a second policy associated with the second policy request, the second policy being different from the first policy.

3. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

detecting a network state change prior to the first duration expiring; and

in response to detecting the network state change, applying the rule at the policy request router to select the second policy server for the second subsequent policy request, the second policy server to enforce the first policy.

4. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the rule comprises an if X while Y then Z rule, Y being the network condition, and X being determined based on the first policy request.

5. The method as defined in claim 1, further comprising:

determining a policy realm based on the first policy request;

determining a policy domain based on the policy realm; and

selecting the rule from a plurality of rules associated with the policy domain.

6. The method as defined in claim 5, wherein the policy realm comprises a quality of service realm.

7. The method as defined in claim 5, wherein the policy domain comprises a geographic area.

8. The method as defined in claim 5, wherein the policy comprises a quality of service policy.

9. A policy request router comprising:

a memory comprising machine readable instructions; and

a processor to execute the instructions to perform operations comprising;

applying a rule based on a value representing a network condition to select a policy server for a first policy request received from a policy requestor;

sending to the policy requestor a first duration and a first identifier representing the first policy server to thereby cause the policy requestor to send the first policy request to the first policy server based on the first identifier, the first policy server to enforce a policy associated with the first policy request, the policy requestor to send a subsequent policy request to the first policy server based on the first identifier if the first duration has not expired and to send the subsequent policy request to the policy request router if the first duration has expired; and

when the second policy request is received from the policy requestor, sending to the policy requestor a second duration and a second identifier representing a second policy server.

10. The policy request router as defined in claim 9, wherein the operations further comprise:

storing network state information in a state cache;

detecting a network state change prior to the first duration expiring by querying the state cache; and

in response to detecting the network state change, selecting the second policy server for the second policy request, the second policy server to enforce the first policy.

11. The policy request router as defined in claim 9, wherein the operations further comprise:

storing policy selection rules in a policy cache;

determining a policy domain based on the policy request; and

selecting the rule from the policy cache based on the policy domain.

12. The policy request router as defined in claim 11, wherein the operations further comprise storing network state information in a state cache and selecting the network condition from the state cache based on the first policy request.

13. A machine-readable hardware storage device comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a machine to perform operations comprising:

applying a rule based on a parameter representing a network condition to select a first policy server for a first policy request received from a policy requestor; and

sending a first duration and a first identifier representing the first policy server to the policy requestor, the policy requestor to send the first policy request to the first policy server based on the first identifier, the first policy server to enforce a first policy associated with the first policy request, the policy requestor to send a subsequent policy request to the first policy server based on the first identifier if the first duration has not expired and to send the subsequent policy request to a policy request router if the first duration has expired; and

when the second policy request is received from the policy requestor sending a second duration and a second identifier representing a second policy server to the policy requestor.

14. The machine-readable hardware storage as defined in claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise:

applying a second rule based on a second parameter representing a second network condition to select the second policy server when the subsequent policy request is received from the policy requestor, the second rule being different from the first rule, the second policy server to enforce a second policy associated with the subsequent policy request, the second policy being different from the first policy.

15. The machine-readable hardware storage device as defined in claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise:

detecting a network state change prior to the first duration expiring; and

when the network state change is detected, applying the rule to select the second policy server for the second policy request, the second policy server to enforce the first policy.

16. The machine-readable hardware storage device as defined in claim 13, wherein the rule comprises an if X while Y then Z rule, Y being the network condition, and X being determined based on the first policy request.

17. The machine-readable hardware storage device as defined in claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining a policy realm based on the first policy request;

determining a policy domain based on the policy realm; and

selecting the rule from a plurality of rules associated with the policy domain.

18. The machine-readable hardware storage device as defined in claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise:

in response to detecting a network state change, selecting the first duration to be a time period after which the policy requestor is to send the second policy request to the policy request router.