System and method for designing, developing and implementing internet service provider architectures
First Claim
1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:
- obtaining, by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) architecture development mechanism implemented on one or more computer devices;
a set of design requirements that define at least functional requirements for an ISP architecture that defines an overall structure of a potential Internet Service Provider (ISP) to provide Internet access to customers of the potential ISP; and
one or more architectural principles to be applied to the ISP architecture, wherein the one or more architectural principles include design considerations for scalability, availability, or security of the potential ISP;
generating, by the ISP architecture development mechanism, the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, wherein said generating the ISP architecture comprises;
generating an architectural model for the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, said generating the architectural model comprising;
determining a plurality of core components for the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, wherein the plurality of core components include one or more ISP services to be provided to customers of the potential ISP and one or more of an operating environment or an operating platform;
in response to generating the architectural model, generating a logical design for the ISP architecture according to the architectural model and the set of design requirements, said generating the logical design comprising;
defining a layered network components model of network components to implement at least the ISP services of the core components, the network components model comprising a plurality of layers including a core layer and an access layer;
in response to generating the logical design, generating a physical design for the ISP architecture according to the architectural model and the logical design, said generating the physical design comprising;
generating a capacity requirement for the ISP architecture, wherein said generating the capacity requirement for the ISP architecture comprises;
estimating software storage capacities and memory capacities needed to implement the determined core components for the ISP architecture;
estimating hardware server capacities needed to support software implementing the determined core components for the ISP architecture;
estimating a number of links needed for Internet connectivity to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture;
estimating port capacity needed for one or more types of network components to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture; and
in response to generating the physical design;
selecting one or more specific software components for the ISP architecture that support the ISP services and core components of the ISP architecture and satisfy at least the logical design and the estimated storage capacities and memory capacities needed to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture,selecting specific hardware components for the ISP architecture that support the software components for the ISP architecture and satisfy the logical design, the estimated hardware server capacities and number of links needed to support software implementing the determined core components for the ISP architecture, andselecting one or more network components for the ISP architecture that support the core components of the ISP architecture and satisfy the logical design and at least the port capacity needed to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture, wherein network components include one or more of routers, switches, or consoles; and
generating output specifying at least the logical design, the physical design, the specific software and hardware and network components required for implementing the ISP architecture according to at least the capacity requirement, wherein the generated output is applicable to implement an instance of the ISP architecture of the potential ISP on the Internet according to the specified logical design and the generated capacity requirement for the ISP architecture;
wherein the one or more ISP services include one or more of basic services, value-added services, infrastructure services, or operation and management services, wherein;
the value-added services include one or more of a calendar service, a search engine service, a WebMail service, a chat service, a messaging service, or an address book service,the infrastructure services include one or more of a Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS), a Domain Name System (DNS) service, a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) service, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) service, or a Network Time Protocol (NTP) service, orthe operation and management services include one or more of a jumpstart service, a monitoring service, a provisioning service or a backup service.
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Abstract
System and method for designing, developing and implementing Internet Service Provider (ISP) architectures. One embodiment of a method for designing and implementing ISP architectures may include formulating a set of design requirements for an ISP architecture, establishing an architectural model for the ISP architecture using the set of design requirements, generating a logical design for the ISP architecture from the architectural model and the set of design requirements, and generating a physical design for the ISP architecture using the architectural model and the logical design. One embodiment may also include selecting one or more components of the ISP architecture and implementing the ISP architecture according to the logical design and the physical design. In one embodiment the system and method for designing, developing and implementing ISP architectures may be used to design, develop and implement an N-tiered ISP architecture.
56 Citations
108 Claims
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1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:
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obtaining, by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) architecture development mechanism implemented on one or more computer devices; a set of design requirements that define at least functional requirements for an ISP architecture that defines an overall structure of a potential Internet Service Provider (ISP) to provide Internet access to customers of the potential ISP; and one or more architectural principles to be applied to the ISP architecture, wherein the one or more architectural principles include design considerations for scalability, availability, or security of the potential ISP; generating, by the ISP architecture development mechanism, the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, wherein said generating the ISP architecture comprises; generating an architectural model for the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, said generating the architectural model comprising; determining a plurality of core components for the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, wherein the plurality of core components include one or more ISP services to be provided to customers of the potential ISP and one or more of an operating environment or an operating platform; in response to generating the architectural model, generating a logical design for the ISP architecture according to the architectural model and the set of design requirements, said generating the logical design comprising; defining a layered network components model of network components to implement at least the ISP services of the core components, the network components model comprising a plurality of layers including a core layer and an access layer; in response to generating the logical design, generating a physical design for the ISP architecture according to the architectural model and the logical design, said generating the physical design comprising; generating a capacity requirement for the ISP architecture, wherein said generating the capacity requirement for the ISP architecture comprises; estimating software storage capacities and memory capacities needed to implement the determined core components for the ISP architecture; estimating hardware server capacities needed to support software implementing the determined core components for the ISP architecture; estimating a number of links needed for Internet connectivity to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture; estimating port capacity needed for one or more types of network components to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture; and in response to generating the physical design; selecting one or more specific software components for the ISP architecture that support the ISP services and core components of the ISP architecture and satisfy at least the logical design and the estimated storage capacities and memory capacities needed to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture, selecting specific hardware components for the ISP architecture that support the software components for the ISP architecture and satisfy the logical design, the estimated hardware server capacities and number of links needed to support software implementing the determined core components for the ISP architecture, and selecting one or more network components for the ISP architecture that support the core components of the ISP architecture and satisfy the logical design and at least the port capacity needed to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture, wherein network components include one or more of routers, switches, or consoles; and generating output specifying at least the logical design, the physical design, the specific software and hardware and network components required for implementing the ISP architecture according to at least the capacity requirement, wherein the generated output is applicable to implement an instance of the ISP architecture of the potential ISP on the Internet according to the specified logical design and the generated capacity requirement for the ISP architecture; wherein the one or more ISP services include one or more of basic services, value-added services, infrastructure services, or operation and management services, wherein; the value-added services include one or more of a calendar service, a search engine service, a WebMail service, a chat service, a messaging service, or an address book service, the infrastructure services include one or more of a Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS), a Domain Name System (DNS) service, a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) service, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) service, or a Network Time Protocol (NTP) service, or the operation and management services include one or more of a jumpstart service, a monitoring service, a provisioning service or a backup service. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49)
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50. A method, comprising:
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performing, by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) architecture development mechanism implemented on one or more computer devices; formulating a set of design requirements that define at least functional requirements for an ISP architecture that defines an overall structure of and components for an Internet Service Provider (ISP) to provide Internet access to customers of the ISP, the design requirements comprising; obtaining one or more architectural principles to be applied to the ISP architecture, wherein the one or more architectural principles include design considerations for scalability, availability, or security; generating a capacity requirement for the ISP architecture, wherein said generating the capacity requirement for the ISP architecture comprises; estimating software storage capacities and memory capacities needed to implement components for the ISP architecture; estimating hardware server capacities needed to support software implementing the components for the ISP architecture; estimating a number of links needed for Internet connectivity for the ISP architecture; estimating port capacity for routers, switches or consoles to implement at least a portion the ISP architecture; and selecting components for the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements, the capacity requirement, and the one or more architectural principles, wherein said selecting components for the ISP architecture comprises; selecting a set of ISP services for the ISP architecture to satisfy one or more of the set of design requirements according to the one or more architectural principles; selecting an operating environment for the selected set of ISP services, wherein the operating environment is selected to satisfy one or more of the set of design requirements according to the one or more architectural principles; selecting an operating platform for the selected operating environment, wherein the operating environment is selected to satisfy one or more of the set of design requirements according to the one or more architectural principles; generating an architectural model for the ISP architecture that includes the selected set of ISP services, the selected operating environment and the selected operating platform, wherein the architectural model provides a framework for a logical design and a physical design for the ISP architecture; generating the logical design for the ISP architecture according to the architectural model and the set of design requirements, wherein the logical design indicates a topology for the ISP architecture and defines one or more network components for the ISP architecture; generating the physical design for the ISP architecture according to the architectural model and the logical design, wherein the physical design specifies a physical network design for the ISP architecture and incorporates the capacity requirement for the ISP architecture; determining a configuration of specific hardware and software components to support the set of ISP services, operating environment, and operating platform according to at least the estimated software storage capacities and memory capacities, estimated hardware server capacities, estimated number of links, and estimated port capacity; using the configuration of specific hardware and software components, implementing an instance of the ISP architecture as the ISP on the Internet that provides Internet access to customers according to the selected set of ISP services, the selected operating environment and the selected operating platform; and generating output specifying at least the logical design and the physical design for the ISP architecture, wherein the generated output is applicable to implement the instance of the ISP architecture on the Internet according to the specified logical design and the specified physical design for the ISP architecture; wherein the specified logical design and the specified physical design for the ISP architecture indicate hardware and software components and interconnections among the hardware and software components for implementing the instance of the ISP architecture on the Internet as an ISP that provides Internet access to customers; wherein the set of ISP services comprise one or more value-added services, wherein the one or more value-added services include one or more of a calendar service, a search engine service, a webmail service, a chat service, a messaging service, or an address book service;
orwherein the set of ISP services comprise one or more infrastructure services, wherein the one or more infrastructure services include one or more of a Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS), a Domain Name System (DNS) service, a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) service, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) service, or a Network Time Protocol (NTP) service;
orwherein the set of ISP services comprise one or more operation and management services, wherein the one or more operation and management services include one or more of;
a monitoring service, a provisioning service, a backup service, or a jumpstart service. - View Dependent Claims (51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58)
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59. A method, comprising:
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generating, by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) architecture development mechanism implemented on one or more computer devices, a physical design for an Internet Service Provider (ISP) architecture that defines an overall structure of an Internet Service Provider (ISP) to provide Internet access to customers of the ISP, wherein the ISP architecture comprises a plurality of core components which include one or more ISP services to be provided to customers of the ISP, wherein said generating the physical design for the ISP architecture comprises; partitioning the ISP architecture into a plurality of network tiers; determining capacity requirements for software and hardware components for the ISP architecture, wherein said generating the capacity requirement for the ISP architecture comprises; estimating storage capacities and memory capacities of the software components needed for the ISP architecture; estimating hardware server capacities needed to support software components needed for the ISP architecture; estimating a number of links needed for Internet connectivity for the ISP architecture; estimating port capacity for routers, switches or consoles for the ISP architecture; and determining network components for each network tier of the ISP architecture according to at least the estimated port capacity included in the determined capacity requirements, wherein the network components for each network tier include one or more of routers, switches, or load balancers; determining location for and number of fire ridges separating the network tiers of the ISP architecture, wherein each fire ridge includes one or more firewalls; determining a number of high-speed trunks for the ISP architecture, according to at least the estimated number of links included in the determined capacity requirements, that are needed to support a projected number of concurrent users of the ISP; determining number of network access servers (NASs) for the ISP architecture, according to at least the estimated number of links included in the determined capacity requirements, that are needed to support the projected number of concurrent users of the ISP; and determining one or more servers for each of one or more of the plurality of tiers in the ISP architecture, according to at least the estimated hardware server capacity included in the determined capacity requirements, wherein the one or more servers at each tier include one or more of web servers, application servers, or database servers; and implementing an instance of the ISP architecture on the Internet according to the physical design as the ISP that provides Internet access to customers; wherein the one or more ISP services include one or more of basic services, value-added services, infrastructure services, or operation and management services, wherein; the basic services include one or more of email, Web hosting, Internet news, Internet access or File Transfer Protocol (FTP), the value-added services include one or more of a calendar service, a search engine service, a WebMail service, a chat service, a messaging service, or an address book service, the infrastructure services include one or more of a Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS), a Domain Name System (DNS) service, a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) service, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) service, or a Network Time Protocol (NTP) service, or the operation and management services include one or more of a jumpstart service, a monitoring service, a provisioning service or a backup service.
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60. A system, comprising:
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at least one processor; and a memory comprising program instructions, wherein the programming instructions are executable by the at least one processor to; obtain a set of design requirements that define at least functional requirements for an ISP architecture that defines an overall structure of a potential Internet Service Provider (ISP) to provide Internet access to customers of the potential ISP; obtain one or more architectural principles to be applied to the ISP architecture, wherein the one or more architectural principles include design considerations for scalability, availability, or security of the potential ISP; generate the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, wherein, to generate the ISP architecture, the programming instructions are executable by the at least one processor to; generate an architectural model for the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, said generating the architectural model comprising; determining a plurality of core components for the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, wherein the plurality of core components include one or more ISP services to be provided to customers of the potential ISP and one or more of an operating environment or an operating platform; in response to generating the architectural model, generate a logical design for the ISP architecture according to the architectural model and the set of design requirements, said generating the logical design comprising; defining a layered network components model of network components to implement at least the ISP services of the core components, the network components model comprising a plurality of layers including a core layer and an access layer; in response to generating the logical design, generate a physical design for the ISP architecture according to the architectural model and the logical design, said generating the physical design comprising; generating a capacity requirement for the ISP architecture, wherein said generating the capacity requirement for the ISP architecture comprises; estimating software storage capacities and memory capacities needed to implement the determined core components for the ISP architecture; estimating hardware server capacities needed to support software implementing the determined core components for the ISP architecture; estimating a number of links needed for Internet connectivity to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture; estimating port capacity needed for one or more types of network components to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture; and in response to generating the physical design; select one or more specific software components for the ISP architecture that support the ISP services and core components of the ISP architecture and satisfy at least the logical design and the estimated storage capacities and memory capacities needed to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture, select specific hardware components for the ISP architecture that support the software components of the ISP architecture and satisfy the logical design, the estimated hardware server capacities and number of links needed to support software implementing the determined core components for the ISP architecture, and select one or more network components for the ISP architecture that support the core components of the ISP architecture and satisfy the logical design and at least the port capacity needed to implement the logical design of the ISP architecture, wherein network components include one or more of routers, switches, or consoles; and generate output specifying at least the logical design, the physical design, the specific software and hardware and network components required for implementing the ISP architecture according to at least the capacity requirement, wherein the generated output is applicable to implement an instance of the ISP architecture of the potential ISP on the Internet according to the specified logical design and the generated capacity requirement for the ISP architecture; wherein the plurality of core components further include one or more ISP services; wherein the one or more ISP services include one or more of basic services, value-added services, infrastructure services, or operation and management services, wherein; the basic services include one or more of email, Web hosting, Internet news, Internet access or File Transfer Protocol (FTP), the value-added services include one or more of a calendar service, a search engine service, a WebMail service, a chat service, a messaging service, or an address book service, the infrastructure services include one or more of a Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS), a Domain Name System (DNS) service, a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) service, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) service, or a Network Time Protocol (NTP) service, or wherein the operation and management services include one or more of a jumpstart service, a monitoring service, a provisioning service or a backup service. - View Dependent Claims (61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85)
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86. A non-transitory computer-readable storage device or memory medium comprising program instructions, wherein the program instructions are computer-executable to implement:
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obtaining a set of user-specified design requirements for an ISP architecture that define at least a user-desired overall structure of an Internet Service Provider (ISP) to provide Internet access to customers of the ISP; obtaining one or more user-specified architectural principles to be applied to the ISP architecture, wherein the one or more architectural principles include user-specified design considerations for scalability, availability, or security of the ISP; and generating the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, wherein, in said generating the ISP architecture, the program instructions are computer-executable to implement; generating an architectural model for the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, said generating the architectural model comprising; determining a plurality of core components required for implementing the ISP architecture according to the set of design requirements and the one or more architectural principles, wherein the plurality of core components include one or more ISP services to be provided to customers of the potential ISP and one or more of an operating environment or an operating platform; in response to generating the ISP architecture, generating a logical design for the ISP architecture according to the architectural model and the set of design requirements, generating the logical design comprising; determining point of presence (POP) topology and internal infrastructure for the ISP architecture, wherein the internal infrastructure includes one or more services and one or more physical servers, wherein network topology of the internal infrastructure is divided into a plurality of logical layers; and determining one or more network components required to support the internal infrastructure according to a layered network components model comprising a plurality of layers, wherein the plurality of layers of the network components model include a core layer, a distribution layer, and an access layer, wherein the one or more network components include one or more of routers, switches, or load balancers; in response to generating the logical design, generating a physical design for the ISP architecture according to the architectural model and the logical design, generating the physical design comprising; generating a capacity requirement for the network components, wherein said generating the capacity requirement comprises; estimating software storage capacities and memory capacities needed to support at least the one or more services for the ISP architecture; estimating network bandwidth requirements for the ISP architecture; estimating a number of links needed for Internet connectivity for the ISP architecture; estimating port capacity for routers, switches and consoles required for the ISP architecture; and estimating size, type and specification of one or more servers required for the ISP architecture; in response to generating the physical design, selecting specific hardware and software components and interconnections among the hardware and software components for implementing the ISP architecture on the Internet in accordance with the logical design and generated capacity requirement of the physical design, wherein said selecting comprises; selecting one or more specific software components to implement at least the one or more services for the ISP architecture according to the estimated software storage capacities and memory capacities; and selecting one or more servers to implement the ISP architecture according to at least the estimated network bandwidth requirements; and generating output specifying at least the logical design, the physical design, the specific software and hardware and network components required for implementing the ISP architecture according to at least a portion of the capacity requirement, and specific interconnections among the hardware and software components required for implementing the ISP architecture on the Internet, wherein the generated output is applicable to implement an instance of the ISP architecture on the Internet according to the specified logical design and at least a portion of the generated capacity requirement for the ISP architecture; wherein the one or more ISP services include one or more of basic services, value-added services, infrastructure services, and operation or management services, wherein; the basic services include one or more of email, Web hosting, Internet news, Internet access or File Transfer Protocol (FTP), the value-added services include one or more of a calendar service, a search engine service, a WebMail service, a chat service, a messaging service, or an address book service, the infrastructure services include one or more of a Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS), a Domain Name System (DNS) service, a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) service, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) service, or a Network Time Protocol (NTP) service, or the operation and management services include one or more of a jumpstart service, a monitoring service, a provisioning service or a backup service. - View Dependent Claims (87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108)
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Specification