Measuring quality of experience and identifying problem sources for various service types
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:
- sending one or more scout packets from a source element to a destination element;
wherein each respective one of the one or more scout packets comprises a service-type identifier associating the respective scout packet with a respective one service-type of one or more service-types, and the respective scout packet is routed from the source element to the destination element along a path designated for the routing of data packets of the respective one service-type, the path comprising one or more network elements;
identifying at least one scout packet at one or more of the network elements traversed by the scout packet between the source element and the destination element;
at each of the one or more network elements, reading timestamp information from the identified scout packet, the read timestamp information identifying one or more elements previously traversed by the scout packet and the time at which the scout packet was received by each previously traversed element;
at each of the one or more network elements, writing timestamp information to the identified scout packet, the written timestamp information identifying the respective network element and the time at which the scout packet was received by the respective network element;
retrieving timestamp information associated with each of the one or more network elements traversed by the one or more scout packets; and
for each respective one of the one or more service-types, analyzing the timestamp information associated with each of one or more scout packets associated with the respective one service-type to identify potential service degradation along the path designated for the routing of data packets of the respective one service-type, and to further identify one or more network elements traversed by the one or more scout packets as a potential source of the potential service degradation.
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Abstract
Methods, systems, and computer readable media can provide for measuring the quality of experience levels and locating the sources of problems for service types in a network. This can be facilitated by sending one or more scout packets through the network, identifying those scout packets at the various network elements on a path within the network between a source and a destination, and compiling scout information identified by each of the various network elements to determine potential service degradation within the network.
20 Citations
26 Claims
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1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:
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sending one or more scout packets from a source element to a destination element; wherein each respective one of the one or more scout packets comprises a service-type identifier associating the respective scout packet with a respective one service-type of one or more service-types, and the respective scout packet is routed from the source element to the destination element along a path designated for the routing of data packets of the respective one service-type, the path comprising one or more network elements; identifying at least one scout packet at one or more of the network elements traversed by the scout packet between the source element and the destination element; at each of the one or more network elements, reading timestamp information from the identified scout packet, the read timestamp information identifying one or more elements previously traversed by the scout packet and the time at which the scout packet was received by each previously traversed element; at each of the one or more network elements, writing timestamp information to the identified scout packet, the written timestamp information identifying the respective network element and the time at which the scout packet was received by the respective network element; retrieving timestamp information associated with each of the one or more network elements traversed by the one or more scout packets; and for each respective one of the one or more service-types, analyzing the timestamp information associated with each of one or more scout packets associated with the respective one service-type to identify potential service degradation along the path designated for the routing of data packets of the respective one service-type, and to further identify one or more network elements traversed by the one or more scout packets as a potential source of the potential service degradation. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A network element, comprising:
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a data store operable to store computer program instructions and provide storage for scout information carried by a scout packet in transit between a source element and a destination element, wherein the scout packet comprises a service-type identifier associating the scout packet with a respective one service-type of one or more service-types, and the scout packet is routed from the source element to the destination element along a path designated for the routing of data packets of the respective one service-type, the path comprising one or more network elements; a processor operable to execute said computer program instructions, the computer program instructions being operable to cause the processor to; identify the scout packet in a packet stream; read timestamp information from the identified scout packet, the read timestamp information identifying one or more elements previously traversed by the scout packet and the time at which the scout packet was received by each previously traversed element; and write timestamp information to the identified scout packet, the written timestamp information identifying the network element and the time at which the scout packet was received by the network element; a network interface operable to communicate collected timestamp information carried by the scout packet to a central processing element, wherein the collected timestamp information is used to identify potential service degradation between the source element and destination element along the path designated for the routing of data packets of the respective one service-type, and to further identify one or more network elements traversed by the identified scout packet as a potential source of the potential service degradation. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. One or more non-transitory computer readable media operable to execute on a processor, the computer readable being operable to cause the processor to perform the operations comprising:
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identifying one or more scout packets at a network element, wherein each respective one of the one or more scout packets comprises a service-type identifier associating the respective scout packet with a respective one service-type of one or more service-types, and the respective scout packet is routed from a source element to a destination element along a path designated for the routing of data packets of the respective one service-type, the path comprising one or more network elements; reading timestamp information from each of the one or more identified scout packets, the read timestamp information identifying one or more elements previously traversed by the respective scout packet and the time at which the respective scout packet was received by each previously traversed element; writing timestamp information to each of the one or more identified scout packets, the written timestamp information identifying the network element and the time at which the respective scout packet was received by the network element; and for each respective one of the one or more service-types, analyzing information contained within the one or more scout packets associated with the respective one service-type to identify potential service degradation in the path designated for the routing of data packets of the respective one service-type, and to further identify one or more network elements traversed by the one or more scout packets as a potential source of the potential service degradation. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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Specification