Provisioning network services

• US 9,385,921 B1
• Filed: 03/04/2004
• Issued: 07/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Juniper Networks Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Juniper Networks Incorporated
• Inventors: Jarrett, Ian Anthony Leslie
• Primary Examiner(s): Goodchild, William
• Application Number:
  US10/791,743
• Time in Patent Office: 4,506 Days
• Field of Search: 709/226
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/024 using relational databases for representation of network management data, e.g. managing via structured query language [SQL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/04 Network management architectures or arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/085 Retrieval of network configuration; Tracking network configuration history
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0853 by actively collecting configuration information or by backing up configuration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/14 Network analysis or design
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5045 Making service definitions prior to deployment

Abstract

A network service database stores abstractions of services provided by network elements. The network elements may proactively initiate communication with the service database. Additionally, network elements may update the service database when the network element experiences a state change. Client applications may contact the service database to perform functions, such as provisioning network services, billing, and fault monitoring without having to be concerned with the underlying details of each of the network elements.

Claims

1. A network device that routes traffic in a network, the network device comprising:

a service broker, at least partially implemented in hardware, to;

construct a model of network protocols and network standards supported by the network device;

automatically locate, based on constructing the model and at a first time, a network database,

the network database being included in a device, separate from the network device, that interfaces between a client application of a service provider and a plurality of network devices, including the network device,

the service broker, when locating the network database, being to;

contact a pre-selected network address associated with the network database;

proactively transmit, based on locating the network database and at a second time, the model to the network database independent of a request for the model,

the network database maintaining service information relating to the plurality of network devices in the network, and

the second time occurring after the first time;

utilize one or more daemon processes to monitor, during a third time and based on proactively transmitting the model to the network database, a state of services of the network device,

the third time occurring after the second time,

the one or more daemon processes monitoring the state of services of the network device and communicating the state of services of the network device to the service broker;

update, based on monitoring the state of services, the model to create an updated model,

the updated model being different than the model;

proactively transmit the updated model to the network database independent of a request for the updated model;

receive, based on transmitting at least one of the model or the updated model, a service request from the client application of the service provider via the network database,

the service request including a request for a particular network protocol or a particular network standard supported by the network device;

cause the network device to implement the service request by allocating resources of the network device to handle the service request; and

transmit, based on implementing the service request by the network device, an acknowledgement message to the network database; and

an interface to the network.

2. The network device of claim 1, where the updated model includes a plurality of changes to the model.

3. The network device of claim 1, where the service broker is further to:

transmit a keep alive message to the network database when the state of services of the network device does not change.

4. The network device of claim 1, where the network device further includes:

a packet forwarding engine, and

a routing engine to implement the service broker.

5. The network device of claim 1, where the model relates to at least one of:

Ethernet services,

Asynchronous Transfer Mode transmission services,

Synchronous Optical Network transmission services,

an Internet Protocol version service, or

Virtual Private Networks services.

6. The network device of claim 1, where the acknowledgment message includes information indicating that the service request was successfully implemented by the network device.

7. The network device of claim 1, where the model is an abstraction of underlying capabilities offered by the network device.

8. A method, comprising:

constructing, by a network device, a model of network protocols and network standards supported by the network device;

automatically locating, by the network device and based on constructing the model and at a first time, a network database,

the network database maintaining service information relating to a plurality of network devices, including the network device, in a network,

the network database being included in a device, separate from the network device, that interfaces between a client application of a service provider and the plurality of network devices, and

locating the network database including;

contacting a pre-selected network address associated with the network database;

proactively transmitting, by the network device and based on locating the network database and at a second time, the model to the network database,

the model being transmitted without receiving a network discovery request or a device interrogation request from the network database, and

the second time occurring after the first time;

utilizing one or more daemon processes to monitor, by the network device and based on proactively transmitting the model to the network database and during a third time, a state of services of the network device,

the third time occurring after the second time,

the one or more daemon processes monitoring the state of services of the network device and communicating the state of services of the network device to the network device;

updating, by the network device and based on monitoring the state of services, the model to create an updated model,

the updated model being different than the model;

proactively transmitting, by the network device, the updated model to the network database without receiving a request for the updated model;

receiving, by the network device and based on transmitting at least one of the model or the updated model, a service request from the client application of the service provider via the network database,

the service request including a request for a network protocol or a network standard supported by the network device;

allocating, by the network device, resources of the network device to handle the service request; and

transmitting, by the network device and based on allocating the resources of the network device, an acknowledgement message to the network database.

9. The method of claim 8, where the updated model includes a plurality of changes to the model.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

transmitting a keep alive message to the network database when the state of services of the network device does not change.

11. The method of claim 8, where the network device includes:

a packet forwarding engine, and

a routing engine.

12. The method of claim 8, where the model relates to at least one of:

Ethernet services,

Asynchronous Transfer Mode transmission services,

Synchronous Optical Network transmission services,

an Internet Protocol version service, or

Virtual Private Networks services.

13. The method of claim 8, where the acknowledgment message includes information indicating that the service request was successfully implemented by the network device.

14. The method of claim 8, where the model is an abstraction of underlying capabilities offered by the network device.

15. A device that routes traffic in a network, the device comprising:

one or more processors, implemented at least partially in hardware, to;

construct a model of network protocols and network standards supported by the device;

automatically locate, based on constructing the model and at a first time, a network database,

the network database being included in another device, separate from the device, that interfaces between a client application of a service provider and a plurality of devices, including the device,

the one or more processors, when locating the network database, being to;

contact a pre-selected network address associated with the network database;

proactively transmit, based on locating the network database and at a second time, the model to the network database without receiving a request for the model from the network database,

the network database maintaining service information relating to the plurality of devices in a network, and

the second time occurring after the first time;

utilize one or more daemon processes to monitor, during a third time and based on proactively transmitting the model to the network database, a state of services of the device,

the third time occurring after the second time,

the one or more daemon processes monitoring the state of services of the device and communicating the state of services of the device to the device;

update, based on monitoring the state of services, the model to create an updated model,

the updated model being different than the model;

proactively transmit the updated model to the network database without a request for the updated model from the network database;

receive, based on transmitting at least one of the model or the updated model, a service request from the client application of the service provider via the network database,

the service request including a request for a particular network protocol or a particular network standard supported by the device;

control the device to implement the service request by allocating resources of the device to handle the service request; and

transmit, based on implementing the service request by the device, an acknowledgement message to the network database.

16. The device of claim 15, where the updated model includes a plurality of changes to the model.

17. The device of claim 15, where the one or more processors are further to:

transmit a keep alive message to the network database when the state of services of the device does not change.

18. The device of claim 15, where the device includes:

a packet forwarding engine, and

a routing engine.

19. The device of claim 15, where the network is maintained by the service provider, and

where the one or more processors, when proactively transmitting the model, are to:

hide at least one operation detail unique to the device from the service provider.

20. The device of claim 19, where the at least one operation detail identifies at least one of a manufacturer of the device or a model of the device.

21. The device of claim 15, where the one or more processors, when proactively transmitting the model, are to:

push the model to the network database.