Communications network failure detection and remediation

• US 10,771,396 B2
• Filed: 06/18/2018
• Issued: 09/08/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ooma Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Ooma Incorporated
• Inventors: Osterlund, Karl, Farrand, Tobin E., Gillon, William M., Bryan, David A., Vasudev, Arvind, Hart, Douglas E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ly, Anh Vu H
• Application Number:
  US16/011,479
• Publication Number:
  US 20180302334A1
• Time in Patent Office: 813 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2801 Broadband local area networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5019 Ensuring fulfilment of SLA
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0811 by checking connectivity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0852 Delays
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0882 Utilisation of link capacity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/50 Testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/026 Details of "hello" or keep-alive messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/22 Alternate routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/28 using route fault recovery
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/74 Address processing for routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/283 in response to processing delays, e.g. caused by jitter or round trip time [RTT]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/74 measures in reaction to resource unavailability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/765 triggered by the end-points
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/141 Setup of application sessions admission control or resource allocation in data switching networks H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/567 Integrating service provisioning from a plurality of service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/14 Multichannel or multilink protocols

Abstract

Systems and methods for communications network failure detection and remediation. Exemplary methods include: receiving first communications using a network from a first client, the first communications including an identifier for a user of the first client and a security credential of the user; authenticating the first user using the identifier and the security credential; creating, responsive to the authenticating, a registration for the first client in a registration database, the registration including an address for the first client, the registration being used to route second communications from a second client to the first client; establishing, responsive to the authenticating, a connection to the first client; detecting the connection has failed; and removing, responsive to the detecting, the registration from the registration database.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for communications network failure detection and remediation comprising:

receiving first communications using a network from a first client, the first communications including a telephone number, location, and security credential, the telephone number, location, and security credential each being associated with a first user of the first client;

authenticating the first user of the first client using the telephone number and the security credential;

creating, responsive to the authenticating, a registration for the first client in a registration database, the registration including the location from the first communications from the first client, the registration being used to route second communications directed to the telephone number of the first client from a second client;

establishing, responsive to the authenticating, a connection to the first client within the network;

detecting the connection to the first client has failed, the detecting comprising;

measuring a time period during which the first client does not send communications traffic; and

determining the measured time period exceeds a limit, the limit being an amount of time after which it is unlikely a valid connection is idle, the limit being produced by a statistical model; and

removing, responsive to the detecting, the registration for the first client from the registration database.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the connection is a virtual private network connection.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein detecting further comprises:

determining the measured time period exceeds a limit, the limit being a pre-determined value received from a system administrator.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the detecting comprises:

measuring a time period during which a keep alive communication is not received from the first client; and

determining the measured time period exceeds a limit, the limit being a pre-determined value received from a system administrator.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the detecting comprises:

sending an Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) request to the first client;

measuring a time period from the sending during which a communication responsive to the ARP request is not received from the first client; and

determining the measured time period exceeds a limit, the limit being a pre-determined value received from a system administrator.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the detecting comprises:

ascertaining a registration message is not received from the first client before an expiration of the registration.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, the method further comprising:

receiving periodic communications from the first client at a predetermined time interval; and

wherein the detecting comprises;

measuring a first time period during which the periodic communications are not received from the first client; and

determining the measured time period exceeds at least one of the predetermined time interval and a pre-determined value received from a system administrator.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, the method further comprising at least one of:

notifying the first user of the first client of the detected connection failure using at least one of email, text message, telephone call, and push notification;

notifying a monitoring center of the detected connection failure; and

notifying the first client.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the location comprises an IP address.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the security credential comprises one of a password and a certificate.

9. A system for communications network failure detection and remediation comprising:

a server, the server including;

a processor; and

a memory communicatively coupled to the processor, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor to perform a method comprising;

receiving first communications using a network from a first client, the first communications including a telephone number, location, and security credential, the telephone number, location, and security credential each being associated with a first user of the first client;

authenticating the first user of the first client using the telephone number and the security credential;

creating, responsive to the authenticating, a registration for the first client in a registration database, the registration including the location from the first communications from the first client, the registration being used to route second communications directed to the telephone number of the first client from a second client;

establishing, responsive to the authenticating, a connection to the first client within the network;

detecting the connection to the first client has failed, the detecting comprising;

measuring a time period during which the first client does not send communications traffic; and

determining the measured time period exceeds a limit, the limit being an amount of time after which it is unlikely a valid connection is idle, the limit being produced by a statistical model; and

removing, responsive to the detecting, the registration for the first client from the registration database.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the connection is a virtual private network connection.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein detecting further comprises:

determining the measured time period exceeds a limit, the limit being a pre-determined value received from a system administrator.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the detecting comprises:

measuring a time period during which a keep alive communication is not received from the first client; and

determining the measured time period exceeds a limit, the limit being a pre-determined value received from a system administrator.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the detecting comprises:

sending an Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) request to the first client;

measuring a time period from the sending during which a communication responsive to the ARP request is not received from the first client; and

determining the measured time period exceeds a limit, the limit being a pre-determined value received from a system administrator.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the detecting comprises:

ascertaining a registration message is not received from the first client before an expiration of the registration.

15. The system of claim 9, the method further comprising:

receiving periodic communications from the first client at a predetermined time interval; and

wherein the detecting comprises;

measuring a first time period during which the periodic communications are not received from the first client; and

determining the measured time period exceeds at least one of the predetermined time interval and a pre-determined value received from a system administrator.

19. The system of claim 9, wherein the location comprises an IP address.

20. The system of claim 9, wherein the security credential comprises one of a password and a certificate.

16. A system for communications network failure detection and remediation comprising:

means for receiving first communications using a network from a first client, the first communications including a telephone number, location, and security credential, the telephone number, location, and security credential each being associated with a first user of the first client;

means for authenticating the first user of the first client using the telephone number and the security credential;

means for creating, responsive to the authenticating, a registration for the first client in a registration database, the registration including the location from the first communications from the first client, the registration being used to route second communications directed to the telephone number of the first client from a second client;

means for establishing, responsive to the authenticating, a connection to the first client within the network;

means for detecting the connection to the first client has failed, the means for detecting comprising;

means for measuring a time period during which the first client does not send communications traffic; and

means for determining the measured time period exceeds a limit, the limit being an amount of time after which it is unlikely a valid connection is idle, the limit being produced by a statistical model; and

means for removing, responsive to the detecting, the registration for the first client from the registration database.