Real-time monitoring of service agreements

• US 20030120771A1
• Filed: 04/26/2002
• Published: 06/26/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Compaq Computer Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Laye, Christophe T., Flauw, Marc
• Granted Patent: US 8,099,488 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/046 comprising network management agents or mobile agents therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0681 Configuration of triggering conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5003 Managing SLA; Interaction between SLA and QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5009 Determining service level performance parameters or violations of service level contracts, e.g. violations of agreed response time or mean time between failures [MTBF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5025 by proactively reacting to service quality change, e.g. by reconfiguration after service quality degradation or upgrade
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/06 Generation of reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0823 Errors, e.g. transmission errors
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/55 Testing of service level quality, e.g. simulating service usage
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/00 Arrangements for metering, time-control or time indication ; Metering, charging or billing arrangements for voice wireline or wireless communications, e.g. VoIP
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/70 Administration or customization aspects; Counter-checking correct charges
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/73 Validating charges
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/8016 based on quality of service [QoS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/70 Administration aspects, modify settings or limits or counter-check correct charges
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/7072 Validate charges
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/7414 QoS

Abstract

A telecommunications network management system is disclosed that continuously monitors compliance with a service level agreement. In a preferred embodiment, the system includes a data collector, a performance data manager, and a service level objective monitor. The data collector receives service information from one or more sources in a telecommunications network, and converts the service information into values of primary parameters in a service model. The performance data manager receives the primary parameter values from the data collector, and calculates values of secondary parameters in the service model from the primary parameter values. The parameter values are stored in a performance database. The service level objective (SLO) monitor verifies that parameter values satisfy parameter objectives, and initiates a specified action for that parameter objective if a violation is detected.

Claims

1. A telecommunications network management system that comprises:

a data collector that receives service information from one or more sources in a telecommunications network, and that converts the service information into values of primary parameters of a service model;

a performance data manager that receives the primary parameter values from the data collector, and that calculates values of secondary parameters of the service model from the primary parameter values, wherein the performance data manager stores the primary and secondary parameter values in a performance data database; and

a service level objective (SLO) monitor that receives primary parameter values from the data collector and secondary parameter values from the performance data manager, wherein the SLO monitor verifies that parameter values satisfy parameter objectives, and wherein the SLO monitor initiates an action defined for that parameter objective if a violation is detected.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the SLO monitor determines an objective status value for each comparison between a parameter value and a parameter, wherein the objective status value ranges between zero and one to indicate a degree of degradation, and wherein the SLO monitor provides the objective status values to the performance data manager for storage in the performance data database.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the service model comprises a hierarchy of user-defined service components each having one or more parameters, wherein at least some of the parameters are primary parameters having values collected from sources in the network, and wherein at least some of the parameters are secondary parameters having values calculated from other parameters.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the data collector receives service information from the sources via adapters that convert information from the source into a standard format and that provide the service information at a standard rate.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the SLO monitor verifies parameter values in real time relative to the receiving of the service information by the data collector.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein the service model further comprises a set of parameter objectives associated with one or more parameters of the service model, and wherein the set of parameter objectives have thresholds set in accordance with a service level agreement.

7. The system of claim 3, wherein the service model is reconfigurable during system operation.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the action includes initiating a procedure to locate a problem source in the telecommunications network.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the action includes altering a configuration of a telecommunications network component so as to return a parameter value to a desired range.

10. A method for continuously monitoring compliance with a service level agreement, the method comprising:

collecting service information from one or more sources in a telecommunications network;

converting the service information into values of primary parameters of a service model;

calculating values of secondary parameters of the service model from the primary parameter values;

verifying that parameter values satisfy parameter objectives for those parameters; and

automatically initiating an action defined for that service model objective if a parameter value does not satisfy a parameter objective.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

determining an objective status value for each combination of parameter value and parameter objective verified, wherein the objective status value ranges between zero and one to indicate a degree of degradation; and

storing the primary parameter values, the secondary parameter values, and the objective status values in a database.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the service model comprises a hierarchy of user-defined service components each having one or more parameters, wherein at least some of the parameters are primary parameters having values collected from sources in the network, and wherein at least some of the parameters are secondary parameters having values calculated from other parameters.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the service model is part of a service level agreement model having one or more service level objectives, wherein the one or more service level objectives comprise a hierarchy of service component objectives and parameter objectives.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the parameter objectives specify at least one threshold for a parameter value, and wherein the objectives specify an action to be taken when a threshold is crossed in a specified direction.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the parameter objective thresholds are set in accordance with a service level agreement.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the action is an alarm message.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the action includes altering a configuration of a telecommunications network component so as to return a parameter value to a desired range.

18. The method of claim 10, wherein collecting the service information includes converting information from the one or more sources into a standard format and obtaining the service information at a standard rate.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the verifying occurs in real time relative to the collecting of the service information.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein the service model is reconfigurable during system operation.