Scalable policy deployment architecture in a communication network

• US 8,966,057 B2
• Filed: 01/21/2011
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hu, Qingmin, Eng, Douglas, Figurelle, Terry, McKnight, Jie
• Primary Examiner(s): Vostal, O. C.
• Application Number:
  US13/011,808
• Publication Number:
  US 20120191842A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,495 Days
• Field of Search: 709/224, 709/234, 709/238, 370/230, 370/229, 370/392, 370/351, 370/388, 370/389
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/173 using an interconnection network, e.g. matrix, shuffle, pyramid, star, snowflake
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/56 Packet switching systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5077 wherein the managed service relates to simple transport services, i.e. providing only network infrastructure
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5096 wherein the managed service relates to distributed or central networked applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/12 Network monitoring probes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/14 Routing performance; Theoretical aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/782 Hierarchical allocation of resources, e.g. involving a hierarchy of local and centralised entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/142 Managing session states for stateless protocols; Signalling session states; State transitions; Keeping-state mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2662 Controlling the complexity of the video stream, e.g. by scaling the resolution or bitrate of the video stream based on the client capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/462 Content or additional data management, e.g. creating a master electronic program guide from data received from the Internet and a Head-end, controlling the complexity of a video stream by scaling the resolution or bit-rate based on the client capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/084 using delegated authorisation, e.g. open authorisation [OAuth] protocol
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/14 using intermediate storage

Abstract

Aspects describe using a Policy Access Gateway to facilitate scalability within a communication network and to provide a solution to deploy an enhanced policy gateway. The Policy Access Gateway can enhance standard defined Diameter Routing Agent (DRA) functions with session binding mechanisms. Further, the Policy Access Gateway is scalable and can be deployed in a very large network that supports hundreds of millions of users. Further, the Policy Access Gateway can provide additional policy information to enable policy information consolidation and caching capabilities.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

facilitating, by a system comprising a processor, routing between a policy decision engine and network devices of traffic service zones;

receiving, by the system, network policy information from the network devices, wherein a first network device of the network devices performs a first function that is different from a second function performed by a second network device of the network devices;

tracking, by the system, a service activity based on an Internet protocol data stream that represents bits for the service activity; and

managing, by the system, the network devices of the traffic service zones based on the network policy information, wherein the managing is performed on behalf of the policy decision engine, and wherein the traffic service zones are scalable without an additional policy decision engine other than the policy decision engine.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing, by the system, state information and session information related to a service determined to be contributing to the service activity in a traffic service zone of the traffic service zones.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the facilitating comprises facilitating the routing between the policy decision engine and the network devices of at least five traffic service zones.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the managing comprises managing the network devices of the traffic service zones, and wherein the first network device of a first traffic service zone is determined to be located in a first data center storage device and wherein the second network device of a second traffic service zone is determined to be located in a second data center storage device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the tracking comprises tracking the service activity for a first service and another service activity for a second service different from the service activity.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the tracking comprises tracking different network elements of the network devices that facilitate the service activity.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the tracking comprises tracking different combinations of network nodes of the network devices that support the service activity.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

communicating, by the system, with a network device of the network devices of the traffic service zones on behalf of the policy decision engine; and

communicating, by the system, with the policy decision engine on behalf of the network device of the network devices of the traffic service zones.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the service activity is an activity selected from a group of activities comprising a voice call, an instant message, and an Internet browsing session.

10. An apparatus, comprising:

a memory to store executable instructions; and

a processor, coupled to the memory, that facilitates execution of the executable instructions to perform operations, comprising;

tracking service activities of network services and mobile devices that support the service activities comprising tracking the service activities based on an Internet protocol data stream that represents bits for the service activities;

managing network related policies, wherein the network related policies comprise a set of rules received from a network operator device and are applied to a set of network devices of traffic service zones, wherein the set of network devices comprise a first network device and a second network device that perform different functions; and

facilitating enforcement of the network related policies on the set of network devices comprising managing the first network device and the second network device based on network policy information and on behalf of a policy decision engine, wherein the traffic service zones are scalable without an additional policy decision engine other than the policy decision engine.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise communicating with the set of network devices of the traffic service zones on behalf of the policy decision engine.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise communicating with the policy decision engine on behalf of the set of network devices of the traffic service zones.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the set of network devices of the traffic service zones comprises network devices of at least five traffic service zones.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise storing state information and session information related to a traffic service zone of the traffic service zones in a data store.

15. A computer-readable storage device storing executable instructions that, in response to execution, cause a system comprising a processor to perform operations, comprising:

tracking service activities with respect to network devices of a wireless communication network comprising tracking Internet protocol data packets that carry bits for the service activities;

correlating the service activities to different combinations of the network devices of traffic service zones, wherein the network devices support the service activities;

facilitating routing between a policy decision engine and the network devices of the traffic service zones; and

managing the network devices of the traffic service zones on behalf of the policy decision engine, wherein the traffic service zones are scalable without an additional policy decision engine.

16. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the service activities comprise a first activity for a first user equipment and a second activity for a second user equipment.

17. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the service activities comprise services provided to a user equipment.

18. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the service activities comprise different network elements of the network devices that support the service activities.

19. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving network policy information; and

managing the network devices of the traffic service zones based on the network policy information, wherein the managing is performed on behalf of the policy decision engine.

20. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the traffic service zones comprise more than four traffic service zones.