Alcatel Lucent

Alcatel

Arnold Jansen

Carl Rajsic

Gerard Damm

Peter Mark Rabinovitch

Zlatko Krstulich

Pierrick Jacques Guingo

Vincent Mouilleron

Mudashiru Busari

A virtual router network (VRN) for performing real-time flow measurements (RTFM) is provided. The VRN effectively reduces the number of traffic metering points required thereby simplifying the aggregation and exportation of flow records to a collector. The collector may be service manager in a network management system. The metering points, in a preferred embodiment, are at virtual interfaces (VI) which are edge nodes in VRN. One of the virtual interfaces is selected as a master virtual interface and act as a collector and distributor of flow related information. In one aspect of the invention the VRN is used to provide, non-invasively, per-flow delay monitoring in a communication system.

Distributed architecture for real-time flow measurement at the network domain level

A method and apparatus for assessing a communications' network adherence to Service Level Agreements (SLAs) is presented. The apparatus includes a arrival curve parameter derivation and arrival curve parameter reporting means. A arrival curve parameter generator may be implemented either in hardware for a predefined response in fitting arrival curves to cumulative content arrival variations, or in software for flexibility in the content traffic considered for assessment. The arrival curve generator may be associated with a physical port, a line card, or a network node. Arrival curve parameters defining arrival curves are employed by a Network Management System (NMS) in conjunction with communications network node and communications network service curves in performing SLA conformance assessments. The advantages are derived from a distributed content traffic characterization in terms of arrival curves, a reduced resource overhead in conveying arrival curve parameters without sacrificing SLA assessment thoroughness.

Network service level agreement arrival-curve-based conformance checking

In a multi-service network, layer 2 traffic such as IP traffic according to the invention is carried over ATM SVCs or SPVCs. Methods of setting up such connections using the PNNI protocol are also discussed. Using enhancements to the standard ATM SPVC/SVC signaling messages, layer 3 IP routing processes on multi-services switches on opposite ends of the network allow traffic to flow transparently through an underlying layer 2 virtual connection. This provides a simple and efficient way to transport IP packets across an ATM network.

SVC/SPVC with L3 IP forwarding

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Ottawa, Canada

Arnold Jansen