Ciena Corporation

Nortel Networks Corporation

Equipe Communications Corporation

Darryl Black

James R Perry

Thomas R Perry

Anne K Winiewicz

Kevin D Snow

Kevin Farrell

Brian Branscomb

Utpal Datta

Daniel J Sullivan, Jr

William Carter Carroll Bullard

Peter Pothier

Steven Ball

Christine Pecina

Patricia A Davis

David Glaser

Donald Opperman

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for granular management of network resources by accessing network device resources through associated references. In one embodiment, the references are group names, and one or more resources (i.e., a resource collection) within each network device in a telecommunications network may be linked with one or more group names. Group names (or other types of references) may then be used to limit a user's access to particular network device resources. That is, a user may only have access to those resources associated with group names to which the user has access. Over time, network device resources may be associated or disassociated with particular group names. As a result, group names provide users with dynamic access to network device resources. In one embodiment, the groups to which a user has access are defined within a user profile associated with the user. Grouping network device resources, therefore, allows for a granular view of each network device in the network by limiting a user's access to those resources corresponding to group names listed in their user profile. As one example, grouping may allow for customer network management&#x2014;that is a customer's view is limited to only those network device resources for which they have subscribed.

Granular management of network resources

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for managing distributed statistical data retrieval in a network device. Periodically, statistical data is gathered by processes on one or more remote cards in a network device and transferred to a central process. The statistical data may comprise, for example, management/historical data including accounting, performance, security and fault logging data (or some portion thereof). In one embodiment, the central process may notify each process as to when gathered statistical data may be reported. This allows the central process to throttle the amount of data sent to the central process in accordance with any existing backlog of data to be processed by the central process.

Throttling distributed statistical data retrieval in a network device

The present invention provides a method for managing telecommunications networks through user profiles that establish management capabilities and lists of network devices capable of being managed through each user profile. Through profiles, users may be given controlled access to configure network devices, provision services or simply view the network devices, services or portions thereof. For example, customers may be enabled to view services dedicated to their particular networks while being simultaneously prevented from viewing services particular to other customer's networks. This provides security while enabling controlled customer network management. In addition, profiles may be used to limit the management capabilities of network managers to only those network devices and capabilities for which each network manager is responsible and authorized. This controlled access again provides security and may prevent network outages due to inexperienced network management errors as well as simplify network management for each level of network manager. The user profiles may also be used to customize the user interface each user accesses to improve efficiency and ease of network management. Profiles may also be used to establish local network connections and set up appropriate network communication channels to improve the efficiency of user access.

Providing network management access through user profiles

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for accessing network device data through user profiles. User profiles may be created by network administrators, and the corresponding user profile data may be stored in a central network management system (NMS) database. When a user requests data from a particular network device, the NMS utilizes the user profile data in the central database to access the network device and retrieve the required network device data. Since the user profile data is stored in a central database, the user may log into the NMS from any location and connect to any network device in the network. Further, the user profile data may be used to limit which network devices and which network device configured resources the user may access as well as the user's access level.

Accessing network device data through user profiles

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for authenticating the identities of network devices within a telecommunications network. In particular, multiple identifiers associated with a network device are retrieved from and used to identify the network device. Use of multiple identifiers provides fault tolerance and supports full modularity of hardware within a network device. Authenticating the identity of a network device through multiple identifiers allows for the possibility that hardware associated with one or more of the identifiers may be removed from the network device. For example, a network device may still be automatically authenticated even if more than one card within the device are removed as long as at least one card corresponding to an identifier being used for authentication is within the device during authentication. In addition, the present invention allows for dynamic authentication, that is, the NMS is able to update its records, including the identifiers, over time as cards (or other hardware) within network devices are removed and replaced.

Network device identity authentication

The present invention provides a management system internal to a network device that sends various management data files and corresponding metadata files to a management system external to the network device. The external management system then uses the metadata files to process the management data files. As a result, the external management system dynamically learns how to manage a network device through the metadata files. Moreover, new types of management data files&#x2014;perhaps corresponding to new hardware within the network device&#x2014;may be sent from the internal management system to the external management system along with corresponding new metadata files and the external management system will be able to process the new management files without having to be re-booted or restarted. In addition, multiple network devices coupled with the external management system may send various different types of management data to the external management system and using the metadata files from each network device, the external management system will be able to process the various management data types. In one embodiment, the metadata files are JAVA class files.

Processing network management data in accordance with metadata files

A system for collecting and aggregating data from network entities for a data consuming application is described. The system includes a data collector layer to receive network flow information from the network entities and to produce records based on the information. The system also includes a flow aggregation layer fed from the data collection layer and coupled to a storage device. The flow aggregation layer receiving records produced by the data collector layer and aggregates received records. The system can also include an equipment interface layer coupled to the data collector layer and a distribution layer to obtain selected information stored in the storage device and to distribute the select information to a requesting, data consuming application.

Fault tolerance for network accounting architecture

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for internal network device dynamic health monitoring. To increase network device availability, internal network device evaluations of resource attributes are conducted against threshold expressions and network managers are notified of any threshold events to allow them to address issues before failures occur. Flexibility is added by allowing users to select between various predefined threshold expressions, and flexibility is further increased by allowing users to input new threshold expressions. The user provided threshold expressions are dynamically incorporated into the network device's threshold evaluations while the network device is running. Thus, network managers may change threshold expressions at any time in accordance with their needs. The types of threshold expressions that may be used are practically limitless and may include any operand and multiple variables, including the time of day. In addition, multiple threshold expressions may be cascaded together. Network managers may be notified of threshold events in multiple manners as well. Moreover, the types of resource attributes that may be evaluated is extended by assigning unique identifiers to network device resources and allowing threshold evaluations for any identifiable resource and associated attributes.

Internal network device dynamic health monitoring

The present invention provides a method for upgrading embedded configuration databases while a network device is operating and with minimal disruption to network device operation. While a network device is operating and using an embedded primary configuration database, an embedded backup configuration database stops performing as a backup database and is upgraded. The upgraded configuration database is then switched over to become the primary configuration database. The original primary configuration database may immediately become the backup configuration database, or the original primary configuration database may remain unchanged until the upgrade is committed. If the upgrade is not committed, for example, due to errors, then the original primary configuration database may be quickly switched over to again become the primary configuration database. As a result, embedded configuration databases may be upgraded while a network device is operating and with minimal disruption to network device operation.

Method for upgrading embedded configuration databases

The present invention provides a method of managing telecommunications networks through an Operations Support Services (OSS) client and templates. Using an OSS client and various provisioning templates a network manager may interactively provision network services in one or more network devices, in one or more networks, through one or more network management systems. A network manager may interactively establish connections between an OSS client and an NMS server and network device, or the network manager may employ a control template to non-interactively establish these connections. The client/server architecture allows network managers to access multiple different network management servers through multiple OSS clients, and an OSS client may be downloaded from a web accessible server to provide 'manage anywhere' flexibility. Moreover, multiple control and provisioning templates may be ordered and sequenced within a batch template to non-interactively complete multiple provisioning tasks on multiple different network devices managed by multiple different network management systems. Through templates and an OSS client, therefore, one or more network management systems may be integrated with a telecommunication network carrier's OSS to simplify the network device provisioning process.

Template-driven management of telecommunications network via utilization of operations support services clients

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for implementing distributed user management information in telecommunications networks. At least a portion of a user's management information is stored in a team session file that is accessible by a network management system (NMS) client. For example, the team session file may be saved in memory that is local to the NMS client or, if a user logs in through a remote system using a web browser, the team session file may be saved as a cookie in memory local to the remote system. The NMS client may then utilize the user management information in the team session file while the user is logged into the NMS client. In one embodiment, the user management information stored within the team session file includes NMS server connection information. Thus, when a user logs into an NMS client, the NMS client uses the NMS server connection information to connect to an NMS server. The user management information stored within the team session file may be retrieved from user profile information corresponding to the user and stored in a central data repository, and since the user profile data is stored in a central repository, changes may be easily made to the user profile data and consequently pushed out to the team session files accessible by one or more NMS clients. Consequently, a user's management data may widely distributed for access by NMS clients located anywhere in the network.

Distributed user management information in telecommunications networks

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for tracking distributed statistical data retrieval in a network device. Periodically, statistical data is gathered by processes on one or more remote cards in a network device and transferred to a central process. The distributed processes register each different type of statistical data to be gathered with the central process allowing the central process to maintain an accurate inventory of distributed processes expected to send particular statistical data. Tracking statistical data gathering processes allows the central process to consistently report data while allowing each process to remain modular. In addition, tracking increases a network device's scalability. For example, new processes may be added to a network device without affecting existing processes. Moreover, tracking increases a network device's availability. For instance, tracking provides fault tolerance, such that if one statistical data gathering process fails the other statistical data gathering processes are not affected and data continues to be reported. Importantly, data not reported by a registered process may be quickly detected and, where necessary, reported to a network management system. Tracking also provides for auto deregistration, for example, when hot swapping of cards out of a network device, tracking deregisters processes as necessary.

Tracking distributed data retrieval in a network device

The present invention provides methods for operating a computer system that call for executing a plurality of modular processes, providing a data file for use by the plurality of the processes, and incorporating a view identification within each of the plurality of processes to define data accessible by each process within the data file. The processes can include, for example, two identical processes that are executed simultaneously to access the same data within the data file in accordance with the same incorporated view identification.

Growing community of inventors

Hollis, NH, United States of America

Darryl Black