Alcatel Lucent

Alcatel

Alcatel-lucent USA Inc.

Hakki Cankaya

Kamakshi Sridhar

Yijun Xiong

Gerard Damm

Saravut Charcranoon

Marc L J Vandenhoute

Tarek S El-Bawab

Peter Roberts

Jong-Dug Shin

Timucin Ozugur

Ljubisa Tancevski

Dominique Verchere

John Blanton

Sven Ooghe

Prasad N Golla

Anshul Agrawal

Gary W Ester

Mei Yang

Ana Lardies

A diagnostic tool is provided for calculating the availability of multi-segment pseudowires within an internet protocol (IP)-based mobile backhaul network. A control message is transmitted from an originating node towards a destination node within the IP-based mobile backhaul network over a primary multi-segment pseudowire and a secondary multi-segment pseudowire. From the response messages received from intermediate nodes positioned between the network node and the destination node along the primary multi-segment pseudowire and the secondary multi-segment psuedowire, the originating node determines the identities of each of the intermediate nodes, and calculates a respective individual availability of the primary multi-segment pseudowire and the secondary multi-segment pseudowire.

Tools that facilitate diagnostics for mobile backhaul networks

A diagnostic tool for identifying priority errors within a data network is realized using a priority trace data packet. The priority trace data packet is originated at an originating node of interest and terminated at a terminating node of interest. At various intermediate network nodes along the data path between the originating and terminating nodes, the priority trace packet is inspected to determine the current priority value of the priority trace packet. The current priority value is stored in a priority trace field that can be analyzed by a network management node to identify one or more sources of priority errors.

Priority trace in data networks

Fully redundant clock systems are provided on network nodes coupled by redundant multisegment psuedowires (MSPWs) within an internet-protocol (IP)-based mobile backhaul network. The primary clock system includes a primary master clock on a first node and a primary slave clock on a second node coupled via a primary MSPW, while the secondary clock system includes a secondary master clock on the first node and a secondary slave clock on the second node coupled via a secondary MSPW. The primary and secondary slave clocks synchronize with their respective primary and secondary master clocks via their respective MSPWs. A clock controller maintains the secondary clock system in a hot-stand-by mode, and upon determining that a switch-over is needed, automatically switches from the primary clock system to the secondary clock system.

High availability clock synchronization and distribution for mobile backhaul networks

A computer-implemented method for facilitating DHCP diagnostic functionality comprises a plurality of operation. An operation is performed for identifying misconfigurations to a DHCP option configuration of a DHCP agent between a DHCP server and a client of the DHCP server. An operation is performed for confirming proper address concentration configuration with respect to the DHCP agent. An operation is performed for snooping on address assignments from the DHCP server to the client of the DHCP server to determine unauthorized ones of the address assignments.

Facilitating DHCP diagnostics in telecommunication networks

An intelligent switch and method are described herein which help to effectively retransmit a lost packet that is associated with a television broadcast stream to one or more set-top boxes.

Intelligent switch and method for retransmitting a lost packet to decoder(s)

A sequential iterative methodology is used to generate a solution space with different cost/availability values for multiple network architectures from which an optimal or near-optimal solution can be determined. A modeling module () provides a cost value for a network architecture under consideration and, once cost modeling is done, an availability analysis is performed for the architecture under analysis. If a relatively few connections prevent a model from acceptability, the availability analysis module () reveals the causing factors of the unsatisfactory availability for those few connections and suggests that the modeling perform further optimisations on those causing factors. This iterative process is repeated until an optimum or near-optimum acceptable solution is found; if no acceptable solution is found, the solutions generated in the availability analysis module are reviewed to find the best available solution.

Availability aware cost modeling for optical core networks

In certain embodiments, an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) network comprises an operating multicast tree comprising a first set of nodes and components. The first set of nodes and components are operable to process an operating data stream to facilitate delivery of one or more channels to one or more endpoints. The IPTV network further comprises a proactively-established redundant multicast tree comprising a second set of nodes and components. The second set of nodes and components comprises at least one node or at least one component that is redundant of a corresponding node or component in the first set of nodes and components of the operating multicast tree, and that is not in the first set of nodes and components of the operating multicast tree, and are operable to process a redundant data stream. One or more buffers are operable to buffer the operating data stream and the redundant data stream.

Proactively providing a redundant multicast tree in an internet protocol television (IPTV) network

Apparatus and method for supporting operations and maintenance ('OAM') functionality in an OBS network is described. One embodiment is an OBS network having OAM functionality, the OBS network comprising a plurality of OBS nodes interconnected via links. Each of the OBS nodes comprises an OAM module ('OAMM') for processing information regarding OAM functions in the OBS network and a routing manager (&#x201c;RM&#x201d;) for processing routing information; and wherein at least one wavelength in each of the links comprises an OAM/1 wavelength for OAM/1 transmissions between nodes, the OAM/1 transmissions comprising OAM activity information; wherein at least one wavelength in each of the links comprises a reference wavelength for providing a wavelength reference to which light generating devices in the OBS network lock; and wherein at least one wavelength in each of the links comprises a routing wavelength for providing routing information between nodes.

Method and apparatus for supporting operations and maintenance functionality in an optical burst switching network

Control information associated with data bursts to be switched on a burst-switched router is transmitted using payload envelopes () on one or more control channels (). A control channel scheduling module () defines sets of contiguous payload envelopes, referred to as 'frontiers' (). A frontier contains a predetermined number of payload envelopes that could be transmitted over a maximum time difference from the time of arrival of a control packet to a latest time of departure for the control packet. After selecting a control packet, a current frontier is determined from a current time and a frontier index. Scheduling information for the current and next frontiers is stored in memory (). The memory is searched for an available gap to accommodate the control packet () in one of either the current set or a next frontier based on the scheduling information.

Method and apparatus for burst scheduling

A partially preemptive quality of service ('QoS') scheduling model for application in an optical burst switched ('OBS') network node is described. In one aspect, the invention comprises a method for dropping only an portion of a data burst under consideration that overlaps with a portion of an already-scheduled data burst. In another aspect, the invention comprises preempting only that portion of an already-scheduled data burst that overlaps with a portion of a data burst under consideration and scheduling the data burst under consideration in its entirety. In one embodiment, the decision whether to drop a portion of the data burst under consideration or preempt a portion of the already-scheduled data burst is based on the relative priorities of the bursts. Similarly, the decision whether to perform a partial or full drop or preempt is based on the amount of overlap between the bursts.

Partially preemptive burst scheduling model for an optical burst switching network

Apparatus and method for scheduling transmission of data bursts in an OBS network are described. One embodiment is a router in an OBS network, the router comprising a grouper module for collecting a group of BHPs arriving during a BHP collecting period and classifying each BHP of the group of BHPs into corresponding baskets depending on the data channel scheduling window of its corresponding data burst; a classifier and channel assignment module for assigning data bursts to appropriate data channels; and a channel scheduler for constructing an interval graph representing data bursts corresponding to BHPs classified in a single one of the baskets having overlapping segments on each data channel as adjacent vertices and scheduling data bursts on each data channel based on a process that finds a maximum number of non-adjacent vertices on the interval graph.

Method and apparatus for scheduling transmission of data bursts in an optical burst switching network

A scheduling system and methodology for use in a network switch element having multiserver, multiple-arbiter architecture. Ingress ports and egress ports coupled to the cross-connect fabric of the network element are provided with multiple ingress and egress arbiters, respectively, for effectuating an iterative arbitration strategy such as RGA or RG. Arbiter architectures include singe-arbiter-per-port; single-arbiter-per-server; multiple-arbiters-per-port; and multiple-arbiters-per-server arrangements, wherein the arbiters can be implemented using RRA, BTA, Flexible Ring, or any other arbiter technology. Depending on the iteration strategy, ingress arbiter architecture and egress arbiter architecture, a variety of iterative, multiserver-capable scheduling algorithms can be obtained, which scheduling algorithms can also be implemented in QoS-aware network nodes.

Multiserver scheduling system and method for a fast switching element

A control architecture for an optical burst-switched network includes an electronic ingress edge router, a switch control unit at each hop, and an electronic egress edge router. The electronic ingress edge router assembles multiple data packets into a burst. The switch control units at each hop configure the optical switching matrix to switch the burst through the optical burst-switched network. Finally, the electronic egress edge router receives the burst from the optical burst-switched network and disassembles the burst into multiple data packets.

Control architecture in optical burst-switched networks

The present invention provides a system and method for reserving data channels in an optical burst-switched network. A data channel (or a multiple of data channels) along an optical path in an optical burst-switched network is reserved by first transmitting a data channel reservation request from an electronic ingress edge router to a reservation termination node. Next, the data channel reservation request is processed at all nodes along the optical path, including the reservation termination node. A data channel reservation acknowledgement is then transmitted from the reservation termination node to the electronic ingress edge router. Finally, the data channel path is reserved once an initial burst(s) which contains a reserve data channel bit reaches the reservation termination node.

Data channel reservation in optical burst-switched networks

A system and method for assembling multiple multicast data packets into a multicast burst according to multiple multicast burstification classes and switching the multicast burst through an optical burst switched network. To switch multicast data packets through an optical burst switched network according to the present invention, multicast data packets are first assembled into a multicast burst at an electronic ingress edge router according to a plurality of multicast burstification classes. The multicast burst is then switched through the optical burst-switched network to the destined electronic egress edge routers, disassembled back into multicast data packets and transmitted to multiple destinations.

Growing community of inventors

Dallas, TX, United States of America

Hakki Cankaya