Mci Worldcom, Inc.

Worldcom, Inc.

Hal Badt

Lee Dennis Bengston

Jasvantrai C Shah

Bryan J McGlade

Sridhar Alagar

Mark W Sees

John David Allen

Clint Allen Wagner

In a telecommunications network provisioned with different types of restoration processes, to ensure that the operation of one restoration process does not infringe upon other nodes that are actively executing a different restoration process, a request is sent by one of the restoration processes, under the guise of the operation system that oversees that process, to the operation system that oversees the other restoration process. The controller of the nodes that are performing the other restoration process, in receipt of the request, sends a disable restoration process message to those nodes under its control. Each of those nodes, upon receipt of the disable restoration process message, would disable the restoration process it is provisioned with so long as it is not actively engaging in that restoration process. If it is, it will continue to execute that restoration process until a safe stop point is reached, at which time it ceases that restoration process. Upon cessation of the particular restoration process, the node sends an acknowledge message to its controller, which, when in receipt of such acknowledge message from all of the nodes under its control, sends a disable acknowledged message to the controller of the first restoration process informing the latter that the nodes under its control can now be operated using the first restoration process. The above method is applicable to a telecommunications network provisioned with multiple layers of restoration processes including for example DRA, RTR and centralized restoration.

Method of coordinating the respective operations of different restoration processes

To ensure the integrity of a telecommunications network provisioned with a distributed restoration algorithm (DRA), a communications network is provided for routing signaling messages such as DRA restoration and maintenance messages among the various nodes of the network. Thus, while data is sent among the nodes via the working links interconnecting the various nodes, signal messages are communicated among the various nodes by way of the independent communications network, which may be a wide area network. By reallocating the signal messages to a separate network, an efficient telecommunications network is effected.

Out of band messaging in a DRA network

In a telecommunications network provisioned with a distributed restoration scheme, to determine the reactions and responses of the network while the network is &ldquo;live&rdquo; or operational, an exercise information message is provided to the network for presenting a simulated failure or failures thereto. This exercise information message is broadcast to all of the nodes of the network so that every node is aware of the simulated failure scenario. Modified DRA messages that indicate that they are exercise only messages are used by the nodes for executing the exercise restoration process. Such exercise restoration process will proceed as if an actual failure has occurred with the notable exception that no actual cross-connections will be made. Certain functionalities are provisioned to the nodes to allow the exercise restoration process to be aborted if a real failure is detected or upon the expiration of a timer. The exercise restoration process can also be terminated by a command from the network management.

Method of exercising a distributed restoration process in an operational telecommunications network

In a telecommunications network provisioned with a distributed restoration algorithm, the spare links via which disrupted traffic may be rerouted are categorized into different quality levels based upon their respective anticipated near term availability and reliability. There are a number of categories ranging from dedicated high quality spare links along fully functional spans to low quality spare links that act as replacements for multiple working links in the same span as the failed working link.

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Richardson, TX, United States of America

Hal Badt