At&t Intellectual Property I, L.p.

At+t Corp.

Meriton Networks US Inc.

Meriton Netowrks US Inc.

Leah L Zhang

Kevin L D'Souza

Heng Wang

Xiaowen Mang

Paul Bonenfant

Ravichandran Iyer

Manjunath Sampangi

Antonio Rodriguez-Moral

Han Q Nguyen

David H Lu

Chen-Yui Yang

Luis Figueroa

Robert J Ferro

Zhijian Xu

Chee Ching

Joseph Lu

Aman M Shaikh

Li-Jin Wu Chung

Madhukar M Kshirsagar

Agnes C Tow

Shiow-Ching Ho

Rohini Bhangley

Arvind Ramarajan

Yung-Chao Yu

Methods and apparatus to track network topology changes are disclosed. An example topology tool to track a change to a network topology includes a message processor to, in response to a reporting message generated by a software defined network controller, identify a unique identifier (UID) associated with a network element to be subject to a topology change event, where the reporting message including topology change information corresponding to the topology change event scheduled to occur at a future time. A database search tool is to search a first topology database for a first post-confirmation data record corresponding to the UID and in response to the first post-confirmation data record missing from the first topology database, search a second topology database for a first pre-confirmation data record corresponding to the UID. A database controller is to generate a second pre-confirmation data record in response to the first pre-confirmation data record missing from the second topology database.

Methods and apparatus to track changes to a network topology

Systems and methods provide design and testing for a control plane of a network region.

Network control plane design tool

Devices, computer-readable media and methods are disclosed for managing path utilizations for telecommunication network tunnels. For example, a processor deployed in a telecommunication network may receive a request from a router of the telecommunication network for a tunnel to a destination in the telecommunication network, send a response to the router that includes at least one path comprising the tunnel through the telecommunication network to the destination, receive a trap message from the router that includes a confirmation that the at least one path is utilized by the router, and update at least one record for the at least one path in response to the trap message, where the at least one record indicates a status of a utilization of the at least one path.

Path computation element protocol response and simple network management protocol confirmation for tunnel configuration

Methods and apparatus to track network topology changes are disclosed. An example apparatus includes machine readable instructions, and a processor to execute the instructions to perform operations. The operations include, in response to a reporting message generated by a software defined controller containing topology change information corresponding to a topology change event scheduled to occur at a future time, store, in a topology database, a pre-validation data record reflecting the occurrence of the topology change event. The pre-validation data record indicates the occurrence is not validated. In addition, a validation seeking message is generated to validate occurrence of the topology change event and is transmitted to a network device to be subject to the topology change event after the future time. In response to a validation message from the network device, a post-validation data record is stored in the topology database.

Methods and apparatus to track network changes are disclosed herein. An example method to track a network topology includes, in response to a reporting message including topology change information corresponding to a topology change event, generating a confirmation-seeking message based on the topology change information to confirm the topology change event and updating a topology data set representing the network topology based on a response to the confirmation-seeking message. Further disclosed methods include generating a pre-confirmation data record that reflects the topology change information contained in the reporting message, and storing the pre-confirmation data record in a pre-confirmation topology database.

Example methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture to monitor communication paths in communication systems are disclosed. An example method includes identifying links of a communication system, the links communicatively coupling router pairs, identifying communication paths in the communication system, each of the communication paths being routed via one or more of the links, testing the links during a first interval by testing at least a first portion of the communication paths, testing the links during the second interval by testing at least a second portion of the communication paths, changing the first portion of the communication paths to include at least one of the communication paths from the second portion of the communication paths such that testing the first portion of the communication paths and testing the second portion of the communication paths collectively test each of the links, and identifying a link failure based on the testing.

Methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture to monitor communication paths in communication systems

A method and apparatus for diagnosing and isolating label-switched-path impairments in a network are disclosed. For example, the present method receives an impairment notification indicating a potential impairment for at least one label switched path between a source device and a destination device. The method then identifies all routers along each of the at least one label switched path. The method then determines automatically whether each of the routers along each of the at least one label switched path is enabled for exchanging label mapping information. Finally, the method identifies at least one of the at least one label switched path as being impaired if at least one of the routers on the switched path is deemed not enabled for exchanging label mapping information.

Method and apparatus for isolating label-switched path impairments

Example methods and apparatus to monitor tunnels within traffic engineering/fast reroute (TE/FRR) enabled networks are disclosed. A disclosed example apparatus includes a message interface to receive from a router a change alert notification for a traffic engineering (TE) tunnel, a router interrogator to interrogate the router to obtain updated path information for the TE tunnel in response to the received change alert notification, and a topology database interface to update a database representative of a tunnel topology of a TE/FRR enabled network based on the updated path information.

Methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture to monitor tunnels within traffic engineering/fast reroute enabled networks

Example methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture to monitor communication paths in communication systems are disclosed. An example method includes identifying links of a communication system, the links communicatively coupling routers, identifying communication paths in the communication system, each of the communication paths being routed via one or more of the links, testing the links during a first interval by testing at least a first portion of the communication paths, testing the links during the second interval by testing at least a second portion of the communication paths, changing the first portion of the communication paths to include at least one of the communication paths from the second portion of the communication paths such that testing the first portion of the communication paths and testing the second portion of the communication paths collectively test each of the links, and identifying a link failure based on the testing.

Example methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture to monitor communication paths in communication systems are disclosed. A disclosed example method includes identifying first and second inter-network communication links of a communication system, identifying a first plurality of router pairs associated with the first inter-network communication link, identifying a second plurality of router pairs associated with the second inter-network communication link, partitioning the first plurality of router pairs into a first subset of router pairs and a second subset of router pairs, partitioning the second plurality of router pairs into a third subset of router pairs and a fourth subset of router pairs, during a first time interval, performing first reachability tests for respective ones of the first and third subsets of router pairs, and during a second time interval, performing second reachability tests for respective ones of the second and fourth subsets of router pairs.

The invention comprises a method and apparatus for deriving at least one router configuration of at least one datacenter edge router and at least one provider edge router to support at least one datacenter managing at least one customer virtual private network. Specifically, the method comprises assigning at least one datacenter profile to the at least one datacenter, and assigning a datacenter profile route-target to the at least one datacenter profile.

Method and apparatus for flexible network management of multiple customer virtual private networks

In one embodiment, the invention comprises a method and apparatus for verifying connectivity in a network comprising a plurality of provider edge routers and a plurality of customer edge routers facilitating communication within at least one customer virtual private network. In another embodiment, the invention comprises a method for determining respective operational statuses of edge communication links between provider edge routers and customer edge routers. In another embodiment, the invention comprises a method for verifying site-to-site reachability within the context of customer virtual private networks.

Method and apparatus for performing reachability testing within the context of customer virtual private networks

Techniques for monitoring and processing network reachability events across a service provider's network are disclosed. The techniques include monitoring provider-edge routers by identifying reachability events and partial packet loss events, and processing those events so as to reduce the number of alarms generated for investigation.

MPLS VPN connectivity alarm storm reduction

A method and apparatus for identifying a Label Distribution Protocol (LDP) flapping event in a communication network are disclosed. For example, the method counts a total number of LDP session up events, a total number of LDP session down events, a total number of link up events, and a total number of link down events within a predetermined time interval. The method then determines an occurrence of a LDP flapping event using the plurality of total numbers.

Growing community of inventors

Holmdel, NJ, United States of America

Leah L Zhang