Lucent Technologies Inc.

Alcatel Lucent

Alcatel-Lucent USA Inc.

Tejas Naik

Sarit Mukherjee

Fang Hao

Scott Corey Miller

Girish P Chandranmenon

Sampath Rangarajan

Ranjan Sharma

Katherine Hua Guo

Ramachendra Prahlada Batni

P Krishnan

Frank Feather

Subrata Mazumdar

Bala Andrapalliyal

Ganesan Ramu

A network comprises agents which act as proxies on behalf of devices, such as wireless game devices, phones and personal digital assistants. Each agent collects information concerning a 'presence status' of a device. An agent determines whether to forward messages on to a device depending on the collected presence status (e.g., active/inactive) of the device. For example, if the presence status indicates the device is active then messages will be forwarded. If, however, the status indicates the device is inactive the message will not be forwarded. Instead, the agent may act as a proxy for the device while it is inactive. By only forwarding messages when a device is active, valuable airlink time and/or bandwidth can be conserved.

Presence management proxying methods and devices

Sessions, such as on-line gaming sessions, are maintained by proxy agents on behalf of users even when the users are inactive. The agents, along with other components, form a novel 'always-on' architecture that greatly reduces the time it takes to initiate and carry out sessions.

Methods and devices for maintaining sessions based on presence status information

The invention comprises a method and apparatus for providing multimedia content to a calling party device. Specifically, the method comprises receiving a multimedia ringback service request in response to a connection request for establishing a connection between the calling party device and a called party device, determining an address associated with the calling party device in response to the multimedia ringback service request, identifying the multimedia content associated with the multimedia ringback service request, and establishing at least one multimedia session with the calling party device using the address where the at least one multimedia session is operable for providing the multimedia content towards the calling party device contemporaneously with establishing the connection.

Method and apparatus for providing multimedia ringback services to mobile user devices in pre-IMS networks

A method for optimal assignment of customer edge (CE) routers to virtual private network route forwarding (VRF) tables uses a 'peer model', in which the CE routers communicate their routes to a Service Provider's edge routers (PE routers). The routes of a particular VPN are then exchanged among the PE routers that are attached to that VPN. This is accomplished in a manner which ensures that routes from different VPNs remain distinct and separate, even if two VPNs comprise an overlapping address space. The PE routers distribute, to the CE routers in a particular VPN, the routes from other CE routers in that VPN. The CE routers do not peer with each other and, as such, there is no 'overlay' visible to a VPN's routing algorithm.

Method for optimal assignment of customer edge (CE) routers to virtual private network route forwarding (VRF) tables

A method and apparatus for identifying virtual private networks (VPNs) in a network of a service provider. The method and apparatus includes generating a VPN routing forwarding&#x2014;route target (VRF-RT) table for the network. From the VRF-RT table, at least one of a VRF-VRF table and a VRF connectivity graph is generated. From the VRF-RT table, a set of atomic full-mesh components are identified, and from the at least one of a VRF-VRF table and a VRF connectivity graph, at least one set of other types of VPN components are identified, such as atomic single hub-and-spoke components, molecular multi-hub-and-spoke components, composite full-mesh components, composite single hub-and-spoke components, and/or composite multi hub-and-spoke components.

Discovery of border gateway protocol (BGP) multi-protocol label switching (MPLS) virtual private networks (VPNs)

A network management system and technique, implemented in hardware and software, automates certain aspects of a network element configuration in a network of routers that use the OSPF protocol. The network management system uses network wide configuration information to detect configuration deficiencies and configuration related intra-element dependencies, and to then configure the elements automatically. This includes automatically detecting and configuring OSPF virtual links under several different scenarios, including (a) either minimal or complete (redundant) configuration of a router that is newly added to an existing network, and (b) reconfiguring of the routers in an existing OSPF domain, when either minimal or complete configuration is required. Minimal configuration is attained when at least one area border router (ABR) in an area is guaranteed to be connected to a backbone. In a complete configuration, all ABR's in an area are guaranteed to be connected to the backbone. System functionality includes determination of whether a router is an ABR, sequential analysis of routers (and their neighbors) to determine connection to a network backbone, and analysis of routers (and their neighbors) to determine if a virtual link to the backbone can be established. Advantageously, changes in the OSPF protocol are not required.

Automatic detection and configuration of OSPF virtual links

Updating of routers is achieved by insuring that the scheduling of router updates is such that a zone of turbulence that occurs where the updating takes place does not prevent reaching any router that may be in need of updating. For IP routers that have a task scheduling capability, this is achieved by estimating the time for communicating update information to all routers that need to be updated, adding that estimate to time of day, and transmitting the update specifications. In arrangements where routers do not have a task scheduling capability, updating is sequenced. One embodiment creates a set of traceroute trees that cover the nodes to be updated, and leaf nodes of the trees are taken up at random, placed in an ordered list and deleted from the trees. Another embodiment is more tree centric, in that once a starting node is identified (and its associated tree), all of its nodes are considered before progressing to another tree. A third embodiment takes advantage of the fact that is a node to be updated in not reachable when its updating is to be done, a second try that follows a delay is likely to succeed.

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Edison, NJ, United States of America

Tejas Naik