Telecommunications Management Network Research Articles

Service-oriented network management model based on active network technology

Traditional network management can not meet the needs of the Next Generation Network(NGN),so service-oriented network management is the inevitable development trend.Based on the research of active network technology and using advanced ideas of active network technology and telecommunication management network,we proposed the organization model,the function model,the communication model and the information model.To propose a new network management model: service-oriented network management model based on active network technology.The network management system based on this model can preferably and effectively manage network services.

The problem of objective ranking: foundations, approaches and applications

The paper starts with the discussion of the issue of objectivity versus subjectivity, stressing that while an absolute objectivity is not attainable, nevertheless trying to be as objective as possible constitutes a higher value, necessary for hard science and technology. Dangers and errors of the subjectivist reduction of objectivity to power and money attempted by the postmodern sociology of science are discussed. Then we turn to the problem of subjective versus objective decision analysis and ranking. It is shown that while all classical decision theory aims at a rational analysis and support of subjective decisions, there are important application cases, particularly in managerial problems, when the decision maker prefers to avoid specifying her/his preferences and needs decision analysis – e.g., ranking of decision options – that is as objective as possible. An approach to decision support that might be easily adapted for such objective ranking is the reference point methodology; its application is shown on examples. One of these examples is actually not an application of the methodology, but a real life problem that motivated the development of objective ranking. The examples illustrate that objective ranking might be important for management, including also management of telecommunication networks.

Datacab: a geographical‐information‐system‐based expert system for the design of cable networks

Abstract: Telecommunication networks have evolved over time as a result of technological advances, and network topologies and equipment have become increasingly complex. Expert systems are being successfully applied to the management of telecommunication networks. However, applying expert systems to network design is another especially beneficial yet still not very common approach. In this paper we propose a rule‐based expert system called Datacab. Datacab was developed at Enditel Endesa in collaboration with the Electronic Technology Department of the University of Seville, for the automatic design of hybrid fibre coax (HFC) cable networks. Using data from a geographical information system as input, it automatically generates viable HFC network designs.

Low‐cost data communication network for rural telecom network management

AbstractThe backbone networking infrastructure of rural telecom networks is often costly and is of limited bandwidth. The availability of connectivity such as DSL or leased lines is scarce. In order to keep operational costs low, these rural telecom networks are often kept unmanned and are managed from a centralized network management station (NMS). This often requires a low‐cost, efficient and reliable data communication network (DCN) between the rural telecom equipment and the central NMS. The conventional DCN used for telecom management consists either of leased lines or Internet connectivity. These are often costly and not freely available in rural areas. We have developed a new DCN model, based on dial‐up, which is easily available. Using mathematical models and measurements we show that this DCN meets the QoS requirements of a telecom network at an affordable cost. We have implemented this DCN in corDECT networks. This is in use in India and Tunisia, and is under implementation in other similar countries. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Rethinking Network Management Solutions

Telecommunication network management solutions need to shift perspective from one of network element management to service management. Operators need a service view of their network, with automatic service-impact correlation. This requires some major changes in the underlying solutions: equipment vendors must improve the supplied management interfaces and network management solutions must implement a higher degree of automation and correlation with a service focus. One obstacle is the lack of models and formalism to describe topology and service structures

Intelligent integrated insight into wireless networks

A generic network monitoring architecture has been suggested, based on packet sniffing. The architecture uses correlated information from different interfaces and databases across the network to provide improved troubleshooting aid, and offers capacity planning guidance and integration with business intelligence. It also covers network, service, and business management aspects of the telecommunications management network (TMN).

Mastering quality of service in GPRS/UMTS an overview

Quality of Service (QoS) has become a very important issue in networking, covering many performance aspects and numerous measures. The deployment of next generation wireless system includes 2.5G General Packet Radio Service (Gprs), which is the packet-switched extension of the Global System for Mobile communications (Gsm), and Third-Generation (3G) Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (Umts) to meet the needs of larger capacity and higher bit rates. AnUmts packet core network is an IP-based network. The Internet Engineering Task Force (Ietf) Forum developed several IP QoS related mechanisms available for IP transport networks. Service Quality Management (Sqm), one component of Telecommunication Management Network (Tun), will enable providers to manage QoS against objectives set out in customer Service Level Agreements (Slas) and will enable customers to compare the service offerings of different service providers.

Power Systems Monitoring and Control Using Telecom Network Management Standards

Historically, different solutions have been developed for power system control and telecommunication network management environments. The former was characterized by proprietary solutions, while the latter has been involved for years in a strong standardization process guided by criteria of openness. Today, power system control standardization is in progress, but it is at an early stage compared to the telecommunications management area, especially in terms of information modeling. Today, control equipment tends to exhibit more computational power, and communication lines have increased their performance. These trends hint at some conceptual convergence between power systems and telecommunications networks from a management perspective. This convergence leads us to suggest the application of well-established telecommunications management standards for power systems control. This paper shows that this is a real medium-to-long term possibility.

Using Markov chain Monte Carlo and dynamic programming for event sequence data

Sequences of events are a common type of data in various scientific and business applications, e.g. telecommunication network management, study of web access logs, biostatistics and epidemiology. A...

Using Markov chain Monte Carlo and dynamic programming for event sequence data

Sequences of events are a common type of data in various scientific and business applications, e.g. telecommunication network management, study of web access logs, biostatistics and epidemiology. A natural approach to modelling event sequences is using time-dependent intensity functions, indicating the expected number of events per time unit. In Bayesian modelling, piecewise constant functions can be utilized to model continuous intensities, if the number of segments is a model parameter. The reversible jump Markov chain Monte Carlo (RJMCMC) methods can be exploited in the data analysis. With very large quantities, these approaches may be too slow. We study dynamic programming algorithms for finding the best fitting piecewise constant intensity function, given a number of pieces. We introduce simple heuristics for pruning the number of the potential change points of the functions. Empirical evidence from trials on real and artificial data sets is provided, showing that the developed methods yield high performance and they can be applied to very large data sets. We also compare the RJMCMC and dynamic programming approaches and show that the results correspond closely. The methods are applied to fault-alarm sequences produced by large telecommunication networks.

Managing deadline miss ratio and sensor data freshness in real-time databases

The demand for real-time data services is increasing in many applications including e-commerce, agile manufacturing, and telecommunications network management. In these applications, it is desirable to execute transactions within their deadlines, i.e., before the real-world status changes, using fresh (temporally consistent) data. However, meeting these fundamental requirements is challenging due to dynamic workloads and data access patterns in these applications. Further, transaction timeliness and data freshness requirements may conflict. We define average/transient deadline miss ratio and new data freshness metrics to let a database administrator specify the desired quality of real-time data services for a specific application. We also present a novel QoS management architecture for real-time databases to support the desired QoS even in the presence of unpredictable workloads and access patterns. To prevent overload and support the desired QoS, the presented architecture applies feedback control, admission control, and flexible freshness management schemes. A simulation study shows that our QoS-aware approach can achieve a near zero miss ratio and perfect freshness, meeting basic requirements for real-time transaction processing. In contrast, baseline approaches fail to support the desired miss ratio and/or freshness in the presence of unpredictable workloads and data access patterns.

Applications of agent technology in communications: a review

The rapid growth in the Internet users and diverse services have made the researches and practitioners to think of intelligent tools that can assist the users and applications in delivering the required quality of services. In this context, software agent technology is expected to become the tool for development of future softwares in distributed environments such as mobile computing, E-commerce, telecommunication network management, etc. Agent technology can be classified as single- and multi-agent systems (distributed static and mobile agents). In this paper, we review the software agent technology applications in communications with more emphasis on mobile agents since it is an emerging agent technology. The popularity of the agent technology is due to its support to: component based software engineering, flexible operations, easy software maintainability, adaptability to the real world, and extensibility of the softwares.

Managing Next Generation Convergence Networks and Services—A Report on NOMS 2004

s of tutorials, description of discussion panels, technical/application/session papers titles and authors as well as contact information for obtaining the symposium proceedings for technical sessions and application sessions. At the closing ceremony, the best student paper award was given to the paper “Discovering IPv6-in-IPv4 tunnels in the Internet” presented by Lorenzo Colitti. Travel grants were also presented to several students during the closing ceremony. In memory of our friend and colleague Salah Aidarous who passed away last year while acting as a general co-chair for NOMS 2004, the IM/NOMS steering committee instituted a “Salah Aidarous Award” to be presented at every NOMS to those who (1) have provided unremitting service and dedication to the IT and Telecommunications Network Operations and Management community, (2) have a passion for dissemination of their scientific expertise and skills to the next generation, and (3) are held in high esteem by a wide international circle of their peers. During the conference banquet the first “Salah Aidarous Award” was given to Roberto Saracco. Overall, NOMS 2004 through its technical and social program provided a great experience to the 425 attendees. NOMS 2004 will be remembered as one of the best in the history of IM/NOMS. We thank the authors of all submitted manuscripts for their effort and creativity. We owe much to the reviewers from within and from outside the TPC, and to the session chairs who ensured that the accepted papers addressed the concerns raised during the reviews. We express our sincere thanks to all members of the NOMS 2004 organizing committee, participating IEEE ComSoc staff and IFIP staff, panel organizers, keynote speakers, panelists and authors who presented their high quality work in NOMS 2004. Finally, we invite you to attend IM 2005, May 15–19, 2005 in Nice, France (http://www.ieee-im.org). Raouf Boutaba is an Associate Professor in the School of Computer Science of the University of Waterloo in Canada. He conducts research in the area of network and distributed systems management. He is the Chair of the IFIP WG6.6 on Network and Distributed Systems Management, and serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of JNSM, the editorial boards of the Journal of Communications and Networks and the Journal of Computer

Grids of agents for computer and telecommunication network management

AbstractThe centralized system approach for computer and telecommunication network management has been presenting scalability problems along with the growth in the amount and diversity of managed equipment. Moreover, the increase in complexity of the services being offered through the networks also contributes to adding extra workload to the management station. The amount of data that must be handled and processed by only one administration point could lead to a situation where there is not enough processing and storage power to carry out an efficient job. In this work we present an alternative approach by creating a highly distributed computing environment through the use of Grids of autonomous agents to analyze large amounts of data, which reduce the processing costs by optimizing the load distribution and resource utilization. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Diagnosis of asynchronous discrete-event systems: a net unfolding approach

In this paper, we consider the diagnosis of asynchronous discrete event systems. We follow a so-called true concurrency approach, in which no global state and no global time is available. Instead, we use only local states in combination with a partial order model of time. Our basic mathematical tool is that of net unfoldings originating from the Petri net research area. This study was motivated by the problem of event correlation in telecommunications network management.

Online IPA Gradient Estimators in Stochastic Continuous Fluid Models

This paper applies infinitesimal perturbation analysis (IPA) to loss-related and workload-related metrics in a class of stochastic flow models (SFM). It derives closed-form formulas for the gradient estimators of these metrics with respect to various parameters of interest, such as buffer size, service rate, and inflow rate. The IPA estimators derived are simple and fast to compute, and are further shown to be unbiased and nonparametric, in the sense that they can be computed directly from the observed data without any knowledge of the underlying probability law. These properties hold out the promise of utilizing IPA gradient estimates as ingredients of online management and control of telecommunications networks. While this paper considers single-node SFMs, the analysis method developed is amenable to extensions to networks of SFM nodes with more general topologies.

Reducing the complexity of wireless Q3 adapter development

The AUTOPLEX® Q3 adapter was designed to create a telecommunication management network (TMN) agent for the AUTOPLEX System 1000. The agent, which carries out directives and emits notification, provides network management capability for an operations support system (OSS) — also known as a manager — via standard TMN communication protocol and services. The Q3 adapter provides a full range of TMN system management functions, which consist of fault management, configuration management, performance management, and security management. The development of the Q3 adapter was considered very costly, based on the feature estimate by the development organization. This paper describes an overlay development approach and a flexible software architecture that have been incorporated into the Q3 adapter design to make it more cost effective. These factors reduce the complexity of its development and make it easier to maintain different software releases and to modify different TMN information models. The design also creates an independent software platform that enables many other wireless applications to easily build their interfaces to the AUTOPLEX System 1000.

Implementing a management system architecture framework

Any practical vision for the evolution of communications services must include a strategy for how networking vendors make it possible for service providers to manage their networks. While the Telecommunications Management Network (TMN) framework has proponents, the IP services community has shown little interest. Furthermore, operations systems developers have long attempted to produce the best framework, but the technology is outdated before it exists. This paper addresses both issues by presenting an application-driven model for integrated management. This model can be applied to either a “classic” framework orientation or a management application view. What is common between these two views are a management portal, common data models, multiple interface technologies, open and simple network element interfaces, and common operations, administration, and administration (OA&M) tools. These are the elements for which there needs to be a consistent set of interface definitions. They form the basis for the construction of next-generation management applications.

A study of concurrency control in real-time, active database systems

Real-time active database systems (RTADBSs) have attracted a considerable amount of research attention in the past and a number of important applications have been identified for such systems, such as telecommunications network management, automated air traffic control, automated financial trading, process control and military command and control systems. In spite of the recognized importance of this area, very little research has been devoted to exploring the dynamics of transaction processing in RTADBSs. Concurrency control (CC) constitutes an integral part of any transaction processing strategy and, thus, deserves special attention. We study CC strategies in RTADBSs and postulate a number of CC algorithms. These algorithms exploit the special needs and features of RTADBSs and are shown to deliver substantially superior performance to conventional real-time CC algorithms.

Protocolo Para Gerenciamento Hierárquico de Redes de Computadores e de Telecomunicações

A computer network management system usually presents a management process (manager-agent). The management of large networks demands more computer resources and management system capacity, impossible to achieve with just one manager. The TMN (Telecommunications Management Network) standard, that intends to standardize management systems for telecommunication networks offering those resources, foresees the use of several managers organized in a hierarchical architecture. This work presents a study of the problems in managing large networks and proposes a protocol for a Hierarchical Management System (SGH). Although we use an example of telecommunication network, the SGH system is suitable for Internet. The SGH protocol is specified using the formal description language Estelle and its functionality is verified using a test model.