US 12,395,884 B2Granted

Adaptive quality of service for enterprise traffic

AssigneeCisco Technology, Inc.

InventorsSrinath Gundavelli, Vimal Srivastava

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Abstract

In one embodiment, an apparatus comprising networking circuitry adapted to receive, at a mobile network operated by an SP, flows associated with enterprise applications executing on device(s) in an enterprise network, the device(s) including a CPE and/or one or more devices behind the CPE, and processing circuitry adapted to vary, during a duration in which there is IP connectivity between the CPE and the mobile network, a pool of dedicated bearers for binding the flows, in response to at least part of changes occurring during the duration with respect to the flows, wherein the changes include variations during the duration in number of the flows and/or differences during the duration in detected characteristics of the flows, the detected characteristics of the flows having been detected based on inspection of respective packet(s) of the flows, and bind at least part of the flows to respective dedicated bearers included in the pool.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method comprising:

receiving, at a mobile network operated by a service provider, a flow associated with an enterprise application, wherein the enterprise application is executing on a customer premises equipment of an enterprise network or on a device behind the customer premises equipment;
binding the flow to a particular dedicated bearer associated with a particular set of quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, wherein one or more characteristics of the flow were detected based on an inspection of one or more packets of the flow, and wherein the binding includes:
determining whether or not there is any existing dedicated bearer associated with quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, and
upon determination that there is at least one existing dedicated bearer associated with the quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, binding the flow to one of the at least one existing dedicated bearer associated with the quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, the one of the at least one existing dedicated bearer being the particular dedicated bearer and a set of quality of service attributes associated with the one of the at least one existing dedicated bearer being the particular set of quality of service attributes, or
upon determination that there is no existing dedicated bearer associated with the quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, then, depending on at least one criterion, performing one of:
updating an existing set of quality of service attributes associated with an existing dedicated bearer, yielding an updated set of quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, and binding the flow to the existing dedicated bearer, the existing dedicated bearer being the particular dedicated bearer and the updated set of quality of service attributes being the particular set of quality of service attributes, or
creating a new dedicated bearer associated with a new set of quality of service attributes that is suitable for binding the flow, and binding the flow to the new dedicated bearer, the new dedicated bearer being the particular dedicated bearer and the new set of quality of service attributes being the particular set of quality of service attributes and;
upon detecting that the flow has stopped:
setting an idle timer;
if the flow has not started up again before the idle timer has expired performing at least one of:
unbinding the flow from the particular dedicated bearer or deleting the particular dedicated bearer;
and
updating the particular set of quality of service attributes to be suitable for fewer flows if the flow has not started up again before the idle timer has expired and if at least one decreased quantity of flows, decreased due to stopping of the flow, enables the particular set of quality of service attributes to be updated to be suitable for fewer flows.

10 more elements

An apparatus comprising:

one or more networking circuits that receive, at a mobile network operated by a service provider, a flow associated with an enterprise application, wherein the enterprise application is executing on a customer premises equipment of an enterprise network or on a device behind the customer premises equipment;
one or more processing circuits that bind the flow to a particular dedicated bearer associated with a particular set of quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, wherein one or more characteristics of the flow were detected based on an inspection of one or more packets of the flow, and wherein the one or more processing circuits bind the flow by:
determining whether or not there is any existing dedicated bearer associated with the quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, and
upon determination that there is at least one existing dedicated bearer associated with the quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, binding the flow to one of the at least one existing dedicated bearer associated with the quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, the one of the at least one existing dedicated bearer being the particular dedicated bearer and a set of quality of service attributes associated with the one of the at least one existing dedicated bearer being the particular set of quality of service attributes, or
upon determination that there is no existing dedicated bearer associated with quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, then, depending on at least one criterion, performing one of:
updating an existing set of quality of service attributes associated with an existing dedicated bearer, yielding an updated set of quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, and binding the flow to the existing dedicated bearer, the existing dedicated bearer being the particular dedicated bearer and the updated set of quality of service attributes being the particular set of quality of service attributes, or
creating a new dedicated bearer associated with a new set of quality of service attributes that is suitable for binding the flow, and binding the flow to the new dedicated bearer, the new dedicated bearer being the particular dedicated bearer and the new set of quality of service attributes being the particular set of quality of service attributes;
and
the one or more processing circuits, upon detecting that the flow has stopped:
set an idle timer;
if the flow has not started up again before the idle timer has expired perform at least one of:
unbinding the flow from the particular dedicated bearer or deleting the particular dedicated bearer;
and
update the particular set of quality of service attributes to be suitable for fewer flows if the flow has not started up again before the idle timer has expired and if at least one decreased quantity of flows, decreased due to stopping of the flow, enables the particular set of quality of service attributes to be updated to be suitable for fewer flows.

11 more elements

A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising:

computer readable program code for causing a computer to receive, at a mobile network operated by a service provider, a flow associated with an enterprise application, wherein the enterprise application is executing on a customer premises equipment of an enterprise network or on a device behind the customer premises equipment;
computer readable code for causing the computer to bind the flow to a particular dedicated bearer associated with a particular set of quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, wherein one or more characteristics of the flow were detected based on an inspection of one or more packets of the flow, by:
determining whether or not there is any existing dedicated bearer associated with the quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, and
upon determination that there is at least one existing dedicated bearer associated with the quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, binding the flow to one of the at least one existing dedicated bearer associated with the quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, the one of the at least one existing dedicated bearer being the particular dedicated bearer and a set of quality of service attributes associated with the one of the at least one existing dedicated bearer being the particular set of quality of service attributes, or
upon determination that there is no existing dedicated bearer associated with quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, then, depending on at least one criterion, performing one of:
updating an existing set of quality of service attributes associated with an existing dedicated bearer, yielding an updated set of quality of service attributes suitable for binding the flow, and binding the flow to the existing dedicated bearer, the existing dedicated bearer being the particular dedicated bearer and the updated set of quality of service attributes being the particular set of quality of service attributes, or
creating a new dedicated bearer associated with a new set of quality of service attributes that is suitable for binding the flow, and binding the flow to the new dedicated bearer, the new dedicated bearer being the particular dedicated bearer and the new set of quality of service attributes being the particular set of quality of service attributes;
and
computer readable code for causing the computer, upon detecting that the flow has stopped, to:
set an idle timer;
if the flow has not started up again before the idle timer has expired perform at least one of:
unbinding the flow from the particular dedicated bearer or deleting the particular dedicated bearer;
and
update the particular set of quality of service attributes to be suitable for fewer flows if the flow has not started up again before the idle timer has expired and if at least one decreased quantity of flows, decreased due to stopping of the flow, enables the particular set of quality of service attributes to be updated to be suitable for fewer flows.

11 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 17/234,193Filed 19 Apr 2021 · division
Priority: 18 Dec 2017
Published: US 2021/0243642 A15 Aug 2021
Granted: 19 Aug 2025
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification19 codes

H04W 28/0268
Traffic management, e.g. flow control or congestion control: using specific QoS parameters for wireless networks, e.g. QoS class identifier [QCI]…
H04L 12/1407
Architecture for metering, charging or billing: policy-and-charging control [PCC] architecture
H04L 47/2441
Traffic characterised by specific attributes, e.g. priority or QoS: relying on flow classification, e.g. using integrated services [IntServ]
H04L 65/1053
Architectures or entities: iP private branch exchange [PBX] functionality entities or arrangements

Family

Application15/844,655Parent of this division · filed 18 Dec 2017
US 2021/0243642 A1Pre-grant publication · published 5 Aug 2021
US 11,032,733 B2Parent of this division
US 2019/0191329 A1Published application
US 12,395,884 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.