Apparatuses and methods for facilitating modifications in networks and systems, accounting for the cost of enacting change across multiple time scales

An apparatus comprising:

• a processing system including a processor;
• and
• memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance of operations, the operations comprising:
• analyzing parametric data to identify a non-ideality with respect to a configuration of a network;
• performing, based on the analyzing of the parametric data, a cost-of-change analysis to identify whether one or more changes to the configuration of the network are warranted, wherein the cost-of-change analysis encompasses a quantification of each of the one or more changes, as a function of time, in terms of benefit, risk, penalty, and cost, wherein the cost-of-change analysis is based on a change-plan that includes a sequence of element changes that are to be executed, and wherein the cost-of-change analysis identifies a worst-case impact that leaves the network at a point with a greatest performance drop relative to a baseline;
• and
• based on the performing of the cost-of-change analysis indicating that at least one change of the one or more changes is warranted, modifying the configuration of the network, the modifying resulting in a modified configuration of the network that is different from the configuration of the network.

A method comprising:

• obtaining, by a processing system including a processor, data;
• analyzing, by the processing system, the data to identify a non-ideality with respect to a configuration of a network;
• performing, by the processing system and based on the analyzing of the data, a cost-of-change analysis to identify whether one or more changes to the configuration of the network are warranted, wherein the cost-of-change analysis encompasses a quantification of each of the one or more changes, as a function of time, in terms of benefit, risk, penalty, and cost, wherein the cost-of-change analysis is based on a change-plan that includes a sequence of element changes that are to be executed, and wherein the cost-of-change analysis identifies a worst-case impact that leaves the network at a point with a greatest performance drop relative to a baseline;
• and
• based on the performing of the cost-of-change analysis indicating that at least one change of the one or more changes is warranted, modifying, by the processing system, the configuration of the network, the modifying resulting in a modified configuration of the network that is different from the configuration of the network.