Methods and apparatus for monitoring end-user experience in a distributed network
AssigneeVisual Networks, Inc.
InventorsGigi Chu, Matt Burdick, Shekhar Bhide, Craig Dickson, Sudanshu Verma, John Leong, Chris Davis
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Abstract
A network performance monitoring system uses a plurality of user modules, each user operating on a unique user machine coupled to one or more provider servers and an experience test server for collecting data from the plurality of user modules. The collected data includes at least one performance datum relating to user experience with a link from the user machine to the provider server. The system also cleanses the collected data to account for variable user configurations, user errors and the like.
Claims29
A network performance monitoring system comprising:
- a plurality of user modules, wherein each user module operates on a unique user machine coupled to one or more provider servers;
- an experience test server for collecting data from the plurality of user modules, wherein the collected data includes at least one performance datum relating to user experience with a link from the user machine to the provider server;
- and
- means for cleansing the collected data to account for variable user configurations, wherein the means for cleansing identifies when given data samples with disparate values represent similar samplings due to user configuration variations.
A method of monitoring an end-user experience of attempting to connect a client system to a distributed network, comprising:
- detecting that a user is attempting to connect the client system to the distributed network;
- monitoring a connection code to obtain user experience data about the connection process, wherein the connection code indicates whether the client system has successfully established a connection to the distributed network, and wherein the user experience data is data relating to the user's experience, prior to establishing a connection to the distributed network, of attempting to connect to the distributed network;
- and
- transmitting the data obtained from the connection process to a collector of user connection experience.
In a network monitoring system for monitoring network-based services over a distributed network accessible by user devices capable of collecting data about end-user experience and communicating network performance data to an experience test server, a method of monitoring network-based services, comprising:
- configuring the user devices to notify the experience test server of an availability to perform network performance tests in response to being connected to the distributed network;
- distributing instructions from the experience test server to the user devices that are available to perform network performance tests, in accordance with notifications from the user devices, wherein at least some of the instructions direct the user devices to perform network performance tests;
- and
- collecting, at the experience test server, network performance data generated by the user devices that perform the network tests;
- wherein upon receiving an availability notification from a user device, the experience test server sends an instruction to the user device irrespective of whether the experience test server instructs the user device to perform a network performance test, and wherein instructions that lack test requests direct the user device to contact the experience test server in response to occurrence of a trigger event.
A network monitoring system for monitoring network-based services over a distributed network, comprising:
- a plurality of user devices capable of performing network performance tests and collecting data about end-user experience, wherein the user devices are configured to notify an experience test server of an availability to perform network performance tests in response to being connected to the distributed network;
- and
- the experience test server, configured to receive availability notifications from the user devices and to distribute instructions to the user devices that are available to perform network performance tests, wherein at least some of the instructions direct the user devices to perform network performance tests, and wherein the experience test server collects network performance data generated by the user devices that perform the network performance tests;
- wherein, upon receiving an availability notification from a user device, the experience test server sends an instruction to the user device irrespective of whether the experience test server instructs the user device to perform a network performance test and wherein instructions that lack test requests direct the user device to contact the experience test server in response to occurrence of a trigger event.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.