US 8,427,970 B2 · Apparatus and method for determining a service interruption time measurement

Abstract

A method and apparatus are provided for determining a service interruption time measurement including routing protocol convergence time and Forwarding Information Base (FIB) insertion time, between network devices A and B in a network which has a routing protocol. A plurality of probe packets are then sent from the device A to the device B, each probe packet comprising a source address corresponding to the device A. A network route to the device A for the source IP address used by the probe packets is unknown to the network. A sequence number and sending time is typically assigned to each probe packet being sent. At a predetermined time, a route to the source address of the device A is injected into the routing protocol. Upon return to the device A of a first of the probe packets, an arrival time to is detected and an upper bound and a lower bound of the service interruption time measurement is calculated.

Claims9

Dependent claims

An apparatus for determining a service interruption time measurement including routing protocol convergence time and Forwarding Information Base insertion time, between network devices A and B in a network having a routing protocol, said apparatus comprising:

means for sending a plurality of probe packets from the device A to the device B, each probe packet comprising a source address corresponding to the device A;
a clock;
means for injecting, once the means for sending has commenced sending said plurality of probe packets, into the routing protocol, at a predetermined time t0, established by said clock, a route RA to the source address of the probe packets originating from the device A;
means for detecting, at the device A, by means of said clock, an arrival time ta, when a first of said probe packets has returned to the device A from the device B;
and
means for determining an upper bound of said service interruption time measurement, based on a time difference between the predetermined time t0 and the arrival time ta.

3 more elements

A method for determining a service interruption time measurement including routing protocol convergence time and Forwarding Information Base insertion time, between network devices A and B in a network having a routing protocol, said method comprising steps of:

a. sending a plurality of probe packets from the device A to the device B, each probe packet comprising a source address corresponding to the device A;
b. injecting, once the sending of step a has commenced, into the routing protocol, at a predetermined time t0, established by a clock, a route RA to the source address of the probe packets originating from the device A;
c. detecting at the device A, by means of said clock, an arrival time ta, when a first of said probe packets has returned to the device A from the device B;
and
d. determining an upper bound of said service interruption time measurement, based on a time difference between the predetermined time t0 and the arrival time ta.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Apparatus and method for determining a service interruption time measurement

Life of this patent

Apparatus and method for determining a service interruption time measurement

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims9