JP2002314588A - Method for distributing and setting policy definition - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce a communication data quantity for distributed information of policy definition in the case of distribution of the policy definition attended with revision of the policy definition on an external request, and decrease the distribution time and also an update processing time required for a router so as to reduce the setting time of the router and quickly respond to the external requester for quick setting completion. SOLUTION: A policy server 60 identifies whether a distributed policy definition is an external request policy definition or an operating management policy definition, distributes only the external request policy definition being the requested part on every request when the distributed policy definition is the external request policy definition and distributes the operating management policy definition to be distributed and a corresponding evaluation ranking only when the policy definition is the operating management policy definition.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a QoS (Qualit) for guaranteeing communication quality of an IP packet in a network.
This relates to a method for distributing and setting a policy definition for y of Service (communication quality) control.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional technique, Diffserv-PIB (Differ
entiated Service Quality of Service Policy Informa
There is a policy definition method based on Action Base). D
References on iffserv-PIB include M. Fine, K. McClo
ghrie, J. Seligson, K. Chan, S. Hahn, A. Smith, Fra
ncis Reichmeyer "Differentiated Services Qualityof
Service Policy Information Base ", IETF Internet D
raft, November 24, 2000.

The policy definition of the Diffserv-PIB in the above document includes a filter condition for identifying an IP packet passing through a router on an IP network, a queue for specifying a service class in an IP header, and a queue for performing QoS control. And an action such as setting of a control command. The router classifies the IP packet according to the policy definition distributed from the policy server, and
Execute S control.

[0004] Regarding the filter condition, a plurality of filter conditions may be specified at the same time, and depending on the contents of the filter condition, there may be a case where a plurality of filter conditions match one IP packet. If multiple filter conditions are matched at the same time, a certain IP
In some cases, QoS control that is different from desired is performed on a packet. For this reason, in Diffserv-PIB, it is possible to specify an evaluation order (relative) for specifying from which filter condition to evaluate.

Heretofore, conventionally, when distributing a policy definition including a filter condition with an evaluation order to a router, all policy definitions including all filter conditions with an evaluation order are distributed. I was

[0006]

In the conventional method of assigning the evaluation order to all filter conditions and distributing all filter conditions as described above, if at least one of the filter conditions is changed (added), all the filter conditions are changed. Must be delivered to the router again, the amount of communication data exchanged between the policy server and the router becomes enormous, and there is a problem that the data transfer time and the setting time in the router become long. For this reason,
In the above prior art, an immediate response cannot be made to an on-demand external request such as a call setup in VoIP (Voice over IP) for realizing a voice call on an IP network.

[0007] Further, since external requests such as call setting are expected to frequently occur, a process of assigning an evaluation order is performed for each request, so that the load on the policy server increases and the response time increases. It is expected to grow further.

[0008] The present invention has been made in view of the above,
When distributing a policy definition in response to a change in the policy definition due to an external request, reduce the communication data amount of the distribution information,
A method for distributing and setting a policy definition that shortens the distribution time and the update processing time on the router side, shortens the setting time for the router, and enables a quick response to the completion of the setting to the external request source. The purpose is to get.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, a policy definition distribution method according to the present invention provides an external request policy definition based on an external request on demand from a policy server to a plurality of routers and a policy manager. In the method of distributing the created operation management policy definition in the IP network for distributing the operation management policy definition, if the policy definition to be distributed is an external request policy definition or an operation management policy definition, the policy definition is an external request policy management definition Is characterized in that every time there is a request, only the external request policy definition for the request is distributed, and in the case of the operation management policy definition, only the operation management policy definition to be distributed and the corresponding evaluation order are distributed.

[0010] According to the present invention, the policy server identifies whether the policy definition to be distributed is an external request policy definition or an operation management policy definition. In addition, only the external request policy definition for the request is distributed, and in the case of the operation management policy definition, only the operation management policy definition to be distributed and the corresponding evaluation order are distributed.

A method for setting a policy definition according to the next invention is a method for setting a filter condition of an external request policy definition based on an on-demand external request received from a policy server and a filter condition of an operation management policy definition created by a policy administrator in a router. I to set in the filter table
In the method of setting a policy definition in the P network, the filter condition of the distributed operation management policy definition and the filter condition of the external request policy definition are distinguished and set in the filter table, and the filter condition of the external request policy definition is set in the operation management. The evaluation order is set higher than the filter condition of the policy definition and set in the filter table.

According to the present invention, the router distinguishes the filter condition of the distributed operation management policy definition from the filter condition of the external request policy definition, sets the filter condition in the filter table, and sets the filter condition of the external request policy definition to: The evaluation order is set higher in the filter table than the filter condition of the operation management policy definition.

[0013] In the method for setting a policy definition according to the next invention, in the above invention, the filter condition of the distributed external request policy definition is ranked higher than any of the filter conditions of the already set external request policy definition. And setting it in the filter table.

According to the present invention, the router sets the filter condition of the distributed external request policy definition in the filter table with a higher evaluation order than any of the filter conditions of the already set external request policy definition. I have to.

[0015] In the method for setting a policy definition according to the next invention, in the above invention, the filter condition of the distributed operation management policy definition is changed according to the evaluation order data distributed with the filter condition. It is characterized by being set in an evaluation order lower than the condition.

According to the present invention, in the router, the filter condition of the distributed operation management policy definition is set in the evaluation order lower than the filter condition of the external request policy definition according to the evaluation order data distributed together with the filter condition. I am trying to set it.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of a method for distributing and setting a policy definition according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Embodiment 1. FIG. 1 shows an example of the system configuration of the present invention. In FIG. 1, three routers 10, 20, and 30 are connected to an IP network (domain) T. Terminals 11, 21, and 31 such as personal computers and workstations are connected to the routers 10, 20, and 30, respectively, and IP packet data is transmitted between these terminals via the IP network T. That is, the terminals 11, 21 and 31
Transmits and receives an IP packet generated by the application program via the IP network T.

The router 10 has a VoIP gateway 40
The VoIP gateway 40 is connected to a telephone network 41 such as a public network or a private network, and the telephone network 41 is connected to a telephone (such as a fixed telephone or a mobile telephone) 42. Similarly, a VoIP gateway 50 is connected to the router 20, and a telephone network 51 and a telephone 5
2 are connected.

The VoIP gateways 40 and 50 are:
To make a voice call over an IP network,
Between the network T and the telephone networks 41 and 51, audio signal encoding (decoding) processing, IP packetization (assembly / disassembly) processing, call setting processing, and the like are performed. That is, VoIP
The gateways 40 and 50 have a function of encoding a voice signal from each of the telephone networks 41 and 51 into a digital signal, converting the signal into an IP packet, and sending the packet to the IP network.

The domain T is connected to a policy server 60 that distributes a policy definition as a QoS control instruction to each of the routers 10, 20, and 30 in the domain T. The policy server 60 has a GUI (Graphical User Int) function for creating a policy definition as an instruction for QoS control in data transfer of IP packet data.
This is provided to the user by using an interface (e.g., network interface) or the like, and the defined policy definition is distributed to routers 10, 20, and 30 that actually perform QoS control (bandwidth allocation, shaping, and the like).

Each of the routers 10, 20, and 30 receives the policy definition distributed by the policy server 60, classifies IP packets into service classes classified according to communication quality according to the policy definition, and performs QoS control for each service class. Go to and transfer data. In addition, each of the routers 10, 20, and 30 is configured to enable the policy definition distributed from the policy server 60 to be effective in the router (in accordance with the distributed policy definition, QoS control can be performed on the router). The filter conditions in the policy definition are set in the filter table in the router.

The domain T receives a call setting request from the VoIP gateways 40 and 50 connected to the IP network, notifies the IP address of the corresponding VoIP gateway from the destination telephone, and performs communication with guaranteed bandwidth on the IP network. A call control (Call Agent) server 70 for making a path setting request to the policy server 60 is connected. That is, the call control server 70 receives a call setting request from the VoIP gateway 40 or 50, and has a function of associating the destination telephone number with the IP address of the destination VoIP gateway, a user authentication function, a band control function, and the like. are doing.

Here, the telephone 42 (telephone number "123-456")
7 ”) to the telephone 52 (phone number“ 231-5678 ”).
It is assumed that a call is made via the P network T. The call request from the telephone 42 is sent to the VoI
When notified to the P gateway 40, the VoIP gateway 40 notifies the call control server 70 of a call setting request. The call setting request includes information of a source / destination address (telephone number, IP address, mail address, etc.).

The call control server 70 which has received the call setting request from the VoIP gateway 40 calls the destination telephone number "231-
5678 "to specify the IP address of the VoIP gateway 50 to be relayed to the telephone network 51 in which the telephone 42 exists.

Next, the call control server 70 specifies a communication path from the VoIP gateway 40 to the VoIP gateway 50 on the IP network T. Then, the call control server 70 requests the policy server 60 for a policy definition for setting a communication path that guarantees communication quality that does not hinder voice communication even if other packets are simultaneously exchanged on the IP network T. . This policy definition is defined by the content of the QoS control performed by each router so that the delay, fluctuation, and packet loss of the voice data packet fall within an allowable range.

A policy definition corresponding to the call setting from the call control server 70 is called an external request policy definition, and a policy definition that is regularly set by the network administrator for the management network is called an operation management policy definition. However, the external request policy definition is not limited to only the request from the call control server 70, and may be any request as long as the request is a policy definition request generated on demand such as a request from the call control server 70.

FIG. 2 shows a functional configuration of the policy server 60. The policy server 60 is a network administrator 61
(FIG. 1), a policy definition editing processing unit 62 for providing a user interface for policy definition, an operation management policy definition interface (I / F) 63 for receiving a request from the policy definition editing processing unit 62, and a call control server 7
There is an external request policy definition I / F 64 for receiving an external policy definition request from the outside such as 0. The policy definition control unit 65 also includes an operation management policy definition I / F 6.
3 and the policy request from the external request policy definition I / F 64 and the processing request are received, and a request corresponding to the processing request is notified to the policy definition storage unit 66 and the policy definition distribution unit 67.

When the request is “save”, the policy definition storage unit 66 stores the received policy definition in the external storage 68.
To save. When the request is “read”, the policy definition storage unit 66 reads out the policy definition from the external storage 68 and notifies the policy definition control unit 65.

In the case of the policy definition distribution unit 67, if the request is “distribution”, the policy definition received from the policy definition control unit 65 is notified to the target router. Specific information on the target router is held in the policy definition.

In this case, the policy definition includes a filter condition for classifying packets and an action which is a control command for the classified packets. Since the contents of the policy definition are different depending on the network type and the QoS control function of the router, the policy definition of the present invention is not limited to the one including the filter condition and the action.

The policy server 60 distributes, to each router, the external request policy definition (filter condition) from the call control server 70 and the operation management policy definition (filter condition) set by the network administrator. In other words, at the time of distribution, the packet is distributed to the router with an identification flag for identifying whether it is an external request policy definition (filter condition) or an operation management policy definition (filter condition).

In the case of the external request policy definition (filter condition) from the call control server 70, the frequency of addition and deletion is high, but since the transmission source and destination are limited, unambiguous filter conditions are specified. Therefore, there is no need to consider competition with other filter conditions.

On the other hand, in the case of the operation management policy definition (filter condition), the frequency of addition / deletion is low, but the number of elements may be large. It is necessary to assign a relative evaluation order to the condition.

In each of the routers 10, 20, and 30, the operation management policy definition (filter condition) and the external request policy definition (filter condition) distributed from the server are set in the filter table.

Next, a method of distributing the operation management policy definition will be described with reference to FIG. It is assumed that the policy definition of the filter condition D is added to the operation management policy definition. As existing filter conditions, filter condition A,
There are three filter conditions B and C (FIG. 3A). At this time, the filter conditions in the filter tables of the routers 10, 20, and 30 are as follows: filter condition A → filter condition B → filter condition C
(FIG. 3B).

The network administrator adds the filter condition D while assigning a relative evaluation order here (FIG. 3C). For example, the evaluation order is assigned in the order of filter condition A → filter condition D → filter condition B → filter condition C.

After assigning the evaluation order, the policy server 60 distributes all the filter conditions (policy definition information) together with the information on the evaluation order to the required router (FIG. 3).
(D)).

On the router side, filter conditions are set in the filter table in the order of filter condition A → filter condition D → filter condition B → filter condition C based on the received filter condition and evaluation order (FIG. 3).
(E)).

Next, a method of distributing the external request policy definition will be described with reference to FIG. It is assumed that a filter condition W which is an external request policy definition is added from the call control server 70.

There are three existing filter conditions: filter condition Y, filter condition Z, and filter condition X (FIG. 4A). In each of the routers 10, 20, and 30, the filter conditions Y, Z, and X are set in the filter table in the order in which they arrive at the router. In the filter table before the filter condition W is added, the filter condition is set from the lower evaluation order in the order of filter condition X → filter condition Z → filter condition Y (FIG. 4).
(B)).

The policy server 60 includes a call control server 70
When you create an external request policy definition with a request from
Immediately apply the filter condition (policy definition) W to each router 1
It is distributed to 0, 20, and 30 (FIG. 4 (c)).

In each of the routers 10, 20, and 30 that has received the filter condition (policy definition) W, the index "8" having the highest evaluation rank next to the index "8" having the highest evaluation rank among the used filter conditions W is used. 7 "(FIG. 4D).

Here, in each of the routers 10, 20, and 30, when setting the filter table, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6, the above two types of setting methods are combined. That is, the filter table is divided into an external request filter condition area for setting a filter condition of an external request policy definition and an operation management filter condition area for setting a filter condition of an operation management policy definition. Set the filter condition of the other.

In the examples shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the indexes 1 to 8 having the higher evaluation rank belong to the area for the external request filter condition, and the indexes 9 to 17 having the lower evaluation rank belong to the area for the operation management filter condition. Belongs to the area. The evaluation rank of the index decreases from 1 to 17.

In FIG. 5, a filter condition W as an external request filter condition is added to the filter tables of the routers 10, 20, and 30. The filter condition W is in the area for the external request filter condition,
The index “5” having the highest evaluation rank next to the index “6” having the highest evaluation rank among the already registered filter conditions is set.

On the other hand, in FIG. 6, the operation management policy definition (all the filter conditions A, B, C, and D including the filter condition D to be added) is added to the filter tables of the routers 10, 20, and 30. These filter conditions A, B, C, D are set in the operation management filter condition area based on the designated evaluation order.

Next, a procedure for distributing a policy definition in the policy server 60 will be described with reference to FIG.

When the policy definition request is received (step 100), the policy definition controller 6 of the policy server 60
5 judges whether it is an external request or an operation management (step 110). In the case of an external request, the policy definition control unit 65 sets “external request” to an identification flag to be distributed together with the policy definition (step 120), and transmits only the policy definition corresponding to the external request via the policy definition distribution unit 67. Distribute to target routers (step 13
0).

If it is determined in step 110 that the operation management is performed, the policy definition control unit 65 reassigns the evaluation order of the filter conditions according to the change of the policy definition (step 140), and sets the identification flag to “ “Operation management” is set (step 150), and all the changed operation management policy definitions are distributed to the target router via the policy definition distribution unit 67 (step 160).

Next, with reference to FIG. 8, a description will be given of a process (addition process) of setting a filter condition in a filter table in each router.

When the router receives the policy definition information (step 200), it determines the identification flag (step 210). If it is determined by this determination of the identification flag that the policy is a policy definition from an external request, the filter condition corresponding to the external request is already registered in the external request filter condition area in the filter table. The index having the highest evaluation rank next to the index having the highest evaluation rank among the filter conditions is set (step 220). If it is determined by the determination of the identification flag that the policy definition is based on the operation management request, all filter conditions are set in the operation management filter condition area in the filter table in accordance with the evaluation order (relative value) (step 230).

Next, when there is a call request between the telephone 42 and the telephone 52 in FIG. 1, the policy server 60 responds to the external request from the call control server 70 and defines the external request policy (filter condition). ) Will be described in more detail.

At this time, the policy definition is that the filter condition is that the destination IP address is “2.3.4.4” and the source IP address is “2.3.4.4”.
The address is “1.2.3.4” (this is the filter condition W) and the action is “The minimum guaranteed bandwidth is 32 kb.
ps and the delay is 100 ms or less. "

When the above policy definition is notified to the routers 10 and 20, the routers 10 and 20 refer to the identification flag distributed together with the policy information to determine the external request policy definition as described above. to decide. Then, as shown in FIG. 5, this external request policy definition is stored in the external request filter condition area in the filter table, and the index “6” having the highest evaluation rank among the already registered filter conditions is used. ”Is set to the index“ 5 ”having the next highest evaluation rank. At this time, the filter condition in the operation management filter condition area designated by the administrator is not affected.

With this setting, the routers 10 and 20
The external request policy definition of the filter condition W is enabled, the destination IP address is “2.3.4.4” and the source IP
When an IP packet with the address “1.2.3.4” arrives,
Transmission is performed with the communication quality specified by the action in the policy definition.

By using such an external request policy definition distribution method, if there is a change (addition) to the policy definition due to the external request policy definition, it is not necessary to distribute the operation management policy definition to routers and the like again. Therefore, the amount of communication data can be reduced, and the communication processing time can be reduced. In the case of the external request policy definition, only the distributed policy definition part (filter condition) needs to be set in the filter table on the router side, and it is necessary to set the filter condition of the already set external request policy definition again. Because there is no setting data amount, the setting processing time can be shortened. By shortening the above two processing times, a quick response to the policy definition request from the call control server 70 is possible.

Next, the distribution and setting processing when the operation management policy definition is changed (added) will be described with reference to FIG. When the network administrator adds an operation management policy definition (filter condition D as a filter condition), the policy server 60 adds all the related filter conditions (in this case, filter conditions A, B, and C) (filter condition A). , B, C, D). The method of assigning the evaluation order is not specified, but in this case, it is assumed that the method is specified by the network administrator.

In the policy server 60, all the filter conditions to which the evaluation order is re-assigned, that is, the filter condition A (including the evaluation order "1"), the filter condition B (including the evaluation order "3"), the filter condition C (Including the evaluation order “4”) and the filter condition D (including the evaluation order “2”) are distributed to each required router as a policy definition.

Each of the routers receives the policy information, determines the operation management policy definition based on the identification flag attached to the policy information, and stores, in the operation management filter condition area of the filter table, the evaluation assigned to the filter condition. Set in order from the highest ranking. At this time, the filter conditions in the external request filter condition area are not affected. In this case, as shown in FIG. 6, since the evaluation order is lower in the order of filter condition A → filter condition D → filter condition B → filter condition C, the filter condition A is added to the index “9”.
However, the filter condition D is set to the index “10”, the filter condition B is set to the index “11”, and the filter condition C is set to the index “12”.

By using such a distribution method of the operation management policy definition, even if the operation management policy definition is changed, the external request policy information can use the existing setting of the router as it is, and the external request policy information can be used again from the policy server. Since it is not necessary to distribute the request policy definition, data communication and setting processing for the external request policy definition can be reduced, and the setting processing time for the router can be shortened.

As described above, according to the present invention, the policy server identifies whether the policy definition to be distributed is the external request policy definition or the operation management policy definition, and determines whether the policy definition to be distributed is the external request policy management definition. In some cases, each time there is a request, only the external request policy definition for that request is distributed.
Only the management policy definition to be distributed and the corresponding evaluation order are distributed. Therefore, when the policy definition is changed (added) by the external request policy definition, the operation management policy definition does not need to be distributed to routers and the like again, so that the communication data amount can be reduced, the communication processing time can be reduced, and the call processing time can be reduced. A quick response to an external request such as a setting can be made. Further, even if the operation management policy definition is changed, the external request policy definition need not be distributed again from the policy server, so that the amount of communication data can be reduced and the communication processing time can be reduced.

According to the next invention, the router distinguishes the filter condition of the distributed operation management policy definition from the filter condition of the external request policy definition, sets the filter condition in the filter table, and sets the filter condition of the external request policy definition. Because the evaluation order is set higher in the filter table than the filter condition of the operation management policy definition, the router side sets the filter condition of the operation management policy definition and the filter condition of the external request policy definition separately. This makes it possible to reduce the amount of setting data in the router, reduce the setting time, and promptly respond to an external request. Further, since the evaluation order of the filter condition of the external request policy definition is higher than that of the operation management policy definition, it is possible to ensure the communication quality of the external request such as the call setting request at a level according to the request.

According to the next invention, the router sets the filter condition of the distributed external request policy definition to the filter table with a higher evaluation order than any of the filter conditions of the already set external request policy definition. With this configuration, it is possible to give higher priority to the communication quality of the new external request policy definition at the point of change.

According to the next invention, in the router, the filter condition of the distributed operation management policy definition is set according to the evaluation order data distributed together with the filter condition. The condition can be set to a priority order corresponding to the evaluation order data.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an IP network system to which a policy definition distribution and setting method according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of an internal configuration of a policy server.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining distribution and setting modes of an operation management policy definition.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining distribution and setting aspects of an external request policy definition.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a setting mode of an external request policy definition.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a setting mode of an operation management policy definition.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a policy definition distribution operation in the policy server.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a setting operation of a policy definition in the router.

[Explanation of symbols]

10, 20, 30 routers, 11, 21, 31 terminals,
40, 50 VoIP gateway, 41, 51 telephone network, 42, 52 telephone, 60 policy server, 61
Network administrator, 62 Policy definition editing processing unit, 63 Operation management policy definition I / F, 64 External request policy definition I / F, 65 Policy definition control unit, 66 Policy definition storage unit, 67 Policy definition distribution unit, 68 External storage, 70 Call Agent server.

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Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A method for distributing an external request policy definition based on an on-demand external request and an operation management policy definition created by a policy administrator from a policy server to a plurality of routers, wherein the policy definition is distributed in an IP network. Identify whether the policy definition is an external request policy definition or an operation management policy definition. If the policy definition is an external request policy management definition, distribute only the external request policy definition for the request every time there is a request. In the case of a policy definition, a policy definition distribution method characterized by distributing only an operation management policy definition to be distributed and a corresponding evaluation order. 2. A policy definition in an IP network for setting a filter condition of an external request policy definition based on an on-demand external request received from a policy server and a filter condition of an operation management policy definition created by a policy administrator in a filter table of a router. In the setting method, the filter condition of the distributed operation management policy definition and the filter condition of the external request policy definition are distinguished and set in the filter table, and the filter condition of the external request policy definition is changed to the filter condition of the operation management policy definition. A policy definition setting method, wherein a higher evaluation order is set in the filter table. 3. The filter condition of the distributed external request policy definition is set to a filter table with a higher evaluation order than any of the filter conditions of the already set external request policy definition. 2
How to set the policy definition described in. 4. The policy definition setting method according to claim 2, wherein the filter condition of the distributed operation management policy definition is set in accordance with evaluation order data distributed together with the filter condition.