A multi-party approach to SLA modeling: application to WLANs

In this paper, we propose a service-driven model for structuring WLANs into overlay networks of interacting wireless management communities. A wireless management community (WMC) is composed of a set of parties and is governed by a charter named the WMC-SLA (service level agreement). A WMC constitutes the basic unit of management upon which installed any form of service interaction between parties belonging to the wireless community. The WMC-SLA model is presented as a use case of a more general SLA model we name GSLA. The GSLA is an SLA information model that supports multi-party service relationships through a role-based mechanism. It is intended to catch up not only the complex nature of service interactivity intra and inter WMCs but also the broader range of SLA modeling of all sorts of IT business relationships. This model accommodates both granularity and modularity of behavioral specifications by having each party playing a role within a service relationship. It intends to bring a step towards SLA-driven management within pervasive service environments.