Real-time management of telephone operating company networks: issues and approaches

The authors briefly overview the basic characteristics of legacy network management systems used in telephone operating companies (telcos) and highlight their deficiencies for the emerging network. They further propose a network management methodology for supporting both the embedded base and the new generation of network technologies and services. The proposed approach differs from earlier network management methodologies in three major ways: it is driven by managing service performance and network robustness, rather than managing network equipment; it is based on a global network model that makes “end-to-end” management possible, in contrast to today´s highly segmented management; and its decision support and automated applications are “network-state” dependent as opposed to being solely driven by “raw” network measurements