Network device and method for transmitting statistical data

Abstract

The present invention comprises: a data acquisition unit (11) that acquires statistical data of an NE device (1) at a measurement time set for each prescribed period; a comparison unit (14) that compares first statistical data acquired at a first measurement time with second statistical data acquired at a second measurement time subsequent to the first measurement time; an accumulation unit (16) that accumulates the second statistical data when the second statistical data does not match the first statistical data in the comparison unit (14); and a communication unit (17) that transmits the statistical data accumulated in the accumulation unit 16 to an OpS (13) in accordance with the amount of data accumulated in the accumulation unit (16).

Description

Network device and method for transmitting statistical data

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a network device and a method for transmitting statistical data.

[0002] As disclosed in Non-Patent Document 1, in a large-scale network in which a plurality of network devices (NE; Network Element) are connected to a management server (OpS; Operation System), the OpS needs to acquire statistical data from a large number of network devices.

[0003] The OpS acquires statistical data such as CPU usage rate, bandwidth usage rate, and optical transmission performance in each network device at a cycle of, for example, 15 minutes using SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol).

[0004] ITU-T G.7710 “Common equipment management function requirements” [searched on February 12, 2025], Internet <URL: https: / / www.itu.int / rec / T-REC-G.7710 / en>

[0005] However, the OpS requires data communication using a large number of frequency bands to aggregate information. When collecting statistical information at the OpS, there are limitations in the collection time and the number of devices depending on conditions such as the processing performance and available bandwidth of the OpS and the network devices.

[0006] For example, when the data size of the MIB (Management Information Base) information periodically collected by one network device is 4.1 [Mbyte], in the case of a network to which 3000 network devices are connected, the OpS needs to transmit and receive (4.1 * 3000 = 12,300 [Mbyte]) of data. For this reason, there is a problem that the traffic of the network connecting the OpS and the plurality of network devices becomes congested, and it takes a long time for the OpS to acquire statistical data from each network device.

[0007] This disclosure is made in view of the above circumstances and aims to provide a network device and a method for transmitting statistical data that can reduce network device traffic.

[0008] A network device according to one aspect of the present disclosure is a network device comprising: a data acquisition unit that acquires statistical data of the network device at measurement times set at predetermined intervals; a comparison unit that compares first statistical data acquired at a first measurement time with second statistical data acquired at a second measurement time following the first measurement time; a storage unit that stores the second statistical data if the comparison unit determines that the second statistical data does not match the first statistical data; and a communication unit that transmits the statistical data stored in the storage unit to the management server according to the amount of data stored in the storage unit.

[0009] A method for transmitting statistical data according to one aspect of the present disclosure involves acquiring statistical data from a network device at measurement times set at predetermined intervals, comparing first statistical data acquired at a first measurement time with second statistical data acquired at a second measurement time following the first measurement time, and if the second statistical data does not match the first statistical data, storing the second statistical data in a storage unit, and transmitting the statistical data stored in the storage unit to a management server according to the amount of data stored in the storage unit.

[0010] According to this disclosure, it will be possible to reduce network device traffic.

[0011] Figure 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a network configuration in which multiple NE devices are connected to OpS via a network. Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an NE device according to this embodiment. Figure 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the statistical data D1 to D9 acquired at measurement times t1 to t9 at 15-minute intervals. Figure 4 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing the flow of each statistical data when statistical data is stored in the storage unit and transmitted to OpS. Figure 5 is a graph showing the relationship between the number of NE devices and the amount of statistical data. Figure 6 is a timing chart showing the timing of sending statistical data from a conventional NE device to OpS. Figure 7 is a timing chart showing the timing of sending statistical data from an NE device according to this embodiment to OpS. Figure 8 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure for determining whether or not to delay the transmission time of statistical data based on the PING value. Figure 9 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of this embodiment.

[0012] The embodiments will be described below with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a network configuration in which a plurality of network devices 1 (hereinafter referred to as "NE devices 1") are connected to a management server 31 (hereinafter referred to as "OpS 31") via a network. As shown in Figure 1, the plurality of NE devices 1 (1-1 to 1-8) are connected to OpS 31 via a DCN (Data Communication Network) 32 and a router 33. That is, the NE devices 1 are connected to OpS 31 (management server) via a network. The NE devices 1 are, for example, switching equipment.

[0013] Each NE device 1 collects statistical data for the NE device 1 over a predetermined period. Statistical data refers to CPU usage, bandwidth usage, optical transmission performance, etc., for the NE device 1. In this embodiment, the predetermined period is 15 minutes. However, the predetermined period is not limited to 15 minutes and may be other time intervals.

[0014] OpS31 receives statistical data collected by each NE device 1 and transmitted at the transmission time set by each NE device 1, and manages each NE device 1.

[0015] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the NE device 1. As shown in Figure 2, the NE device 1 includes a data acquisition unit 11, a storage unit 10, a comparison unit 14, a storage processing unit 15, a storage unit 16, a communication unit 17, and a congestion information acquisition unit 18.

[0016] The data acquisition unit 11 acquires statistical data collected by the NE device 1. Figure 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the statistical data acquired by the data acquisition unit 11. As shown in Figure 3, the data acquisition unit 11 acquires statistical data at 15-minute intervals. Each statistical data includes multiple numerical values ​​(e.g., "Value") and data (e.g., "Validity"). In Figure 3, symbols t1 to t9 indicate measurement times at 15-minute intervals, and symbols D1 to D9 indicate the statistical data acquired at each measurement time t1 to t9. In other words, the data acquisition unit 11 acquires statistical data from the NE device 1 at measurement times set at predetermined intervals (e.g., 15 minutes).

[0017] The storage unit 10 shown in Figure 2 comprises a first storage unit 12 and a second storage unit 13.

[0018] The first storage unit 12 temporarily stores the statistical data acquired by the data acquisition unit 11. For example, as shown in Figure 3, the data acquisition unit 11 stores the statistical data D1 (first statistical data) acquired at measurement time t1 "2024 / 07 / 02, 17:15:00". "2024 / 07 / 02, 17:15:00" means "July 2, 2024, 17:15:00". The statistical data D1 acquired at measurement time t1 includes statistical data for the 15 minutes from "2024 / 07 / 02, 17:00:00" to "2024 / 07 / 02, 17:15:00". The time t1 at which the statistical data D1 was acquired is defined as the first measurement time.

[0019] The first storage unit 12 overwrites the stored data with the new statistical data when new statistical data is acquired by the data acquisition unit 11 at 15-minute intervals. Specifically, when statistical data D2 (see Figure 3) is acquired at the second measurement time t2 "2024 / 07 / 02, 17:30:00", 15 minutes (a predetermined period) after the first measurement time t1, the first storage unit 12 outputs statistical data D1 to the second storage unit 13. The first storage unit 12 saves the newly acquired statistical data D2. In other words, the storage unit 10, including the first storage unit 12, saves the first statistical data acquired at the first measurement time.

[0020] The second storage unit 13 stores the statistical data output from the first storage unit 12 each time statistical data is acquired by the data acquisition unit 11 at 15-minute intervals. Specifically, as shown in Figure 3, when statistical data D2 is acquired by the data acquisition unit 11 at the second measurement time t2 and statistical data D1 is output from the first storage unit 12, the second storage unit 13 has a function to save this statistical data D1.

[0021] Specifically, the first storage unit 12 stores statistical data measured at the most recent measurement time (for example, D2), and the second storage unit 13 stores statistical data measured one measurement earlier (15 minutes ago) (for example, D1).

[0022] The comparison unit 14 compares the statistical data stored in the first storage unit 12 (hereinafter referred to as "first stored data d1") with the statistical data stored in the second storage unit 13 (hereinafter referred to as "second stored data d2"). If the first stored data d1 and the second stored data d2 are different, the comparison unit 14 outputs a command to the storage processing unit 15 to store the first stored data d1. If the first stored data d1 and the second stored data d2 are the same, the comparison unit 14 outputs a command to the storage processing unit 15 to delete the first stored data d1. That is, when the second statistical data is acquired at the second measurement time, which follows the first measurement time, the comparison unit 14 compares the second statistical data with the first statistical data stored in the first storage unit 12.

[0023] When the comparison unit 14 outputs an accumulation command, the accumulation processing unit 15 outputs the statistical data (first saved data d1) stored in the first saved unit 12 to the accumulation unit 16. When the comparison unit 14 outputs a delete command, the accumulation processing unit 15 deletes the statistical data (first saved data d1) stored in the first saved unit 12.

[0024] In other words, if the first saved data d1 and the second saved data d2 are identical, it can be assumed that no change in statistical data occurred during the 15 minutes between the previous measurement time (e.g., the first measurement time t1) and the current measurement time (e.g., the second measurement time t2). Therefore, it is determined that there is no need to store the statistical data acquired at the current measurement time, i.e., the first saved data d1, and it will be deleted.

[0025] On the other hand, if the first stored data d1 and the second stored data d2 are different, it means that a change has occurred in the statistical data during the 15 minutes between the previous measurement time (for example, the first measurement time t1) and the current measurement time (for example, the second measurement time t2). Therefore, the statistical data acquired at the current measurement time, i.e., the first stored data d1, is output to the storage unit 16.

[0026] The storage unit 16 stores the statistical data output from the storage processing unit 15. The storage unit 16 stores the second statistical data when the comparison unit 14 determines that the second statistical data (first stored data d1 stored in the first storage unit 12) does not match the first statistical data (second stored data d2 stored in the second storage unit 13). The storage unit 16 outputs the stored statistical data to the communication unit 17 when OpS 31 outputs a request to transmit statistical data. The storage unit 16 outputs the stored statistical data to the communication unit 17 when the statistical data reaches a predetermined amount. The storage unit 16 deletes the statistical data after the statistical data stored by the communication unit 17 has been transmitted to OpS 31.

[0027] The communication unit 17 communicates with OpS 31 via DCN 32 as shown in Figure 1. When OpS 31 outputs a request to send statistical data, the communication unit 17 receives this request. When the communication unit 17 receives the request to send statistical data, it retrieves the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 and sends it to OpS 31. When the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 reaches a predetermined amount, the communication unit 17 retrieves this statistical data and sends it to OpS 31. In other words, the communication unit 17 sends the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 to OpS 31 (management server) according to the amount of data stored in the storage unit 16.

[0028] The communication unit 17 receives the PING value in OpS 31. The PING value refers to the time required for round-trip communication between the NE device 1 and OpS 31. If the congestion level is above a predetermined value (for example, the PING value is below a predetermined specified value) at the time of transmission of the statistical data, the communication unit 17 delays the transmission of the statistical data by a predetermined amount of time before transmission.

[0029] The congestion information acquisition unit 18 estimates the congestion state of OpS 31 based on the PING value received by the communication unit 17. The higher the PING value, the higher the computational load on OpS 31, or the higher the traffic on DCN 32. In other words, the congestion information acquisition unit 18 acquires the degree of congestion in communication with OpS 31.

[0030] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the flow of statistical data when statistical data is stored in the storage unit 16 and transmitted to OpS 31. The process of storing statistical data in the storage unit 16 will be explained below with reference to Figure 4. When statistical data D11 is acquired by the data acquisition unit 11 (s1), this statistical data D11 is stored in the first storage unit 12 (s2). At this time, no statistical data is stored in the second storage unit 13 (s3), so the statistical data D11 is stored directly in the storage unit 16 (s4).

[0031] After 15 minutes have elapsed, statistical data D12 is acquired by the data acquisition unit 11 (s11). Statistical data D11 is then moved from the first storage unit 12 to the second storage unit 13 (s13), and statistical data D12 is stored in the first storage unit 12 (s12). At this time, if statistical data D1 and D2 are different, statistical data D12 is stored in the storage unit 16; if they match, statistical data D12 is deleted. If "D12 ≠ D11", then statistical data D11 and D12 will be stored in the storage unit 16 (s14).

[0032] After another 15 minutes, when statistical data D13 is acquired by the data acquisition unit 11 (s21), statistical data D12 is moved from the first storage unit 12 to the second storage unit 13 (s23), and statistical data D13 is stored in the first storage unit 12 (s22). At this time, if statistical data D12 and D13 are different, statistical data D13 is stored in the storage unit 16, and if they match, statistical data D13 is deleted. If "D13 = D12", then statistical data D13 is deleted. Therefore, statistical data D11 and D12 remain stored in the storage unit 16 (s24). Subsequently, statistical data D11 and D12 stored in the storage unit 16 are transmitted to OpS31 (s31).

[0033] The above process will be explained with reference to the data shown in Figure 3. As shown in Figure 3, the measurement time is set every 15 minutes. That is, statistical data from the NE device 1 is acquired every 15 minutes.

[0034] As shown in Figure 3, when statistical data D1 is acquired at measurement time t1, this statistical data D1 is stored in the storage unit 16 as reference data. Since the statistical data D1 at measurement time t1 and the statistical data D2 to D5 at each measurement time t2 to t5 are all the same, the statistical data D2 to D5 are to be deleted. Since the statistical data D6 at measurement time t6 is different from statistical data D1, statistical data D6 is stored in the storage unit 16.

[0035] Since statistical data D7 at measurement time t7 differs from statistical data D6, statistical data D7 is stored in the storage unit 16. Similarly, since statistical data D8 at measurement time t8 differs from statistical data D7, statistical data D8 is stored in the storage unit 16.

[0036] Since statistical data D9 and statistical data D8 at measurement time t9 are the same, statistical data D9 is to be deleted. In this way, when the statistical data acquired at the current measurement time matches the statistical data acquired at the previous measurement time, the statistical data acquired at the current measurement time is deleted, thereby reducing the amount of statistical data stored in the storage unit 16.

[0037] In other words, if the data size of the MIB (Management Information Base) information periodically collected by one NE device 1 is 4.1 [Mbytes], then as the number of NE devices 1 increases, the amount of data transmitted and received in OpS 31 increases in proportion to the number of NE devices 1, as shown in the graph in Figure 5. In this embodiment, the amount of data can be reduced by performing the above processing, thus reducing the amount of data transmitted and received.

[0038] Next, the timing for transmitting statistical data from the NE device 1 to OpS 31 will be explained with reference to the timing charts shown in Figures 6 and 7. Figure 6 is a timing chart showing the flow of transmitting statistical data accumulated in the NE device 1 to OpS 31 in a conventional system. The times q1 to q6 shown in Figure 6 indicate the times when the data acquisition unit 11 of the NE device 1 acquires statistical data in the NE device 1. The interval between each time q1 to q6 is set to 15 minutes.

[0039] As shown in Figure 6, OpS31 outputs a request to send statistical data to NE device 1 at 15-minute intervals. When NE device 1 receives a transmission request, it sends the statistical data acquired at times q1 to q6 to OpS31. This transmission method does not take into account the load status of OpS31 or the traffic status of DCN32, so depending on the load status of OpS31 and the traffic status of DCN32, it may take a long time to collect statistical data or statistical data may not be received at all.

[0040] Figure 7 is a timing chart showing the timing of statistical data transmission by the NE device 1 according to this embodiment. At time q1 shown in Figure 7, statistical data is acquired, and when the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 reaches a predetermined amount, this statistical data is transmitted to OpS 31 (see reference numeral r1). Subsequently, at time p1, the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 is deleted. Note that the time p1 for transmitting the statistical data and the time p2 for deleting the statistical data are changed according to the degree of network communication congestion. Details will be described later.

[0041] At time q2, statistical data is acquired by the data acquisition unit 11 of the NE device 1, but since the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 has not reached a predetermined amount, the statistical data is not transmitted. The same applies to time q4.

[0042] Statistical data is acquired at time q3 as shown in Figure 7, and when the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 reaches a predetermined amount, this statistical data is transmitted to OpS 31 (see symbol r2). At time p2, the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 is deleted. The same applies to times q5, p3 and symbol r3 as shown in Figure 7. In other words, the NE device 1 transmits the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 to OpS 31 when the statistical data reaches a predetermined amount, without receiving a transmission request from OpS 31.

[0043] Also, as shown by reference numerals Q1 and Q2 in FIG. 7, when a transmission request is input by the user in OpS31, the communication unit 17 receives this transmission request, and as a response to this transmission request, transmits the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 to OpS31. That is, when a transmission request for statistical data by the user is transmitted from OpS31 (management server), the communication unit 17 of the NE device 1 transmits the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 to OpS31.

[0044] The NE device 1 according to the present embodiment transmits the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 to OpS31 without receiving a transmission request from OpS31 at regular intervals. Therefore, for example, when the statistical data stored at time q1 shown in FIG. 7 is the same as the statistical data stored at time q2, transmission of this statistical data to OpS31 can be omitted, and traffic in network communication can be reduced.

[0045] Next, referring to FIG. 8, a process of changing the transmission time of statistical data and the time to delete statistical data according to the degree of network congestion will be described. The degree of network congestion refers to, for example, a PING value that changes according to the load state of OpS31 or the traffic state of the network. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a process of changing the transmission time of statistical data based on the PING value. This process is executed by the congestion information acquisition unit 18.

[0046] First, in step S11 of FIG. 8, the congestion information acquisition unit 18 acquires the PING value of the network.

[0047] In step S12, the congestion information acquisition unit 18 determines whether the PING value is less than or equal to a preset specified value (that is, whether the degree of congestion is greater than or equal to a predetermined value). If it is less than or equal to the specified value (S12; YES), the process proceeds to step S14, and if not (S12; NO), the process proceeds to step S13.

[0048] In step S13, the congestion information acquisition unit 18 instructs the communication unit 17 to delay the transmission time of the statistical data by a predetermined time. As a result, transmission of the statistical data is postponed by a predetermined time.

[0049] In step S14, the convergence information acquisition unit 18 outputs a transmission command for statistical data to the communication unit 17. The communication unit 17 transmits the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 to OpS31. As a result, since the statistical data is transmitted at a time when the PING value is below the specified value, it is possible to avoid network traffic congestion. Further, control is performed so as to delay the time for deleting the statistical data by a predetermined time.

[0050] Thus, the NE device 1 according to this embodiment includes a data acquisition unit 11 that acquires statistical data of the NE device 1 at a measurement time set every predetermined period, first statistical data acquired at the first measurement time, and a second measurement time next to the first measurement time. A comparison unit 14 that compares the second statistical data acquired at the time, and a storage unit 16 that stores the second statistical data when the second statistical data does not match the first statistical data in the comparison unit 14, and according to the amount of data stored in the storage unit 16, It includes a communication unit 17 that transmits the statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 to OpS13 (management server).

[0051] The NE device 1 according to this embodiment does not receive a transmission request transmitted from OpS31 every predetermined period (for example, 15 minutes), but transmits this statistical data to OpS31 according to the amount of statistical data stored in the storage unit 16. For example, when the amount of statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 reaches a predetermined value, this statistical data is transmitted to OpS31. Therefore, the transmission frequency of statistical data can be reduced, and it is possible to reduce the traffic when OpS31 acquires statistical data from a plurality of NE devices 1.

[0052] Therefore, it is possible to avoid the occurrence of a problem that the traffic of the network connecting OpS31 and a plurality of NE devices 1 becomes congested and it takes a long time for OpS31 to acquire statistical data from each NE device 1.

[0053] In this embodiment, if the statistical data acquired at the current measurement time (e.g., t2 in Figure 3) matches the statistical data acquired at the previous measurement time (e.g., t1 in Figure 3), the current statistical data is deleted and not stored in the storage unit 16. This reduces the amount of statistical data stored in the storage unit 16, and consequently prevents the amount of statistical data stored in the storage unit 16 from reaching a predetermined amount in a short time. As a result, it becomes possible to reduce the frequency of statistical data transmission.

[0054] As shown in Figure 9, the network device 1 of this embodiment described above can be a general-purpose computer system comprising, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit, processor) 901, memory 902, storage 903 (HDD: Hard Disk Drive, SSD: Solid State Drive), communication device 904, input device 905, and output device 906. The memory 902 and storage 903 are storage devices. In this computer system, each function of the network device 1 is realized when the CPU 901 executes a predetermined program loaded onto the memory 902.

[0055] Network device 1 may be implemented on a single computer, or on multiple computers. Furthermore, network device 1 may be a virtual machine implemented on a computer.

[0056] The program for network device 1 can be stored on computer-readable recording media such as HDDs, SSDs, USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, CDs (Compact Discs), and DVDs (Digital Versatile Discs), or distributed over the network. Computer-readable recording media are, for example, non-transitory recording media.

[0057] This disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described above, and numerous modifications are possible within the scope of its essence.

[0058] 1 NE device (Network device) 10 Storage unit 11 Data acquisition unit 12 First storage unit 13 Second storage unit 14 Comparison unit 15 Storage processing unit 16 Storage unit 17 Communication unit 18 Congestion information acquisition unit 31 OpS (Management Server) D1-D9 Statistical data t1 First measurement time t2 Second measurement time

Claims

1. A network device comprising: a data acquisition unit that acquires statistical data of the network device at measurement times set at predetermined intervals; a comparison unit that compares first statistical data acquired at a first measurement time with second statistical data acquired at a second measurement time following the first measurement time; a storage unit that stores the second statistical data if the comparison unit determines that the second statistical data does not match the first statistical data; and a communication unit that transmits the statistical data stored in the storage unit to the management server according to the amount of data stored in the storage unit.

2. The network device according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit transmits the statistical data stored in the storage unit to the management server when the management server transmits a request to transmit the statistical data.

3. The network device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a congestion information acquisition unit that acquires the degree of congestion in communication with the management server, wherein the communication unit delays the time of transmitting the statistical data when the degree of congestion is greater than or equal to a predetermined value.

4. A method for transmitting statistical data, comprising: acquiring statistical data of a network device at measurement times set at predetermined intervals; comparing first statistical data acquired at a first measurement time with second statistical data acquired at a second measurement time following the first measurement time; storing the second statistical data in a storage unit if the second statistical data does not match the first statistical data; and transmitting the statistical data stored in the storage unit to a management server according to the amount of data stored in the storage unit.

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