Dynamic Traffic Prioritization for Congested Links
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Solution Overview
Problem
Communication networks experience congestion due to exceptionally high traffic volumes, leading to bottlenecks between provider edge routers and end systems, particularly during events like Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, which reduces network performance.
Innovation Solution
A distributed method for dynamic traffic prioritization that monitors network traffic, identifies congested links, and redirects critical traffic to alternate IP addresses with preconfigured Quality of Service (QoS) mechanisms, ensuring guaranteed bandwidth for high-priority traffic while managing congestion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traffic is uniformly treated on congested links, then network simplicity is maintained, but critical traffic performance deteriorates during high-volume events
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-configures Quality of Service (QoS) policies and alternate IP addresses before congestion occurs. When congestion is detected, the end system can immediately redirect critical traffic to pre-prepared alternate destinations with guaranteed bandwidth, eliminating the need for complex real-time routing decisions during congestion events
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments traffic into different priority categories (critical vs. non-critical) and applies different handling mechanisms to each segment. Critical traffic is redirected to alternate IP addresses with pre-configured QoS guarantees, while non-critical traffic continues normal routing, thus managing complexity through selective differentiation
2Productivity
If all traffic is routed through the primary link, then routing simplicity is maintained, but network performance deteriorates during congestion events
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts traffic routing based on real-time congestion detection. The end system monitors link conditions and dynamically redirects critical traffic to alternate IP addresses when congestion is detected, while maintaining simple primary routing for non-critical traffic during normal conditions
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces alternate IP addresses as intermediary destinations for critical traffic during congestion. These alternate addresses act as mediators that receive redirected traffic and forward it through alternative paths, effectively decoupling the routing complexity from the primary network infrastructure
3Reliability
If no traffic prioritization is implemented, then system simplicity is maintained, but critical communication reliability deteriorates during DDoS attacks
Solution Approach 1:
QoS policies and alternate IP addresses are pre-configured on the provider edge router and end system before attacks occur. During DDoS attacks, the end system detects congestion and immediately redirects critical traffic to pre-prepared alternate destinations with guaranteed bandwidth, eliminating the need for complex real-time prioritization decisions during attack events
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different quality treatments to different traffic segments at the end system level. Critical traffic receives special treatment through redirection to alternate IP addresses with pre-configured QoS guarantees, while non-critical traffic continues normal routing, thus implementing prioritization with minimal added complexity through localized differentiation
Data Source
AI summary
A method provides for the dynamic traffic prioritization in a communication network. The method electronically monitors traffic in a communication network and determines when traffic exceeds configured thresholds on the links of the communication network. Thus, the method determines a link which is potentially about to be congested in the communication network. The method categorizes the traffic on this link by an end system attached to one end of the potentially congested link into a plurality of priority categories using application layer parameters. Using a re-direct capability of the end system, the method re-directs at least one of the pluralities of priority categories of traffic to an alternate Internet Protocol address. The method uses preconfigured Quality of Service mechanisms on the provider edge router attached to the other end of the potentially congested link to guarantee a predetermined amount of bandwidth capacity of the link to traffic destined to the alternate Internet Protocol address.