IP Telephony Configuration Map for Hierarchical Site Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing IP telephony networks face challenges in managing the addition, removal, and movement of IP telephony elements due to resource-intensive administrative efforts and scalability issues, often resulting in bottlenecks and system unavailability when the primary server is down.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a configuration map that organizes sites in a tree-like hierarchy, allowing for distributed server services and minimizing the need for all elements to be updated, thus reducing memory, computational, and administrative requirements, while enabling local backup services and efficient server assignment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If all switches and servers are updated when an extension is added to the network, then the network maintains complete information consistency, but significant memory, computational resources and administrative efforts are required
Solution Approach 1:
The network is segmented into hierarchical levels (headquarters site and remote sites) with a configuration map that divides network elements into groups. When an extension is added, only the necessary segments (specific switches and servers in the relevant hierarchy path) are updated rather than the entire network, reducing administrative overhead while maintaining consistency where needed.
Solution Approach 2:
Different parts of the network have different update requirements based on their location in the hierarchy. The configuration map enables local quality by identifying which specific switches and servers need updates based on the extension's position in the network hierarchy, rather than applying uniform updates across all network elements.
2Ease of operation
If a single primary server at the headquarter site provides all locator services, then centralized control is maintained, but the system creates a bottleneck and becomes inoperable if the headquarter site or primary server is down
Solution Approach 1:
The locator service functionality is segmented and distributed across multiple servers at different hierarchical levels. The configuration map identifies which servers can provide locator services for specific network regions, allowing switches to query local servers first before escalating to the headquarter primary server, thereby distributing the bottleneck and improving availability.
Solution Approach 2:
The configuration map acts as an intermediary data structure that enables switches to determine the appropriate server to query for locator services. It provides the mapping information that allows distributed service provision while maintaining centralized coordination through the hierarchical structure.
3Device complexity
If the network uses a single primary server for all locator services, then server management is simplified, but the network does not easily scale as the number of IP telephony elements expands
Solution Approach 1:
The server workload is segmented across multiple servers at different hierarchical levels. The configuration map enables this segmentation by tracking which servers are responsible for which network regions and elements. This allows the network to scale by adding servers at remote sites without requiring a single primary server to handle all locator services for the entire network.
Solution Approach 2:
The system adds a hierarchical dimension to server distribution, moving from a single-point (headquarter primary server) to a multi-level hierarchical structure. The configuration map enables this dimensional change by organizing servers and network elements in a hierarchical relationship, allowing scalability while maintaining manageable complexity through the hierarchical organization.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for managing an IP telephony network that uses a configuration map for organizing sites in a tree-like hierarchy. The system is capable of managing the addition, removal and movement of IP telephony elements within an IP telephony network and locating services and IP telephony elements within the IP telephony network in an efficient manner.