Longest Common Subsequence Policy Rule Reordering
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing network device configuration processes require numerous commands to reorder policy rules, consuming significant resources and potentially causing devices to crash or operate in indeterminate states due to inefficient configuration updates.
Innovation Solution
The method determines a longest common subsequence (LCS) of policy rules between the current and updated policies, generating minimal reordering commands to align the current policy with the updated policy, reducing the number of commands needed and minimizing resource consumption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional configuration processes are used to reorder policy rules, then the policy rules can be reordered to updated ordering, but the number of commands required is large, consuming significant network resources and device resources
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and identifies the longest common subsequence (LCS) of policy rules that remain in the same relative order between current and updated configurations. By extracting only the rules that need to be moved (those not in the LCS), the system generates minimal reordering commands, reducing network resource consumption and device workload while maintaining reliable configuration updates
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of reordering all policy rules, the patent applies partial action by only moving the necessary subset of rules that are not part of the longest common subsequence. This reduces the number of commands from potentially all rules to only those requiring repositioning, minimizing resource usage while achieving the desired configuration state
2Productivity
If traditional configuration processes are used to reorder policy rules, then the policy rules can be reordered, but the number of commands required is large, causing devices to potentially crash or operate in indeterminate states
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the longest common subsequence to identify rules that maintain their relative positions. By generating commands only for rules outside the LCS, the system reduces the number of configuration operations, minimizing the time devices spend in intermediate states and reducing the risk of crashes or indeterminate operational states
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary analysis to determine the LCS before generating reordering commands. This preliminary action identifies the stable portion of the configuration, allowing the system to plan and execute minimal reordering operations that maintain device stability throughout the update process
3Productivity
If all policy rules are reordered using traditional methods, then the updated policy ordering can be achieved, but the time spent in intermediate, indeterminate states is increased
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the longest common subsequence to identify rules that do not require repositioning. By generating reordering commands only for rules outside the LCS, the system minimizes the number of configuration operations, reducing the total time the device spends in intermediate states during the update process
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by reordering only the necessary subset of policy rules rather than all rules. This selective approach reduces the number of configuration commands executed, thereby minimizing the duration of intermediate states and improving overall update efficiency
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques are described for determining reorder commands for updating policy rules in a managed network device based on a longest common subsequence between two lists of policy rules. For example, as described herein, a network management device determines a longest common subsequence of a source list comprising a plurality of policy rules in a first ordering that corresponds to a current policy configuration of a managed network device and of a destination list comprising the plurality of policy rules in a second ordering that corresponds to an updated ordering for the policy configuration. The network management device then iterates through the destination list to generate commands that, when executed by the managed network device, move policy rules in the destination list that are not members of the longest common subsequence to positions in the policy configuration relative to policy rules that are members of the longest common subsequence.