Visual Outage Management Wizard Plug-in for Network Downtime Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current network outage management processes are inefficient and lack effective communication and collaboration among technical, managerial, and executive personnel due to antiquated methods, leading to prolonged downtime and increased costs during mission-critical outages.
Innovation Solution
A visual outage management tool with a plug-in that acts as a real-time knowledge transfer agent, correlating current and historical outage data to construct a resolution process plan, facilitating timely and informed decision-making through a socially collaborative environment and interactive visual representations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional network outage management processes are used, then personnel can manage outages, but communication and collaboration among technical, managerial, and executive personnel are inefficient leading to prolonged downtime
Solution Approach 1:
The visual outage management tool serves as an intermediary platform that connects technical engineers, management personnel, and executives. It provides a centralized visual interface displaying real-time outage status, affected services, and resolution progress, enabling all stakeholders to collaborate effectively without communication barriers.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces antiquated manual communication methods (phone calls, emails, status reports) with an automated digital system. The tool automatically collects outage data from network components, processes it through correlation algorithms, and presents visual representations to all personnel, eliminating the inefficiency of manual information exchange.
2Loss of information
If engineers manually track and communicate outage information, then they can monitor the network, but they lack a complete picture of precisely what is occurring during the outage
Solution Approach 1:
The tool merges data from multiple sources including network monitoring systems, configuration management databases, and historical outage records into a single unified visual display. This consolidation provides engineers with a complete picture of the outage situation without requiring them to manually aggregate information from disparate systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates visual copies and representations of complex network states and outage conditions. Instead of requiring engineers to interpret raw data from multiple systems, the tool generates simplified visual models showing the current network state, affected components, and recommended actions, making the information easily comprehensible.
3Adaptability or versatility
If network components and systems are continuously updated, then the network remains current, but engineers face increased difficulty staying up to date with technical picture and component understandings
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by automatically collecting and organizing updated network component information, configuration changes, and technical documentation before engineers need to access it. The visual tool pre-processes this data into easily consumable formats, so when engineers need information about updated components, it is already prepared and presented in context.
Solution Approach 2:
The tool implements feedback mechanisms that automatically track which components have been updated and notify relevant engineers. The system continuously monitors configuration management databases for changes, correlates them with current outage data, and provides targeted updates to users, ensuring engineers stay current without manual effort.
4Reliability
If historical outage data is not analyzed, then the system remains simple, but resolution processes lack guidance from past experiences
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements feedback by automatically analyzing historical outage data and comparing it with current outage conditions. The correlation algorithm identifies patterns and similarities between past and present outages, then feeds this information back to engineers as guidance on effective resolution approaches that have worked previously, improving reliability without requiring manual analysis.
Solution Approach 2:
The tool performs self-service by automatically retrieving, analyzing, and correlating historical outage data without requiring engineer intervention. The system autonomously processes this data to generate actionable insights and recommendations, providing reliable resolution guidance while keeping the interface simple for users.
Data Source
AI summary
Described herein are systems and methods related to a plug-in for a visual tool as a real-time knowledge transfer agent between network outages. One embodiment relates to a method comprises retrieving current outage data related to a current operation of a network, retrieving historical outage data related to a prior operation of the network, correlating the current outage data with the historical outage data, and constructing a resolution process plan for repairing a current outage based on correlations between the current outage data and the historical outage data.