Service Assurance System for Closed-Loop Intent-Based Networking
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Solution Overview
Problem
In intent-based networking, network operators face challenges in identifying specific degraded or faulty components responsible for service degradation due to the lack of service context information in telemetry from network devices, making troubleshooting and repair efforts inefficient.
Innovation Solution
A service assurance system that leverages model-driven telemetry and programming capabilities of network devices to deliver end-to-end service assurance by using service tagging to provide context to subservice metrics, enabling the identification of problematic components and facilitating closed-loop automation for reconfiguration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If synthetic traffic monitoring is used to check SLA compliance, then service level agreement verification is achieved, but service context information and insights on specific degraded components are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the monitoring approach into two layers: synthetic traffic monitoring for SLA verification at the service level, and telemetry collection for component-level details. This segmentation allows each layer to fulfill its specific function without compromising the other, resolving the contradiction between SLA verification and information loss.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a nested monitoring structure where synthetic traffic monitoring (outer layer) provides SLA compliance information, while telemetry collection from network devices (inner layer) provides detailed component information. The inner telemetry data is nested within the context of the outer SLA monitoring framework, allowing both levels of information to coexist and complement each other.
2Measurement precision
If telemetry from network devices is collected, then operational information is obtained, but service context information is missing making troubleshooting complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges telemetry data from multiple network devices with synthetic traffic monitoring data into a unified service context. This combination correlates component-level telemetry with service-level performance, automatically linking operational information to the services they support, thereby simplifying troubleshooting without losing measurement precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces service context as an intermediary layer that connects raw telemetry data from network devices with service-level SLA information. This intermediary correlates and contextualizes the data, making it easier to trace operational issues back to specific services and vice versa, reducing troubleshooting complexity.
3Ease of operation
If manual troubleshooting is performed based on separated service and telemetry information, then service issues can be investigated, but identification of problematic components becomes inefficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements automated feedback mechanisms that continuously correlate synthetic traffic monitoring results with telemetry data. When SLA violations are detected, the system automatically feeds back to identify which specific network components are responsible, eliminating manual investigation and dramatically improving component identification efficiency while maintaining ease of service investigation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables the monitoring system to self-service by automatically correlating service performance data with component telemetry without requiring manual intervention. The system autonomously identifies problematic components by analyzing the relationship between SLA violations and component status, improving productivity while keeping the investigation capability accessible.
4Adaptability or versatility
If the network is composed of heterogeneous network components, then network functionality and service capability are enhanced, but identification of responsible components for service degradation becomes near impossible
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal service context framework that works across heterogeneous network components. The synthetic traffic monitoring and telemetry correlation mechanism is designed to be component-agnostic, automatically adapting to different device types and protocols, thereby maintaining network functionality while enabling unified identification of responsible components regardless of heterogeneity.
Data Source
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Figure 2A
AI summary
A method is performed at one or more entities configured to configure and provide assurance for a service enabled on a network. The service is configured as a collection of subservices on network devices of the network. A definition of the service is decomposed into a sub service dependency graph that indicates the sub services and dependencies between the subservices that collectively implement the service. Based on the subservice dependency graph, the sub services are configured to record and report sub service metrics indicative of sub service health states of the sub services. The sub service metrics are obtained from the subservices, and the subservice health states of the subservices are determined based on the sub service metrics. A health state of the service is determined based on the subservice health states. One or more of the sub services are reconfigured based on the health state of the service.