Telecommunications management network: vision vs. reality

Since the early 1980s, the standards bodies have been specifying the telecommunications management network (TMN) principles. Millions of dollars have been spent. The TMN principles aim at being applicable across telecommunications technologies. They recommend the use of independent management networks to manage telecommunications networks, elements in the telecommunications networks (managed networks), and managing systems (in managing networks), communicating via well defined, standardized interfaces. The standards bodies envisioned TMN as a possible solution to the complex problem of telecommunications networks and services operation, administration, maintenance and provisioning (OAM and P) in the open, multivendor environment. However, the vision stumbles against the reality. Various factors still hinder the implementation of TMN-based OAM and P systems. The present article provides a tutorial on TMN by contrasting the vision and the reality     

A synchronous digital hierarchy network management system

The critical issues in multivendor environments and operation systems of telecommunication networks essential to speeding up the handling of service orders and service restoration after failures are discussed. To overcome these problems as the software backlog grows, the authors propose the application of a telecommunications management network (TMN) architecture together with an object-oriented network resource (ONR) model. The second phase of the synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) network management system, which is based on the TMN architecture and ONR model, is examined     

Study of the TMN-Based Configuration Management in Intelligent Networks

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Implementing OSI agent/managers for TMN

The telecommunications management network (TMN) architecture defines a framework for the management of telecommunications networks and services. It is based on a set of TMN standards developed by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU-T), and is finding increased interest in the telecommunications industry, where rapid development of services and open architectures are in demand. Open systems interconnection (OSI) agent/managers as defined by the OSI systems management standards play a major role in the TMN architecture. However, the complexity of these standards, make the implementation of agent/managers and thus TMN systems a challenging task; methodologies and tools to ease the task of building agent/managers are needed. This article discusses the key difficulties in building OSI agent/managers and presents an architecture and a toolkit that can overcome them. The toolkit automates the generation of code that conforms to TMN and OSI standards, allowing the implementor to focus on the implementation of agent and manager specific components using the facilities provided by the toolkit     

一个新的集成网络管理体系结构

已存在的三个网络管理体系结构,基于Ｉｎｔｅｒｎｅｔ／ＳＮＭＰ,基于ＯＳＩ／ＴＭＮ的网络体系结构不能独立完成对计算机和电信网的综合管理。基于新出现的计算技术和ＴＭＮ的逻辑分层管理体系结构,提出了一个能够综合管理计算机网和电信网的集成网络管理体系结构,并分析此管理体系结构的特点。     

Access network management modeling

The effective management of access networks presents challenges which are not found in other sectors of the telecommunications network. The approaches being developed for the management modeling of access networks allow systems with different technologies and from different vendors to be managed in a uniform way. The functional architecture used for SDH can be generalized so that it is applicable to access networks, and this forms the basis of the modeling of their logical functionality. Technology-specific models of the various elements can be integrated into a technology-independent network model, and the physical resources and logical structure can be modeled to simplify repairs and improve inventory management. The development of standards for the management of the access network is an evolutionary process, but sufficient standards are now in place in order to achieve a useful level of functionality over a Q3 interface. Developing solutions that take advantage of the initial telecommunications management network (TMN) standards allows experiences to be fed back into the standards bodies to generate a more complete set of standard specifications, leading to the goal of access network management as part of a totally integrated TMN     

Approaches for introducing TMN in legacy networks: a critical look

Introducing the telecommunications management network (TMN) into a legacy network is generally an uphill battle. This article provides a critical review of the two key approaches used in the industry for introducing TMN interfaces into legacy networks. Before the analysis, it is of prime importance to establish some ground rules. There is currently no common understanding of what introducing TMN into a legacy network means, as there is no common understanding of what introducing TMN into a network means. We start by analyzing what introducing TMN into a legacy network means, and then study, successively, the bottom-up and top-down approaches. Finally, a cost trade-off analysis is made     

智能网的管理及其与TMN的关系

智能网是８０年代中期出现的一种新型网络，因其能够快速灵活的在网络中引入新业务而得以迅速发展，并成为未来电信网的方向。电网管理网作为现代电信网的有效管理手段，必须对智能网的发展产生巨大影响，而智能网的发展也将使ＴＭＮ的管理功能更加完善。本文将首先介绍智能网的管理要求，然后从网络管理的角度探讨其与ＴＭＮ的相互关系。     

电信管理网

阐述了TMN的概念、管理功能和管理业务其及体系结构,并介绍了以我国TMN技术和标准为基础的综合电信管理网的建设情况。认为传统的电信管理网络已不适应现代电信网的管理要求,而由国际电信联盟——电信部(ITU-T)提出的,具有标准协议、接口和结构的电信管理网(TMN)将成为未来电信网管理的基础。     

Architecture for integrated telecommunication management platforms

Telecommunication management network (TMN) systems represent diverse telecommunication domains with wide-ranging functionality which frequently employ different technologies and produce isolated solutions. Yet as telecommunications become more sophisticated, there is a growing need for telecommunication management integration and interoperability. The authors present a general TMN computing-platform architecture which is flexible and powerful enough to support contrasting TMN management applications while facilitating integration. To validate the architecture, three diverse management applications were profiled based on components of the TMN platform architecture. Core infrastructure components, required by a broad range of TMN applications, are identified and examined and TMN-specific technology is highlighted     

Managing a broadband environment: “you can't buck themarket”

Demand for bandwidth seems unstoppable, and investment in network infrastructure is massive. There is a desire that network operators be able to manage these networks in an efficient manner, with flexibility to support new customer service opportunities faster and cheaper. Network operators are looking to standards to help them meet this challenge. The telecommunications management network (TMN) model, so effective in describing how management information must support needs at the element, network, and service levels, provides a good starting point. However, if the supporting standards are not developed and used wisely, a TMN approach can have the opposite effect of adding cost and removing flexibility. Technology-specific “stovepipes” may make it impossible to manage services across a range of technologies. The authors express their views on the need for a service-driven approach to standards implementation. They point out specific challenges operators will face as they approach their management systems' needs for broadband services, and encourage service providers and network operators to take a more proactive role in defining their needs     

Telecommunications services in China

An overview of telecommunications services in the public switched telephone network (PSTN) and public switched packet data network (PSDN) in China is presented. Public telephone, data, telegraph, telematic, and future directory services provided by these networks are discussed     

Network architectures for the 21st century

The future belongs to the service providers who invest in new network architectures. Continuous innovation is easier, but the new architectures call for significantly different ways of running the telephone and cable businesses. The network architecture forms the main infrastructure to meet the enterprise networking needs of the next century. Today's telephone networks treat switching, transmission, and operations systems as distinct disciplines. The usually respectable tendency towards caution in adapting to change would suggest that new technologies be mapped into this methodology. This is not possible. The deployment of the telecommunications management network (TMN) illustrates the problem; it was so slow in coming due primarily to its complexity and the inertia of legacy systems. Distinctions between switching and transmission equipment disappear as network elements become software-based. Incorporating network management functions in the network elements can make operating a network easier. Only a radical change of mindset can hope to provide the necessary cost benefits and ease of use. The full-service network requires a new nodal architecture; one possibility is shown. A shared access infrastructure featuring a connection control layer connects network services and management to the modules which provide intelligent network capability, such as call setup, routers and transport. Connection control provides the pathways for a combination of these modules to work together to perform traditional network functions     

基于TMN的智能网网络管理

随着电信技术和业务的迅猛发展，智能网新业务不断投入运营，大量的ＩＮ设备进入了电信网络，因此迫切需要与之相拳ＩＮ网络管理技术。本文重点讨论了如何将计算机和电信方法用于ＩＮ的网络管理，并根据电信管理网络的结构和协议来实现ＩＮ的网络管理。     

Implementing the Orwell protocol over a fibre-based high-speed ATMnetwork

Asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) has emerged as a possible contender for the next generation switching system and fundamental transport basis for the broadband integrated services digital network (B-ISDN) and telecommunications in the future. It is widely thought of as the network to accommodate the uncertain requirements of future public communications because of its high degree of flexibility and service independency. The Orwell protocol developed by British Telecom can provide a communication base to meet the requirements of such a network. Orwell is used as a slotted ring protocol designed to carry a mixture of services which form the basis of an ATM network. The authors describe the realisation of a 155.52 Mbit/s fibre-optic physical layer from the Orwell protocol based on an ATM technology, and also discuss how the Orwell protocol can offer broadband transport capabilities and can provide access to and interwork with existing networks, such as telephone networks and 64 kbit/s based ISDNs     

A Performance Analysis of TMN Systems Using Models of Networks of Queues,Jackson's Theorem,and Simulation

We analyze the performance of a telecommunications management network (TMN) system using models of networks of queues, Jackson's theorem, and simulation. TMN systems for managing public asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) networks generally have a four‐level hierarchical structure consisting of a network management system, a few element management systems (EMSs), and several pairs of agents and ATM switches. We construct a Jackson's queuing network and present formulae to calculate its performance measures: distributions of queue lengths and waiting times, mean message response time, and maximum throughput. We perform a numerical analysis and a simulation analysis and compare the results.     

Telecommunications maintenance application using model-basedreasoning

The authors describe the multi-layered standardised telecommunications management network (TMN) architecture of a model-based fault maintenance application which has been developed by two RACE projects, AIM and GEMA. Experience from the applications suggests that model-based reasoning offers a common solution for facilitating the development of TMNs     

Digitalization of urban and rural telephone networks in Russia

The authors examine the digitalisation process of the Russian telephone network. First of all, the relevant statistics is presented. Further, specific features of the national urban and rural telephone network digitalization are described. Two items are devoted to the experience of the digitalization of the urban and rural networks. Finally, some aspects of network planning and considerations concerning long-term evolution of Russian telecommunications are stated     

Power savings in software defined data center networks via modified hybrid genetic algorithm

In modern data centers, power consumed by network is an observable portion of the total energy budget and thus improving the energy efficiency of data center networks (DCNs) truly matters. One effective way for this energy efficiency is to make the size of DCNs elastic along with traffic demands by flow consolidation and bandwidth scheduling, i.e., turning off unnecessary network components to reduce the power consumption. Meanwhile, having the instinct support for data center management, software defined networking (SDN) provides a paradigm to elastically control the resources of DCNs. To achieve such power savings, most of the prior efforts just adopt simple greedy heuristic to reduce computational complexity. However, due to the inherent problem of greedy algorithm, a good-enough optimization cannot be always guaranteed. To address this problem, a modified hybrid genetic algorithm (MHGA) is employed to improve the solution's accuracy, and the fine-grained routing function of SDN is fully leveraged. The simulation results show that more efficient power management can be achieved than the previous studies, by increasing about 5% of network energy savings.     

Using distributed object technologies in telecommunications networkmanagement

The Telecommunications Management Network (TMN) has been developed as the framework to support administrations in managing telecommunications networks. It suggests the use of OSI Systems Management (OSI-SM) as the technology for management information exchanges. Distributed object technologies, such as the Common Object Request Broker architecture (CORBA), address the use of software application program interfaces (APIs) in addition to interoperable protocols. Their use in TMN has been the subject of intensive research in previous years, with most approaches focusing on interoperability aspects with OSI-SM. We examine the issues behind using distributed object technologies in TMN via a native fashion, with network elements supporting distributed objects directly, e.g., a “CORBA to the switch” approach. The proposed solution tries to maintain the full OSI-SM expressive power in a way that other solutions have not attempted before. Performance and scalability issues are considered, while the approach has been validated through implementation