Telecommunications Service Management

The basic function of a service management system is to manage a service network for contracted customers. This system can efficiently support proactive troubleshooting in case of a network error, analyzing errors on the service level and correlating the network level error messages with the service topology purchased by the specific client. If any matching result is found, the operators receive an error message on the service involved. A service is defined as a network with a P2P or VPN topology running on any network technology based on customer needs and technical conditions.

To perform the tasks above, the service management system must be in contact with the network management systems managing the network technologies discussed above. The service management system receives the network-level alarms from these network management systems. The provider receives the network topology needed to interpret the specific alarms from the technical inventory management system using a special interface.

System structure

Telecommunications service providers may choose to deploy a service management system for several main reasons:

Service providers used to offer only network technology-based telecommunications connections and networks as services. The service provider monitored the service provided to the customer on the network level, but the existing management tools did not enable them to determine which services were affected by specific network errors and, therefore, proactive troubleshooting was not an option in the old days. As services became more complex, a higher level of management system was needed to centralize error management of different network technologies in a single system. Due to their end-to-end (E2E) nature, services have a P2P or star topology implemented through multiple network technology connections.

Alarms can only be monitored on the service level, with a unified service identification system clearly referencing the specific services for each error. Another requirement is that these services be assigned to the components of the network technology in use.

In contrast with the previous method of reactive error management, this is a proactive system enabling quick troubleshooting - preferably before the customer reports the problem.

System integration

Our service management system is based on the NETeXPERT VSM system of Agilent Technologies (formerly Objective Systems Integrators). The core principle of the system is that a policy can be compiled to process incoming alarms. Using this policy, the system performs the service error correlation based on network alarms. Service data and the relevant network data can be entered in the system if connected to the technical inventory management system, with E2E management of both service and network data.

As a result of this operation, the service management system maintains contact with multiple OSS systems. NETvisor carries out integration with associated systems, including development of interfaces to management, technical inventory and workflow management systems, the CNMS data populating module and the special user interface of the system.

Trouble ticket management

The two main functions of the service management system are to provide a service-correlated display of errors in the managed network and to help launch the work processes that support troubleshooting. For this reason, errors may be registered in the workflow control system through a trouble-ticket-posting interface, and then the necessary troubleshooting procedures are launched. These trouble tickets include information not only about the service, but also the network component causing the exception, which enables efficient and fast troubleshooting.

Technical inventory management

The technical inventory management system provides network topology and service data to the service management system.

Network technologies

Another main component of the solution consists of systems for managing specific network technologies and sending network-level alarms. The integrated network technologies are highlighted on the right.