Visual tracking of logical network state

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11595255-B2
Application number	US-202017133561-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 23, 2020
Priority date	Jan 16, 2020
Publication date	Feb 28, 2023
Grant date	Feb 28, 2023

Abstract

Some embodiments provide a method for visualizing a realization status of configuration changes for a set of logical entities of a logical network. The method generates a first presentation of a list of logical entities and a realization status for each logical entity in the list, where the realization status indicates whether all configuration changes for the logical entity have been realized. In response to a selection of a particular logical entity in the displayed list for which at least one configuration change has not been realized, the method generates a second presentation comprising a view of pending configuration changes for the selected particular logical entity.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for visualizing a realization status of configuration changes directed by a set of network management processes for a set of logical entities of a logical network, the method comprising:
generating a first presentation of a list of logical entities and a realization status for each logical entity in the list, each respective logical entity of a plurality of the logical entities implemented by configuring a respective plurality of physical entities, said realization status of each particular logical entity indicating whether a set of network management processes that verify realization of logical entity configurations have verified that all configuration changes for configuring a set of one or more physical entities that implement the particular logical entity have been realized on all of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity; and
in response to a selection of a particular logical entity in the displayed list for which at least one configuration change has not yet been realized, generating a second presentation comprising a view of one or more pending configuration changes for the selected particular logical entity that have been submitted to the set of network management processes but are not yet implemented by all of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second presentation includes previously realized configuration changes that are submitted to the set of network management processes and implemented by all of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second presentation excludes previously realized configuration changes that are submitted to the set of network management processes and implemented by all of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the set of network management processes verify the realization status for each particular logical entity using one of a state tracking object and a global realization number.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the view of pending configuration changes for the selected particular logical entity is a timeline of pending configuration changes submitted to the set of network management processes during a fixed period of time relative to a current time.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising, in response to a selection of a particular pending configuration change for the particular logical entity that has been submitted to the set of network management processes but is not yet implemented by all of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity, generating a third presentation of information associated with the selected pending configuration change.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the third presentation comprises a list of properties of the particular logical entity that are updated by the selected pending configuration change.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the list of properties comprises (i) an old value for the property prior to the pending configuration change being submitted to the set of network management processes and (ii) a new value for the property set after the pending configuration change is fully realized at all of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity.

9. The method of claim 6 , wherein the third presentation comprises an indication whether the selected pending configuration change was initiated by a user or by a change in the logical network topology.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein each particular logical entity is one of a logical router, a logical switch, a port of a logical router, and a port of a logical switch.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the realization status comprises one of success, in progress, error, and unknown.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the view is a first view, wherein the second presentation further comprises a second view of managed forwarding elements that implement the selected particular logical entity and a realization status for each managed forwarding element, wherein the realization status for a particular managed forwarding element indicates whether all configuration changes for the particular logical entity have been realized at the particular forwarding element.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the realization status of the particular logical entity is in progress if a realization status of at least one physical entity that implements the particular logical entity is in progress and no physical entities that implement the particular logical entity have realization statuses of error or unknown.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein a particular configuration change for the particular logical entity has been submitted to the set of network management processes when a user has requested for the set of network management processes to realize the particular configuration change at the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein a particular pending configuration change for the particular logical entity has been implemented at a first one of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity but not at a second one of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity.

16. A non-transitory machine readable medium storing a program which when executed by at least one processing unit visualizes a realization status of configuration changes that a set of network management processes perform for a set of logical entities of a logical network, the program comprising sets of instructions for:
generating a first presentation of a list of logical entities and a realization status for each logical entity in the list, each respective logical entity of a plurality of the logical entities implemented by configuring a respective plurality of physical entities, said realization status of each particular logical entity indicating whether a set of network management processes that verify realization of logical entity configurations have verified that all configuration changes for configuring a set of one or more physical entities that implement the particular logical entity have been realized on all of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity; and
in response to a selection of a particular logical entity in the displayed list for which at least one configuration change has not yet been realized, generating a second presentation comprising a view of one or more pending configuration changes for the selected particular logical entity that have been submitted to the set of network management processes but are not yet implemented by all of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity.

17. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the second presentation includes previously realized configuration changes that are submitted to the set of network management processes and implemented by all of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity.

18. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the second presentation excludes previously realized configuration changes that are submitted to the set of network management processes and implemented by all of the physical entities that implement the particular logical entity.

19. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the view of pending configuration changes for the selected particular logical entit

Assignees

• Vmware Inc

Inventors

• Goyal Kapil
• Lambeth W Andrew
• Liukkonen-Olmiala Tea
• Kumar Kausum

Classifications

• H04L41/12

  Discovery or management of network topologies · CPC title

• H04L41/0895

  Configuration of virtualised networks or elements, e.g. virtualised network function or OpenFlow elements · CPC title

• H04L41/40

  using virtualisation of network functions or resources, e.g. SDN or NFV entities · CPC title

• H04L41/0816 Primary

  the condition being an adaptation, e.g. in response to network events · CPC title

• H04L41/22 Primary

  comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI] · CPC title