A significantly enhanced mobile broadband customer experience is now possible thanks the advancements in wireless networks. However, this capability does not come without a strain on the wireless operator’s radio network. Predictability of traffic in general at specific hotspots is becoming problematic, and just if not more importantly is the new reality that the amount of packets the continuing tsunami of applications require can vary greatly.
This challenge of unpredictability is making it more difficult for operators to address how to deal with unexpected congestion, network inefficiencies and even outages while making such issues. To handle these challenges, operators need intelligent traffic management. Fortunately, there are solutions available that enable this capability for enhancing operational efficiency.
A recent Alcatel-Lucent (News 
- Alert) white paper, Alcatel-Lucent 9900 Wireless Network Guardian: Powerful mobile network analytics solution, explores the potential in the Alcatel-Lucent 9900 Wireless Network Guardian to address the need to deliver data over wireless networks without complications and create an environment for intelligent traffic management.
This solution is designed to integrate wireless, intelligent and behavior-based traffic classification and end-to-end monitoring of network performance into one system. As a result, the operator can enjoy a simplified approach to the design, operation and management of the network.
To operate effectively, mobile devices have to actively connect to the radio access network to send and receive data. For the most part, these devices do not maintain the active RF connection in or to preserve battery life. Each connection, when made to the network, will consume resources regardless of the amount of data sent or received. Each time a connection needs to be made, a series of roughly 50 mobile network messages are sent, and this activity takes place any time a connection needs to be made between the device and the network.
In this state, wireless operators have no control over the activity the wireless device is generating on its network. It is this explosion of data and it management that the Alcatel-Lucent 9900 Wireless Network Guardian (WNG) addresses. It allows operators to integrate and correlate traffic analysis, behavior anomaly detection and network performance monitoring in one deployment. The solution not only enables intelligent traffic management, it understands all activities straining the wireless network at once so they can be better managed.
With the implementation of the Alcatel-Lucent 9900 Wireless Network Guardian the seamless management of the wireless traffic generally applies to all protocols. The WGN will monitor all packets exchanged between Internet-to-mobile sources and destinations, between mobile-to-mobile and mobile-to-Internet. In working among real-time traffic, the solution builds a “state engine” as the foundation for how traffic will manifest the load on each network element that exists within the path of the packet.
At the same time, the operator enjoys real-time visibility with the provided dashboard, allowing clear knowledge on how the traffic manifests itself as a load on the network. Reporting and trends are captured in real-time and dashboard tools can be used to investigate billing errors, faults and even explore inefficiencies.
As wireless network operators continue to search for best practice methods to protect their current revenue and promote services to new subscribers, access to intelligent traffic management is essential. After all, you can’t assure what you cannot measure and manage.
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Edited by
Peter Bernstein
