Estimation of the interval availability for protected optical connections for SLA formulation

Author(s)

Gustavo da Silva Quiterio

• Document type: Master's Dissertation
• Press: Campinas, SP.
• Institution: Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Faculdade de Engenharia Elétrica e de Computação
• Defense date: 2009-10-30

Examining board members

Helio Waldman; Iguatemi Eduardo da Fonseca; Gustavo Sousa Pavani

• Advisor: Helio Waldman

Abstract

The relation between telecommunication system operators and their customers is guided by a service level agreement (SLA) set by both sides, and the non-attendance to some clauses is punishable by a fine. Among the responsibilities set out in this agreement, usually, availability is considered, once that to the customers what matters are warranties that their connection will be working properly and, to the operator the important are the limits of responsibilities over the service. Availability can be defined as the probability that the system is working during an interval of observation which tend to the infinity. However, SLAs are generally set for periods of less than one year, which suggests the use of a different measurement, the interval availability. The interval availability is a random variable defined as the fraction of a finite time window in which the operation remains working. It is, therefore, a more effective measurement to be used in SLAs. This dissertation investigates two existing techniques for estimating the interval availability, and proposes a new method that, in certain scenarios, has high accuracy and easy implementation. (AU)