Abstract:
Methods and apparatus for analyzing, collecting, and presenting data in a communication network are disclosed. An example method includes analyzing collected data to generate gateway metrics representative of a user experience of a user-initiated communication within a network, the network comprising network elements, the gateway metrics comprising at least one of a number of termination attempts for a DS0 channel, a number of rejected attempts for the DS0 channel, a number of terminations answered for the DS0 channel, a number of attempts for a hunt group, a number of rejected attempts for the hunt group, or a number of terminations answered for the hunt group; determining an average upper transaction time per customer based on the collected data; and presenting the gateway metrics in a plurality of tabular views corresponding to service area levels, the views presenting performance data representing the average upper transaction times of the service area levels.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This patent arises from a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/024,540, filed Dec. 28, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,438,264, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     The present disclosure relates generally to communication networks and, more specifically, to methods and apparatus for monitoring a communication network. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Communication networks such as, for example, public switched telephone networks, mobile phone networks, computer networks, etc. typically include a variety of node equipment (e.g., switches, servers, routers, computer terminals or interfaces, etc.) and link equipment (e.g., cabling, wireless transmission apparatus, etc.) Some communication networks include a monitoring system that enables a system operator or other designated personnel to monitor the operation of individual network elements such as node equipment and/or link equipment to troubleshoot and/or maintain the equipment. 
     Some known communication network monitoring systems or tools (e.g., software-based tools) collect information relating to the operational condition of individual network elements (e.g., node and/or link equipment components) using a data collection system (e.g., a server coupled to a database). Typically, the data collection system periodically polls individual network elements for operational information and/or receives messages containing operational information from the network elements. Such operational information is usually associated with operational faults, imminent operational problems, and/or other operational characteristics associated with the individual network elements. 
     Many known communication network monitoring systems or tools also provide one or more graphical interfaces or displays that enable system operators or other designated personnel to view the current operational conditions of individual network elements. Such graphical displays may include visual and/or audible alarm indicators to draw an operator&#39;s attention to network elements that have failed and/or which have reached an operationally problematic condition and, thus, may require service, replacement, reconfiguration, etc. 
     Generally, known communication network monitoring systems or tools typically only provide current operational information associated with individual network elements. As a result, a system operator can only understand end-to-end or end user or customer experience (e.g., perceived performance) of the communication network by attempting to mentally analyze, interrelate, and/or aggregate a relatively large amount of operational information associated with the individual network elements. Of course, the task of mentally analyzing such a large amount of operational information is difficult, if not impossible, for a system operator to accomplish. Further, even if system operators could somehow manage to mentally analyze such a large amount of operational information to glean end-to-end performance data therefrom, each system operator may perform such an analysis in a different manner, thereby leading to inconsistent results. 
     Many known communication network monitoring systems or tools are operationally focused and, as a result, typically only provide operational information related to individual network elements. Accordingly, many known communication network monitoring systems are well-suited to facilitate the maintenance of a given communication system topology, infrastructure, design, etc., but are not typically adapted to facilitate the correction of poor user experience or performance perception of the communication network and/or improvement of user experience or perception of communication network performance. 
     The monitoring of communication networks has become increasingly more difficult due to the increasing complexity and integration of communication services. Such integrated services typically involve heterogeneous networks including equipment associated with multiple vendors and/or services. For example, one well-known integrated heterogeneous communication network provides integrated electronic mail and voice services. The monitoring of such an integrated communication network is complicated by the large number and diversity of network elements composing the network. Likewise, a system operator&#39;s ability to determine (e.g., via mental analysis) end-to-end performance characteristics (e.g., characteristics of the communication network that are indicative of a user&#39;s experience or performance perception of the network) is greatly diminished, or completely prohibited, due to the increased diversity and complexity of such integrated communication networks. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  depicts an example prior art communication network having integrated voice and electronic mail services with which the example monitoring methods and apparatus described herein may be implemented. 
         FIG. 2  is block diagram of an example system that may be used to monitor the example communication network of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a flow diagram depicting an example communication network monitoring process that may be implemented by the example system of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIGS. 4-12  depict example presentations or views that may be provided by the example system and method of  FIGS. 2 and 3 . 
         FIG. 13  is an example processor-based system that may be used to implement the example system of  FIG. 2 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In general, the example monitoring methods and apparatus described herein enable personnel responsible for the maintenance and engineering of a communication network to intuitively view capacity-related and/or performance-related characteristics of the communication network as a whole, and to view performance and/or capacity information associated with the elements or components composing the communication network. More specifically, the example monitoring methods and apparatus described herein automatically periodically collect capacity-related and/or performance-related information from the network elements or components composing the communication network. In an example described herein, the communication network is a heterogeneous, multi-vendor communication network that integrates voice and electronic mail or messaging services. However, the example monitoring methods and apparatus described herein could alternatively or additionally be applied to other types of communication networks, including fewer or more services and/or different types of communication services than those specifically described herein. 
     Regardless of the particular numbers and/or types of services provided by the communication network to which the example methods and apparatus described herein are applied, the periodically collected capacity and/or performance information associated with the individual network elements is collected and stored in a common database. The collected capacity and/or performance information is then analyzed using rules or business objects, one or more of which may correspond to a performance-related or capacity-related characteristic of the communication network. One or more of the performance-related or capacity-related characteristics preferably corresponds to an end user or customer perception or experience of the service(s) provided via the communication network. Other ones of the rules or business objects may correspond to problematic conditions, one or more of which may generate an alarm or alert condition to be communicated to appropriate personnel in one or more desired manners (e.g., via e-mail, pager, cellular phone, etc.) 
     In contrast to some known communication network monitoring apparatus and methods, the example monitoring apparatus and methods described herein generate performance and capacity information related to the manner in which users experience or perceive the performance of the communication network. In other words, the example methods and apparatus described herein provide end-to-end performance-related information that may be used by system operators and/or other personnel (e.g., system engineers) to achieve improved end user or customer experience or perception of the communication network. In this manner, the example monitoring methods and apparatus described herein may function as an engineering tool for identifying possible network architecture or infrastructure enhancements as opposed to merely an operational or maintenance tool focused on service restoration. 
     To facilitate the ease with which system operators (e.g., system engineers, technicians, etc.) can find and assimilate the capacity-related and performance-related information provided by the example monitoring apparatus and methods described herein, the example monitoring apparatus and methods may also provide a network-based (e.g., web or Internet-based) graphical user interface. In particular, an example graphical user interface may provide a plurality of hierarchically interrelated system views or presentations, ranging from high level rolled up (e.g., aggregated) system level views corresponding to relatively large geographic service regions or areas, to low level views of individual switches and/or other network elements or devices. One or more high level system views or presentations may contain capacity-related and/or performance-related information (e.g., values, textual messages, etc.) associated with end-to-end or user perceived characteristics of the service(s) provided by the communication network. Such high level system views or presentations can provide a holistic or synthesized view of the level or quality of service (e.g., the quality of voice paths, memory being used, capacity available per subscriber, etc.) provided to communication network end users or customers. Such synthesized or holistic views or presentations may be particularly advantageous in situations where the communication network integrates different types of and/or different vendors&#39; communication equipment (e.g., a system that integrates voice and electronic mail services). 
       FIG. 1  depicts an example known communication network  100  providing integrated voice and electronic mail services with which the example monitoring methods and apparatus described herein may be implemented. The example communication network  100  of  FIG. 1  uses an architecture that is typical of a communication system that provides integrated voice and electronic mail services. The example communication network  100  of  FIG. 1  is composed of several major subsystems and/or component groups (i.e., groups of network elements). In particular, the example network  100  includes an Internet access component group  102  that is communicatively coupled to the Internet  104 , a mail server component group  106 , a network management group  108  that is communicatively coupled to a network management intranet  110 , a voice call component group  112  that is communicatively coupled to a public switched telephone network (PSTN)  114 , and a storage component group  116  that is utilized by the mail server component group  106  and the network management group  108 . As is depicted in  FIG. 1 , communications between the component groups  102 ,  106 ,  108 , and  112  is enabled by an Internet protocol (IP) switch  118 . The IP switch  118  is configured in a known manner to route IP packets based on destination address information contained within IP encapsulated data packets sent by the various component groups  102 ,  106 ,  108 , and  112  to the IP switch  118 . 
     The component groups  102 ,  106 ,  108 ,  112 , and  116  shown within the example communication network  100  of  FIG. 1  are well-known in connection with communication networks providing integrated voice and electronic mail services. Accordingly, the individual sub-components shown within each of the component groups  102 ,  106 ,  108 , and  112 , as well as the manner in which the component groups  102 ,  106 ,  108 ,  112 , and  116  function and interoperate with each other, are not described in further detail herein. Rather, the example communication network  100  is merely provided as one example of a communication network architecture having integrated communication services to which the example monitoring apparatus methods described herein may be advantageously applied. 
       FIG. 2  is a more generalized block diagram depicting an example manner in which the example monitoring apparatus and methods described herein may be applied. The more generalized diagram of  FIG. 2  is provided to facilitate an understanding of the manner in which the example monitoring apparatus and methods described herein may be applied to a known communication network such as the example network  100  shown in  FIG. 1 . 
     As shown generally in  FIG. 2 , a monitoring apparatus  200  is communicatively coupled to a communication network  202  via a plurality of communication links  204 ,  206 ,  208 ,  210 , and  212 . In general, as described in greater detail below, the monitoring apparatus  200  is configured to automatically collect capacity-related and/or performance-related data from the network  202 . The monitoring apparatus  200  analyzes the collected data to provide capacity-related and/or performance-related information, at least some of which is representative of the manner in which a user (e.g., an end user) experiences or perceives the operation of the network  202 . In some examples, the communication network  202  could be the example network  100  ( FIG. 1 ), which provides integrated voice and electronic mail services or, alternatively, could be any other communication network. Additionally, a user terminal/interface  214  may be coupled to the monitoring apparatus  200  to enable a system operator or other personnel to view information (e.g., capacity and/or performance-related information) and/or interact with the monitoring apparatus  200  and the network  202 . 
     Turning in detail to  FIG. 2 , the communication network  202  may enable a plurality of user devices  216 ,  218  to communicate with the network  202  via one or more servers  220 ,  222 , each of which may be executing an appropriate communications application (labeled as “Application A” in  FIG. 2 ). The user devices  216 ,  218  may be laptop computers, personal data assistants, desktop computers, and/or or any other device(s) or combination of devices capable of engaging in electronic communications with a server. The user devices  216 ,  218  may engage in communications with the network  202  using any combination of hardwired or wireless communication platform and/or protocols including, for example, those commonly employed with cellular communications, satellite communications, public switched telephone networks, packet-switched networks, etc. In some examples, one or more of the user devices  216 ,  218  are web-enabled devices that communicate via the Internet with the servers  220 ,  222 . 
     The servers  220 ,  222  are coupled to a network  224 , which may be a packet switched network, or any other suitable network. The network  224  may be further coupled to another network  226  via a second set of servers  228 ,  230 , which may be configured similarly to the Internet component access group  102  ( FIG. 1 ). The second set of servers  228 ,  230  execute a second application (labeled as “Application B”) to provide communicative access to the network  226 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , a third set of servers  232 ,  234 , a fourth set of servers  236 ,  238 , and a fifth sets of servers  240 ,  242  are communicatively coupled via the network  226 . In some examples, the third set of servers  232 ,  234  may be configured to execute, for example, a message serving application (labeled as “Application C”), the fourth set of servers  236 ,  238  may be configured to execute, for example, a directory server application (labeled as “Application D”), and the fifth set of servers  240 ,  242  may be configured to execute, for example, a notification server (labeled as “Application F”). In some examples, the third, fourth, and fifth sets of servers  232 ,  234 ,  236 ,  238 , and  240 ,  242  may perform functions similar or identical to those performed by the mail server component group  106  ( FIG. 1 ). 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , the monitoring apparatus  200  is communicatively coupled to the first set of servers  220 ,  222  via the link  204 , the network  224  via the link  206 , the second set of servers  228 ,  230  via the link  208 , the third set of servers  232 ,  234  via the link  210 , and the fourth and fifth sets of servers  236 ,  238  and  240 ,  242  via the link  212 . While the links  204 ,  206 ,  208 ,  210 , and  212  are depicted in  FIG. 2  as separate links, the links  204 - 212  may be implemented using any combination of hardwired and wireless communications. In one example, one or more of the links  204 - 212  may be formed exclusively or at least partially through a packet-switched network such as the Internet. Alternatively or additionally, the one or more of the links  204 - 212  may be dedicated or non-shared communication links. Regardless of the manner in which the communication links  204 - 212  are implemented, the monitoring apparatus  200  is configured to communicate (e.g., collect data from) the various network elements (e.g., the servers  220 ,  222 ,  228 ,  230 ,  232 ,  234 ,  236 ,  238 ,  240 , and  244  and the networks  224  and  226 ) within the communication network  202 . 
     The example monitoring apparatus  200  includes a data collector  244  for periodically collecting capacity-related and/or performance-related information from the communication network  202 , which may be in some examples the example integrated voice and electronic mail communication network  100  of  FIG. 1 . The example data collector  244  may be further coupled to a database  246  configured to enable the data collector  244  to store and/or retrieve the collected capacity-related and performance-related information therein. 
     A data analyzer  248  for analyzing some or all of the capacity-related and performance-related information collected by the data collector  244  is coupled to the data collector  244 . As described in greater detail below, the data analyzer  248  is configured to apply one or more rules or business objects to analyze or otherwise process the information collected by the data collector  244 . One or more of the rules or business objects may be configured to analyze the collected information to generate performance-related and/or capacity-related information representative of the manner in which end users or customers experience or perceive the quality of service(s) provided by the communication network  202 . For example, the data analyzer  248  is configured to analyze capacity and/or performance information from a variety of network elements (which may be associated with different vendors and/or different types of communication services such as electronic mail and voice services) to develop or generate metrics representative of end users&#39; or customers&#39; experiences or perceptions of the performance of the communication network  202 . More particularly, the information generated by the data analyzer  248  may be representative of a user experience of a user-initiated communication within the communication network  202  involving a plurality of network elements such as, for example, one or more of the servers  220 ,  222 ,  228 ,  230 ,  232 ,  234 ,  236 ,  238 ,  240 , and  242  and or the networks  224  and  226 . 
     As is depicted in  FIG. 2 , a data presentation generator  250  is coupled to the data analyzer  248 . As described in greater detail below, the data presentation generator  250  is configured to organize and graphically present capacity and/or performance information associated with the communication network  202  using hierarchically interrelated displays, views, or presentations. Examples of such presentations or displays are described in greater detail below in connection with  FIGS. 4-12 . 
     The user terminal/interface  214  is configured to receive inputs, commands, etc. from and/or display performance-related and/or capacity-related information to a system operator or other personnel. As depicted in  FIG. 2 , the user terminal/interface  214  is coupled to the monitoring apparatus  200  and, in particular, the data presentation generator  250 . In the case where the example monitoring apparatus  200  is implemented in conjunction with the example communication network  100  of  FIG. 1 , the user terminal  214  may be communicatively coupled to the data presentation generator  250  via the network management intranet  110  ( FIG. 1 ) and/or via the Internet  104  and the Internet access component group  102 . Additionally, the user terminal  214  may be implemented using any desired processor-based system or the like such as the example processor-based system  1302  described in connection with  FIG. 13  below. 
     Continuing with the above example, the data collector  244 , the data analyzer  248 , and/or the data presentation generator  250  may be implemented within the network management component group  108  ( FIG. 1 ). In particular, one or more of the servers shown within the network management group  108  may be programmed or configured to perform the operations shown and described in connection with the monitoring process of  FIG. 3 . Further, the database  246  may be implemented using the storage area network  116  ( FIG. 1 ). 
     In such an example, a system operator or other personnel may be able to better assess the quality of service provided to end users or customers by the example communication network  100 . In particular, information associated with the performance and/or capacity of the groups  102 ,  106 ,  108 , and  112  as well as the various switches, routers, servers, etc. making up the PSTN  114  and/or the Internet  104  may be collected, analyzed, and presented to the system operator and/or other personnel. In turn, the system operator and/or other personnel may use the performance-related and/or capacity-related information to improve the level or quality of service provided by the network  100  via changes or modifications to the architecture, infrastructure, equipment, etc. of the network  100 . 
       FIG. 3  is a flow diagram depicting an example communication network monitoring process  300  that may be implemented by the example monitoring apparatus  200  of  FIG. 2 . In operation, the data collector  244  ( FIG. 2 ) automatically periodically collects data or information from the network elements composing the communication network  202  (block  302 ). The frequency at which the data collector  244  collects information or data from the various elements composing the network  202  may vary based on the desired level of detail needed to properly assess performance and/or capacity of the communication network  202 , the type of information or data being collected, or may vary in any other desired manner. For example, some information or data such as configuration information may be collected relatively infrequently. In one example, the data collector  244  may collect configuration data from the various network elements composing the network  202  on a weekly basis. In this manner, the monitoring apparatus  200  can automatically accurately determine or inventory the elements of the network  202 . Thus, the monitoring apparatus or system  200  can automatically discover any changes to the architecture, topology, infrastructure, devices, components, etc. of the communication network  202 , thereby eliminating the need for engineering personnel or other personnel to enter such changes using error-prone manual data entry techniques. 
     Data collected at block  302  by the data collector  244  ( FIG. 2 ) is analyzed using rules (e.g., business and/or presentation rules or objects) (block  304 ) by the data analyzer  248  ( FIG. 2 ). In contrast to many known communication network monitoring systems, the analysis of the collected data at block  304  synthesizes capacity-related and/or performance-related information or data from a plurality of network elements to provide metrics that are representative of end users&#39; (e.g., customers&#39;) perception or experience of the quality or characteristics of the service(s) provided by the communication network  202  ( FIG. 2 ). More specifically, the analysis at block  304  can synthesize data from a plurality of individual network components, subsystems, etc., some or all of which may be associated with different services and/or vendors, to provide a substantially holistic view of the characteristics of the communication network  202  ( FIG. 2 ). Thus, in some examples, the data analyzer  248  ( FIG. 2 ) is configured to analyze a variety of collected data types and formats at block  304 . For example, the data analysis at block  304  may process or synthesize a variety of message sets such as, for example, SNMP messages, TL1 messages, etc., that employ a variety of protocols (e.g., http, LDAP, IMAP, SMTP, POP, etc.) to provide a seamless or coherent view of the communication network  202  ( FIG. 2 ). 
     The rules applied to the collected data at block  304  may be configured to characterize or synthesize the data in any desired manner. For example, the rules applied at block  304  may characterize collected data to define the number of ports in service, customer transaction times, and/or any other characteristics that may be representative of end users&#39; perception or experience of the service(s) provided by the network  204  ( FIG. 2 ). Also, for example, the rules applied at block  304  may use thresholds that correspond to certain equipment configurations, traffic throughput levels, certain performance numbers, etc. Rules utilizing such thresholds may be customized or may otherwise correspond to particular users or types of users. For example, a system planner may desire to know when a gateway element has reached fifty percent of its capacity to provide sufficient time to obtain additional or different equipment to handle an increasing demand on that gateway element. On the other hand, a system engineer may desire to know when that same gateway element has reached ninety percent of its capacity to study its performance. Thus, a variety of performance-related and/or capacity-related metrics can be generated at block  304  based on the needs of different users of the monitoring apparatus  200  ( FIG. 2 ), the characteristics of the communication network  202  to which the monitoring apparatus  200  is applied, etc. Example metrics that may be generated at block  304  for a gateway element are shown in TABLE 1 below. 
     
       
         
               
             
               
             
           
               
                 TABLE 1 
               
               
                   
               
               
                 GATEWAY METRICS 
               
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
               
             
          
           
               
                 IP Address 
               
               
                 Access server name 
               
               
                 Access server part number 
               
               
                 Software release level 
               
               
                 Installed interface cards by card type 
               
               
                 Card status for each card 
               
               
                 Port status for each port 
               
               
                 Termination attempts for each DS0 
               
               
                 Termination attempts rejected by the gatekeeper for each DS0 because of 
               
               
                 insufficient bandwidth availability 
               
               
                 Termination attempts rejected by the gatekeeper for each DS0 because of 
               
               
                 unavailable TUI resources 
               
               
                 Termination attempts rejected by the gatekeeper for each DS0 for any 
               
               
                 reason other than insufficient bandwidth or unavailable TUI resources 
               
               
                 Terminations answered for each DS0 
               
               
                 Start time for each call on each DS0 
               
               
                 End time for each call on each DS0 
               
               
                 Termination attempts for each hunt group 
               
               
                 Termination attempts rejected by the gatekeeper for each hunt group 
               
               
                 Terminations answered for each hunt group 
               
               
                 Number of trunks in each hunt group 
               
               
                 Available CCS capacity for each hunt group 
               
               
                 CCS usage for each hunt group 
               
               
                 Percent CCS utilization for each hunt group 
               
               
                 Average hold time for each hunt group 
               
               
                 Number of users assigned to each hunt group 
               
               
                 Blocked calls for each hunt group 
               
               
                 Average CPU utilization 
               
               
                 Peak CPU utilization 
               
               
                 CPU utilization threshold crossing counts 
               
               
                 Peak CPU utilization threshold crossing counts 
               
               
                 Memory utilization 
               
               
                 Number of RTP packets received by the access server 
               
               
                 Number of RTP packets sent by the TUI 
               
               
                 Lost packet count 
               
               
                 Average inter-arrival jitter from the TUI to the access server 
               
               
                 Peak inter-arrival jitter from the TUI to the access server 
               
               
                 Average roundtrip packet delay 
               
               
                 Peak roundtrip packet delay 
               
               
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
     Of course, the example gateway metrics shown in TABLE 1 above are merely examples of the types of metrics that may be produced by the data analysis at block  304 . Other metrics for other types of communication network elements can be produced in a similar manner. 
     The results of the data analysis at block  304  may be presented to a system user or other personnel via a graphical user interface (block  306 ). Example presentations or graphical views are shown in  FIGS. 4-12 . In general, the presentation operation at block  306  is implemented using a web browser that enables the system operator or other designated personnel to easily navigate through a variety of view levels and types. The view levels correspond to different organizational level views and, thus, range from company level views of the communication network  202  ( FIG. 2 ) to views associated with a specific port of a specific network element. 
     Within each view level, one or more view types are provided so that data associated with that view level may be viewed in different manners. For example, at a company level, a system user may desire to view the total number of network elements deployed, the total number of customer accounts, the total number of outages, transaction times experienced by end users or customers, etc. All such data types may be viewed at a different level such as, for example, for a particular network element, for a particular distribution area, etc. and/or may be viewed for different services provided by the communication network  202  (e.g., voice access, data access, etc.) 
       FIGS. 4-12  depict example presentations or views that may be provided by the example apparatus and method of  FIGS. 2 and 3 . In particular,  FIGS. 4-6  depict an example of hierarchically interrelated view levels. Specifically,  FIG. 4  is an example company level view,  FIG. 5  is a regional view (i.e., the SBC West region), and  FIG. 6  is a market view (i.e., the Bay Area within the SBC West region). As shown in the example views or presentations of  FIGS. 4-6 , numbers of switches, percent utilization metrics, numbers of ports, etc. may be provided so that a system user or operator can perform capacity planning activities and, if needed, identify network/architecture or infrastructure enhancements to improve end users&#39; or customers&#39; experiences or perceptions of the level or quality of the service(s) provided by the communication network  202  ( FIG. 2 ). 
     Additionally or alternatively, the presentation of data at block  306  can include notifications, alerts, and/or alarms. Such notifications, alerts, and/or alarms may be sent to system operators or other designated personnel via electronic mail and/or may be incorporated in the presentation views (e.g., the presentation views of  FIGS. 4-9 ) as textual and/or graphical (e.g., color coded) visual indicators. For example, the analysis at block  304  may determine when a metric has exceeded or fallen below a predetermined threshold (e.g., a bandwidth utilization level, port exhaust, real-time exhaust, quality of service, etc.) and generate an appropriate notification, alert, or alarm to be presented to one or more designated system operators or other personnel. 
       FIGS. 7-9  are example component level views that may be provided at block  306 . In particular,  FIG. 7  is an example remote gateway view,  FIG. 8  is an example directory server view, and  FIG. 9  is an example web server access view. Of course, additional views associated with any other components within the communication network  202  ( FIG. 2 ) can be provided at block  306  ( FIG. 3 ). 
       FIG. 10  is an example view that may be provided to a system user (e.g., network personnel) via the user terminal/interface  214  ( FIG. 2 ). In particular,  FIG. 10  depicts an example presentation of performance information related to log-in transaction execution times. The information within the example presentation of  FIG. 10  may be collected and/or generated in connection with the example communication network  202  and monitoring apparatus  200  of  FIG. 2 . For example, end users may log-on via one of the user devices  216 ,  218  to check for text or image messages, voice messages, etc. stored within the communication network  202 . Such log-on activity may invoke actions on or within one or more of the servers  220 ,  222 ,  228 ,  230 ,  236 ,  238 ,  240 ,  242  and/or one or more of the networks  224  and  226 . As described above in connection with  FIG. 3 , the monitoring apparatus  200  ( FIG. 2 ) periodically collects performance-related (e.g., transaction times, elapsed times, failure rates, transaction volume, etc.) information from the various elements composing the network  202  ( FIG. 2 ), analyzes the collected data, and presents the data (e.g., via the example presentation of  FIG. 10 ) to a user (e.g., network personnel). 
     Turning in detail to the example presentation of  FIG. 10 , peak transaction times (e.g., measured across the entire system or end-to-end) related to end user log-on activity are shown for fifteen minute intervals over a one week period. Starting with the leftmost column, the days of the week are listed, followed in the next column by the calendar date. The next four columns (i.e., the third through the sixth columns) include transaction times associated with the servers  220 ,  222  (i.e., the cluster of servers) executing Application A (e.g., a web server application). The seventh column includes transaction times associated with the servers  228 ,  230  executing Application B (e.g., an access server application), the eighth column includes transaction times associated with the servers  236 ,  238  executing Application D (e.g., a directory server application), and the ninth column includes transaction times associated with the servers  232 ,  234  executing Application D (e.g., a message server application). The tenth and eleventh columns include transaction times (e.g., transport times) associated with networks  224  and  226 , respectively. 
     As can be seen in  FIG. 10 , the transaction time information in the third column reflects the total log-on time, which may be representative of customer experience or perception of performance of the network  202  ( FIG. 2 ). The remaining columns (i.e., columns 4 through 11) show the transaction time contributions of the various elements of the network  202  to the total transaction times in the third column. Further, the transaction time information shown in the example presentation of  FIG. 10  may be representative of one or more maximum transaction times associated with one or more individual customers or, alternatively, may represent an average maximum customer experience during days of the week for a given interval (e.g., 5 minutes, 15 minutes, 1 hour, etc.) 
     As is depicted in the example presentation of  FIG. 10 , one or more cells, each of which contains transaction time information, may be indicated using a surrounding distinctive border. However, any other indication such as distinctive shading, color, etc. could be used instead of or in addition to the distinctive border. In any case, the indication(s) may identify those cells containing transaction time information that has exceeded or fallen below a threshold value associated with a warning condition in which action by a user or other personnel may be not necessary. Alternatively or additionally, the indication(s) may identify those cells containing transaction time information that has exceeded or fallen below a threshold value associated with an action threshold (i.e., a condition under which action by a user or other personnel is advisable or required). In some examples, a user can select a cell value to obtain further detail associated with that cell value. For instance, selecting a cell value having an indication corresponding to a condition where the cell value has exceeded or fallen below a warning or action threshold may provide further data or information relating to individual devices (e.g., servers), networks, applications, etc. that affect the cell value. For example, component views such as those example views depicted in  FIGS. 7-9  may be provided. Alternatively or additionally, information associated with selected time intervals (e.g., smaller time intervals) may be provided. 
       FIG. 11  depicts an example presentation containing information or data relating to information retrieval transaction volumes. In other words, end users of the example network  202  may log-on and retrieve voice, image, and/or text messages, thereby impacting the volume of transactions managed by the network  202 . 
       FIG. 12  depicts an example presentation containing information or data (e.g., measured across the entire system or end-to-end) relating to failed message compositions. Thus, the example presentation of  FIG. 12  provides a user or other personnel a way of identifying when, how often, and where transaction failures occur within the example communication network  202 . 
       FIG. 13  depicts an example processor system  1302  that may be used to implement, for example, the data collector  244 , the data analyzer  248 , the data presentation generator  250  and/or the user terminal/interface  214  shown in  FIG. 2 . The example processor-based system  1302  may be, for example, a server, a personal computer, or any other type of computing device. 
     The processor  1300  may, for example, be implemented using one or more Intel® microprocessors from the Pentium® family, the Itanium® family or the XScale® family. Of course, other processors from other families are also appropriate. The processor  1300  is in communication with a main memory including a volatile memory  1304  and a non-volatile memory  1306  via a bus  1308 . The volatile memory  1304  may be implemented by Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (SDRAM), Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), RAMBUS Dynamic Random Access Memory (RDRAM) and/or any other type of random access memory device. The non-volatile memory  1306  may be implemented by flash memory and/or any other desired type of memory device. Access to the memory  1304  is typically controlled by a memory controller (not shown) in a conventional manner. 
     The system  1302  also includes an interface circuit  1310 . The interface circuit  1310  may be implemented by any type of well-known interface standard to, for example, enable the system  1302  to communicate with the communication network  202  ( FIG. 2 ). 
     The system  1302  also includes one or more mass storage devices  1318  for storing software and/or data. Examples of such mass storage devices include floppy disk drives, hard drive disks, compact disk drives and digital versatile disk (DVD) drives. 
     While the foregoing examples have been described in connection with the collection and analysis of actual user data, it should be recognized that the example methods and apparatus and methods can similarly be advantageously applied to performance and capacity-related data resulting from the use of communication network test probes and/or traffic generators. 
     As can be appreciated from the foregoing description, the example monitoring apparatus and methods described herein enable engineering data or information (e.g., capacity-related data, performance-related data, etc.) to be automatically periodically acquired from each of the elements composing a communication network. The communication network may be composed of equipment from multiple vendors and/or service providers. In some examples, the communication network provides integrated voice and electronic mail services. 
     The collected data is then analyzed, synthesized, or otherwise processed according to rules (e.g., business rules) to generate information associated with the end-to-end performance of the communication network. Some of the information generated represents end users&#39; or customers&#39; perception(s) or experience(s) of the service(s) provided by the communication network. Thus, in contrast to many known communication network monitoring systems, the example monitoring apparatus and methods described herein may be used to identify potential network enhancements to further improve the quality of service as perceived by end users or customers, rather than merely providing troubleshooting and/or service restoration information. 
     The example monitoring apparatus and methods described herein further provide graphical (e.g., via a web-based tool) presentations to facilitate a system operator&#39;s ability to intuitively assimilate the results of the data analysis. With the graphical presentations, the system operator can quickly navigate through a plurality of hierarchically interrelated views corresponding to different levels of the communication network (e.g., company wide, regional, market, etc.) and/or within levels can view different types of information (gateway utilization, customer transaction times, number switches deployed, etc.) The graphical presentations facilitate the correlation of service performance with equipment capacity metrics, which may indicate where changes to network infrastructure (i.e., additional or different network elements) may be needed to meet expected or improve service levels. 
     Although certain methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture have been described herein, the scope of coverage of this patent is not limited thereto. To the contrary, this patent covers all methods, apparatus and articles of manufacture fairly falling within the scope of the appended claims either literally or under the doctrine of equivalents.