Patent ID: 7461145

Claim:
A method for generating metrics for network devices, comprising: enabling an association of tags with interfaces representing network devices; identifying a particular tag that corresponds to and enables monitoring of a particular group of network devices of interest; identifying a particular time period over which to aggregate metrics for the particular group of network devices; identifying interfaces that were associated with the particular tag during the particular time period; aggregating metrics for the particular group of network devices over the particular time period by: accessing timing data indicating when at least one of the identified interfaces became associated with the particular tag and when at least one of the identified interfaces became disassociated with the particular tag, based on the timing data, determining, for each of the identified interfaces, a portion of the particular time period over which the identified interface was associated with the particular tag, at least one of the identified interfaces being associated with the particular tag for less than all of the particular time period, and aggregating metrics associated with each of the identified interfaces for the determined portion of the particular time period; and generating an output based on the aggregated metrics for the particular group of network devices.