Patent ID: 8854974

Claim:
A method, comprising: analyzing, via a deep packet inspection (DPI) node, signaling from a symmetric or an asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (xDSL) network access node or a broadband network gateway, wherein analyzing the signaling traffic includes analyzing: (i) Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), (ii) point-to-point protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE), (iii) Remote Authentication Dial In User Service (RADIUS), or (iv) Diameter traffic used by the xDSL network access node or the broadband network gateway to indicate, to nodes upstream from the network access node or broadband network gateway, at least one of: (i) one or more serving nodal identities, (ii) one or more serving link identities, or (iii) one or more serving link capacities, and wherein analyzing the signaling traffic further includes: (i) analyzing one or more RADIUS attributes to determine a downstream data rate for an xDSL access loop, (ii) analyzing one or more Diameter attributes to determine the downstream data rate for the xDSL access loop, or (iii) determining a DSL access loop data rate from one or more Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE) TAGs; deriving, by the DPI node based upon the signaling, actual nodal and link capacities available to nodes upstream from the network access node or broadband network gateway for delivering downstream traffic to the network access device; and shaping downstream traffic to be delivered to the network access device via the DPI node based upon the determined actual nodal and link capacities.