Patent ID: 7954010

Claim:
A method of detecting an error condition in a communication network, comprising: collecting first metric data from a first endpoint device, the first metric data being related to a first connection between the first endpoint device and a communication network; collecting second metric data from a second endpoint device, the second metric data being related to a second connection between the second endpoint device and the communication network, the first and second endpoint devices being associated with a connectivity set having a point of correlation; performing a first comparison between the first metric data and a first threshold according to a first schedule; determining an average of the first metric data and the second metric data; performing a second comparison between the average and a second threshold according to a second schedule different from the first schedule; when the first comparison is indicative of a first error condition, accelerating the second schedule; when the second comparison is indicative of a second error condition, identifying a network element based on the point of correlation; and performing an evaluation of the network element.