Patent ID: 8619630

Claim:
A method of operating a policy server for operating in a network including a plurality of customer premise equipment (CPE) devices, which access the network through a plurality of modems, which in turn access the network through a plurality of cable modem termination systems (CMTSs), each network termination device characterized by a plurality of channels, said method comprising: at a policy server for performing admission control and quality of service (QoS) control: extracting management information base (MIB) information from management information bases that are maintained by the plurality of CMTSs by polling the CMTSs; storing the extracted MIB information; processing the stored MIB information to generate topology information, said topology information identifying, for each CPE device among the plurality of CPE devices, a CMTS, channel, and modem to which that CPE device is connected; storing the topology information in a topology data structure that is accessible to the policy server; and using the stored topology information to apply policies in response to requests concerning the CPE devices, wherein using the stored topology information to apply policies in response to requests concerning the CPE devices comprises receiving, from one of the CPE devices among the plurality of CPE devices, a request for setting up a session with the one CPE device, referencing the topology data structure to identify a CMTS behind which the one CPE device is located, and sending a policy decision from the policy server to the identified CMTS to configure characteristics of the requested session.