Patent Document ID: 9491086
Application ID: 13242112
Patent Flag: 1

Claim One:
1. A network, comprising: a plurality of interconnected network elements; a distributed control plane configured to operate between the plurality of interconnected network elements; and at least one planning system comprising a server that includes a processor communicatively coupled to the distributed control plane indirectly via a global signaling communication network, wherein the at least one planning system is configured to receive and process messages related to bandwidth reservation and topology from the distributed control plane through the global signaling communication network, wherein the distributed control plane operates between the plurality of interconnected network elements via a local signaling communication network, and wherein updates related to bandwidth reservation and topology received by a path computation element (PCE) or a designated router (DR) on the local signaling communication network are provided by the PCE or the DR to the global signaling communication network to provide the updates to the at least one planning system, wherein the at least one planning system and the PCE or the DR are separate from one another in the network.