Content for TS 32.101 Word version: 18.0.0

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6.7 Resource Management and Operations (RM&O) Processes 6.7.1 RM&O Support and Readiness 6.7.2 Resource Provisioning 6.7.3 Resource Trouble Management 6.7.4 Resource Performance Management 6.7.5 Resource Data Collection and Processing
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6.7 Resource Management and Operations (RM&O) Processes |R8| p. 33

Resource Management and Operations (RM&O): This horizontal functional process grouping maintains knowledge of resources (application, computing and network infrastructures) and is responsible for managing all these resources

(e.g., networks, IT systems, servers, routers, etc.) utilized to deliver and support services required by or proposed to customers. It also includes all functionalities responsible for the direct management of all such resources (network elements, computers, servers, etc.) utilized within the enterprise. These processes are responsible for ensuring that the network and information technologies infrastructure supports the end-to-end delivery of the required services.

The purpose of these processes is to ensure that infrastructure runs smoothly, is accessible to services and employees, is maintained and is responsive to the needs, whether directly or indirectly, of services, customers and employees.

RM&O also has the basic function to assemble information about the resources (e.g., from network elements and/or element management systems), and then integrate, correlate, and in many cases, summarize that data to pass on the relevant information to Service Management systems, or to take action in the appropriate resource.

In an e-business world, application and computing management are as important as management of the network resources. Moreover, network, computing and applications resources must increasingly be managed in a joint and integrated fashion. To cope with these needs, the eTOM framework includes the Resource Management and Operations process grouping (together with the corresponding Resource Development and Management grouping within SIP), to provide integrated management across these three sets of resources: applications, computing and network. These areas also encompass processes involved with traditional Network Element Management, since these processes are actually critical components of any resource management process, as opposed to a separate process layer.

The RM&O processes thus manage the complete service provider network and subnetwork and information technology infrastructures.

The eTOM framework differentiates day-to-day operations and support from planning and development, and other strategy and lifecycle processes. This better depicts the structure of an enterprise, especially in an e-business era.

Copy of original 3GPP image for 3GPP TS 32.101, Fig. 6.7: Resource Management and Operations decomposition [114]

Figure 6.7: Resource Management and Operations decomposition [114]
(⇒ copy of original 3GPP image)

6.7.1 RM&O Support and Readiness p. 34

RM&O Support and Readiness processes manage classes of resources, ensuring that appropriate application, computing and network resources are available and ready to support the Fulfilment, Assurance and Billing processes in instantiating and managing resource instances. This includes, but is not limited to:

Managing the Resource Knowledge base;
Configuring the resources and provisioning of logical resources to be able to support specific service classes;
Analysing availability and performance over time on resources or groups of resources, including trend analysis and forecasting;
Demand balancing in order to maintain resource capacity and performance;
Performing pro-active maintenance and repair activities.

These processes support the operational introduction of new resource classes and the enhancement of existing ones and are responsible for conducting operations readiness testing and acceptance. They develop the procedures for the specific Fulfilment,

Assurance and Billing processes and keep them up to date. After successful testing, these processes accept the new or enhanced resource class and perform a full-scale introduction for general availability.

6.7.2 Resource Provisioning p. 34

Resource Provisioning processes encompass allocation and configuration of resources to individual customer service instances in order to meet the service requirements. This includes activation as well as testing to ensure the expected performance of the service.

Responsibilities of the Resource Provisioning processes include, but are not limited to:

Verifying whether appropriate resources are available as part of pre-order feasibility checks;
Allocating the appropriate resources to support the customer service instance;
Reserving the resources (if required by the business rules) for a given period of time until the customer confirms the order;
Possibly delivering the physical resource to the central office or customer premise;
Configuring and activating physical and/or logical resources, as appropriate;
Testing the resource to ensure the resource is working correctly and meets the performance requirements implied by the service's Key Quality Indicators;
Updating of the Resource Inventory Database to reflect that the resource is being used for a specific customer.

6.7.3 Resource Trouble Management p. 35

Resource Trouble Management processes are responsible for the management of troubles with allocated resources. The objectives of these processes are to report resource failures, to isolate the root cause and act to resolve them.

Responsibilities of the Resource Trouble Management processes include, but are not limited to:

Detect, analyse and report Resource Failure Events;
Fault localization analysis;
Correcting Resource Faults;
Resource trouble reporting to amongst others Service Problem Management processes;
Resource trouble administration to ensure repair activities are assigned and tracked efficiently.

On one hand, resource troubles relate to Problems in the Service and hence the customer domain. On the other hand, they relate to resource failures, which are caused by resource faults.

As such, the Resource Trouble Management processes work with resource failure events received from Resource Data Collection and Processing, resource quality problem notifications from Resource Performance Management, and potential resource failure notifications from Support Resource Trouble Management.

Resource Trouble Management processes perform analysis, decide on the appropriate actions/responses and carry them out. However, these activities need to interact with the Service Problem Management processes, as the latter have a view on service impact.

6.7.4 Resource Performance Management p. 35

Resource Performance Management processes encompass monitoring, analysing, controlling and reporting on the performance of resources. They work with basic information received from the Resource Data Collection and Processing processes.

If the analysis identifies a resource quality problem, information will be passed to Resource Trouble Management and/or Service Quality Management. The latter processes are responsible for deciding on and carrying out the appropriate action/response. This may include requests to the Resource Performance Management processes to install controls to optimize the resource performance.

The Resource Performance Management processes will continue to track the resource performance problem, ensuring that resource performance is restored to a level required to support services.

Depending on the resource class, the Resource Performance Management processes might send an abatement message to Resource Trouble Management once the resource performance problem has been cleared.

6.7.5 Resource Data Collection and Processing p. 35

Resource Data Collection and Processing processes interact with the resources to collect usage, network and information technology events and performance information for distribution to other processes within the enterprise.

The responsibilities also include processing the data through activities such as filtering, aggregation, formatting and correlation of the collected information before presentation to other processes. Client processes for this information perform usage reporting and billing activities, as well as Fault and Performance analysis of resources and services. These include Resource Performance Management, Service Quality Management and Service and Specific Instance Rating.