Patents by Inventor Dean Ballew

Dean Ballew has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11973654
    Abstract: In examples, a first Anycast advertisement is received from a first server identifying the first server as a primary address for a service. In addition, a second Anycast advertisement is received from the first server identifying the first server as a secondary address for the service. Further, a third Anycast advertisement is received from a second server identifying the second server as the secondary address for the service. A first community advertisement is also from the first server identifying the first server as a member of a first community. Thereafter, a first request is received from a client including the primary address, and the request is routed to the first server. When a second request from the client is received including the secondary address, based at least on the community advertisement, the first server is ignored, and the second request is routed to the second server.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 30, 2024
    Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: Dean Ballew, John R. B. Woodworth
  • Publication number: 20240129351
    Abstract: The present disclosure describes a system and method for providing dynamic remediation of a pluggable streaming device issue, such as a customer premises equipment (CPE) device. Sometimes, various features of the CPE device to begin to fail. For example, synchronization of the audio and video streams may drift, media rental purchases may time out, or playback may throttle to low quality. Such failures can be caused by device or network issues. The present disclosure describes a CPE remediation system that operates to identify a failure associated with playing media streamed by the CPE device. The CPE remediation system may further determine a solution to remediate an observed CPE device-related failure. In some examples, the CPE remediation process may further provide or perform one or more actions included in the determined solution. In some examples, the solution may include a warm or a cold reboot.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 22, 2023
    Publication date: April 18, 2024
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R.B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Publication number: 20240089174
    Abstract: A method for controlling deployment of network configuration changes includes receiving, by centralized network management system executed by a processor and memory, configuration change instructions to alter a configuration of a network; computing, by the centralized network management system, a weighted impact of the configuration change instructions; determining, by the centralized network management system, whether the weighted impact of the configuration change instructions exceeds a threshold impact level; and in response to determining that the weighted impact does not exceed the threshold impact level, executing the configuration change instructions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 16, 2023
    Publication date: March 14, 2024
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R.B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Publication number: 20240073217
    Abstract: Computer networks may include various devices including computing devices (such as laptop computers or tablets), file servers, and printers. Also connected to such networks may be other internet-capable devices such as Internet of Things devices and Industrial Internet of Things devices. As such, systems and methods for automatic isolation of electronic devices are provided based on categorization of such devices.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 1, 2023
    Publication date: February 29, 2024
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R.B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Publication number: 20240048525
    Abstract: Multiple Anycast regions may be defined, and a separate Anycast address may be used for each region in order to localize client requests. In examples, when one or more Anycast servers in a first Anycast region fail or become overburdened (or are predicted to do so), one or more Anycast server in another, geographically or logically separate Anycast region that has additional capacity to handle client service requests may be dynamically added to the first Anycast region.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 28, 2023
    Publication date: February 8, 2024
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: Dean Ballew, John R.B. Woodworth
  • Publication number: 20240048587
    Abstract: Systems and methods for mitigating DNS amplification attacks are provided. In one example, a threat intelligence system collects data about the requests received by a DNS server, and/or responses generated by the DNS server. The threat intelligence system triggers a threat mitigation action upon detecting evidence (in one or more forms) of a DNS amplification attack. The threat mitigation action may include filtering DNS responses generated by the DNS server. The filtering rule may indicate that a DNS response in which the payload size is above a threshold payload size is to be dropped. In examples, the payload threshold size is dynamically set by the threat intelligence system using a machine learning model to minimize the filtering of DNS responses for valid DNS queries, while maximizing filtering of DNS responses for malicious DNS queries.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 28, 2023
    Publication date: February 8, 2024
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R.B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Publication number: 20240031436
    Abstract: Systems and methods for dynamic storage and forwarding of data are described. When remote storage is unreachable by a device via a wide area network (WAN), the device may negotiate for temporary storage on another device connected to the same local area network (LAN). The temporary storage may have a specified storage amount and a specified storage time. The specified storage amount and/or specified storage time may be renegotiated if more space or time is desired. Temporary storage on multiple devices connected to the LAN may be available. The data in temporary storage may be transferred between different LAN devices.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 21, 2023
    Publication date: January 25, 2024
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: Dean Ballew, John R.B. Woodworth
  • Publication number: 20240031329
    Abstract: Systems and methods for simplifying the assignment and management of IP addresses are provided. In examples, a DHCP relay agent system receives an IP address request or similar discover message from a client computing device and forwards the request to one or more DHCP servers. In addition to forwarding the request, the DHCP relay agent system may be configured to append and forward information related to the DHCP negotiation process to a DHCP server. For example, the indication of operations may include executable instructions, such as opcodes, that facilitate the offer of an IP address lease. Parameters necessary for executing the operations, such as operands, may also be appended. In examples, the DHCP server may effectively operate as a processor, virtual processor, or virtual machine in the lease negotiation process, where IP address assignment or management decisions are pre-defined by the configuration information of the DHCP relay agent system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 20, 2023
    Publication date: January 25, 2024
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: Dean Ballew, John R.B. Woodworth
  • Publication number: 20240031402
    Abstract: When several devices communicate through a wireless network, a device may, for example, as a result of having been compromised, transmit an unacceptably high level of traffic, which may interfere with the ability of other devices to communicate through the network, and which may burden the processing resources of devices receiving the traffic. As such, a system and method for suppressing transmissions from a wireless device are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 21, 2023
    Publication date: January 25, 2024
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: Dean Ballew, John R.B. Woodworth
  • Patent number: 11856040
    Abstract: The present disclosure describes a system and method for providing dynamic remediation of a pluggable streaming device issue, such as a customer premises equipment (CPE) device. Sometimes, various features of the CPE device to begin to fail. For example, synchronization of the audio and video streams may drift, media rental purchases may time out, or playback may throttle to low quality. Such failures can be caused by device or network issues. The present disclosure describes a CPE remediation system that operates to identify a failure associated with playing media streamed by the CPE device. The CPE remediation system may further determine a solution to remediate an observed CPE device-related failure. In some examples, the CPE remediation process may further provide or perform one or more actions included in the determined solution. In some examples, the solution may include a warm or a cold reboot.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2023
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2023
    Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R. B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Publication number: 20230412660
    Abstract: The present disclosure describes a system and method for providing dynamic remediation of a pluggable streaming device issue, such as a customer premises equipment (CPE) device. Sometimes, various features of the CPE device to begin to fail. For example, synchronization of the audio and video streams may drift, media rental purchases may time out, or playback may throttle to low quality. Such failures can be caused by device or network issues. The present disclosure describes a CPE remediation system that operates to identify a failure associated with playing media streamed by the CPE device. The CPE remediation system may further determine a solution to remediate an observed CPE device-related failure. In some examples, the CPE remediation process may further provide or perform one or more actions included in the determined solution. In some examples, the solution may include a warm or a cold reboot.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 6, 2023
    Publication date: December 21, 2023
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R.B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Publication number: 20230403436
    Abstract: The present disclosure describes a system and method that can be used to define a standardized interface through which Internet of Things (IoT) device notifications from one or more IoT devices can be received and served to one or more network-connected television device displays based on configuration information. For instance, an IoT device notification, such as an informational notification, warning, video stream, or other information output by one of various types of IoT devices may be served to and displayed as a Picture-in-Picture on the network-connected television device display. The configuration information may cause an IoT device notification to be displayed on one or more network-connected television device displays when availability of the network-connected television device display is known, when availability of the network-connected television device display in association with a particular user is known, or according to another determined delivery action.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 6, 2023
    Publication date: December 14, 2023
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R.B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Publication number: 20230396523
    Abstract: When a user of a mobile telephone moves into an area lacking wireless service, the user may be hindered in various respects, including losing the ability to retrieve a remotely stored map. This may be inconvenient and may have safety implications if the user is in a remote area, e.g., hiking, or in a disabled vehicle. As such, systems and methods to map localized wireless coverage are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 1, 2023
    Publication date: December 7, 2023
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: Dean Ballew, John R.B. Woodworth
  • Publication number: 20230396509
    Abstract: In large networks, configuration changes made to the network may have effects the extent of which is not easily foreseen before the configuration change is implemented. For example, the deployment of a new filter to the routers of a network may have the effect of disconnecting a larger portion of the network than was expected, and the recognition and correcting of such unintended effects may occur after a sufficient delay that users of the network may be inconvenienced. As such, a system and method for predicting outcomes of network configuration changes are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 2, 2023
    Publication date: December 7, 2023
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R.B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Publication number: 20230396586
    Abstract: In a network in which connections are made, between devices or between network segments, through security devices such as firewalls, a user attempting to contact a destination device may be prevented from doing so by some or all of the security devices, which may silently block packets, sent by the user, addressed to the destination device. The remedying of this inability to contact the destination device may be made more difficult by a lack of knowledge, on the part of the user, regarding which security devices are configured to block the packets. As such, a system and method for managing network access are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 5, 2023
    Publication date: December 7, 2023
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R.B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Publication number: 20230393952
    Abstract: In a distributed replicated storage system, an active server may, during normal operation, service requests from clients, and back up its persistent storage to a backup server. The backup server may be configured to become an active server autonomously if the active server fails. If a network connection between the active server and the backup server fails, severing the connection between the active server and the backup server, the backup server may become a second active server and begin to service requests from clients, and the original active server may continue to service requests from clients. This may result in inconsistencies in the persistent storage of the original active server and of the second active server. As such, a system and method for intelligent merging of primary and backup data in a distributed replicated storage system are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 5, 2023
    Publication date: December 7, 2023
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: Dean Ballew, John R.B. Woodworth
  • Publication number: 20230396522
    Abstract: Customer premises equipment, such as a gateway device, for making a connection to an Internet service provider (ISP) may on occasion be defective or improperly set up, and in such circumstances remote troubleshooting by a technician employed by the Internet service provider may be hampered by the absence of a connection to the customer premises equipment. As such, a system and method for providing a secondary link to customer premises equipment are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 1, 2023
    Publication date: December 7, 2023
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R.B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Patent number: 11824716
    Abstract: A method for controlling deployment of network configuration changes includes receiving, by centralized network management system executed by a processor and memory, configuration change instructions to alter a configuration of a network; computing, by the centralized network management system, a weighted impact of the configuration change instructions; determining, by the centralized network management system, whether the weighted impact of the configuration change instructions exceeds a threshold impact level; and in response to determining that the weighted impact does not exceed the threshold impact level, executing the configuration change instructions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2023
    Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: John R. B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew
  • Publication number: 20230362192
    Abstract: Examples of the present disclosure are directed to systems and methods for using router identifier information to mitigate denial of service attacks in an autonomous system (AS). Each router of the AS may be assigned a router identifier (ID) that is unique to the AS and may be periodically changed. The ingress router first receiving the packet within a particular AS may insert its router ID into the packet. A threat intelligence system may sample packets of traffic received by the AS and examine the inserted ingress router IDs in making a threat determination. If a distribution of detected ingress router IDs from sampled packets does not match an expected distribution of ingress router IDs, one or more threat mitigation actions may be invoked.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 25, 2023
    Publication date: November 9, 2023
    Applicant: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC
    Inventors: Dean Ballew, John R.B. Woodworth
  • Publication number: 20230336622
    Abstract: The present application describes a system and method for determining a latency between a client device and various servers of a networking system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 23, 2023
    Publication date: October 19, 2023
    Applicant: Level 3 Communications, LLC
    Inventors: John R.B. Woodworth, Dean Ballew, Paul Carpenter, William R. Power, Laurence R. Lipstone