Abstract: Techniques are disclosed for centralized control of one or more attributes associated with a communication session in a network containing firewalls. By way of example, a technique for controlling an attribute associated with a communication session in a data communication network includes the following steps. The attribute associated with the communication session is monitored at a first computing device, wherein the first computing device includes a functionally centralized controller. The first computing device determines which computing devices in the data communication network are to be made aware of the monitored attribute. At least one of the computing devices to be made aware of the monitored attribute includes a firewall. The first computing device sends a message to each computing device identified in the determining step.

Abstract: New XML management transaction requests including XPath expressions are used, for example, to forward configuration changes on to a data network device. The generation and use of these new requests helps reduce the costs associated with designing or upgrading data network devices. These new requests may be generated in a novel command line interface that has been augmented to give a user access to more configuration functions. Complex management transactions may be executed substantially simultaneously by a central management module using the new requests and their associated XPath expressions. In addition to configuration changes, the new requests may be used to obtain the current configuration of data network devices.

Abstract: New XML management transaction requests including XPath expressions are used, for example, to forward configuration changes on to a data network device. The generation and use of these new requests helps reduce the costs associated with designing or upgrading data network devices. These new requests may be generated in a novel command line interface that has been augmented to give a user access to more configuration functions. Complex management transactions may be executed substantially simultaneously by a central management module using the new requests and their associated XPath expressions. In addition to configuration changes, the new requests may be used to obtain the current configuration of data network devices.