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Introduction
Telecommunication Management Network (TMN) supports all the activities which
associate with telecommunication networks.

A Telecommunication Management Network Management Services (TMN-MS)

provides supports for the operation, administration and maintenance (OAM) of the
network being managed. TMN-MSs are an integral part of TMN interface
specifications. Each TMN-MS contains a specification of the TMN-MS in prose form,
the components used by it and the TMN management functions which used by the
components.

Management functions are usually grouped into five categories:

Performance management
Includes all the activities necessary to maintain the short term view of quality
of services (QoS)
Fault management
Includes all procedures necessary to handle systems alarms, test and correct
failing equipment, and respond intelligently to customer complaints.
Configuration management
Covers activities such as provisioning and installing equipment, modifying
parameters and behaviours of network elements.
Security management
Responsible for controlling access to customers and network data and
resources.
Accounting Management
Includes the measurements and control of costs and billing of customer.

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2.TMN Management Services

TMN-MSs are groups of specific TMN management functions to provide the
management of telecommunication equipment. They may be grouped into Operation
Systems (OSs) in order to best match the organisational requirements of the
administration operating the TMN. A given TMN-MS may be distributed over several
OSs or one and more OSs may perform several MSs.
There are a number of specific areas covered by different TMN management services.
Several areas are chosen to be discussed.
A.Customer administration
B.Traffic management
C.Management of customer access
D.Common channel signalling system management
E.Staff work scheduling

A. Customer administration

This management activity requires the network operator to exchange management

data and functions required by the customers to offer a telecommunication service and
to exchange with the network all the customer-related management data and functions
that the network needs to provide that service. This could involve interactions which
related to provisioning management, configuration administration, fault
administration, charging (billing) administration, complaints administration, quality of
service administration, traffic measurement administration, etc.

B. Traffic management

This deals with the management of traffic associated with circuit switched networks,
for example, Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) and Public Switched
Telephone Network (PSTN), and transmission networks.

The objective of traffic management is to enable as many calls as possible to be

successfully completed. This is done by maximising the use of all available equipment
and facilities in the traffic situation. It is also responsible to supervise the performance
of a network, and has to take action to control the flow of the traffic and to optimise
the utilisation of the network capacity.

It will initially concern itself with the Network Element (NE), a digital exchange
network element, to ensure the specification of this service. It then collect traffic
information from and send commands to the NE so as to modify its operation or
reconfigure the network. The NE may send information periodically or on threshold
triggering. The TMN-MS may change the threshold at which the NE sends the traffic
data or the periodic reports. Those data may be processed within the TMN-MS via
OSs.
Thus the Digital exchange NE has to perform several functions so as to achieve the
above tasks. It has to collect traffic management information using an internal
measurement sub-system, processes the information and converts it to a recognised set
of traffic management indicators, then transfer it to the OSs. From the indicators, the
OS should be able to obtain an overall view of the status of the Network. The NE will
later receive control information from the OS and executes appropriate controls to
change the traffic flow.

It is usual to take into account aspects of common channel signalling and traffic
measurement during the specification and processing of the traffic management
information.

C. Management of customer access

This includes all the equipment which associated with the customer access involving
multiplex equipment, network terminating units etc, regardless of its bandwidth
(narrow-band or broadband), analogue or digital.

Management describes quite a number of tasks, configuration, failure monitoring,

security and network performance of any part or piece of equipment associated with
the access. Separate requirements resulting from circuit-switched or packet-switched
environments must also be taken into account.

Needs of management control facilities upon the customer access arises due to the
complexity. Customer access may be regarded as consisting of copper wires or optical
fibres with complex electronic equipment whose functions may need updating or
altering by the network provider, instead of merely consisted of copper wires and
network terminating equipment.

D. Common channel signalling system (CCSS) management

This covers all the aspects concerned with the management of CCSSs. During the
process of managing a CCSS, several things outside of the sphere of the MS has to be
considered as well. They are the events and information outside the MS, also planning
is needed.

It is necessary to have a network wide view of the availability of the signalling

network and the signalling traffic loading. The network wide view should at least
contain a number of relevant information such as, the configuration on the signalling
network, the availability of each signalling link set and its capacity, current loading of
each link set, and indication of the initiation of internal flow control procedures.

Those information will be used as a statistical measurements. They will be gathered

from both inside and outside of the signalling system concerned.

CCSS management also make use of the computer based tools which could contain
information such as a map of the network with all signalling points and Signalling
Transfer Points (STPs), signalling routes and their capacities, detection of the
signalling link sets which requires additional capacity. Also they could contain
interconnection with transmission planning information to ensure the required
diversity of the transmission paths.

The management system should be able to manipulate signalling resources through a

Human-Machine Interface (HMI). Some types of information could be accessed and
changed, these include changing and adding routes, collecting statistics, controlling
the signalling link states and reporting of failures.

E. Staff Work Scheduling

This management service has no direct influence on NEs. However the quality of
telecommunication services depends very much on the network operator's staff, and
that effective staff work scheduling helps to maintain the economic level of the staff
effort. This is a management activity of the network operator which aims at getting
the right staff member to carry out the work. This is valid for OAM of the NEs,
maintenance and installation work to be done at the customers' premises, and also
installation and repair work to be done in the field, such as installing cables.

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3.Organisational stakeholders
The interoperation between Network Operators, Service Providers and Customers
via X manangement interface

i. Network Operators

They are organisations operating various types of communications paths in the form
of networks for public use. The network owning of the network operators
distinguished them from other service providers, as they provide the basic
infrastructure over which all the other value-added services offered.

Cooperation between network operators usually work on a peer-to-peer basis and

network services are offered to all service provider domains equally. From the
customers' point of view, network operators act as the access providers as they
provide access to regional, national and international communications networks.

ii. Services Providers

They are organisations which add specific value to the basic communications
capabilities provided by the network operators.

Service providers offer a wide range of services. They include telecommunications

services, such as virtual private network (VPN) services. Information services and end
user services like multimedia teleservices and entertainment services are also
provided.

Service providers rely on the bearer services (the basic communications capabilities)
provided by the network operators. Each service provider may interact with several
network operators, or with only one which offers one-stop shopping facilities.

As the market for new services expanding rapidly, service providers and network
operators have to introduce new services more efficiently and quickly, with reducing
costs and improved service quality. Thus network operators and service providers
have to have more sophisticated procedures into their management of services so as to
meet the demand of the customers.

iii. Customers

They are organisations subscribing to and paying for services. They can either belong
to the customer domain or can be comprised part of a service that the customer offers
as a service provider to other customers.

Technological changes and business trends have made the role of customers and users
increasingly significant. Particularly those corporate customers whose responsive and
efficient telecommunications capabilities are essential for their business. They are
becoming more demanding and knowledgeable concerning the services they purchase.
They are no longer willing to accept what is in the market but will choose the services
which meet their specific requirements best and that the service is at the price which
they are willing to pay for. Customers play an important role in driving the market
trend.

Customers not only demand the concerns about delivery and use of services but also
the facilities available for monitoring and controlling the services. They will want the
access to information on the status, performance, fault and accounting statistics of the
services. In addition, they also want more active control over their services, with
access to management functionality, or changing the service parameters to ensure that
they get the best out of them.

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4.Conclusion
A TMN-MS provides supports for the operation, administration and maintenance of
the network being managed.

A list of TMN-MS provide a check list for the standardisation process, for the
functions, objects and messages, ensuring that all the functionality necessary to
support the perceived usage of the management applications are supplied. The
standardisation allows continuing automation of these services so as to improve the
efficiency of the MS tools for human operators.

There are various TMN-MS in the TMN-MS check list, several have been chosen and
discussed.

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5.Abbreviations
CCSS Common Channel Signalling System
HMI Human Machine Interface
ISDN Integrated Services Digital Network
MS Management Service
NE Network Element
OAM Operation, Administration and Maintenance
OS Operation System
PSTN Public Switch Telephone Network
STP Signalling Transfer Points
TMN Telecommunication Management Network
VPN Virtual Private Network