Methods and apparatus for deploying quality of service policies on a data communication network

This invention relates to data communication networks. The invention relates to systems to facilitate configuring networks to provide services to users. In particular, the invention relates to configuring networks to provide desired levels of Quality of Service ("QoS") for data communication services on the networks. The invention is particularly useful in configuring QoS in Virtual Private Networks ("VPNs") but has application in data communications networks generally. A network policy management system and methods define service templates. The service templates contain information on the topologies of services such as video calls, web services, order processing applications, or the like. The service templates also contain information about the quality of service required by each of the data flows which will be generated when an instance of the service is used. The policy management system allows users to add new services by selecting a service template and specifying endpoints for the service on a map of the network. The system automatically generates updated packet forwarding rules for use at a plurality of packet processing devices in the network.