Network device management method, network device management system, and process program for managing network device

• US 20030046381A1
• Filed: 07/16/2002
• Published: 03/06/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 07/19/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Mokuya, Senichi, Ehara, Shinji, Mori, Hozumi
• Granted Patent: US 7,257,626 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0226 Mapping or translating multiple network management protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/024 using relational databases for representation of network management data, e.g. managing via structured query language [SQL]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing

Abstract

Since an MIB file present in a network device and having the structure of MIB data is expressed in the ASN1 format, the MIB file is not flexibly modified by a user.

A management-information database-structure definition file converter unit 22 converts MIB files 21a, 21b . . . having the MIB data structures of MIB databases 12a, 12b, . . . mounted on the network devices 10a, 10b, . . . into files in a tag-structured format. Specifically, the management-information database-structure definition file converter unit 22 converts MIB files 21a, 21b, . . . into MIB files 23a, 23b . . . in a tag-structured format (XML format). Using the MIB files 23a, 23b, . . . in the XML format, a network device management tool 24 manages the MIB databases 12a, 12b . . . of the respective network devices 10, 10b . . .

Claims

1. ) a network device management method in a network device management system comprising a network device having a management-information database and a management device having network-device management means for managing the network device, wherein the management device holds a plurality of management-information database structure definition files describing the structure of the management-information database, and the network-device management means manages the management-information database of the network device using the management-information database structure definition files, and

wherein the management device converts the management-information database structure definition file into a tag-structured file, and the network device management means manages the management-information database of the network device using the tag-structured management-information database structure definition file:

2. ) A network device management method according to claim 1, wherein the network device management means expresses the management-information database of the network device in a tree structure using the tag-structured management-information database structure definition file, and learns the structure of the management-information database based on the tree structure, thereby managing a predetermined section in the management-information database.

3. ) A network device management method according to one of claims 1 and 2, wherein the process of converting the management-information database structure definition file into the tag-structured file, comprises:

a subprocess comprising a step of reading the management-information database structure definition file to be converted, and a step of acquiring a character string to be converted from the management-information database structure definition file on a per unit of conversion basis,

a subprocess comprising a step of producing a control-table list to acquire position data representing a position, the character string of the unit of conversion, a process function representing what conversion process to perform on the character string of the unit of conversion, and a character string converted from the character string of the unit of conversion, as data required to convert the acquired character string of one unit of conversion into tag-structured data, a step of acquiring, out of these pieces of data, the position data representing the position, the character string of the unit of conversion, and the process function representing what conversion process to perform on the character string of the unit of conversion, and a step of writing, onto the control-table list, the position data representing the position, the character string of the unit of conversion, and the process function representing what conversion process to perform on the character string of the unit of conversion,

a subprocess comprising a step of converting the character string of the unit of conversion into the tag-structured data in accordance with the process function in the control-table list,

a subprocess comprising a step of writing the tag-structured character string obtained as a result of conversion in the control-table list as a post-conversion character string, and

a subprocess comprising a step of reading the post-conversion character string on a per unit of conversion basis from the control-table list in response to all character strings of the unit of conversion, and a step of writing the read character string in a post-conversion management-information database structure definition file.

4. ) A network device management method according to one of claims 1 through 3, wherein the tag-structured format is an XML (extensible Markup Language) format.

5. ) A network device management system comprising a network device having a management-information database and a management device having network-device management means for managing the network device, wherein the management device holds a plurality of management-information database structure definition files describing the structure of the management-information database, and the network-device management means manages the management-information database of the network device using the management-information database structure definition files, and

wherein the management device comprises a management-information database-structure definition file converter for converting the management-information database structure definition file into a tag-structured file, the management information database-structure definition file converter converts the management-information database structure definition file into the tag-structured file, and the network device management tool manages data in the management-information database of the network device using the tag-structured management-information database structure definition file.

6. ) A network device management system according to claim 5, wherein the network device management means comprises a management database processor which expresses the management-information database of the network device in a tree structure using the tag-structured management-information database structure definition file, and a network device management processor which learns the structure of the management-information database based on the tree structure, thereby managing a predetermined section in the management-information database.

7. ) A network device management system according to one of claims 5 and 6, wherein the process of converting the management-information database structure definition file into the tag-structured file, comprises:

a subprocess comprising a step of reading the management-information database structure definition file to be converted, and a step of acquiring a character string to be converted from the management-information database structure definition file on a per unit of conversion basis,

a subprocess comprising a step of producing a control-table list to acquire position data representing a position, the character string of the unit of conversion, a process function representing what conversion process to perform on the character string of the unit of conversion, and a character string converted from the character string of the unit of conversion, as data required to convert the acquired character string of one unit of conversion into tag-structured data, a step of acquiring, out of these pieces of data, the position data representing the position, the character string of the unit of conversion, and the process function representing what conversion process to perform on the character string of the unit of conversion, and a step of writing, onto the control-table list, the position data representing the position, the character string of the unit of conversion, and the process function representing what conversion process to perform on the character string of the unit of conversion,

a subprocess comprising a step of converting the character string of the unit of conversion into the tag-structured data in accordance with the process function in the control-table list,

a subprocess comprising a step of writing the tag-structured character string obtained as a result of conversion in the control-table list as a post-conversion character string, and

a subprocess comprising a step of reading the post-conversion character string on a per unit of conversion basis from the control-table list in response to all character strings of the unit of conversion, and a step of writing the read character string in a post-conversion management-information database structure definition file.

8. ) A network device management system according to one of claims 5 through 7, wherein the tag-structured format is an XML format.

9. ) A process program for managing a network device in a network device management system comprising a network device having a management-information database and a management device having network-device management means for managing the network device, wherein the management device holds a plurality of management-information database structure definition files describing the structure of the management-information database, and the network-device management means manages the management-information database of the network device using the management-information database structure definition files,

wherein the process program comprises a process comprising a step of reading the management-information database structure definition file and a step of converting the read management-information database structure definition file into a tag-structured file, and

a process comprising a step of managing data in the management-information database of the network device using the tag-structured management-information database structure definition file.

10. ) A process program for managing a network device according to claim 9, wherein the network device management means expresses the management-information database of the network device in a tree structure using the tag-structured management-information database structure definition file, and learns the structure of the management-information database based on the tree structure, thereby managing a predetermined section in the management-information database.

11. ) A process program for managing a network device according to one of claims 9 and 10, wherein the process of converting the management-information database structure definition file into the tag-structured file, comprises:

a subprocess comprising a step of reading the management-information database structure definition file to be converted, and a step of acquiring a character string to be converted from the management-information database structure definition file on a per unit of conversion,

a subprocess comprising a step of producing a control-table list to acquire position data representing a position, the character string of the unit of conversion, a process function representing what conversion process to perform on the character string of the unit of conversion, and a character string converted from the character string of the unit of conversion, as data required to convert the acquired character string of one unit of conversion into tag-structured data, a step of acquiring, out of these pieces of data, the position data representing the position, the character string of the unit of conversion, and the process function representing what conversion process to perform on the character string of the unit of conversion, and a step of writing, onto the control-table list, the position data representing the position, the character string of the unit of conversion, and the process function representing what conversion process to perform on the character string of the unit of conversion,

a subprocess comprising a step of converting the character string of the unit of conversion into the tag-structured data in accordance with the process function in the control-table list,

a subprocess comprising a step of writing the tag-structured character string obtained as a result of conversion in the control-table list as a post-conversion character string, and

a subprocess comprising a step of reading the post-conversion character string on a per unit of conversion basis from the control-table list in response to all character strings of the unit of conversion, and a step of writing the read character string in a post-conversion management-information database structure definition file.

12. ) A process program for managing a network device according to one of claims 9 through 11, wherein the tag-structured format is an XML format.