Editing a portable, dynamic and abstract view definition of a network object database

• US 20040153966A1
• Filed: 07/25/2003
• Published: 08/05/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Extreme Networks, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Enterasys Networks Incorporated (Extreme Networks, Inc.)
• Inventors: Richmond, James P., Grieve, David Scott, Murphy, Daniel Timothy, Locke, Brian Stanley, McClain, Christopher, Bir, Steven Charles
• Granted Patent: US 9,154,372 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/509
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/177 of tables; using ruled lines
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]

Abstract

A user is enabled to edit a table defining a view of a network object database, for example, a MIB. The user can select from among a plurality of network object types and select from among a plurality of columns of the table. At least one column of the table is specified by the user and edited to represent a network object type specified by the user. The view definition can be extracted from the application and transported to another device where it can be edited and/or viewed using a suitable application. Such portable view definition may be defined as part of a document, for example, a document formatted in accordance with a markup language, such as XML. Such document may include information for requesting objects to populate the view, which may be used to construct requests (e.g., SNMP requests) to retrieve objects from one or more network devices.

Claims

1. A method of enabling a user to edit a table defining a view of a network object database including a plurality of network object types, the method comprising acts of:

(A) providing a user interface that enables the user to specify one or more of the plurality of network object types; and

(B) in response to the user specifying the one or more network object types, editing at least one column of the table to represent at least one of the one or more specified network object types.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the network object database includes a first group of network object types and a second group of network object types, wherein the at least one of the network object types belongs to the first group, wherein act (A) includes providing the user interface to enable the user to specify a second object type belonging to the second group, and the method further comprises:

(C) in response to the user specifying the second object type, editing a second column of the table to represent the second object type.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein act (A) includes providing the user interface to enable the user to specify the at least one column.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the network object database is a Management Information Base.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein act (A) includes providing the user interface to enable the user to specify a first of the plurality of network object types, the method further comprising acts of:

(C) determining whether the first network object type is an indexed network object type;

(D) if the first network object type is an indexed network object type, determining an indexing variable for the first network object type; and

(E) detennining whether the indexing variable determined for the first network object type is compatible with an indexing variable being used for the table,

wherein, act (B) includes editing the at least one column based at least in part on results of act (E).

6. The method of claim 5, wherein act (E) includes determining that the indexing variable of the first network object type is not compatible with the indexing variable being used for the table, and the method further comprises:

(F) preventing an editing of a column to represent the first network object type based on the results of act (E).

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the method further comprises an act of:

(F) providing a compatibility table, the compatibility table including one or more entries, each entry corresponding to an indexing variable and storing a compatibility value mapped to the indexing variable corresponding to the entry,

wherein act (E) further comprises, accessing an entry of the compatibility table corresponding to the indexing variable of the first network object type and retrieving the compatibility value stored therein, accessing an entry of the compatibility table corresponding to the indexing variable being used by the table retrieving the compatibility value stored therein, and comparing the retrieved compatibility values to determine whether the compatibility values are equal.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

(C) for the at least one column, generating request information for retrieving objects of the at least one network object type represented by the at least one column; and

(D) generating a document that includes a definition of the table and the generated request information for the at least one column.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

(E) providing the document to one or more network devices on a network.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein act (E) comprises providing the document to at least one of the network devices using electronic mail.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein act (C) includes configuring the request information in accordance with Simple Network Management Protocol.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein act (D) includes formatting the document in accordance with a markup language.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein act (D) includes formatting the document in accordance with XML.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein act (A) comprises:

providing a graphical user interface to enable the user to select from among the plurality of network object types.

15. A computer-readable medium having computer-readable signals stored thereon that define instructions that, as a result of being executed by a computer, instruct the computer to perform a method of enabling a user to edit a table defining a view of a network object database including a plurality of network object types, the method comprising acts of:

(A) providing a user interface that enables the user to specify one or more of the plurality of network object types; and

(B) in response to the user specifying the one or more network object types, editing at least one column of the table to represent at least one of the one or more specified network object types.

16. A system for enabling a user to edit a table defining a view of a network object database including a plurality of network object types, the system comprising:

a table editing component to enable the user to specify one or more of the plurality of network object types and, in response to the user specifying the one or more network object types, to edit at least one column of the table to represent at least one of the one or more specified network object types, respectively.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the network object database includes a first group of network object types and a second group of network object types, the at least one of the network object types belonging to the first group, wherein table editing component is further operable to enable the user to specify a second object type belonging to the second group, and, in response to the user specifying the second object type, to edit a second column of the table to represent the second object type.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the table editing component is further operable to enable the user to specify the at least one column.

19. The system of claim 16, wherein the network object database is a Management Information Base.

20. The system of claim 16, wherein the table editing component is further operable to enable the user to specify a first of the plurality of network object types,

wherein the system further comprises an indexing component to determine whether the first network object type is an indexed network object type, to determine, in the event that the first network object type is an indexed network object type, an indexing variable for the first network object type, and to determine whether the indexing variable of the first network object type is compatible with an indexing variable being used by the table, and

wherein the table editing component is further operable to edit the at least one column based at least in part on the determination of whether the indexing variable of the first network object type is compatible with the indexing variable used for the table.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the indexing component is further operable to determine that the indexing variable of the first network object type is not compatible with the indexing variable being used by the table, and to prevent an editing of a column to represent the first network object type based on the determination of incompatibility.

22. The system of claim 20, further comprising:

a compatibility table, the compatibility table including one or more entries, each entry corresponding to an indexing variable and storing a compatibility value mapped to the indexing variable corresponding to the entry,

wherein the indexing component is further operative to access an entry of the compatibility table corresponding to the indexing variable of the first network object type and retrieve the compatibility value stored therein, to access an entry of the compatibility table corresponding to the indexing variable being used by the table and retrieve the compatibility value stored therein, and to compare two retrieved compatibility values to determine whether the compatibility values are equal.

23. The system of claim 16, further comprising:

a request component to generate request information for retrieving objects of the at least one network object type; and

a document generation component to generate a document that includes a definition of the table and the request information.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the document generation component is operable to configure the document to be transmittable to one or more network devices on a network.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the document generation component is operable to configure the document to be transmittable to at least one of the network devices using electronic mail.

26. The system of claim 23, wherein the request component is operable to configure the request in accordance with Simple Network Management Protocol.

27. The system of claim 23, wherein the document generation component is operable to format the document in accordance with a markup language.

28. The system of claim 27, the document generation component is operable to format the document in accordance with XML.

29. The method of claim 16, wherein the system further comprises a graphical user interface to enable the user to select from among the plurality of network object types.

30. A system for enabling a user to edit a table defining a view of a network object database including a plurality of network object types, the system comprising:

a table editing component to edit at least one column of the table to represent at least one of the plurality of network object types specified by the user; and

means for enabling the user to specify the at least one or more of the plurality of network object types.

31. A method of editing a portable view definition of a network object database including a plurality of network object types, the method comprising acts of:

(A) editing a column of a table to represent one of the plurality of network object types;

(B) generating request information for retrieving objects of the one network object type; and

(C) generating a document that includes a definition of the table, the table definition including the generated request information and a definition of the column.

32. The method of claim 31, further comprising:

(D) providing a user interface to the user to enable the user to specify the one network object type.

33. The method of claim 31, further comprising:

(D) storing the document on a computer-readable medium.

34. The method of claim 31, further comprising:

(D) providing the document to one or more network devices on a network.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein act (D) comprises providing the document to at least one of the network devices using electronic mail.

36. The method of claim 31, wherein the database is a Management Information Base.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein act (B) includes configuring the request information in accordance with Simple Network Management Protocol.

38. The method of claim 31, wherein act (B) includes configuring the request information in accordance with Simple Network Management Protocol.

39. The method of claim 31, wherein act (C) includes formatting the document in accordance with a markup language.

40. The method of claim 39, wherein act (C) includes formatting the document in accordance with XML.

41. A computer-readable medium having computer-readable signals stored thereon that define instructions that, as a result of being executed by a computer, instruct the computer to perform a method of editing a portable view definition of a network object database including a plurality of network object types, the method comprising acts of:

(A) editing a column of a table to represent one of the plurality of network object types;

(B) generating request information for retrieving objects of the one network object type; and

(C) generating a document that includes a definition of the table, the table definition including the generated request information and a definition of the column.

42. A system for editing a portable view definition of a network object database including a plurality of network object types, the system comprising:

a table editing component to edit a column of a table to represent one of the plurality of network object types;

a request component to generate request information for retrieving objects of the one network object type; and

a document generation component to generate a document that includes a definition of the table, including the generated request information and a definition of the column.

43. A system for editing a portable view definition of a network object database including a plurality of network object types, the system comprising:

a table editing component to edit a column of a table to represent one of the plurality of network object types;

a request component to generate request information for retrieving objects of the one network object type; and

means for generating a document that includes a definition of the table, the table definition including the generated request information and a definition of the column.

44. A computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of computer-readable signals defining a document comprising:

a definition of a table representing a view of a network object database including a plurality of network object types, the table definition including a column representing one of the network object types of the network object database and request information for retrieving objects of the network object type represented by the column.