Method and apparatus for network management system

• US 20060161674A1
• Filed: 03/03/2006
• Published: 07/20/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Sun, Wei-Ping Stephen, James, Bernard Roycroft, Fronberg, Eric
• Granted Patent: US 8,675,472 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/230
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2005 using redundant communication controllers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4009 with data restructuring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/563 Software download or update

Abstract

A network management system has a bus and a system controller connected to the bus. The bus has a plurality of fixed ports, where each of the ports is capable of connecting a router card to the system controller. A method of sending a file from the system controller to a router card includes receiving a request packet from the router card where the request packet includes a file type and the port address, identifying the file from the file type and the port address, and sending the file to the router card. The system controller has a memory storing the location of files associated with each of the port addresses, a request receiver for receiving a request for a file of a file type from a router card, an identifier for identifying a file, and a sender for sending the identified file to the router card. The router card has a memory for storing an operating system image and a configuration, and a request sender for sending a request for an operating system image and a configuration to the system controller upon power-up of the router card.

Claims

1. A network management system having a system controller configured to connect to a bus having a plurality of ports, each of the ports having a port address and being capable of connecting to a router card, the system controller comprising:

a memory configured to store the location of files associated with each of the port addresses, each of the files being of a file type;

a request receiver configured to receive a request for a file of a file type from a router card connected to the system controller at one of the ports having a port address;

an identifier configured to use the memory, the port address and the request to identify the file, the request not containing a media access control (MAC) address for the router card and not including information regarding a file name for the file to be retrieved; and

a sender configured to send the identified file to the router card.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the sender further comprises:

an encapsulator configured to encapsulate the file into a series of data packets, the data packets being of a fixed size and including a system header and a data packet protocol header, wherein the data packet protocol header includes an operation code, a block number, a file type, and a checksum; and

a transmitter configured to transmit the data packets one at a time.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the system controller further comprises:

an acknowledgment receiver coupled to the transmitter and configured to receive acknowledgments from the router card for individual data packets, wherein the transmitter is configured to 1.) re-transmit a data packet if a proper acknowledgment for the data packet is not received or 2.) transmit the next data packet if a proper acknowledgment for a data packet is received.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the system controller further comprises:

a router card power controller configured to instruct the router card to power down and then power up.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the system controller further comprises:

a router card warm boot controller configured to instruct the router card to perform a warm boot.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the router card power controller is configured to operate upon detecting the failure of another router card connected to the bus.

7. The system of claim 5, where the router card warm boot controller is configured to operate upon detecting the failure of another router card connected to the bus.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the files are located at a remote file server.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the router card further comprises:

a memory configured to store an operating system image and a configuration; and

a request sender configured to send a request to the system controller for at least one of an operating system image and a configuration upon power up.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the router card further comprises:

a power control receiver configured to receive a power down instruction from the system controller, wherein the router card powers down and then powers up in response to receiving the power down instruction.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the router card further comprises:

a warm boot control receiver configured to receive an instruction from the system controller to perform a warm boot.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the files are located at a remote file server.

12. A network management system comprising:

a router card configured to send a request for a file of a file type, wherein the request does not contain a media access control (MAC) address for the router card, the request not including information of a file name of the file requested; and

a system controller connected to the router card at a port having a port address, the system controller configured to store the location of files associated with the port address in a memory, the system controller configured to access the memory and examine the request to retrieve the file, wherein the system controller is configured to send the retrieved file to the router card.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the system controller is configured to encapsulate the file into a series of data packets, the data packets being of a fixed size and including a system header and a data packet protocol header, wherein the data packet protocol header includes an operation code, a block number, a file type, and a checksum.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the system controller is configured to receive acknowledgments from the router card for individual data packets, wherein the system controller is configured to either re-transmit a particular data packet if a proper acknowledgment for the particular data packet is not received or transmit the next data packet if a proper acknowledgment for the particular data packet is received.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the system controller is configured to instruct the router card to power down and then power up.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the system controller is configured to instruct the router card to perform a warm boot.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the router card is configured to operate upon detecting the failure of another router card connected to the bus.

19. A network system having a system controller configured to connect to a bus having a plurality of ports, each of the ports having a port address and being capable of connecting to a router card, the system controller comprising:

means for receiving a request packet from the router card, the request packet including a file type and the port address, the request packet not containing a media access control (MAC) address for the router card and not including information regarding a file name for a file to be retrieved;

means for retrieving the file;

means for transmitting a size and name of the file to the router card; and

means for sending one or more data packets comprising the file to the router card.