Mechanism for specifying port-related data from network devices

• US 20080005267A1
• Filed: 06/30/2006
• Published: 01/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Britt, Steven V.
• Granted Patent: US 8,046,447 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/457 containing identifiers of data entities on a computer, e.g. file names

Abstract

A computer system for and method of requesting networked device information is described. The computer system comprises a processor and a data store. The data store comprises one or more data identifier groups hierarchically specifying data available from one or more networked devices and a data retrieval tool comprising a set of instructions executable by the processor to obtain data from a network device. The data retrieval tool is arranged to request the data from the network device based on a data identifier group.

Claims

1. A computer system for requesting networked device information, comprising:

a processor;

a data store communicatively coupled with the processor and comprising;

one or more data identifier groups hierarchically specifying data available from one or more networked devices; and

a data retrieval tool comprising a set of instructions executable by the processor to obtain data from a network device wherein the data retrieval tool is arranged to request the data from the network device based on a data identifier group.

2. A computer system according to claim 1, wherein the data identifier group comprises a reference to a parent data identifier group from which the data identifier group inherits data type information.

3. A computer system according to claim 2, wherein the data identifier group comprises a data specification which overrides a corresponding data specification in a parent data identifier group.

4. A computer system according to claim 1, wherein the data retrieval tool, executed by the processor, causes the processor to generate data requests based on the hierarchically specified data identifier group.

5. A computer system according to claim 1, wherein the data store comprises:

one or more device identifier groups hierarchically specifying device identifiers corresponding to one or more of the one or more networked devices.

6. A computer system according to claim 5, wherein the device identifier comprises a reference to a data identifier.

7. A computer system according to claim 6, wherein the device identifier comprises a reference to a parent device identifier from which the device identifier inherits device information.

8. A computer system according to claim 1, wherein the data specified in the data identifier group is specified using an object identifier.

9. A method of requesting networked device information, comprising:

determining a device identifier from a device identifier group where the device identifier corresponds to device information received from a networked device;

determining a data identifier group from a property grouping where the data identifier group is based on information in the device identifier; and

generating a data request for the networked device based on the data identifier and device identifier.

10. A method according to claim 9, comprising:

transmitting the data request to the networked device.

11. A method according to claim 10, further comprising:

storing data received from the networked device in response to the transmitted data request.

12. A method according to claim 9, wherein the property grouping is a hierarchical specification of data identifiers.

13. A method according to claim 9, wherein the device identifier group is a hierarchical specification of device identifiers.

14. A method according to claim 9, further comprising:

transmitting a device discovery message to a network device.

15. A method according to claim 9, further comprising:

transmitting the generated data request one or more additional times to the networked device.

16. A memory or a computer-readable medium storing instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to determine a device identifier from a device identifier group where the device identifier corresponds to device information received from a network device;

determine a data identifier group from a property grouping where the data identifier group is based on information in the device identifier; and

generate a data request for the networked device based on the data identifier and device identifier.