NETWORK DEVICE MANAGEMENT APPARATUS AND NETWORK DEVICE MANAGEMENT METHOD

• US 20080216162A1
• Filed: 01/22/2008
• Published: 09/04/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Hatano, Manami
• Granted Patent: US 8,020,198 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/7
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/604 Tools and structures for managing or administering access control systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/608 Secure printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2101 Auditing as a secondary aspect
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2117 User registration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2141 Access rights, e.g. capability lists, access control lists, access tables, access matrices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2151 Time stamp
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0253 using browsers or web-pages for accessing management information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/026 using e-messaging for transporting management information, e.g. email, instant messaging or chat
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/06 Management of faults, events, alarms or notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1441 Countermeasures against malicious traffic countermeasures against attacks on cryptographic mechanisms H04L9/002
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1483 service impersonation, e.g. phishing, pharming or web spoofing detection of rogue wireless access points H04W12/12

Abstract

A network device management apparatus according to this invention is directed to a network device management apparatus, which is connected to a network and manages a network device connected to the network, acquires status information indicating the status of the network device from the network device, saves the acquired status information in a storage unit, randomly generates an address required to access the storage unit, and notifies a pre-registered destination of the generated address, and provides, when an access is made to the address, the status information saved in the storage unit to an accessing party.

Claims

1. A network device management apparatus, which is connected to a network and manages a network device connected to the network, said apparatus comprising:

an acquisition unit, configured to acquire status information indicating a status of the network device from the network device;

a status information saving unit, configured to save the status information acquired by said acquisition unit in a storage unit;

an address notification unit, configured to randomly generate an address required to access the storage unit, and to notify a pre-registered destination of the generated address; and

an information providing unit, configured to provide, when an access is made to a location of the address, the status information saved in the storage unit to an accessing party.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a keyword saving unit adapted to save a pre-entered keyword,

wherein said address notification unit notifies the destination of the keyword saved in said keyword saving unit in addition to the address.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising an update unit adapted to update the password required to access the storage unit and/or the keyword in response to an update request,

wherein when said update unit updates the password and/or the keyword, said address notification unit regenerates the address.

4. A network device management method in a network device management apparatus which is connected to a network and manages a network device connected to the network, said method comprising:

an acquisition step of acquiring status information indicating a status of the network device from the network device;

a status information saving step of saving the status information acquired in the acquisition step in a storage unit;

an address notification step of randomly generating an address required to access the storage unit, and notifying a pre-registered destination of the generated address; and

an information providing step of providing, when an access is made to the address, the status information saved in the storage unit to an accessing party.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising a keyword saving step of saving a pre-entered keyword,

wherein the address notification step notifies the destination of the keyword saved in the keyword saving step in addition to the address.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising an update step of updating the password required to access the storage unit and/or the keyword in response to an updated request,

wherein when the password and/or the keyword are/is updated in the update step, the address notification step regenerates the address.

7. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for making a computer execute respective steps included in a method according to claim 4.