COLLABORATIVE ALERT MANAGEMENT AND MONITORING

• US 20090327429A1
• Filed: 06/26/2008
• Published: 12/31/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sybase Incorporated (SAP SE)
• Original Assignee: Sybase Incorporated (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Hughes, Randall L., Goldberg, Michael, Matson, Mark, Madden, Robert
• Granted Patent: US 7,856,498 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

Methods, systems, and computer program products for dynamically monitoring, processing, and managing alerts are described herein. In an embodiment, the method operates by receiving messages that are either alerts or responses to existing alerts. The messages are parsed to determine if whether they are alerts or responses to alerts. Actions including updating alert states and storing alert data are executed, and then the method sends notifications regarding the alert messages and responses to a collaboration list of registered subscribers that dynamically expands over time based upon alert escalations. The method then determines whether additional messages have been received; and performs actions associated with these additional messages until there are no remaining alerts or alert responses to process. The method stores updated alert and response data in a repository so that the alerts and responses can be monitored and managed.

Claims

1. A method for dynamically monitoring, processing, and managing alerts, comprising:

(a) receiving a message from a client, wherein said message is one of an alert or a response to an existing alert, and wherein said message is comprised of a plurality of data fields;

(b) parsing said message to determine if said message is an alert or a response to an existing alert;

(c) updating an alert state if it is determined in step (b) that said message is a response to an existing alert, wherein the updated alert state is stored in a data repository;

(d) saving alert data in a data repository if it is determined in step (b) that said message is an alert;

(e) sending notifications regarding said message to a collaboration list of registered subscribers, wherein said collaboration list dynamically expands over time based upon alert escalations; and

(f) repeating steps (b)-(e) if it is determined that more messages have been received.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said collaboration list comprises a community of registered subscribers for resolving an alert.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said plurality of data fields include at least a unique alert identifier and a state identifier.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the state identifier is one of Active, Complete, Unmanaged, and Suppressed.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein registered subscriptions are associated with at least a user, a channel, and a target.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein said target is associated with a transport type.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said transport type includes one or more of JavaMail, Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) email, facsimile, JMS, Java Management Extensions (JMX), instant messages, text message, alphanumeric pages, Short Message Service (SMS) messages, script, and null target instances.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said alerts are system alarm messages, and wherein system alarm messages are triggered by system events.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein data stored in steps (c) and (d) is provided as input into a user interface used to manage and respond to an alert.

10. A system for dynamically monitoring, processing, and managing alerts, comprising:

a message receiving module configured to receive a message from a client, wherein said message is one of an alert or a response to an existing alert, and wherein said message is comprised of a plurality of data fields;

a parsing module configured to parse said message to determine if said message is an alert or a response to an existing alert;

an state update module configured to update and store an alert state in a data repository if the parsing module determines that said message is a response to an existing alert;

an alert update module configured to save alert data in a data repository if the parsing module determines that said message is an alert;

a notification module configured to send notifications regarding said message to a collaboration list of registered subscribers, wherein said collaboration list dynamically expands over time based upon alert escalations.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein said collaboration list comprises a community of registered subscribers for resolving an alert.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein said plurality of data fields include at least a unique alert identifier and a state identifier.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the state identifier is one of Active, Complete, Cancel, Obsolete, Unmanaged, and Suppressed.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein registered subscriptions are associated with at least a user, a channel, and a target.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein said target is associated with a transport type.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein said transport type includes one or more of JavaMail, Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) email, facsimile, JMS, Java Management Extensions (JMX), instant messages, text message, alphanumeric pages, Short Message Service (SMS) messages, script, and null target instances.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein said alerts are system alarm messages triggered by system events, and wherein system events include any event in a computer system detected by a computer system or a user that needs attention by one or more users.

18. The system of claim 10, wherein data stored by the state update module and the alert update module is provided as input into a graphical user interface used to manage and respond to an alert.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein said user interface includes at least graphical user interfaces for configuring user roles, targets, subscriptions, and alert lifecycles.

20. A computer program product comprising a computer useable medium having computer program logic recorded thereon for enabling a processor to dynamically monitor, process, and manage alerts, the computer program logic comprising:

message receiving means for enabling a processor to receive a message from a client, wherein said message is one of an alert or a response to an existing alert, and wherein said message is comprised of a plurality of data fields;

parsing means for enabling a processor to parse said message to determine if said message is an alert or a response to an existing alert;

state update means for enabling a processor to update and store an alert state in a data repository if the parsing module determines that said message is a response to an existing alert;

alert update means for enabling a processor to save alert data in a data repository if the parsing means determines that said message is an alert; and

notification means for enabling a processor to send notifications regarding said message to a collaboration list of registered subscribers, wherein said collaboration list dynamically expands over time based upon alert escalations.

21. The computer program product of claim 20, wherein said collaboration list comprises a community of registered subscribers for resolving an alert.

22. The computer program product of claim 20, wherein said data fields include at least a unique alert identifier and a state identifier.

23. The computer program product of claim 22, wherein said data fields further include a suppression time and suppression keys, wherein the suppression keys indicate rules regarding when the notification means will suppress sending notifications, and wherein the suppression time and suppression keys are independently defined.

24. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein said suppression keys are identifiers passed into the alert message that, combined with the Alert type that is also passed into the Alert message, uniquely identify a group of alerts that can be suppressed within a suppression period, wherein the suppression period is one or more of days, hours, minutes, and seconds.

25. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein said suppression time data field is a specific duration of time, wherein the specific duration of time is one or more of days, hours, minutes, and seconds that a notification will be suppressed.

26. The computer program product of claim 20, wherein said data fields further include escalation fields.

27. The computer program product of claim 26, wherein said escalation fields include an escalation period and an escalation channel.

28. The computer program product of claim 27, wherein said escalation period is a time unit, and wherein the time unit is one or more of days, hours, minutes, and seconds.

29. The computer program product of claim 20, wherein said data fields further include response types.

30. The computer program product of claim 26, wherein said response types include one or more of Active, Complete, Escalate, or custom as defined by an administrator.

31. The computer program product of claim 27, wherein Custom response types are define the external Status an Alert can be in while the Alert is in the Active state.

32. The computer program product of claim 20, wherein said data fields further include a user role identifier.

33. The computer program product of claim 32, wherein said user role identifier can be one or more of Access, AlertAdmin, admin-role, and ChannelSubscriptionManager.