SYSTEM DESIGN METHOD, SYSTEM DESIGN APPARATUS, AND SYSTEM DESIGN PROGRAM

• US 20150301908A1
• Filed: 09/17/2013
• Published: 10/22/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/17/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: TADANO, Kumiko
• Granted Patent: US 9,740,575 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1451 by selection of backup contents
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1469 Backup restoration techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/74 Reverse engineering; Extracting design information from source code

Abstract

Provided are a system design method, a system design system, and a system design reform assistance program. A system design apparatus includes a unit for receiving an analysis model which represents a system failure restoration sequence, a unit for identifying, from the received analysis model, a minimum combination of component failure which does not satisfy either a restoration time requisite or a necessary cost requisite and a unit for outputting the identified minimum combination of component failure. The unit for identifying the minimum combination of component failure further includes a unit for estimating the restoration time of a system, and a unit for estimating the cost required for restoration of the system.

Claims

1. A system design apparatus, comprising:

an analysis model receiving unit that is configured to receive an analysis model that represents a failure restoration procedure for a system;

a minimum combination specifying unit that is configured to specify a minimum combination of component failures that does not satisfy a restoration time or necessary cost requirement, from the received analysis model; and

a minimum combination output unit that is configured to output a specified minimum combination of component failures,

wherein the minimum combination specifying unit includes;

a restoration time estimation unit that is configured to estimate restoration time of the system; and

a cost estimation unit that is configured to estimate cost necessary for restoration of the system.

2. The system design apparatus, according to claim 1, further comprising:

a failure restoration procedure receiving unit that is configured to receive a failure restoration procedure for a system; and

an analysis model generation unit that is configured to combine model modules to generate an analysis model from a received failure restoration procedure, wherein

the minimum combination specifying unit is further configured to specify a minimum combination of component failures that does not satisfy a restoration time or necessary cost requirement, from the generated analysis model.

3. The system design apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a combination pruning unit that prunes a combination of component failures that is not necessary for analysis.

4. The system design apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the analysis model is a state transition model in which a state transition occurs based on a specific probability distribution.

5. The system design apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the failure restoration procedure includes, at least, information relating to a state of a component in which a failure occurs, information relating to a failure restoration operation for restoring a component in which a failure occurs, or information relating to a condition under which the failure restoration operation is executed, and

the analysis model generation unit is further configured

to convert the information relating to a state of a component, the information relating to a failure restoration operation, and the information relating to a condition under which a failure restoration operation is executed, included in the failure restoration procedure, into elements configuring the analysis model, based on a predetermined rule for conversion between the failure restoration procedure and the analysis model, and

to integrate the converted elements configuring the analysis model, to generate the analysis model.

6. The system design apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a requirement receiving unit that is configured to receive requirements for restoration time and cost necessary for restoration, relating to failure restoration of the system,

wherein the minimum combination specifying unit is further configured

to estimate restoration time of the system and cost necessary for restoration of the system, based on the received analysis model, and

to specify a minimum combination of component failures that does not satisfy the restoration time or necessary cost requirement, based on the received requirements for restoration time and cost necessary for restoration, and the estimated restoration time and cost necessary for restoration.

7. A system design method comprising:

receiving an analysis model that represents a failure restoration procedure for a system,

specifying a minimum combination of component failures that does not satisfy a restoration time or necessary cost requirement, from the received analysis model, and

outputting a specified minimum combination of component failures,

wherein, when the minimum combination of component failures is specified,

estimating restoration time of the system, and

estimating cost necessary for restoration of the system.

8. The system design method according to claim 7, further comprising:

receiving requirements for restoration time and cost necessary for restoration, relating to failure restoration of the system, wherein

specifying a minimum combination of component failures that does not satisfy the restoration time or necessary cost requirement, based on the received requirements for restoration time and cost necessary for restoration, and the estimated restoration time and cost necessary for restoration.

9. A non-transitory computer readable medium recorded with a system design program for causing an information processing apparatus to function as:

an analysis model receiving unit that is configured to receive an analysis model that represents a failure restoration procedure for a system;

a minimum combination specifying unit that is configured to specify a minimum combination of component failures that does not satisfy a restoration time or necessary cost requirement, from a received analysis model; and

a minimum combination output unit that is configured to output a specified minimum combination of component failures,

wherein the minimum combination specifying unit includes;

a restoration time estimation unit that is configured to estimate restoration time of the system; and

a cost estimation unit that is configured to estimate cost necessary for restoration of the system.

10. The non-transitory computer readable medium recorded with the system design program according to claim 9, the system design program further causing the information processing apparatus to function as:

a requirement receiving unit processing for receiving that is configured to receive requirements for restoration time and cost necessary for restoration, relating to failure restoration of the system;

wherein the minimum combination specifying unit is further configured

to estimate restoration time of the system and cost necessary for restoration of the system, based on the received analysis model, and

to specify a minimum combination of component failures that does not satisfy the restoration time or necessary cost requirement, based on the received requirements for restoration time and cost necessary for restoration, and the estimated restoration time and cost necessary for restoration.