X.25 Wide area network channel status display

• US 4,887,260 A
• Filed: 02/17/1987
• Issued: 12/12/1989
• Est. Priority Date: 02/17/1987
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Agilent Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Trytten, Anne, Lubino, Yves, Lantz, Kim, Carden, Matthew J., Reh, Theresa L.
• Primary Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Assistant Examiner(s): Scutch, III, Frank M.
• Application Number:
  US07/014,966
• Time in Patent Office: 1,029 Days
• Field of Search: 370/60, 370/94, 370/13, 340/715, 340/286 M, 340/525, 340/825.06, 340/825.17, 364/521
• US Class Current: 370/250
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0811 by checking connectivity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/18 Protocol analysers

Abstract

Provided is a channel status display for an X.25 wide area network (WAN) DTE-DCE interface. The invention, designed for use with a protocol analyzer, monitors X.25 level-2 frame traffic on the DTE-DCE link and produces a dynamic channel-activity-data-structure based upon the level-2 frames. An important class of level-2 frames are so-called I-frames. I-frames contain a 12-bit LCI (Logic Channel Identifier) field. The LCI number identifies up to 4095 channels over which network calls may be transmitted and received at the DTE-DCE interface. The LCI field of an I-frame is used to index an array of pointers. The pointers point to list members in a linked list of call-records. A call-record is a complete listing of call information for a given channel. The array of pointers and the linked list of call-records together make up the channel-activity-data-structure. The data-structure is updated with each new I-frame. The data-structure is continually mapped onto the display screen of the protocol analyzer so as to produce a Channel-Activity-Display and/or a Call-Record-Display. The Channel-Activity-Display is a matrix display showing the status of 256 DTE-DCE interface channels at once, indexed by LCI number. The viewer may page through all 4095 possible channels, viewing 256 channels at once. The Call-Record-Display is a display of the call-record for a viewer-selected channel.

Claims

1. A dynamic communication channel status display system for monitoring channel activity on an X.25 wide area network DTE-DCE interface link, said display system showing the status of all possible logical channels at the interface link, said display system to be used with a protocol analyzer or a similar instrument, said display system comprising:

a first display means for displaying a dynamic Channel Activity Display, said Channel Activity Display showing an n-by-m matrix arrangement of status characters wherein each status character is represetative of pre-determined logical channel status;

said Channel Activity Display also having a status key indicating the meaning of each status character;

cursor display means for displaying a cursor in said Display;

cursor movement means for enabling a user of said display system to move said cursor to pre-determined positions within said Channel Activity Display;

logical channel status identification means for identifying the status of at least one logical channel;

association means for associating a pre-determined status character with a corresponding pre-determined logical channel status;

logical channel group number (LCGN) numerical identification display means for numerically identifying and/or displaying an LCGN on said Channel Activity Display;

logical channel identifier (LCI) numerical identification display means for numerically identifying and/or displaying an LCI number on said Channel Activity Display;

said Channel Activity Display being user-configurable such that said n-by-m matrix shows the status of each logical channel in at least one LCGN of logical channels;

said Channel Activity Display being further user-configurable to display an LCI number corresponding to the position of said cursor within said Channel Activity Display; and

a second display means for displaying a dynamic Call Record Display, available as a display option to the viewer of said Channel Activity Display, said display system further comprising;

organized-listing-call-information means for collecting, organizing and displaying an organized listing of call-information concerning a call on the logical channel corresponding to the position of the cursor in said Channel Activity Display, wherein said call-information includes an indication of at least one of the following;

said logical channel'"'"'s LCI number;

a point in time at which said call on said logical channel was initiated;

duration in time of said call;

X.25 network addresses of the calling DTE and the called DTE of said call;

number of X.25 level-3 packets exchanged in said call.

2. A dynamic communication channel status display system for monitoring channel activity on an X.25 wide area network DTE-DCE interface link, said display system showing the status of all possible logical channels at the interface link, said display system to be used with a protocol analyzer or a similar instrument, said display system comprising:

a first display means for displaying a dynamic Channel Activity Display, said Channel Activity Display showing an n-by-m matrix arrangement of status characters wherein each status character is represented of pre-determined logical channel status;

said Channel Activity Display also having a status key indicating the meaning of each status character;

cursor display means for displaying a cursor in said Display;

cursor movement means for enabling a user of said display system to move said cursor to pre-determined positions within said Channel Activity Display;

logical channel status identification means for identifying the status of at least one logical channel;

association means for associating a pre-determined status character with a corresponding pre-determined logical channel status;

logical channel group number (LCGN) numerical identification display means for numerically identifying and/or displaying an LCGN on said Channel Activity Display;

logical channel identifier (LCI) numerical identification display means for numerically identifying and/or displaying an LCI number on said Channel Activity Display;

said Channel Activity Display being user-configurable such that said n-by-m matrix shows the status of each logical channel in at least one LCGN of logical channels;

said Channel Activity Display being further user-configurable to display an LCI number corresponding to the position of said cursor within said Channel Activity Display.

3. The display system of claim 2 further comprising a second display means for displaying a dynamic Call Record Display, available as a display option to the viewer of said Channel Activity Display, said second display means comprising:

organized-listing-call-information means for collecting, organizing and displaying an organized listing of call-information concerning a call on the logical channel corresponding to the position of the cursor in said Channel Activity Display.

4. The display system of claim 3 wherein said call-information includes an indication of at least one of the following:

said logical channel'"'"'s LCI number;

a point in time at which said call on said logical channel was initiated;

duration in time of said call;

X.25 network addresses of the calling DTE and the called DTE of said call;

number of X.25 level-3 packets exchanged in said call.