Network management system using status suppression to isolate network faults

• US 5,436,909 A
• Filed: 11/07/1991
• Issued: 07/25/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Computer Associates Think Inc. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cabletron Systems Incorporated (Extreme Networks, Inc.)
• Inventors: Brown, Howard M., Dev, Roger H., Rustici, Eric S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Baker, Stephen M.
• Application Number:
  US07/789,000
• Time in Patent Office: 1,356 Days
• Field of Search: 371/29.1, 371/20.1, 395/916
• US Class Current: 714/4.12
• CPC Class Codes: B63B 5/06 Decks; Shells
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2257 using expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3006 where the computing system is distributed, e.g. networked systems, clusters, multiprocessor systems multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46; allocation of resources G06F9/50
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3041 where the computing system component is an input/output interface interconnection of, or transfer of information or other signals between, memories, input/output devices or central processing units G06F13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3048 where the topology of the computing system or computing system component explicitly influences the monitoring activity, e.g. serial, hierarchical systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3055 Monitoring arrangements for monitoring the status of the computing system or of the computing system component, e.g. monitoring if the computing system is on, off, available, not available error or fault processing without redundancy G06F11/0703; error detection or correction by redundancy in data representation G06F11/08; error detection or correction by redundancy in operation G06F11/14; error detection or correction by redundancy in hardware G06F11/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3096 wherein the means or processing minimize the use of computing system or of computing system component resources, e.g. non-intrusive monitoring which minimizes the probe effect: sniffing, intercepting, indirectly deriving the monitored data from other directly available data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/32 with visual or acoustical indication of the functioning of the machine
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3447 Performance evaluation by modeling
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/865 Monitoring of software
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/88 Monitoring involving counting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0604 using filtering, e.g. reduction of information by using priority, element types, position or time
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0609 based on severity or priority
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0659 by isolating or reconfiguring faulty entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0677 Localisation of faults
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0681 Configuration of triggering conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0686 Additional information in the notification, e.g. enhancement of specific meta-data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/069 using logs of notifications; Post-processing of notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0695 the faulty arrangement being the maintenance, administration or management system
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/40 : using virtualisation of network functions or resources, e.g. SDN or NFV entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 : Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/065 : related to network devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0811 : by checking connectivity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 : by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0829 : Packet loss
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 : Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/103 : with adaptive polling, i.e. dynamically adapting the polling rate
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 : Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 706/916 : Electronic or computer, internal or network, circuit

Abstract

A network management system includes a user interface, a virtual network and a device communication manager. The virtual network includes models which represent network entities and model relations which represent relations between network entities. Each model includes network data relating to a corresponding network entity and one or more inference handlers for processing the network data to provide user information. The system performs a fault isolation technique wherein the fault status of a network device is suppressed when it is determined that the device is not defective. User displays include hierarchical location views and topological views of the network configuration. Network devices are represented on the displays by multifunction icons which permit the user to select additional displays showing detailed information regarding different aspects of the corresponding network device.

Claims

1. A method for isolating a fault in a computer network including a plurality of interconnected network devices, said method using a network management system executing the steps of:

maintaining models of said network devices and model relations between said network devices;

maintaining a fault status for each of the network devices that is capable of being polled, the fault status being contained in the corresponding model and being obtained by polling the corresponding network device;

when contact between the network management system and a first network device is lost, setting the fault status of the first network device and determining the fault status of all network devices adjacent to the first network device, the determining step including the model of the first network device monitoring the fault status in models of all network devices adjacent to the first network device; and

when the fault status of each of the network devices adjacent to the first network device is set, suppressing the fault status of the first network device; and

when the fault status of at least one of the network devices adjacent to the first network device is not set, maintaining the fault status of the first network device.

2. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein said models and model relations represent hierarchical relations between network devices and wherein, when the fault status of all network devices at a given level of the hierarchy is suppressed, the fault status is set in a model of the next higher level of the hierarchy.

3. A method for isolating a fault in a computer network including a plurality of interconnected network devices, said method using a network management system executing the steps of:

maintaining models of said network devices and model relations between said network devices;

maintaining a fault status for each of the network devices that is capable of being polled, the fault status being contained in the corresponding model and being obtained by polling the corresponding network device;

when contact between the network management system and a first network device is lost, setting the fault status of the first network device and determining the fault status of all network devices adjacent to the first network device, the determining step including the model of the first network device maintaining a count of the number of said network devices that are directly connected to the first network device, maintaining a count of the number of adjacent network devices for which the fault status is set, and comparing the count of total adjacent network devices with the count of adjacent network devices for which the fault status is set, the fault status of the first network device being suppressed when the counts are equal.

4. A method as defined in claim 3 wherein the step of maintaining a count of the adjacent network devices for which the fault status is set includes the model of the first network device monitoring the fault status in models of all network devices adjacent to the first network device.

5. A method as defined in claim 3, wherein said models and model relations represent hierarchical relations between network devices and wherein, when the fault status of all network devices at a given level of the hierarchy is suppressed, the fault status is set in a model of the next higher level of the hierarchy.