Automatic mapping, monitoring, and control of computer room components

• US 5,956,665 A
• Filed: 11/15/1996
• Issued: 09/21/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Digital Equipment Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Lieber, Timothy, Martinez, Reuben, Purvis, Brian J., Morris, Timothy J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Assouad, Patrick
• Application Number:
  US08/749,507
• Time in Patent Office: 1,040 Days
• Field of Search: 364/550, 364/141, 364/146, 364/188, 345/326, 345/348, 345/349, 345/961, 340/870.01, 340/500, 340/825.06, 340/825.07, 395/280, 395/281, 395/282, 395/283, 395/284, 370/254, 370/431, 370/437, 702/188
• US Class Current: 702/188
• 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 11/3058 Monitoring arrangements for monitoring environmental properties or parameters of the computing system or of the computing system component, e.g. monitoring of power, currents, temperature, humidity, position, vibrations thermal management in cooling arrangements of a computing system G06F1/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/20 Administration of product repair or maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 715/961 Operator interface with visual structure or function dictated by intended use

Abstract

A system and method for automatically mapping on a computer display a graphical representation of a physical arrangement of a plurality of computer components in one or more cabinets, each cabinet having one or more shelves for housing the computer components. The status of the components is periodically monitored and the computer display updated accordingly. A graphical user interface is provided for user observation of the physical arrangement and status of computer components in the cabinets, as well as user control of the operational parameters of the components.

Claims

1. In a computing system having a plurality of components arranged in a physical arrangement in a plurality of cabinets, each cabinet having a plurality of shelves each for housing a plurality of said components, at least one shelf having a monitoring device electrically connected to said components for communicating with said components, said monitoring device adapted to communicate with a computer display, a method for automatically mapping on said computer display a graphical representation of said physical arrangement of said components, the method comprising the steps of:

initially detecting the presence of each of said plurality of components connected in said computing system;

first determining a component attribute for each of said components in said cabinets detected by said detecting step;

second determining a cabinet attribute for each of said cabinets, said cabinet attribute comprising a cabinet identification indicator and a cabinet type;

storing an identification of said cabinet, an identification of said shelf that houses each said component, and an identification of the slot on said shelf at which each said component is located;

storing a permanent device name associated with each said component such that a location of each of said components can be tracked when said components are reconfigured within said cabinets;

responsive to said cabinet identifications, shelf identifications, and slot identifications, assigning a unique address to each corresponding one of said components detected by said detecting step, said unique addresses corresponding to the physical location of said corresponding components in said cabinets; and

graphically representing on said computer display said physical arrangement of said components in said cabinets according to said unique address, said component attribute, and said cabinet attribute.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said first determining step comprises reading a component status indicator corresponding to an operational status of said components;

and further comprising the step of monitoring a change in said operational status of said components, said monitoring step comprising the steps of periodically polling said components for a status flag having a plurality of indicator bits, each said indicator bit corresponding to one of said components and indicating, when set, a change in said operational status of said corresponding component.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising the step of updating said computer display with a graphical representation of said change in said operational status.

4. The method of claim 2 further comprising the step of checking if the indicator bit is set for any of said components, and, in response to the indicator bit being set, querying the corresponding component for operational status information related thereto.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein each said component comprises one of a plurality of types of computer component, said types including storage devices, and each said component attribute includes an indication of said component type for said component corresponding thereto, and said method further comprising the steps of maintaining a revision matrix file for determining, responsive to said component attributes, mismatches of component types;

and notifying a system administrator of said mismatch.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of detecting a user initiated event affecting a first one of said components, said first one of said components being an effected device, in response to said detected user initiated event, determining the affected device;

and validating said user initiated event to determine if said user initiated event falls within a valid range for said affected device.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of monitoring the status of said components, said monitoring step including the step of polling a plurality of shelf monitoring units each associated with a different, corresponding one of said shelves, for status information concerning the components contained on the corresponding shelves;

and wherein the monitoring step includes the step of environmental monitoring of a fan signal and a temperature signal.

8. The method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising the step of storing said cabinet attribute in each of a plurality of shelf monitoring units, each said shelf monitoring units communicating with the other shelf monitoring units and being associated with a different one of said shelves;

at least one of said shelf monitoring units communicating with a cabinet identification unit for receiving therefrom said cabinet attribute.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising the step of said cabinet identification module storing a reference shelf address, and wherein said address assigning step is responsive to said reference shelf address.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein said user command locates one of said plurality of components in said computing system by activating a visual indicator disposed on said one component.

11. A system for automatically mapping on a computer display a graphical representation of a physical arrangement of a plurality of computer components, said plurality of components arranged in a physical arrangement in a plurality of cabinets, each said cabinet having a plurality of shelves for housing a plurality of said components, the system comprising:

a monitoring device in at least one of said one or more shelves electrically connected to said components for communicating with said components, said monitoring device adapted to communicate with a computer display,

a detecting module coupled with said components for detecting the presence of each of said plurality of components connected in said computing system;

a component attribute determining module for determining a component attribute of each of said plurality of components detected by said detecting module;

a cabinet attribute determining module for determining a cabinet attribute of each of said one or more cabinets, said cabinet attribute comprising a cabinet identification indicator and a cabinet type;

a memory for storing identification data identifying the cabinet attribute for each said component, a shelf identification indicator identifying the shelf that houses said component, and a slot identification indicator that identifies the one of a plurality of slots on each said shelf at which said component is located;

an address assignment module for assigning a unique address to each one of said components detected by said detecting module in response to said identification data stored in said memory, said unique address corresponding to the physical location of each one of said components in said cabinets;

a drawing module for representing on said computer display said physical arrangement of said components in said cabinets according to said unique addresses, said component attributes, and said cabinet attribute; and

a graphical user interface operating on said computer display, said graphical user interface storing a permanent device name associated with each one of said plurality of components such that a location of each of said components can be tracked when said components are reconfigured within said cabinets.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein said graphical user interface further comprises:

a polling module for periodically polling said plurality of components for a status flag of each of said plurality of components, said status flag having an indicator for each one of said plurality of components indicating a change in said operational status of any one of said plurality of components;

a checking module for testing if said status flag is active; and

a querying module for querying said one of said plurality of components for said operational status.

13. The system of claim 11 wherein said graphical user interface further comprises:

a component attribute monitoring module for monitoring a modification in said component attribute for each of said plurality of components installed in each of said one or more shelves and for updating said computer display with a graphical representation of said modification in said component attribute.

14. The system of claim 11 wherein said graphical user interface further comprises:

an input detection module for detecting said input command for controlling one of said plurality of components in said computing system;

an identification module for identifying said unique address of said one of said plurality of components; and

a message encoding module for forming a command message and for transmitting said command message from said graphical user interface to said one of said plurality of components at said unique address.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein said input command alters an operating setpoint of one of said plurality of components in said computing system.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein said input command locates one of said plurality of components in said computing system by activating a visual indicator thereon.

22. The system of claim 11, wherein said component attribute determining module monitors a change in an operational status of said components by periodically polling said components for a status flag having a plurality of indicator bits, each said indicator bits corresponding to one of said components and indicating, when set, a change in said operational status of said corresponding component.

23. The system of claim 11 wherein said drawing module updates said computer display with a graphical representation of said change in said operational status.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein said component attribute determining module checks if the indicator bit is set for any of said components, and, in response to the indicator bit being set, queries the corresponding component for operational status information related thereto.

25. The system of claim 11, wherein each said component comprises one of a plurality of types of computer component, said types including storage devices, and each said component attribute includes an indication of said component type for said component corresponding thereto, and said memory further stores a revision matrix file for determining, responsive to said component attributes, mismatches of component types.

26. The system of claim 11, further comprising a user interface that detects a user initiated event affecting a first of said components, and, in response to said detected user initiated event, validates said user initiated event to determine if said user initiated event falls within a valid range for said affected device.

27. The system of claim 11 further comprising a monitor utility that monitors the status of said components, said monitor utility for a plurality of shelf monitoring units each associated with a different, corresponding one of said shelves, for status information concerning the components contained on the corresponding shelves.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the monitor utility performs environmental monitoring of a fan signal and a temperature signal.

17. In an electronic system for holding a plurality of components each at a physical location within a cabinet at which the component is mounted, a component locating subsystem for physically locating any selected one of said components comprising:

A) an user interface for accepting a user command from a user which indicates a selected one of said components to be located by said subsystem; and

B) a plurality of visual indicators coupled with said user interface, each indicator associated with a different one of said components and disposed at a physical location in said cabinet corresponding to said associated component, and wherein, in response to said user command, the visual indicator that is associated with the selected component is activated so as to provide a visual indication of the location of the selected component within the cabinet.

18. The component locating subsystem in accordance with claim 17, further comprising an address assignment module capable of assigning a unique address to a corresponding one of said components.

19. The component locating subsystem in accordance with claim 17, wherein said cabinet includes a plurality of shelves for storing said components, and said subsystem further comprising a memory coupled with said address assignment module for storing said addresses and data indicating the corresponding components at each of said shelves.

20. The component locating subsystem in accordance with claim 19, further comprising a message module coupled with said memory and responsive to said user command, for forming a command message identifying the particular one of said unique addresses corresponding to the selected one of said components, and wherein said visual indicators activate in response to said command message.

21. The component locating subsystem in accordance with claim 17, wherein said visual indicator is an indicator light which lights when activated.