Agent system

• US 6,334,139 B1
• Filed: 12/16/1997
• Issued: 12/25/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Inventors: Sakakura, Takashi
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrell, Robert B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): YUAN, ALMARI ROMERO
• Application Number:
  US08/991,555
• Time in Patent Office: 1,470 Days
• Field of Search: 709/202, 709/203, 709/200, 709/223, 709/224, 709/201, 709/317, 714/47, 714/48
• US Class Current: 709/202
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1438 Restarting or rejuvenating
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/302 where the computing system component is a software system
• 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 11/3476 Data logging G06F11/14, G06F11/2205 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/465 Distributed object oriented systems remote method invocation [RMI] G06F9/548

Abstract

The agent system sends both program and data together to a destination to perform execution, and the system is provided with agent re-execution and cancelling procedures, making mission critical application possible. The non-volatile memory area is prepared in the processing system where the agent is being processed to store the executed operation log.

Claims

1. An agent system comprising:

a user terminal that creates and transmits a first agent having data and a procedure to process the data;

a server including a processing system that receives the first agent transmitted from the user terminal,

said server processing the data according to the procedure to execute the first agent without requiring a connection between the user terminal and the server;

the server also including a non-volatile memory that can be accessed by the first agent; and

an operation log storing an execution status of the first agent, wherein the execution status is control information related to an execution of the first agent'"'"'s procedure and is used by at least one of said server and said user terminal to initiate re-execution of the first agent when execution of the first agent by said server is interrupted;

the processing system storing at least one of the first agent and the operation log in the non-volatile memory.

2. The agent system of claim 1, wherein the processing system transmits the operation log to the user terminal.

3. The agent system of claim 2, wherein the user terminal, re-issues the first agent corresponding to the operation log, in accordance with a returned operation log, to execute the first agent.

4. The agent system of claim 1, wherein the both of the first agent and the operation log are stored in non-volatile memory, the processing system re-executes the first agent in accordance with the operation log, using the first agent.

5. The agent system of claim 1, wherein when the operation log is stored in the non-volatile memory and the first agent is not stored in the non-volatile memory, the processing system requests re-issue of the first agent at the user terminal in accordance with the operation log, and performs re-execution of the first agent.

6. The agent system of claim 1, wherein the user terminal deletes the agent, in accordance with the operation log.

7. The agent system of claim 1, wherein the user terminal issues a chasing agent to chase the first agent, in accordance with the operation log.

8. The agent system of claim 7, wherein the chasing agent chases the first agent, and cancels the recorded operation log corresponding to the first agent.

9. The agent system of claim 1, further comprising:

a chasing agent issued to chase the first agent by referring to the operation log, the chasing agent canceling the operation log corresponding to the first agent.

10. A method for executing an agent system, comprising:

creating a first agent having data and a procedure to process the data;

transmitting the first agent to a processing system;

processing the data according to the procedure to execute the first agent without requiring a connection between the processing system and a user terminal;

accessing a non-volatile memory with the first agent;

collecting an operation log with the processing system, the operation log including an execution status of the first agent, wherein the execution status is control information related to an execution of the first agent'"'"'s procedure and is used by at least one of said processing system and said user terminal to initiate re-execution of the first agent when execution of the first agent by said processing system is interrupted; and

storing at least one of the first agent and the operation log in the non-volatile memory.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising transmitting operation log to the user terminal with the processing system.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

reissuing the first agent corresponding to the operation log in accordance with a returned operation log; and

executing the first agent.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising re-executing the first agent with the processing system in accordance with the operation log when both of the first agent and the operation log are stored in non-volatile memory.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

requesting reissue of the first agent at the user terminal in accordance with the operation log; and

performing execution of the first agent with the processing system when the operation log is stored in the non-volatile memory and the first agent is not stored in the non-volatile memory.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising deleting the agent in accordance with the operation log.

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising;

issuing a chasing agent to chase the first agent by referring to the operation log corresponding to the first agent;

utilizing the chasing agent to cancel the operation log corresponding to the first agent.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising utilizing the chasing agent to cancel he recorded operation log corresponding to the first agent.

18. An agent system, comprising:

a user terminal that transmits an agent having a function to a plurality of processing systems on a plurality of servers connected via a network; and

a property information server that stores property information including information related to a property of the plurality of processing systems,

wherein the agent selects a first one of the plurality of processing systems for optimum execution of the agent'"'"'s function when compared with other ones of the plurality of processing systems by referring to the property information stored in the property information server,

wherein the property information includes an ability of the corresponding server to access a memory, and

wherein the function is accessing the memory.

19. An agent system, comprising:

a user terminal that transmits an agent having a function to a plurality of processing systems on a plurality of servers connected via a network; and

a property information server that stores property information including information related to a property of the plurality of processing systems,

wherein the agent selects a first one of the plurality of processing systems for optimum execution of the agent'"'"'s function when compared with other ones of the plurality of processing systems by referring to the property information stored in the property information server, and

wherein, when the first processing system is unable to perform a function requested by the agent, the agent accesses the property information server to select a second one of the plurality of servers for execution of the function.