Discovery features for SNMP managed devices

• US 6,360,260 B1
• Filed: 03/23/1999
• Issued: 03/19/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Compliment, Dale Richard, Prorock, Thomas Joseph
• Primary Examiner(s): Maung, Zarni
• Assistant Examiner(s): CALDWELL, ANDREW T
• Application Number:
  US09/274,549
• Time in Patent Office: 1,092 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223-224, 709/226, 370/254-255, 714/47
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/06 Management of faults, events, alarms or notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies

Abstract

Apparatus and method which allow an SNMP managed device to register with a Network Management system. The SNMP managed device generates and transmits, to the Management Station or other network stations, a Frame indicating that the managed device is present in the network. The process of transmitting the frame continues until the Management Station responds with a frame acknowledging receipt. The managed device then sets a Timer and monitors for receipt of the Response frame from said Management Station. If the timer expires and the Response frame is not received within the timer interval, the registration process is initiated. Thus, the invention discloses a dynamic way of registering, monitoring and initiating registration (if contact is lost) of an SNMP device with a Management Station.

Claims

1. A method for use in a communications network comprising the steps of:

(a) initiating registration process by sending Discovery frames from a managed device;

(b) receiving, in said managed device, a management frame indicating discovery of said managed device by a management station;

(c) setting a timer to run for a particular time interval;

(d) upon expiration of the time interval, determining if another one of said management frames had been received during the particular time interval;

(e) if the management frame was not received during the particular time interval, restarting the registration process by resending the Discovery frame wherein the managed device registers with the management station.

2. The method of claim 1 further including the step of:

(f) repeating steps (c) through (d) if the another one of the management frame is received within the particular timer interval.

3. The method set forth in claim 2 wherein the value of the predetermined timer interval set in step (c) on a first pass through the process steps is substantially the same as in a repeat pass of the process steps.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the predetermined timer interval is set to be approximately 60 seconds.

5. The method set forth in claim 2 wherein the value of the predetermined timer interval set in step (c) on a first pass through the process steps is different from the values set in a repeat of the process steps.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein different values of the predetermined timer interval are being calculated dynamically.

7. The method of claim 2 further including the step of resetting the timer when the predetermined timer interval expires.

8. A device, for use in a communications network, including:

a medium access control chip for forwarding and receiving information from the communications network;

a memory for storing information on at least one process to be used to establish contact or maintain contact with at least one Management Station;

a Management Table for storing information relative to the at least one Management Station;

a timer configured to run for a predetermined timer interval; and

a controller for accessing the memory, generating and delivering to said chip a Discovery frame based upon the stored information and said controller upon receiving a responsive management reply frame from said Management Station setting the timer and upon timer expiration, resending the Discovery frame if another on of the management reply frame has not been received during the timer interval.

9. The device of claim 8 wherein the information includes a first computer program.

10. The device of claim 9 wherein the information includes a second computer program.

11. The device of claim 9 wherein the first computer program includes a machine readable indicia for causing the controller to generate and send, at predetermined timed interval, Auto-Discovery Trap Frames which contain specific information on the device;

and

machine readable indicia for causing said controller to repeat sending said Auto-Discovery frames until the Response Frame indicating that the device has been discovered is received at said controller.

12. The device of claim 8 further including a bus for coupling the controller, the memory and a the medium access control chip.

13. The device of claim 8 wherein the controller includes a microprocessor.

14. The device of claim 8 wherein the management reply frame includes an SNMP Get Request Frame.

15. The method of claim 8 wherein the network includes a TCP/IP network in which SNMP protocols is being used to manage the devices.

16. In a network comprising a plurality of stations interconnected by communications link wherein one or more of said stations are being designated as Management Stations and one or more of said stations are being designated managed devices, a method for operating the network to enable managed devices to be registered with the at least one of the Management Stations, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) generating and transferring from at least one of the managed devices, a Discovery frame including the identity of the at least one managed device;

(b) in response to (a), generating and transmitting, onto the network from at least one of the Management Stations, a notification frame indicating that the at least one of the Management Stations has discovered at least one of the managed devices;

(c) receiving the notification frame in said at least one of the managed devices;

(d) setting a timer configured to run for a predetermined timer interval;

(e) at the end of the timer interval, determining if a second one of the notification frame has been received;

(f) generating and transmitting from said at least one managed device, the Discovery frame including the identity of said at least one managed device if the second notification frame has not been received during the timer interval; and

(g) repeating step (f) until the notification frame has been received.

17. The method set forth in claim 16 further including the steps of repeating steps (d) through (e) if the second notification frame has been received during the timer interval.

18. In a network comprising a plurality of stations interconnected by communications link and managed devices wherein one or more of said stations are being designated as Management Stations, a method for establishing and maintaining communication between at least one of the managed devices and at least one of the Management Stations comprising the steps of:

(a) in at least one of the managed devices, generating Discovery frames including the identity of the at least one of the managed devices;

(b) transmitting the Discovery frames until a Response Frame indicating that the at least one of the managed device has been discovered is received from at least one of the management stations;

(c) setting a timer to run for a predetermined timer interval;

(d) at the end of the predetermined timer interval, determining if a second one of the Response Frame has been received during the timer interval;

(e) repeating steps (c) through (d) if the second Response frame was received; and

(f) repeating steps (a) through (e) if the Response frame was not received.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the Response frame includes an SNMP Get Request Frame.

20. The method of claim 18 wherein the Discovery Frame includes an Auto Discovery Trap Frame.

21. The method of claim 18 wherein the Discovery Frame includes a Ping Frame.

22. A computer program product for use in a communications network to establish and maintain communication between Management Stations and managed devices comprising:

a medium;

a computer readable program module recorded on the medium, said computer readable program module causing a computer in at least one of said managed device to generate and send a Discovery frame including the identity of the at least one of the managed device;

a computer readable program module recorded on said medium, for causing a computer in at least one of said managed devices to examine frames received from the Management Station in response to the Discovery frame;

a computer readable program module, recorded on said medium, for causing the computer to set a timer to run for a predetermined timer interval if a Response frame is received;

a computer readable program module, recorded on said medium, for determining if a second one of the Response frame has been received during the timer interval; and

a computer readable program module, recorded on the medium, for causing resending of the Discovery Frame if the second of the Response frame has not been received during the time interval.

23. The computer program product of claim 22 further including computer readable program module recorded on said medium for re-setting the timer and monitoring for receipt of the second one of the Response frame if said second one of the Response frame was received during a previous timer interval.

24. A method for use in a communications network comprising the acts of:

(a) receiving, in a managed device, a management frame indicating that the managed device has been discovered by a Management Station;

(b) setting a timer configured to run for a predetermined timer interval;

(c) upon expiration of the timer interval, determining if the another one of the management frame had been received during the timer interval;

(d) if the another one of the management frame had been received, repeat acts (b) through (d);

(e) if the another one of the management frame had not been received, repeat by sending a Discovery frame until the management frame is received.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein the management frame includes an SNMP GET REQUEST frame.

26. The method of claims 24 or 25 wherein the Discovery frame includes a Ping frame.

27. The method of claims 24 or 25 wherein the Discovery frame includes an Auto Discovery Trap frame.