System and method for peripheral system management using operation object interfaces for device control

• US 6,405,310 B1
• Filed: 07/09/1999
• Issued: 06/11/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/09/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Simpson, Shell S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gaffin, Jeffrey
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mai, RiJue
• Application Number:
  US09/350,940
• Time in Patent Office: 1,068 Days
• Field of Search: 713/1, 713/2, 713/100, 709/220, 709/221, 709/222, 709/229, 709/208, 709/301, 709/303, 710/8, 710/10, 710/62, 710/104
• US Class Current: 713/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4411 Configuring for operating with peripheral devices; Loading of device drivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0233 Object-oriented techniques, for representation of network management data, e.g. common object request broker architecture [CORBA]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/082 the condition being updates or upgrades of network functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0869 Validating the configuration within one network element
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements

Abstract

A method and memory device enabling a user at a management computer to invoke a function on one or more plural managed units of a peripheral system, each managed unit providing one or more services for one or more client computers. Each service has an associated managed entity (ME) interface that includes reference(s) to one or more management interfaces (MIs), each MI including one or more method(s) for controlling a managed unit to execute a desired action. The method responds to a user selecting an Operation object by (i) determining which MEs associated with the managed units support a designated MI object that will enable execution of the desired Operation, by invoking execution of one or more management interface provider objects on each managed unit to return an answer (ii) passing the list of determined MEs to an Operate method of the Operation object whose task is to perform the desired action by invoking methods on the designated MI(s) associated with one or more of the managed units; and (iii) executing the Operate method to initiate execution, in a managed unit associated with the one or more listed MEs, of said designated management interface object (or objects) which, in turn, cause performance of the desired action by the managed unit.

Claims

1. A method for enabling a user at a management computer to invoke a function on one or more of plural managed units (22,24) of a peripheral system, each managed unit providing one or more services for one or more client computers, each said service having an associated managed entity (ME) interface that includes reference(s) to one or more management interfaces (MIs), each MI comprising one or more method(s) for controlling a managed unit to execute a desired operation, said method comprising the steps of:

in response to a user selecting an Operation object whose function is to cause execution of one or more actions by one or more of said managed units (22,24), executing said Operation object to;

(i) determine which MEs associated with said managed units (22,24) support a designated MI object that will enable execution of said desired action, by invoking execution of a management interface provider object on each managed unit to return an answer with respect to an associated ME;

(ii) pass a list of MEs, that were determined in step (i) to support such a designated MI object, to an Operate method whose task is to invoke said desired operation by causing execution of said designated MI on one or more of managed units (22,24) represented by said list of MEs;

(iii) execute said Operate method to initiate execution of said designated management interface object, with respect to a managed unit associated with said one or more MEs on said list, said designated management interface object thereby causing performance of said desired action by said managed unit.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein said Operation object is loaded as a plug-in to a currently operating application, which, in turn, enables execution thereof.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein said management interface provider object includes:

a method for determining if an ME has an associated MI object corresponding to said desired action;

a method for retrieving said associated MI object; and

a method for listing MI objects associated with an ME.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein each said managed unit that includes a particular service manifests said service with a substantially identical ME interface.

5. The method as recited in claim 4, wherein each said managed unit that supports said action manifests said action with a substantially identical MI object.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein said Operation object enables execution of plural functions, said method including the further step of:

invoking a configure method supported by said Operation object to enable a user to revise an internal state of said Operation objects.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein said Operation object enables execution of plural functions, said method including the further step of:

invoking a required MI method supported by said Operation object to return a list of MI objects that are required for successful execution of said Operation object.

8. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein said Operation object enables execution of plural functions, said method including the further step of:

invoking an Operate method supported by said Operation object to i) obtain a pointer to said designated MI object, and ii) retrieve said designated MI object by using said pointer and invoking a “

get management interface”

function on said one or more MEs that support said designated MI object.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, including the further steps of:

retaining said Operation object subsequent to execution thereof, to enable its later reuse; and

displaying a list of retained Operation objects in response to a user'"'"'s query.

10. The method as recited in claim 1, including the further steps of:

scheduling said Operation object to be executed with respect to one or more designated MEs at a subsequent time.

11. A memory media including code for controlling a processor to enable a user at a management computer to invoke a function on one or more of plural managed units of a peripheral system, each managed unit providing one or more services for one or more client computers, each said service having an associated managed entity (ME) interface that includes reference (s) to one or more management interfaces (MIs), each MI comprising one or more method(s) for controlling a managed unit to execute a desired action, said memory media comprising:

a) means for controlling said processor to respond to a user selecting an Operation object whose function is to cause execution of one or more operations by one or more of said managed units, to cause said Operation object to;

(i) determine which MEs associated with said managed units support a designated MI object that will enable execution of said desired operation, by invoking execution of a management interface provider object on each managed unit to return an answer with respect to an associated ME;

(ii) pass a list of MEs, that were determined in step (i) to support such a designated MI object, to an Operate method whose task is to invoke said desired operation by causing execution of said designated MI on one or more of managed units represented by said list of MEs;

(iii) execute said Operate method to initiate execution of said designated management interface object, with respect to a managed unit associated with said one or more MEs on said list, said designated management interface object thereby causing performance of said desired action by said managed unit.

12. The memory media as recited in claim 11, wherein code causes said Operation object to be loaded as a plug-in to a currently operating application, which, in turn, enables execution thereof.

13. The memory media as recited in claim 11, wherein said management interface provider object includes:

a method for determining if an ME has an associated MI object corresponding to said desired action;

a method for retrieving said associated MI object; and

a method for listing MI objects associated with an ME.

14. The memory media as recited in claim 11, wherein each said managed unit that includes a particular service manifests said service with a substantially identical ME interface.

15. The memory media as recited in claim 14, wherein each said managed unit that supports said action manifests said action with a substantially identical MI object.

16. The memory media as recited in claim 11, wherein said Operation object enables execution of plural functions, said memory media further comprising:

means for controlling said processor to invoke a configure method supported by said Operation object to enable a user to revise an internal state of said Operation object.

17. The memory media as recited in claim 11, wherein said Operation object enables execution of plural functions, said memory media further comprising:

means for controlling said processor to invoke a required MI method supported by said Operation object to return a list of MI objects that are required for successful execution of said Operation object.

18. The memory media as recited in claim 11, wherein said Operation object enables execution of plural functions, said memory media further comprising:

means for controlling said processor to invoke an Operate method supported by said Operation object to i) obtain a pointer to said designated MI object, and ii) to retrieve said designated MI object by using said pointer and invoking a “

get management interface”

function on said one or more MEs that support said designated MI object.

19. The memory media as recited in claim 11, further comprising:

means for controlling said processor to retain said Operation object subsequent to execution thereof, to enable its later reuse; and

means for controlling said processor to display a list of retained Operation objects in response to a user'"'"'s query.

20. The memory media as recited in claim 11, further comprising:

means for controlling said processor to schedule said Operation object to be executed with respect to one or more designated MEs at a subsequent time.