System and method for locating devices on a local area network

• US 6,978,314 B2
• Filed: 02/26/2002
• Issued: 12/20/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Tarr, Stephen F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Philip B.
• Application Number:
  US10/083,003
• Publication Number:
  US 20030163583A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,393 Days
• Field of Search: 709/220, 709223-224, 709/245, 709/249, 370/401, 370/432, 370/254
• US Class Current: 709/245
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4541 Directories for service discovery
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5069 for group communication, multicast communication or broadcast communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A system for network device location, includes an address server for associating IP addresses of devices on the network with a group name; a discoverable device located on a first subnet of the network, wherein the discoverable device has an IP address, and wherein the discoverable device'"'"'s IP address is associated with the group name; and a discovering device, located on a second subnet of the network, for creating a list of known subnets and known devices on the network; for querying the name server for a list of IP addresses associated with the group name; for contacting each returned address of a discoverable device associated with the group name for the discoverable device'"'"'s IP subnet information; for determining the discoverable device'"'"'s subnet; and for adding the discoverable device and its subnet to the list.

Claims

1. A method of locating devices on a network, comprising:

identifying a group name associated with a device to be discovered on the network, wherein the group name is associated with multiple devices having multiple addresses on the network;

creating a list of known subnets and known devices on the network upon identifying a group name associated with a device to be discovered on the network;

querying a name server on at least one of one of the known subnets for a list of IP addresses associated with the group name and obtaining a list of returned addresses associated with devices associated with the group name;

contacting each returned address associated with the group name for a returned device'"'"'s IP subnet information;

determining which of the returned devices is a discovered device;

determining the discovered device and its subnet to the list of known subnets and known devices on the network.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

using another discovery protocol to find additional devices on each identified subnet; and

adding each discovered device to the list of known subnets and known devices on the network.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the discovery protocol comprises a broadcast-based discovery protocol.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the discovered device'"'"'s IP subnet information comprises its IP netmask and its IP router address.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the group name comprises one or more of a device manufacturer, a model name and a model number.

6. A system for network device location, comprising:

an address server for associating IP addresses of devices on the network with a group name, wherein the group name is associated with multiple devices having multiple addresses on the network;

a discoverable device located on a first subnet of the network, wherein the discoverable device'"'"'s IP address is associated with the group name; and

a discovering device, located on a second subnet of the network, for creating a list of known subnets and known devices on the network upon identifying a group name associated with a device to be discovered on the network;

for querying the name server for a list of IP addresses associated with the group name and obtaining a list of returned addresses associated with devices associated with the group name;

for contacting each returned address of each discoverable device associated with the group name for each discoverable device'"'"'s P subnet information;

for determining which of the returned devices is the discoverable device;

for determining the discoverable device'"'"'s subnet; and

for adding the discoverable device and its subnet to the list of known subnets and known devices on the network.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the discovering device further comprises a discovery protocol for finding additional devices on each identified subnet;

and for adding each discovered device to the list of known subnets and known devices on the network.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the discovery protocol comprises a broadcast-based discovery protocol.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the discovered device'"'"'s IP subnet information comprises its IP netmask and its IP router address.

10. The system of claim 6, wherein the group name comprises at least one of a device manufacturer, a device model name and a model number.

11. The system of claim 6, wherein the name server comprises a WINS server.