Method of automatically generating an SNMP management information base from extension-enabled management agents

• US 7,099,931 B2
• Filed: 12/19/2002
• Issued: 08/29/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Moore, Victor S., Nusbickel, Wendi L., Da Palma, William V.
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, VIET DUY
• Application Number:
  US10/324,538
• Publication Number:
  US 20040122922A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,349 Days
• Field of Search: 709/201, 709/202, 709/203, 709/217, 709/223, 709/224
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00 Circuit arrangements for providing remote indication of network conditions, e.g. an instantaneous record of the open or closed condition of each circuitbreaker in the network; Circuit arrangements for providing remote control of switching means in a power distribution network, e.g. switching in and out of current consumers by using a pulse code signal carried by the network

Abstract

A method and machine readable storage for adding a simple network management protocol (SNMP) interface to an existing resource management extension-enabled management agent. The SNMP interface can be added without modifying the management agent. The method includes the step of reading definitions of managed objects associated with said management agent. The definitions can be read at runtime of the management agent. A SNMP management information base (MIB) definition is automatically generated. The SNMP MIB provides a SNMP representation of the management agent and incorporates SNMP object definitions correlating to at least a portion of read managed object definitions.

Claims

1. A method of adding a simple network management protocol (SNMP) interface to an existing resource management extension-enabled management agent without modifying said management agent said method comprising:

at runtime of said management agent, discovering attributes, actions, and events that are supported by a managed object of a device;

at runtime of said management agent, reading definitions of said managed objects associated with said management agent, without re-building or recoding software management components of said manasement agent to update access to said device, wherein said managed objects publishes said definitions for said reading; and

automatically generating an SNMP management information base (MIB) definition having a hierarchical node structure associated with SNMP tables at runtime which provides a SNMP representation of said management agent, said MIB incorporating SNMP object definitions of said attributes, actions, and events correlating to at least a portion of said read managed object definitions, wherein said automatically generating step does not require user assistance.

2. The method of claim 1, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB farther comprising the step of building at least one trap in said MIB, said trap corresponding to a unique management agent, wherein said trap comprises fields which have a one-to-one correspondence with fields of notifications propagated by said unique management agent.

3. The method of claim 1, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of associating at least one of said managed objects with a SNMP table within said MIB.

4. The method of claim 3, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of including references to multiple instantiations of said managed object in said SNMP table.

5. The method of claim 1, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of automatically providing a name for at least one item in said MIB, said item selected from the group consisting of an attribute and a method, said item name incorporating at least a portion of a corresponding managed object name.

6. The method of claim 1, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of prefixing a none of each attribute and method in said MIB wit a name of a corresponding managed object.

7. The method of claim 1, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the steps:

filtering said managed object definitions to select a portion of said managed object definitions which correspond to specified parameters; and

incorporating into said MIB only SNMP object definitions which correlate to said selected managed object definitions.

8. The method of claim 1, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of providing a SNMP protocol adapter, said SNMP protocol adapter serving as an interface between said management agent and a SNMP management system.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein said management agent is implemented in Java.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein said resource management extension is Java Management Extension (JMX).

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said management agent is a JMX management bean server (MBeanServer) and said managed objects are JMX managed beans (MBeans).

12. A machine-readable storage, having stored thereon a computer program having a plurality of code sections executable by a machine for causing the machine to perform the steps of:

at runtime of said management agent, discovering attributes, actions, and events that are supported by a managed object of a device;

at runtime of said management agent, reading definitions of said managed objects associated with said management agent, without re-building or recoding software management components of said management agent, for updating access to said device, wherein said managed objects publishes said definitions for said reading; and

automatically generating an SNMP management information base (MIB) definition having hierarchical node structure associated with tables at runtime which provides a SNMP representation of said management agent, said MIB incorporating SNMP object definitions of said attributes, actions, and events correlating to at least a portion of said read managed object definitions, wherein said automatically generating step does not require user assistance.

13. The machine readable storage of claim 12, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of building at least one trap in said MIB, said trap corresponding to a unique management agent, wherein said trap comprises fields which have a one-to-one correspondence wit fields of notifications propagated by said unique management agent.

14. The machine readable storage of claim 12, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of associating at least one of said managed objects with a SNMP table within said MIB.

15. The machine readable storage of claim 14, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of including references to multiple instantiations of said managed object in said SNMP table.

16. The machine readable storage of claim 12, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of automatically providing a name for at least one item in said MIB, said item selected from the group consisting of an attribute and a method, said item name incorporating at least a portion of a corresponding managed object name.

17. The machine readable storage of claim 12, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of prefixing a name of each attribute and method in said MIB with a name of a corresponding managed object.

18. The machine readable storage of claim 12, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the steps:

filtering said managed object definitions to select a portion of said managed object definitions which correspond to specified parameters; and

incorporating into said MIB only SNMP object definitions which correlate to said selected managed object definitions.

19. The machine readable storage of claim 12, said step of automatically generating a SNMP MIB further comprising the step of providing a SNMP protocol adapter, said SNMP protocol adapter serving as an interface between said management agent and a SNMP management system.

20. The machine readable storage of claim 12, wherein said management agent is implemented in Java.

21. The machine readable storage of claim 20, wherein said resource management extension is Java Management Extension (JMX).

22. The machine readable storage of claim 21, wherein said management agent is a JMX management bean server (MBeanServer) and said managed objects are JMX managed beans (MBeans).