Network management server, control method, computer program, computer readable storage medium, and network system

• US 7,636,771 B2
• Filed: 10/12/2006
• Issued: 12/22/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Torii, Minoru
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Quang N.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Yohannes; Tesfay
• Application Number:
  US11/548,771
• Publication Number:
  US 20070088814A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,167 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223, 709/219
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0273 using web services for network management, e.g. simple object access protocol [SOAP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0809 Plug-and-play configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0813 characterised by the conditions triggering a change of settings
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0856 by backing up or archiving configuration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements

Abstract

Even in a large-scale network environment in which many clients and many devices exist on a network, this invention allows the network to function as an aggregation of logical small-scale networks in the execution of device driver setup. For this purpose, a management server manages a plurality of clients on the network as client groups, and a plurality of network devices as device groups. The management server then associates each client group with each device group. When a network device belonging to the device group A is newly installed and the power supply is turned on, the network device issues a Hello message indicating entry to the network. Upon receiving the Hello message, the management server transmits a setup request message for a device driver for the network device to only each client belonging to the client group A.

Claims

1. A network management apparatus for managing a plurality of client apparatuses and a plurality of network devices, comprising:

a storage management unit configured to store and manage client group information indicating to which client group each of the plurality of client apparatuses belongs, and device group information indicating to which device group each of the plurality of network devices belongs, and stores connection information which indicates a logical connective relation between a client group and a device group;

a reception unit configured to receive a predetermined network connection message from a network device through the network;

a first specifying unit configured to specify, by referring to the device group information stored and managed by said storage management unit, a device group to which the network device which has issued the network connection message received by said reception unit belongs;

a second specifying unit configured to specify, by referring to the connection information stored in said storage management unit, a client group in a logical connective relation with the device group specified by said first specifying unit; and

a transmission unit configured to transmit, by referring to the client group information of the client group specified by said second specifying unit, a setup request message for a device driver corresponding to the network device which has issued the network connection message to each client apparatus as a constituent member of the client group specified by said second specifying unit.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first specifying unit specifies, by referring to the device group information stored and managed by said storage management unit, a device group to which the network device that has issued a message indicating that the configuration of the network device has been changed belongs, and

wherein said second specifying unit specifies a client group in a logical connective relation with the device group specified by said first specifying unit.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a scenario setting unit configured to set, for each client group, a scenario which indicates whether to execute transmission of the setup request message by said transmission unit immediately after said second specifying unit specifies the client group or designates a date and executes the transmission on the designated date.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a unit configured to transmit a setup request message for a device driver of each network device belonging to an associated device group to each client belonging to a desired client group.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a device setting information storage unit configured to store setting information to be set in the network device; and

a setting unit configured to, when said reception unit receives the predetermined network connection message through a network, read out setting information for a network device as an issuing source of the network connection message from said device setting information storage unit, and to transmit the information to the network device as the issuing source for making the network device set the setting information.

6. The apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising a second scenario setting unit configured to set, for each network device, a scenario which indicates whether to execute transmission of setting information by said setting unit immediately after reception of the network connection message or designates a date and executes the transmission on the designated date.

7. A control method for a network management apparatus which manages a plurality of client apparatuses and a plurality of network devices, and comprises a storage management unit configured to store and manage client group information indicating to which client group each of the plurality of client apparatuses belongs, and device group information indicating to which device group each of the plurality of network devices belongs, and stores connection information which indicates a logical connective relation between a client group and a device group, said method comprising:

a reception step of receiving a predetermined network connection message from a network device through the network;

a first specifying in step of specifying, by referring to the device group information stored and managed by the storage management unit, a device group to which the network device which has issued the network connection message received in said reception step belongs;

a second specifying step of specifying, by referring to the connection information stored in the storage management unit, a client group in a logical connective relation with the device group specified in said first specifying step; and

a transmission step of transmitting, by referring to the client group information of the client group specified in said second specifying step, a setup request message for a device driver corresponding to the network device which has issued the network connection message to each client apparatus as a constituent member of the client group specified in said second specifying step.

8. A computer-readable storage medium storing, in executable form, a program for controlling a network management apparatus which manages a plurality of client apparatuses and a plurality of network devices, and comprises a storage management unit configured to store and manage client group information indicating to which client group each of the plurality of client apparatuses belongs, and device group information indicating to which device group each of the plurality of network devices belongs, and stores connection information which indicates a logical connective relation between a client group and a device group, execution of the program causing the computer to function as;

a storage management unit configured to store and manage client group information indicating to which client group each of said the plurality of client apparatuses belongs, and device group information indicating to which device group each of the plurality of network devices belongs, and stores connection information which indicates a logical connective relation between a client group and a device group;

a reception unit configured to receive a predetermined network connection message from a network device through the network;

a first specifying unit configured to specify, by referring to the device group information stored and managed by said storage management unit, a device group to which the network device which has issued the network connection message received by said reception unit belongs;

a second specifying unit configured to specify, by referring to the connection information stored in said storage management unit, a client group in a logical connective relation with the device group specified by said first specifying unit; and

a transmission unit configured to transmit, by referring to the client group information of the client group specified by said second specifying unit, a setup request message for a device driver corresponding to the network device which has issued the network connection message to each client apparatus as a constituent member of the client group specified by said second specifying unit.

9. A network system comprising a plurality of client apparatuses, a plurality of network devices, and a network management apparatus for managing said plurality of clients and said plurality of network devices,

wherein each of said network devices comprises a unit configured to broadcast, when a power supply is turned on, a network connection message to a network,

said network management apparatus comprises:

a storage management unit configured to store and manage client group information indicating to which client group each of said plurality of client apparatuses belongs, and device group information indicating to which device group each of said plurality of network devices belongs, and to store connection information which indicates a logical connective relation between a client group and a device group;

a first reception unit configured to receive a network connection message from a network device through the network;

a first specifying unit configured to specify, by referring to the device group information stored and managed by said storage management unit, a device group to which the network device which has issued the network connection message received by said first reception unit belongs;

a second specifying unit configured to specify, by referring to the connection information stored and managed by said storage management unit, a client group in a logical connective relation with the device group specified by said first specifying unit; and

a transmission unit configured to transmit, by referring to the client group information of the client group specified by said second specifying unit, a setup request for a device driver corresponding to the network device which has issued the network connection message to each client apparatus as a constituent member of the client group specified by said second specifying unit; and

each of said plurality of client apparatuses comprises;

a second reception unit configured to receive the network connection message from said network device and the setup request message from said network management apparatus; and

a device driver setup unit configured to execute, by monitoring a message received by said second reception unit, device driver setup processing upon receiving the setup request message without responding to the network connection message.