Input/output control apparatus, input/output control system, and input/output control method

• US 7,702,828 B2
• Filed: 01/17/2007
• Issued: 04/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/17/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NTT Docomo Incorporated (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
• Inventors: Suzuki, Takashi, Ohta, Ken, Fujimoto, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel; Niketa I
• Assistant Examiner(s): Abad; Farley J
• Application Number:
  US11/623,934
• Publication Number:
  US 20070180454A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,189 Days
• Field of Search: 710/10, 710/14, 710/36
• US Class Current: 710/36
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45579 I/O management, e.g. providing access to device drivers or storage
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45558 Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects

Abstract

An input/output control apparatus includes: a request acceptance unit configured to accept a switch request for requesting to change an operating system occupying any one of the input device and the output device; a control information generator unit configured to generate control information including any one of input destination information and output enable information in response to the switch request; and a control information output unit configured to output any one of the input destination information and the output enable information. The input destination information includes at least information for specifying an input destination operating system to which information inputted from the input device is inputted; and the output enable information includes at least information for specifying whether or not each of the plurality of operating systems can output information to the output device.

Claims

1. An input/output control apparatus configured to control an input of an input device and an output of an output device provided to a computer on which at least two operating systems operate simultaneously on a host system including a function of simultaneously running a plurality of operating systems, the apparatus comprising:

a request acceptance unit configured to determine whether to accept a switch request requesting to change an operating system occupying any one of the input device and the output device based on whether the switch request satisfies a predetermined condition, the request acceptance unit being further configured to accept the switch request when the predetermined condition has been met, the predetermined condition being a condition determining that the switch request is not an unjustifiable switch request issued by a program having problems or malice;

a control information generator unit configured to generate control information including any one of input destination information and output enable information in response to an accepted switch request; and

a control information output unit configured to output any one of the input destination information and the output enable information, wherein

the input destination information includes at least information specifying an input destination operating system included in the accepted switch request as an input destination of input information from the input device, the input information from the input device being passed to the input destination operating system when the control information output unit outputs the input destination information, and

the output enable information includes at least information specifying whether or not each of the plurality of operating systems can output information to the output device, and further includes information specifying an output source operating system included in the accepted switch request as an output source of output information to the output device, the output information from the output source operating system being passed to the output device when the control information output unit outputs the output enable information.

2. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the request acceptance unit is configured to accept the switch request from first control software which controls a first input device which has previously been provided to the computer.

3. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the request acceptance unit is configured to accept the switch request from each of the plurality of operating systems.

4. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

when a first operating system or the host system on the computer includes a state change detection function which detects a specific state change of an operating system operating on the computer, the request acceptance unit is configured to accept the switch request issued by the state change detection function in accordance with the state change of a second operating system which occupies any one of the input device and the output device.

5. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

the operating system is configured to issue the switch request, only when the request rule allows the operating system to issue the switch request.

6. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the request acceptance unit is configured to accept or reject the switch request in accordance with a request rule which regulates processing for the switch request, when the request rule is provided.

7. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the request rule requests an input of confidential information accepting the switch request, and

the request acceptance unit is configured to accept the switch request only when the inputted confidential information is correct.

8. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the request rule defines an invalid switch request, and

the request acceptance unit is configured to reject the switch request, when the switch request is invalid.

9. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the request rule requires a user'"'"'s judgment on whether or not to permit the acceptance of the switch request, the judgment being inputted by the user in a specific operation, and

the request acceptance unit is configured to accept the switch request in accordance with the permission by the specific operation.

10. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 9, wherein

the request acceptance unit is configured to accept the switch request, when any user'"'"'s judgment on whether or not to permit the acceptance is not obtained from the user for a certain period of time.

11. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the request rule defines a specific switch request as a privileged request, and

after generating the control information in accordance with the privileged request, until a specific condition is fulfilled, the request acceptance unit is configured to reject a switch request for any one of the input device and the output device which a specific operating system occupies in accordance with the privileged request.

12. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the request acceptance unit is configured to accept the switch request from the host system.

13. The input/output control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the host system is configured to issue the switch request, only when the request rule allows the host system to issue the switch request.

14. An input/output control method, comprising:

controlling an input of an input device and an output of an output device provided to a computer on which at least two operating systems operate simultaneously on a host system including a function of simultaneously running a plurality of operating systems;

determining whether to accept a switch request requesting to change an operating system occupying any one of the input device and the output device based on whether the switch request satisfies a predetermined condition, and accepting the switch request when the predetermined condition has been met, the predetermined condition being a condition determining that the switch request is not an unjustifiable switch request issued by a program having problems or malice;

generating control information including any one of input destination information and output enable information in response to an accepted switch request; and

outputting the input destination information or the output enable information generated in the generating control information, wherein

the input destination information includes at least information specifying an input destination operating system included in the accepted switch request as an input destination of input information from the input device, the input information from the input device being passed to the input destination operating system when the input destination information is output in the outputting, and

the output enable information includes at least information specifying whether or not each of the plurality of operating systems can output information to the output device, and further includes information specifying an output source operating system included in the accepted switch request as an output source of output information to the output device, the output information from the output source operating system being passed to the output device when the output enable information is output in the outputting.