Communication protocol

• US 7,796,589 B2
• Filed: 08/01/2005
• Issued: 09/14/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: American Power Conversion Corporation (Schneider Electric SE)
• Original Assignee: American Power Conversion Corporation (Schneider Electric SE)
• Inventors: Bush, Matthew Fletcher, Spitaels, James S., Backofen, Robert Joseph, Hoff, C. Michael, Deokar, Vishwas Mohaniraj, Colucci, David A., Cohen, Daniel C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ton; Dang T
• Assistant Examiner(s): Morlan; Robert M
• Application Number:
  US11/194,746
• Publication Number:
  US 20070025347A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,870 Days
• Field of Search: 370/465, 370/466, 370/467, 370/389, 370/546
• US Class Current: 370/389
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0869 for achieving mutual authentication cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for mutual authentication H04L9/3273
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/101 Access control lists [ACL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/24 Negotiation of communication capabilities

Abstract

One aspect relates to a communication protocol for communicating between one or more entities, such as devices, hosts or any other system capable of communicating over a network. A protocol is provided that allows communication between entities without a priori knowledge of the communication protocol. In such a protocol, for example, information describing a data structure of the communication protocol is transferred between communicating entities. Further, an authentication protocol is provided for providing bidirectional authentication between communicating entities. In one specific example, the entities include a master device and a slave device coupled by a serial link. In another specific example, the communication protocol may be used for performing unbalanced transmission between communicating entities.

Claims

1. A method for communicating between a first entity and a second entity, the first entity including a first memory storing a plurality of configurations of memory maps, the second entity including a second memory, the method comprising:

communicating, by the first entity, to the second entity, a first message initiating communication between the first entity and the second entity;

communicating, by the second entity, information stored in a public memory area of the second memory, the information identifying a data structure of a communication protocol used to communicate with the second entity and identifying a memory map of at least a portion of the second memory, the memory map including a header and indicating a storage location of configuration and performance data associated with the second entity, the header including an identifier of a configuration of the memory map and a model number of the second entity, the model number indicating capabilities of the second entity;

selecting, by the first entity, the configuration of the memory map from the plurality of configurations of memory maps using the identifier of the configuration of the memory map;

generating, by the first entity, a second message using the data structure, the configuration of the memory map and the model number; and

communicating, by the first entity, the second message to the second entity.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information includes length information identifying a length of a data packet, and wherein generating, by the first entity, the second message includes an act of generating the second message using a length indicated by the length information.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information includes version information relating to the communication protocol used to communicate with the second entity, and wherein the first entity identifies a communication protocol type used to communicate with the second entity based on the version information.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the second entity sends, to the first entity, data messages having different lengths.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein at least one of the data messages includes a write request, the write request including data necessary for performing the write request by the second entity.

6. The method according to claim 4, further comprising determining, for each of the data messages, a checksum, and transmitting the checksum with each of the data messages.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein determining the checksum further comprises determining a Fletcher checksum.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising communicating, by the first entity, a request for access by a third entity to the second entity.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising translating, by the first entity, the request to a format associated with the second entity.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information further comprises dimension information, and communicating, by the first entity, the second message to the second entity, further comprises accessing a portion of the memory map based upon the dimension information.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information identifying the data structure further comprises version information, and communicating, by the first entity, the second message to the second entity using the information identifying the data structure, further comprises accessing a portion of a memory of the second entity based upon the version information.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein the message initiating communication between the first entity and the second entity is an acknowledgement message, and the first entity is adapted to send a plurality of acknowledgement messages to the second entity.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising determining, by the second entity, based on a receipt of a predetermined number of acknowledgement messages that the first entity is in a state of initiating communications between the first entity and the second entity.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the acknowledgement messages are negative acknowledgement messages.

15. The method according to claim 13, further comprising maintaining, by the second entity, a count of acknowledgement messages received from the first entity.

16. The method according to claim 12, further comprising sending to the second entity, by the first entity, a plurality of consecutive acknowledgement messages.

17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising sending each of the plurality of consecutive acknowledgement messages after a timeout period.

18. The method according to claim 12, further comprising communicating, by the second entity, the information identifying the data structure of the communication protocol used to communicate with the second entity in response to receiving a predetermined one of the plurality of acknowledgement messages.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the information includes length information identifying a length of a data packet, and wherein communicating, by the first entity, the second message includes communicating the second message using a length indicated by the length information.

20. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second entity is at least one of an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) and a UPS component.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein the first entity is a manager of the at least one of the UPS and UPS component.

22. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second entity is a master entity and the first entity is a slave entity.

23. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first entity is a general purpose computer system.

24. The method according to claim 9, further comprising relaying the request without decoding any data relating to the request.

25. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second message includes a header portion and a data portion.

26. The method according to claim 25, further comprising receiving, by the first entity, the second message from a third entity, and relaying the second message to the second entity without decoding data located in the data portion.

27. The method according to claim 25, wherein the header portion includes version information.

28. The method according to claim 1, further comprising accessing, by the first entity, the public memory area.

29. The method according to claim 28, wherein the second entity comprises a key and a private memory area, and wherein the method further comprises accessing, by the first entity using the key, the private memory area of the second entity.

30. The method according to claim 29, further comprising authenticating, by the second entity, the first entity.

31. The method according to claim 1, further comprising sending, by the first entity, a signal to the second entity that causes the second entity to enter an alternate communication mode.

32. The method according to claim 31, further comprising performing a write request to the second entity causing the second entity to enter the alternate communication mode.

33. The method according to claim 32, further comprising writing a value to a register of the second entity to cause the second entity to enter the alternate communication mode.

34. The method according to claim 33, further comprising requesting, by the second entity, a boot file from the first entity.

35. The method according to claim 34, wherein the boot file includes checksum information, and the second entity checks the boot file with the checksum information prior to loading the boot file.

36. The method according to claim 35, wherein the checksum information includes a Fletcher checksum, and wherein the second entity checks at least a portion of the boot file with the Fletcher checksum prior to loading the boot file.

37. The method according to claim 29, wherein the key is determined based on information stored in the public memory area of the second entity.

38. The method according to claim 26, further comprising authenticating, by the first entity, to the second entity on behalf of the third entity.

39. The method according to claim 26, wherein the second entity includes a memory, and wherein the method further comprises transmitting, by the first entity, a portion of the memory to the third entity.

40. The method according to claim 39, wherein transmitting the portion of the memory further comprises sending the portion of the memory over a network to the third entity using a network transport protocol.

41. The method according to claim 40, wherein the network transport protocol is a version of Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) selected from the group comprising SNMPv1, SNMPv2c and SNMPv3.

42. The method according to claim 38, further comprising registering, by the first entity, the third entity as an authenticated entity.

43. The method according to claim 42, wherein the third entity includes network identification information, and wherein registering comprises storing the network identification information in a memory of the first entity.

44. The method according to claim 26, wherein the third entity is a client coupled to the first entity through a communication network.

45. The method according to claim 44, wherein relaying the second message includes sending the second message to the client over the communication network using a network transport protocol.

46. The method according to claim 45, wherein the network transport protocol is a version of Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) selected from the group comprising SNMPv1, SNMPv2c and SNMPv3.

47. The method according to claim 28, wherein the second entity includes a private memory area, and wherein the method further comprises determining, based on a portion of the public memory area, a key, and accessing the private memory area using the determined key.