Network discovery tool

• US 7,835,307 B2
• Filed: 03/13/2009
• Issued: 11/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: LinkedIn Corporation (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Hepburn, Andrew, Baggott, Jonathan
• Primary Examiner(s): ABELSON, RONALD B
• Application Number:
  US12/403,990
• Publication Number:
  US 20090232025A1
• Time in Patent Office: 613 Days
• Field of Search: 370254-258, 709221-222
• US Class Current: 370/255
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/604 Address structures or formats
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies

Abstract

A method for discovering network devices having special IP addresses may include collecting a plurality of IP addresses, where each IP address corresponds to a network device. One or more IP addresses may be identified as a predetermined IP address and/or a predetermined address type. Each of the IP addresses may then be classified according to various IP address types. A network address topology may be built based on the IP addresses, the network devices, and the IP address types. Finally, a special network topology may be built that includes network devices having IP addresses identified as the predetermined IP address and/or the predetermined IP address type.

Claims

1. A method for discovering network devices having special IP addresses, the method comprising:

collecting a plurality of IP addresses from a plurality of network devices, each of the plurality of IP addresses corresponding to a network device;

identifying at least one of the plurality of IP addresses as at least one of a special IP address and a special IP address type;

classifying each of the plurality of IP addresses according to various IP address types;

building a network address topology based on the plurality of IP addresses, the network devices, and the IP address types;

building a special network address topology comprising at least one network device having an IP address identified as at least one of the special IP address and the special IP address type; and

storing the network address topology and special network topology in a database.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the special IP address type is a virtual IP address that does not respond to a request for discovery.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the special IP address type is an out-of-band IP address type where access to the device is restricted.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the special IP address type is a user-defined management IP address.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising defining, via a user interface, at least one special IP address type.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein building the special network address topology comprises identifying characteristics of the IP address identified as at least one of the special IP address and the special IP address type.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein building the special network address topology comprises verifying that the IP address identified as at least one of the special IP address and the special IP address type matches an operational IP address for a network device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein building the special network address topology comprises removing connectivity for a network device having an IP address classified as an out-of-band IP address.

9. A system for discovering network devices having special IP addresses, the system comprising:

an IP address collecting engine for collecting a plurality of IP addresses and identifying at least one of the plurality of IP addresses as at least one of a special IP address and a special IP address type, wherein each of the plurality of IP addresses corresponds to a network device; and

an IP address processing engine for classifying each of the IP addresses according to various IP address types, building a network address topology based on the plurality of IP addresses, the network devices, and the IP address types, and building a special network address topology comprising network devices having an IP address identified as at least one of the special IP address and the special IP address type.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the special IP address type comprises a virtual IP address that does not respond to a request for discovery.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the special IP address type comprises an out-of-band IP address having restricted access to certain network devices.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the special IP address comprises a user-defined management IP address.

13. The system of claim 9, further comprising a user interface for defining at least one special IP address type.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the IP address processing engine further verifies that the IP address identified as at least one of the special IP address and the special IP address type matches an operational IP address for a network device.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein the IP address processing engine further removes connectivity for a network device having an IP address classified as an out-of-band IP address.

16. A computer program product for discovering a network system, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-usable program code embodied therein, the computer-usable program code comprising:

computer-usable program code for collecting a plurality of IP addresses from a plurality of network devices, each of the plurality of IP addresses corresponding to a network device;

computer-usable program code for identifying at least one of the plurality of IP addresses as at least one of a special IP address and a special IP address type;

computer-usable program code for classifying each of the plurality of IP addresses according to various IP address types;

computer-usable program code for building a network address topology based on the plurality of IP addresses, the network devices, and the IP address types; and

computer-usable program code for building a special network address topology comprising network devices having an IP address identified as at least one of the special IP address and the special IP address type.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, further comprising computer-usable program code for defining, via a user interface, at least one special IP address type.

18. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the computer-usable program code for building the special network address topology comprises computer-usable program code for identifying characteristics of the IP address identified as at least one of the special IP address and the special IP address type.

19. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the computer-usable program code for building the special network address topology comprises computer-usable program code for verifying that the IP address identified as at least one of the special IP address and the special IP address type matches an operational IP address for a network device.

20. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the computer-usable program code for building the special network address topology comprises computer-usable program code for removing connectivity for a network device having an IP address classified as an out-of-band IP address.