Network management

• US 7,925,729 B2
• Filed: 12/07/2005
• Issued: 04/12/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hinds, Joshua, Acker, Kristin, Bush, Steven M., Ferrari, Justin, Gery, Ron, Butcher, Thomas C., Marl, Brett, Tebbs, Matthew
• Primary Examiner(s): SHAW, PELING ANDREW
• Application Number:
  US11/297,809
• Publication Number:
  US 20090019141A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,952 Days
• Field of Search: 709223-225, 715/700, 715733-738, 715/763, 715/853, 715/969
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2807 Exchanging configuration information on appliance services in a home automation network arrangements for maintenance or administration involving network analysis for automatically determining the actual topology of a network H04L41/12; hardware or software tools for network management using graphical user interfaces H04L41/22; address allocation H04L61/50
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0233 Object-oriented techniques, for representation of network management data, e.g. common object request broker architecture [CORBA]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/046 comprising network management agents or mobile agents therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0853 by actively collecting configuration information or by backing up configuration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/20 Network management software packages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/26 using dedicated tools for LAN [Local Area Network] management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0811 by checking connectivity

Abstract

A tool for managing a computer network includes a gateway service module that identifies a gateway for a network and a network information service module. The network information service module identifies devices in the network, determines at least one property for each of the identified devices, and creates a network information data structure for storing device properties. A communication agent service module transmits at least one determined device property to other agent service modules associated with the network, receives at least one device property from another agent service module associated with the network, and provides the received at least one property device to the network information service module. A method of monitoring a computer network is also provided. The method includes identifying devices in a network, determining at least one property for each of the identified devices, receiving at least one determined device property from another device the network, and creating a network information data structure for storing the determined device properties.

Claims

1. A network tool, comprising:

a detection module in a gateway for detecting devices that are part of a subnet defined for the gateway to which the devices are connected, wherein the detection module scans the subnet for address information, and wherein a selected one of the devices is a local device maintained by a personal computer to which it is connected, and wherein the local device is detected by evaluating registry information and function call information of an operating system associated with the personal computer; and

a naming module that generates a unique name for the detected devices, wherein properties for the detected devices are stored in data objects organized into respective data files, and wherein removal of a particular one of the devices causes a notification to be sent and an update to be generated for network information data structures that include the data files.

2. The network tool recited in claim 1, wherein the naming module generates a unique name for a detected member device based upon a media access control (MAC) network address or an Internet Protocol (IP) network address associated with the detected member device.

3. The network tool recited in claim 1, further comprising a trusted device member module that

provides an identification service that identifies member devices belonging to a group of member devices forming a virtual network, and

provides a trusted communication service that establishes trusted communication with each of the identified member devices.

4. The network tool recited in claim 1, wherein the data files are used to create a graphical map of a network associated with the detected devices, and wherein the map includes each of the detected devices having an associated graphical icon and a separate graphic representing connections between the detected devices.

5. The network tool of claim 1, wherein the device detection module is configured to communicate a ping message to a plurality of addresses associated with the subnet.

6. The network tool of claim 1, wherein a universal plug and play (UPnP) discovery protocol is used to detect the devices in the network.

7. The network tool of claim 1, wherein the device detection module is configured to detect when a new computer running an instance of the network tool joins the network.

8. The network tool of claim 1, wherein a dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) element is provisioned to detect the devices in the network.

9. A method, comprising:

scanning a subnet associated with a gateway;

detecting devices that are part of the subnet, wherein a selected one of the devices is a local device maintained by a personal computer to which it is connected;

detecting the local device by evaluating registry information and function call information of an operating system associated with the personal computer; and

generating a unique name for the detected devices, wherein properties for the detected devices are stored in data objects organized into respective data files, and wherein removal of a particular one of the devices causes a notification to be sent and an update to be generated for network information data structures that include the data files.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

providing an identification service configured to identify particular devices belonging to a virtual network.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

designating a trust level associated with each of the detected devices.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the data files are used to create a graphical map of a network associated with the detected devices.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

communicating a ping message to a plurality of addresses associated with the subnet.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein a universal plug and play (UPnP) discovery protocol is used to detect the devices in the network.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

detecting when a new computer running an instance of the network tool joins the network.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein a dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) element is provisioned to detect the devices in the network.

17. A program logic encoded in one or more non-transitory media that includes code for execution and when executed by a processor operable to perform operations comprising:

scanning a subnet associated with a gateway;

detecting devices that are part of the subnet, wherein a selected one of the devices is a local device maintained by a personal computer to which it is connected;

detecting the local device by evaluating registry information and function call information of an operating system associated with the personal computer; and

generating a unique name for the detected devices, wherein properties for the detected devices are stored in data objects organized into respective data files, and wherein removal of a particular one of the devices causes a notification to be sent and an update to be generated for network information data structures that include the data files.

18. The program logic of claim 17, wherein the unique name is based on a media access control (MAC) network address, or an Internet Protocol (IP) network address.

19. The program logic of claim 17, the operations comprising:

designating a trust level associated with each of the devices.

20. The program logic of claim 17, the operations comprising:

communicating a ping message to a plurality of addresses associated with the subnet.