Autonomic resolution of system configuration

• US 7,941,706 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2007
• Issued: 05/10/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Arima, Toshimichi, Murayama, Tomoko, Yuasa, Hironori
• Primary Examiner(s): Maskulinski; Michael C
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ehne; Charles
• Application Number:
  US11/926,968
• Publication Number:
  US 20090112860A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,289 Days
• Field of Search: 714/25, 714/26, 714/31, 714/37, 714/47
• US Class Current: N/A
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/079 Root cause analysis, i.e. error or fault diagnosis in a hardware test environment G06F11/22; in a software test environment G06F11/36
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24573 using data annotations, e.g. user-defined metadata

Abstract

A method and apparatus are provided to support autonomic computing for system configuration. Common base events (CBEs) are generated and, based upon system configuration, are employed to monitor system resources and to resolve system configuration conflicts prior to an error. A symptom database stores a set of rules for the configuration information. The configurations CBEs for the system configuration are compared with the symptom rules, and any discrepancies between the two elements are communicated to a user prior to an occurrence of an error in the system. Accordingly, an autonomic computer system is provided to support system configuration data.

Claims

1. A method for configuring a computer system to support autonomic problem determination based on system configuration information, comprising:

periodically monitoring configuration files to determine changes to each of the files;

generating and storing common base events based upon changes in configuration information of hardware elements of said computer system, said changes reflected in said configuration files;

storing symptom rules associated with configuration information in a symptom database;

searching the symptom database to match said stored problem cases with said stored common base events; and

outputting a predicted problem based on said common base events prior to occurrence of a failure in said system.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing configuration information in said common base event.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising initiating searching the symptom database as a response to input of configuration information.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising initiating searching the symptom database as a response to a change in previously input configuration information.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising matching CBE configuration information and said symptom database using a log trace analyzer.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said symptom rules are written in JAVA programming language.

7. A computer system comprising:

a server in communication with storage media;

said server and storage media in communication with a generic log adapter to communicate a common base event (CBE) to a log and trace analyzer;

a manager to periodically monitor configuration files to determine changes to each of the files;

said common base event to store changes in hardware configuration information for said server and storage media, said changes reflected in said configuration files;

a symptom database in communication with said log and trace analyzer, said symptom database to store symptom rules of said configuration information for said server and storage media;

said manager to search said symptom database and match said stored symptom rules with said common base events; and

an output device to receive a predicted problem based on said common base events prior to occurrence of a failure in said system.

8. The system of claim 7, further comprising a common base event to stored said configuration information.

9. The system of claim 7, further comprising said manager to initiate a search of said symptom database as a response to input of configuration information.

10. The system of claim 7, further comprising said manager to initiate a search of said symptom database as a response to a change in previously input configuration information.

11. The system of claim 7, further comprising said manager to match CBE configuration information and said symptom database using a log trace analyzer.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein said symptom rules are written in JAVA programming language.

13. An article comprising:

a computer readable data storage medium including computer program instructions to support autonomic problem determination based on system configuration information, said instructions comprising;

instructions to periodically monitor configuration files to determine changes to each of the files;

instructions to store changes in hardware configuration information of a computer system in a common base event (CBE), said changes reflected in said configuration files;

instructions to store symptom rules associated with said CBE in a symptom database;

instructions to search the symptom database to match said stored problem cases with said stored CBE; and

output of a predicted problem on said CBE prior to occurrence of a failure in said system.

14. The article of claim 13, further comprising instructions to store configuration information in said common base event.

15. The article of claim 13, further comprising instructions to initiate searching the symptom database as a response to input of configuration information.

16. The article of claim 13, further comprising instructions to initiate searching the symptom database as a response to a change in previously input configuration information.

17. The article of claim 13, further comprising instructions to match CBE configuration information and said symptom database using a log trace analyzer.

18. The article of claim 13, wherein said symptom rules are written in JAVA programming language.