Network device management apparatus and network device management method

• US 8,020,198 B2
• Filed: 01/22/2008
• Issued: 09/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Hatano, Manami
• Primary Examiner(s): Zand; Kambiz
• Assistant Examiner(s): POWERS, WILLIAM S
• Application Number:
  US12/017,670
• Publication Number:
  US 20080216162A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,330 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 726/7
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/604 Tools and structures for managing or administering access control systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/608 Secure printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2101 Auditing as a secondary aspect
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2117 User registration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2141 Access rights, e.g. capability lists, access control lists, access tables, access matrices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2151 Time stamp
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0253 using browsers or web-pages for accessing management information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/026 using e-messaging for transporting management information, e.g. email, instant messaging or chat
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/06 Management of faults, events, alarms or notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1441 Countermeasures against malicious traffic countermeasures against attacks on cryptographic mechanisms H04L9/002
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1483 service impersonation, e.g. phishing, pharming or web spoofing detection of rogue wireless access points H04W12/12

Abstract

A network device management apparatus according to this invention is directed to a network device management apparatus, which is connected to a network and manages a network device connected to the network, acquires status information indicating the status of the network device from the network device, saves the acquired status information in a storage unit, randomly generates an address required to access the storage unit, and notifies a pre-registered destination of the generated address, and provides, when an access is made to the address, the status information saved in the storage unit to an accessing party.

Claims

1. A network device management apparatus, which is connected to a network and manages a network device connected to the network, said apparatus comprising:

an acquisition unit, configured to acquire status information indicating a status of the network device from the network device;

a status information saving unit, configured to save a first management window generated for browsing the status information of the network device acquired by said acquisition unit in a storage unit;

an address notification unit, configured to generate a first URL required to access the storage unit and browse the saved first management window, and to notify a pre-registered destination of the generated first URL; and

an information providing unit, configured to provide, when an access is made based on the first URL, the first management window saved in the storage unit to an accessing party,

wherein said status information saving unit saves a second management window for browsing status information of the network device in the storage unit upon receiving an instruction for modifying a notification condition for a managed network device,

wherein said address notification unit generates a second URL required to browse the saved second management window, to notify the pre-registered destination of the generated second URL, and to delete the first management window from the storage unit, and

wherein the status information of the network device is displayed not on the first management window but on the second management window after the second management window has been generated.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a keyword saving unit adapted to save a pre-entered keyword,

wherein said address notification unit notifies the pre-registered destination of the keyword saved in said keyword saving unit in addition to the first or second URL.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising an update unit adapted to update a password required to access the storage unit and/or the keyword in response to an update request,

wherein when said update unit updates the password and/or the keyword, said address notification unit regenerates the URL.

4. A network device management method in a network device management apparatus which is connected to a network and manages a network device connected to the network, said method comprising:

an acquisition step of acquiring status information indicating a status of the network device from the network device;

a status information saving step of saving a first management window generated for browsing the status information of the network device acquired in the acquisition step in a storage unit;

an address notification step of generating a first URL required to access the storage unit and browsing the saved first management window, and notifying a pre-registered destination of the generated first URL; and

an information providing step of providing, when an access is made based on the first URL, the first management window saved in the storage unit to an accessing party,

wherein the status information saving step saves a second management window for browsing status information of the network device in the storage unit upon receiving an instruction for modifying a notification condition for a managed network device,

wherein said address notification step generates a second URL required to browse the saved second management window, notifying the pre-registered destination of the generated second URL, and deleting the first management window from the storage unit, and

wherein the status information of the network device is displayed not on the first management window but on the second management window after the second management window has been generated.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising a keyword saving step of saving a pre-entered keyword,

wherein the address notification step notifies the pre-registered destination of the keyword saved in the keyword saving step in addition to the first or second URL.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising an update step of updating a password required to access the storage unit and/or the keyword in response to an update request,

wherein when the password and/or the keyword are/is updated in the update step, the address notification step regenerates the URL.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program for making a computer execute respective steps included in a method, the method comprising:

an acquisition step of acquiring status information indicating a status of the network device from the network device;

a status information saving step of saving a first management window generated for browsing the status information of the network device acquired in the acquisition step in a storage unit;

an address notification step of generating a first URL required to access the storage unit and browsing the saved first management window, and notifying a pre-registered destination of the generated first URL; and

an information providing step of providing, when an access is made based on the first URL, the first management window saved in the storage unit to an accessing party,

wherein the status information saving step saves a second management window for browsing status information of the network device in the storage unit upon receiving an instruction for modifying a notification condition for a managed network device,

wherein said address notification step generates a second URL required to browse the saved second management window, notifying the pre-registered destination of the generated second URL, and deleting the first management window from the storage unit, and

wherein the status information of the network device is displayed not on the first management window but on the second management window after the second management window has been generated.

8. A management apparatus, comprising:

a storage configured to store a first management window;

an address notification unit, configure to generate a first URL to be referred for accessing the storage and browsing the stored first management window, and to notify a pre-registered destination of the generated first URL; and

an information provider, configured to provide the first management window stored in the storage to an accessing party,

wherein said storage stores a second management window generated responsive to an instruction for modifying the URL for browsing the management window upon receiving the instruction, and

wherein said address notification unit generates a second URL to be referred for accessing the storage and browsing the stored second management window, notifies the pre-registered destination of the generated second URL, and deletes the first URL from said storage.