Network management system accelerated event channel

• US 8,176,160 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2007
• Issued: 05/08/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Appleton, Chris, Stewart, Kristian
• Primary Examiner(s): SHINGLES, KRISTIE D
• Application Number:
  US11/855,179
• Publication Number:
  US 20090077212A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,698 Days
• Field of Search: 709/217, 709/219, 709/223, 709/203, 709/207
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/069 using logs of notifications; Post-processing of notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0272 Virtual private networks

Abstract

This invention relates to a network management system accelerated event channel. This invention also relates to a method and computer program product for controlling an accelerated event channel in a network management system. The network management system comprising: a probe for intercepting a system event from a monitored system and creating an event item or modifying an event item associated with the system event; a collection database server collecting, in database of event items, a new event item or modification to an existing event item; a client; a notifying means for notifying a client of the new event item or event item modification; a channel table for storing an association between a channel and a client id; and wherein the probe associates the event item with a channel and the notifying means uses the channel table to find the client association.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method comprising:

receiving, at an object server, a structured query language (SQL) fast track command from a probe, wherein the SQL fast track command includes an event record based on a first occurrence of a system event of a network intercepted by the probe and a fast track flag settable by the probe;

storing the event record and the fast track flag as an event item at a database of event items;

determining whether the fast track flag of the stored event item is set after storing the event item; and

in response to a determination that the fast track flag of the stored event item is set;

initiating a pre-processing callback procedure that is provided by a first client software application, the pre-processing callback procedure to format the stored event record for use by the first client software application; and

sending a direct notification from the object server to the first client software application, the direct notification including a description of the system event and a primary key associated with the stored event record, the primary key enabling the first client software application to retrieve the event record from the database.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

when the fast track flag is determined to not be set;

creating a batch notification that includes the event record of the stored event item and includes other event records of other event items stored at the database of event items within a particular time period; and

sending the batch notification from the object server to a second client software application to instruct the second client software application to send the batch notification to the first client software application in response to receiving the batch notification.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving from the probe a notification of a second occurrence of the system event at the object server.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

retrieving the event item associated with the system event from the database of event items;

modifying the event item based on the second occurrence of the system event; and

storing the modified event item at the database of event items.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising sending a second direct notification to the second client software application, the second direct notification including a second description of the second occurrence of the system event and a second primary key associated with the stored modified event item, the second primary key enabling the second client software application to retrieve the modified event item from the database of event items.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

creating a second batch notification that includes the modified event item and includes other modified event items stored at the database of event items that are modified within a second particular time period; and

sending the second batch notification to the first client software application.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the system event includes an access violation associated with the network.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the system event is associated with a processing capacity associated with the network.

9. A network management system comprising:

a database capable of storing event items; and

an object server to;

receive a structured query language (SQL) fast track command from a probe, wherein the SQL fast track command includes an event record based on a first occurrence of a system event in a network monitored by the probe and a fast track flag settable by the probe when the system event is a critical event;

create an event item associated with the system event in response to receiving the SQL fast track command, wherein the event item includes the event record and the fast track flag;

store the event item at the database;

determine whether the fast track flag of the stored event item is set after storing the event item; and

in response to a determination that the fast track flag of the stored event item is set;

initiate a pre-processing callback procedure, the pre-processing callback procedure to format the event item for use by a first client software application, wherein the pre-processing callback procedure is provided by the first client software application; and

send a direct notification to the first client software application, the direct notification including a description of the system event and a primary key associated with the stored event item, the primary key enabling the first client software application to retrieve the event item including data associated with the system event from the database.

10. The network management system of claim 9, wherein the object server is operable to, in response to a determination that the fast track flag of the stored event item is not set:

create a batch notification that includes the event item and includes additional event items stored at the database; and

send the batch notification to a second client software application to instruct the second client software application to send the batch notification to the first client in response to receiving the batch notification.

11. The network management system of claim 9, further comprising the probe, wherein the probe determines that the system event is the critical event by determining whether a set of event rules include the critical event.

12. The network management system of claim 9, wherein the object server receives a second notification of the system event in the network monitored by the network management system.

13. The network management system of claim 12, wherein the object server is further operable to:

retrieve, from the database, the event item associated with the first occurrence of the system event based at least in part on the second occurrence of the system event;

modify the event item based on the second occurrence of the system event; and

store the modified event item at the database.

14. The network management system of claim 13, wherein the object server is further operable to send a third notification to the second client software application, the third notification including a second description of the second occurrence of the system event and a second primary key associated with the stored modified event item, the second primary key enabling the second client software application to retrieve the modified event item from the database.

15. The network management system of claim 14, wherein the first client software application retrieves the modified event item from the database after receiving the third notification from the object server via the second client software.

16. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code comprising:

computer readable program code configured to;

receive a structured query language (SQL) fast track command from a probe, wherein the SQL fast track command includes an event record based on a first occurrence of a system event in a monitored network and a fast track flag settable by the probe when the system event is critical;

create an event item associated with the system event in response to receiving the SQL fast track command, wherein the event item includes the event record and the fast track flag;

store the event item in a database of event items;

determine whether the fast track flag of the stored event item is set after storing the event item; and

in response to a determination that the fast track flag of the stored event item is set;

initiate a pre-processing callback procedure that is provided by a first client software application, the pre-processing callback procedure to format the event item for use by the first client software application; and

send a direct notification to the first client software application, the direct notification including a description of the system event and a primary key associated with the stored event item, the primary key enabling the first client software application to retrieve the event item including the data associated with the system event from the database.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, further comprising:

computer readable program code configured to, in response to a determination that the fast track flag of the stored event item is not set;

create a batch notification that includes the event item and includes additional event items stored at the database of event items; and

send the batch notification to a second client software application, to instruct the second client software application to send the batch notification to the first client software application in response to receiving the batch notification.

18. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the computer readable program code to determine whether the fast track flag of the stored event item is set after storing the event item comprises:

computer readable program code configured to;

retrieve event rules associated with a plurality of critical events; and

verify the event item is associated with a particular critical event based on the event rules.

19. The computer program product of claim 16, further comprising computer readable program code configured to identify a second occurrence of the system event in the monitored network.

20. The computer program product of claim 19, further comprising:

computer readable program code configured to;

retrieve the event item associated with the first occurrence of the system event based at least in part on the second occurrence of the system event from the database of event items;

modify the event item based on the second occurrence of the system event; and

store the modified event item at the database of event items.

21. The computer program product of claim 20, further comprising computer readable program code configured to send a second notification to the first client software application, the second notification including a second description of the second occurrence of the system event and a second primary key associated with the stored modified event item, the second primary key enabling the first client software application to retrieve the modified event item from the database.