Log management method and apparatus, information processing apparatus with log management apparatus and storage medium

• US 8,429,463 B2
• Filed: 09/24/2009
• Issued: 04/23/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Tanaka, Masao
• Primary Examiner(s): LOHN, JOSHUA A
• Application Number:
  US12/566,276
• Publication Number:
  US 20100083046A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,307 Days
• Field of Search: 714/25, 714/37, 714/45, 714/46, 714/57
• US Class Current: 714/45
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0709 in a distributed system consisting of a plurality of standalone computer nodes, e.g. clusters, client-server systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0775 Content or structure details of the error report, e.g. specific table structure, specific error fields
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0781 Error filtering or prioritizing based on a policy defined by the user or on a policy defined by a hardware/software module, e.g. according to a severity level
• 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

Abstract

One system monitors components constituting an information apparatus and a program in execution. The system classifies logs outputted from the information processing apparatus for each monitor target, divides the monitor targets into categories of hardware and software, refers to relationship definition information indicating the combination of monitor targets in which an operational relationship exists between monitor targets belonging to different categories and specifies a combination indicated in the relationship definition information among monitor targets whose logs are classified. The system relates logs arranged for each monitor target on the basis of the specified combination and outputs the logs on a display device.

Claims

1. A log management method for managing logs outputted from an information processing apparatus by monitoring components, the log management method comprising:

classifying the logs outputted from the information processing apparatus for each of monitor targets which are components including respective pieces of hardware in the information processing apparatus and respective pieces of software executed on the information processing apparatus, and storing each of the classified logs in a table which is generated for each of the monitor targets;

dividing the monitor targets into categories of hardware and software, referring to relationship definition information indicating a combination of monitor targets, in which it is regarded that an operational relationship exists between monitor targets belonging to different categories and specifying a combination indicated in the relationship definition information among the monitor targets;

relating the logs each of which is stored in the table generated for each of the monitor targets on the basis of the combination specified in the specification process; and

outputting the related logs on a display device.

2. The log management method according to claim 1, further comprising updating the relationship definition information by registering the combination as the relationship definition information on the basis of order of the monitor targets from which the logs are outputted and categories to which the monitor targets belong.

3. The log management method according to claim 2, wherein the classifying classifies logs by generating a table for storing logs outputted from the monitor targets for each of the monitor targets.

4. The log management method according to claim 2, wherein the updating process registers a combination of a plurality of monitor targets from which logs constituting the same pattern as the relationship definition information by monitoring order of the monitor targets from which the logs are outputted when the same pattern in which logs of a plurality of monitor targets belonging to different categories continues is repeated a plurality of times.

5. The log management method according to claim 1, wherein the outputting arranges, displays and outputs symbols indicating logs classified for each of the monitor targets in the classification process in time sequence for each of the combinations specified in the specification process.

6. The log management method according to claim 5, further comprising analyzing logs outputted within a certain time for each of the monitor targets and determining a state of a monitor target from which the logs are outputted, wherein the outputting also outputs a determination result in the analysis process.

7. A log management apparatus for managing logs outputted from an information processing apparatus by monitoring components constituting the information processing apparatus and a program in execution as monitor targets, the log management apparatus comprising:

a classification unit that classifies the logs outputted from the information processing apparatus for each of monitor targets which are components including respective pieces of hardware in the information processing apparatus and respective pieces of software executed on the information processing apparatus, and stores each of the classified logs in a table which is generated for each of the monitor targets;

an information storage unit that divides the monitor targets into categories of hardware and software and storing relationship definition information indicating a combination of monitor targets, in which it is regarded that an operational relationship exists between monitor targets belonging to different categories;

a specification unit that refers to the relationship definition information stored in the information storage unit and specifying a combination indicated in the relationship definition information among the monitor targets; and

an output unit that relates the logs each of which is stored in the table generated for each of the monitor targets on the basis of the combination specified by the specification unit and outputs the related logs on a display device.

8. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored therein a log management program for causing a computer used as a log management apparatus to execute a process for managing logs outputted from the information processing apparatus by monitoring components, the process comprising:

classifying the logs outputted from the information processing apparatus for each of the monitor targets which are components including respective pieces of hardware in the information processing apparatus and respective pieces of software executed on the information processing apparatus, and storing each of the classified logs in a table which is generated for each of the monitor targets;

dividing the monitor targets stored in the storage unit into categories of hardware and software, referring to the relationship definition information stored in the information storage unit and specifying a combination indicated in the relationship definition information among the monitor targets;

relating the logs each of which is stored in the table generated for each of the monitor targets on the basis of the combination specified by the specification function; and

outputting the related logs on a display device.