Method and apparatus for providing multiple management interfaces to a network device

• US 8,533,607 B2
• Filed: 05/15/2007
• Issued: 09/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/19/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Land, Robert A., Simon, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): SAX, STEVEN PAUL
• Application Number:
  US11/804,037
• Publication Number:
  US 20070288558A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,310 Days
• Field of Search: 715760-763, 715748-749, 715/968, 705 26- 27, 713/150, 713/151, 713/164, 713/180, 713/200, 713/201, 709217-219, 709/230, 707/10, 707/100, 707/758, 707/502, 370/352, 380/255, 380/43, 380/59
• US Class Current: 715/748
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2856 Access arrangements, e.g. Internet access asynchronous transfer mode networks H04L12/5601; broadband local area networks H04L12/2801; optical access or distribution networks H04Q11/0067; access to open networks H04L12/5691; digital subscriber line end-user equipment and bit-level processing of data on a PSTN-based network H04M11/00; home network gateways H04L12/2834; wireless access networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2898 Subscriber equipments DSL modems H04M11/062; cable modems H04L12/2801
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0226 Mapping or translating multiple network management protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0253 using browsers or web-pages for accessing management information

Abstract

A method and apparatus for managing a network access device is provided. Embedded within the access device are three distinct software layers. The first layer is a combined text-interface generator and Hypertext Transport Protocol client. The second layer is a combined Hypertext Transport Protocol server and Simple Network Management Protocol manager. The third layer is a Simple Network Management Protocol agent that has direct access to the configuration data of the access device. A user can manage the device through the embedded text-interface generator, by using an external HTTP client to communicate with the embedded HTTP server, or by using an external SNMP manager to communicate with the embedded SNMP agent. Techniques are disclosed for embedding SNMP information in messages passed between HTTP clients and servers.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving at a hypertext transport protocol (HTTP) server a message that identifies a management information base (MIB) item, the HTTP server being located at a network access device and utilizing a standardized HTTP protocol interface to receive the message from an HTTP client also being located at the network access device, the HTTP server further being enabled to receive a network message from an HTTP client located external to the network access device that identifies the MIB item, the receiving further comprising utilizing an HTTP protocol to receive the message;

reading MIB information to determine a type of said MIB item;

requesting a current value from a simple network management protocol (SNMP) agent for said MIB item, the SNMP agent being located at the network access device and utilizing a standardized SNMP interface to receive the request, the requesting further comprising utilizing an SNMP protocol to request the current value;

automatically generating a hypertext mark-up language (HTML) page at the HTTP server at the network access device which, when decoded by the HTTP client, causes the HTTP client to generate a display that indicates the current value for said MIB item; and

transmitting the HTML page to the HTTP client.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

receiving from the HTTP client the message that identifies the MIB item includes receiving a message that identifies a row in a MIB table;

reading said MIB information to determine the type of said MIB item includes reading said MIB information to determine the type for each MIB variable in the row;

requesting the current value from the SNMP agent for said MIB item includes requesting current values for each MIB variable in the row;

automatically generating the HTML page includes generating an HTML page which, when decoded by the HTTP client, causes the HTTP client to generate a display that indicates the current values for at least one MIB variable in the row.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising reading from a string of text arguments of the message that identifies the MIB item.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein automatically generating said HTML page includes replacing text from a template HTML page with text that is based on said arguments.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein automatically generating said HTML page includes inserting into an anchor of said HTML page text that is based on said arguments.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically generating said HTML page includes generating an anchor in said HTML page that includes a command.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

receiving the command from the HTTP client when a user selects a hypertext link associated with the anchor; and

transmitting a request for an SNMP operation to the SNMP agent in response to receiving the command from the HTTP client.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the anchor further includes an identifier of a second MIB item and a value.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein transmitting a request for an SNMP operation to the SNMP agent includes transmitting a request for the variable corresponding to the second MIB item to be set to said value.

36. The method of claim 1, wherein the requesting the current value from the SNMP agent is performed by a SNMP manager that is located at the network access device.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein the SNMP agent is enabled to receive a second request for the current value, wherein the second request is received over a network from an SNMP manger that is located external to the network device.

10. A network access device comprising:

means for receiving at an hypertext transport protocol (HTTP) server a message that identifies a management information base (MIB) item, the means for receiving is located at the network access device, the means for receiving further utilizing a standardized HTTP protocol interface to receive the message from an HTTP client also being located at the network access device, the HTTP server further being enabled to receive an network message from an HTTP client located external to the network access device that identifies the MIB item, the receiving further comprising utilizing an HTTP protocol to receive the message;

means for reading MIB information to determine a type of said MIB item;

means for requesting a current value from a simple network management protocol (SNMP) agent for said MIB item, the means for requesting is located at the network access device and utilizes a standardized SNMP interface and SNMP protocol for requesting the current value;

means for automatically generating a hypertext mark-up language (HTML) page at the HTTP server at the network access device which, when decoded by the HTTP client, causes the HTTP client to generate a display that indicates the current value for said MIB item; and

means for transmitting the HTML page to the HTTP client.

11. The network access device of claim 10, wherein:

the means for receiving from the HTTP client the message that identifies the MIB item includes means for receiving a message that identifies a row in a MIB table;

the means for reading the MIB information to determine a type of the MIB item includes means for reading the MIB information to determine the type for each MIB variable in the row;

the means for requesting the current value from the SNMP agent for the MIB item includes means for requesting current values for each MIB variable in the row;

the means for automatically generating the HTML page includes means for generating an HTML page which, when decoded by the HTTP client, causes the HTTP client to generate a display that indicates the current values for at least one MIB variable in the row.

12. The network access device of claim 10, further comprising means for reading from a string of text arguments of the message that identifies the MIB item.

13. The network access device of claim 12, wherein the means for automatically generating said HTML page includes means for replacing text from a template HTML page with text that is based on said arguments.

14. The network access device of claim 12, wherein the means for automatically generating said HTML page includes means for inserting into an anchor of said HTML page text that is based on said arguments.

15. The network access device of claim 10, wherein the means for automatically generating said HTML page includes means for generating an anchor in said HTML page that includes a command.

16. The network access device of claim 15, further comprising:

means for receiving the command from the HTTP client when a user selects a hypertext link associated with the anchor; and

means for transmitting a request for an SNMP operation to the SNMP agent in response to receiving the command from the HTTP client.

17. The network access device of claim 16, wherein the anchor further includes an identifier of a second MIB item and a value.

18. The network access device of claim 17, wherein the means for transmitting a request to the SNMP agent includes means for transmitting a request for the variable corresponding to the second MIB item to be set to said value.

19. A network access device configured:

(a) to receive at a Hypertext Transport Protocol (HTTP) server a first message that identifies a management information base (MIB) item, the HTTP server being located at the network access device and utilizing a standardized HTTP protocol interface to receive the message from an HTTP client also located at the network access device, the HTTP server further enabled to receive a network message from an HTTP client located external to the network access device that identifies the MIB item, the HTTP server further utilizing an HTTP protocol to receive the message;

(b) to request a current value of the MIB item from a Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) agent, the SNMP agent is located at the network access device and utilizes a standardized SNMP interface and SNMP protocol to receive the request;

(c) to automatically generate a second message at the HTTP server at the network access device which, when decoded by the HTTP client, causes the HTTP client to generate a display that indicates the current value of the MIB item; and

(d) to transmit the second message to the HTTP client.

20. The network access device of claim 19, wherein the network access device is further configured:

(e) to receive from the HTTP client a third message that indicates a new value for the MIB item; and

(f) to request that the SNMP agent set the current value of the MIB item based on the new value in the third message.

21. The network access device of claim 19, wherein the second message comprises a Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) page.

22. The network access device of claim 20, wherein the second message comprises a Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) page.

23. The network access device of claim 19, wherein:

the first message indicates a row in a MIB table;

the request for the SNMP agent includes a request for a current value for each MIB variable in the row; and

the second message indicates the current value for at least one MIB variable in the row.

24. The network access device of claim 23, wherein the second message comprises a Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) page.

25. The network access device of claim 19, wherein the network access device is further configured to read from the message that identifies the MIB item a string of text arguments.

26. The network access device of claim 25, wherein the network device is further configured to automatically generate the second message by replacing text from a template document with text that is based on the arguments.

27. The network access device of claim 25, wherein the network access device is further configured to automatically generate the second message by inserting into an anchor of the second message text that is based on the arguments.

28. The network access device of claim 19, wherein the network access device is further configured to automatically generate the second message by generating an anchor in the second message that includes a command.

29. The network access device of claim 28, wherein the network access device is further configured:

(e) to receive the command from the HTTP client when a user selects a hypertext link associated with the anchor, and

(f) to transmit a request for a SNMP operation to the SNMP agent in response to receiving the command from the HTTP client.

30. The network access device of claim 29, wherein the anchor further includes an identifier of a second MIB item and value.

31. The network access device of claim 30, wherein the request for a SNMP operation to the SNMP agent includes a request that the variable corresponding to the second MIB item be set to the value.

32. A system, the system comprising a network access device configured:

(a) to receive a first message at a Hypertext Transport Protocol (HTTP) server that is located at the network access device, the HTTP server further utilizes a standardized HTTP protocol interface to receive the message from an HTTP client that is also located at the network access device, the HTTP server enabled to receive a network message from an HTTP client located external to the network access device that, the HTTP server further utilizing an HTTP protocol to receive the message;

(b) to request from a Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) agent a current value associated with at least one management information base (MIB) item, the SNMP agent is located at the network access device and utilizes a standardized SNMP interface and protocol to receive the request;

(c) to generate a second message at the HTTP server at the network access device which, when decoded by the HTTP client, causes the HTTP client to display the current value of the at least one MIB item; and

(d) to transmit the second message to the HTTP client.

33. The network access device of claim 32, wherein the network access device is further configured:

(e) to receive from the HTTP client a third message that indicates a new value for the MIB item; and

(f) to set the current value of the MIB item based on the new value in the third message.

34. The network access device of claim 32, wherein the second message comprises a Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) page.

35. The network access device of claim 33, wherein the second message comprises a Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) page.