Providing a remote diagnosis for an information appliance via a secure connection

• US 9,697,069 B2
• Filed: 08/28/2014
• Issued: 07/04/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Liu, Jeffrey C H, Tseng, Joey H Y, Wu, Rick M F, Lee, Cheng-Ta
• Primary Examiner(s): Armouche, Hadi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Zarrineh, Shahriar
• Application Number:
  US14/471,388
• Publication Number:
  US 20150067402A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,041 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0748 in a remote unit communicating with a single-box computer node experiencing an error/fault remote testing G06F11/2294
• 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 21/606 by securing the transmission between two devices or processes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/28 Restricting access to network management systems or functions, e.g. using authorisation function to access network configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/50 Testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles

Abstract

A processor-implemented method provides a remote diagnosis for an information appliance via a secure connection. A command is received from a console, and an examination is performed to determine whether or not the command is permitted to be issued. In response to a remote diagnostic module being initiated, a determination is made as to whether a secure connection to a remote information appliance has been created. In response to determining that the secure connection to the remote information appliance has been created, the command is transmitted to the remote information appliance via the secure connection.

Claims

1. A method of providing a remote diagnosis for an information appliance via a secure connection, the method comprising:

detecting, by one or more hardware processors, a failure in a failed information appliance;

responsive to detecting the failure in the failed information appliance, creating, by use of a diagnostic module in a hardware network interface card (NIC) on the failed information appliance, a secure connection between the failed information appliance and a trusted information appliance, wherein the diagnostic module provides a diagnosis of the failure to the trusted information appliance via the secure connection;

transmitting, by one or more hardware processors, a command from the trusted information appliance, wherein the command is a command to diagnose the failure in the failed information appliance;

determining, by one or more hardware processors, whether the command is input into the trusted information appliance from an authorized user;

responsive to determining that the command is input into the trusted information appliance from the authorized user, creating, by one or more hardware processors, an input/output connection at the trusted information appliance for transmitting the command to the diagnostic module in the hardware NIC on the failed information appliance;

responsive to a determination that the secure connection to the remote information appliance has been created, transmitting, by one or more hardware processors, the command from the trusted information appliance to the diagnostic module in the failed information appliance via the secure connection;

determining, by one or more hardware processors, whether a command line interface (CLI) component on the failed information appliance is unavailable;

responsive to a determination that the CLI component on the failed information appliance is unavailable, transmitting, from the trusted information appliance to an administrative port on the hardware network interface card (NIC) on the failed information appliance, a diagnostic command for diagnosing a system-related problem with the failed information appliance; and

using, by the trusted information appliance, the diagnosis information to remotely correct a fault in the failed information appliance that caused the failure in the failed information appliance.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the secure connection is a TCP/IP connection that is protected by encryption.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the failure of the failed information appliance is an inability of a kernel procedure in the failed information appliance to be restarted.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by one or more hardware processors, a response from the failed information appliance via the secure connection.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by one or more hardware processors, whether a kernel procedure on the failed information appliance is functional; and

responsive to a determination that the kernel procedure on the failed information appliance is functional, directly transmitting the command from the trusted information appliance to a delegated access module on the failed information appliance for execution by an operating system on the failed information appliance.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by one or more hardware processors, whether a kernel procedure on the failed information appliance cannot be initiated; and

responsive to a determination that the kernel procedure on the failed information appliance cannot be initiated, transmitting the command from the trusted information appliance to a network interface card on the failed information appliance for execution by an operating system on the failed information appliance.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by one or more hardware processors, whether a command line interface (CLI) component on the failed information appliance is available; and

responsive to a determination that the CLI component on the failed information appliance is available, transmitting the command from the trusted information appliance to a CLI component on the failed information appliance for execution by an operating system on the failed information appliance.

8. A computer program product for providing a remote diagnosis for an information appliance via a secure connection, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructions readable and executable by a processor to cause the processor to:

detect a failure in a failed information appliance;

responsive to detecting the failure in the failed information appliance, create, by use of a diagnostic module in a hardware network interface card (NIC) on the failed information appliance, a secure connection between the failed information appliance and a trusted information appliance, wherein the diagnostic module provides a diagnosis of the failure to the trusted information appliance via the secure connection;

transmit a command from the trusted information appliance, wherein the command is a command to diagnose the failure in the failed information appliance;

determine whether the command is input into the trusted information appliance from an authorized user;

responsive to determining that the command is input into the trusted information appliance from the authorized user, create an input/output connection at the trusted information appliance for transmitting the command to the diagnostic module in the hardware NIC on the failed information appliance;

responsive to a determination that the secure connection to the remote information appliance has been created, transmit the command from the trusted information appliance to the diagnostic module in the failed information appliance via the secure connection;

determine whether a command line interface (CLI) component on the failed information appliance is unavailable;

responsive to a determination that the CLI component on the failed information appliance is unavailable, transmit, from the trusted information appliance to an administrative port on the hardware network interface card (NIC) on the failed information appliance, a diagnostic command for diagnosing a system-related problem with the failed information appliance; and

use, by the trusted information appliance, the diagnosis information to remotely correct a fault in the failed information appliance that caused the failure in the failed information appliance.

9. A system comprising:

one or more processors;

one or more computer readable memories operably coupled to the one or more processors;

one or more computer readable storage mediums operably coupled to the one or more computer readable memories; and

program instructions stored on at least one of the one or more computer readable storage mediums for execution by at least one of the one or more processors via at least one of the one or more computer readable memories, the program instructions comprising;

program instructions to detect a failure in a failed information appliance;

program instructions to, responsive to detecting the failure in the failed information appliance, create, by use of a diagnostic module in a hardware network interface card (NIC) on the failed information appliance, a secure connection between the failed information appliance and a trusted information appliance, wherein the diagnostic module provides a diagnosis of the failure to the trusted information appliance via the secure connection;

program instructions to transmit a command from the trusted information appliance, wherein the command is a command to diagnose the failure in the failed information appliance;

program instructions to determine whether the command is input into the trusted information appliance from an authorized user;

program instructions to, responsive to determining that the command is input into the trusted information appliance from the authorized user, create an input/output connection at the trusted information appliance for transmitting the command to the diagnostic module in the hardware NIC on the failed information appliance;

program instructions to, responsive to a determination that the secure connection to the remote information appliance has been created, transmit the command from the trusted information appliance to the diagnostic module in the failed information appliance via the secure connection;

program instructions to determine whether a command line interface (CLI) component on the failed information appliance is unavailable;

program instructions to, responsive to a determination that the CLI component on the failed information appliance is unavailable, transmit, from the trusted information appliance to an administrative port on the hardware network interface card (NIC) on the failed information appliance, a diagnostic command for diagnosing a system-related problem with the failed information appliance; and

program instructions to use, by the trusted information appliance, the diagnosis information to remotely correct a fault in the failed information appliance that caused the failure in the failed information appliance.