Auto discovery of configuration items

• US 9,998,333 B2
• Filed: 12/05/2016
• Issued: 06/12/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ServiceNow Incorporated
• Original Assignee: ServiceNow Incorporated
• Inventors: Polinati, Chinna, Varghese, Jake, Chandrashekar, Sridhar
• Primary Examiner(s): Boutah, Alina A
• Application Number:
  US15/369,524
• Publication Number:
  US 20170085427A1
• Time in Patent Office: 554 Days
• Field of Search: 709224, 709223, 709220, 709221, 707E17005, 707609, 707769
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2379 Updates performed during online database operations; commit processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/046 comprising network management agents or mobile agents therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/083 for increasing network speed
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/085 Retrieval of network configuration; Tracking network configuration history
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0853 by actively collecting configuration information or by backing up configuration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5058 Service discovery by the service manager
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1061 using node-based peer discovery mechanisms static access to replicated servers H04L67/1006; service discovery H04L67/51

Abstract

Implementations of a system, method and apparatus described herein execute a discovery process to identify a plurality of computing devices within a computer network and a respective configuration associated with each of the plurality of computing devices. Upon discovery of a first computing device configured by an agent, configuration management of the computer network is searched for a definition used by the agent to configure the first computing device, and the discovery process for the first computing device is modified based on the definition to identify a first plurality of configuration items associated with a current configuration of the first computing device. Finally, a service model database is updated with the first plurality of configuration items.

Claims

1. A method for discovering nodes in a computer network, the method comprising:

executing a discovery process on the computer network to identify a plurality of nodes in the computer network, the discovery process comprising;

determining whether an agent configured an identified node of the plurality of nodes;

if an agent did not configure the identified node;

identifying one or more configuration items associated with the node; and

updating a service model database with the one or more identified configuration items;

if an agent did configure the identified node;

obtaining a definition of the agent that configured the identified node;

identifying one or more agent-configured configuration items associated with the identified node based at least in part on the definition of the agent that configured the identified node; and

updating a service model database with the one or more identified agent-configured configuration items.

2. The method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein determining whether an agent configured an identified node of the plurality of nodes comprises:

querying whether the identified node has an indication of a configuration definition associated with the identified node.

3. The method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein obtaining a definition of the agent that configured the identified node comprises:

searching configuration management data of the computer network for configuration management role information for the agent that configured the identified node.

4. The method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein identifying one or more agent-configured configuration items associated with the identified node based at least in part on the definition of the agent that configured the identified node comprises:

searching for configuration items established by the agent that configured the identified node.

5. An apparatus for discovering nodes in a computer network, the apparatus comprising:

a physical network interface configured to couple the apparatus to the computer network;

a processor operably coupled to the physical network interface and configured to execute instructions stored in a memory which, when executed, cause the processor to;

perform a discovery process on the computer network to identify a plurality of nodes in the computer network, the discovery process comprising;

determining whether an agent configured an identified node of the plurality of nodes;

if an agent did not configure the identified node;

identifying one or more configuration items associated with the node; and

updating a service model database with the one or more identified configuration items;

if an agent did configure the identified node;

obtaining a definition of the agent that configured the identified node;

identifying one or more agent-configured configuration items associated with the identified node based at least in part on the definition of the agent that configured the identified node; and

updating a service model database with the one or more identified agent-configured configuration items.

6. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 5, wherein determining whether an agent configured an identified node of the plurality of nodes comprises:

querying whether the identified node has an indication of a configuration definition associated with the identified node.

7. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 5, wherein obtaining a definition of the agent that configured the identified node comprises:

searching configuration management data of the computer network for configuration management role information for the agent that configured the identified node.

8. The apparatus, as set forth in claim 5, wherein identifying one or more agent-configured configuration items associated with the identified node based at least in part on the definition of the agent that configured the identified node comprises:

searching for configuration items established by the agent that configured the identified node.