Network management apparatus and method based on simple network management protocol

• US 8,812,636 B2
• Filed: 11/18/2005
• Issued: 08/19/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Song, Bong-Gyu, Choi, Seung-Pil, Joe, Won-Chang
• Primary Examiner(s): Zele, Krista
• Assistant Examiner(s): FORMAN, JAMES Q
• Application Number:
  US11/281,682
• Publication Number:
  US 20060106925A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,196 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223, 709/201, 395/200.56
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/024 using relational databases for representation of network management data, e.g. managing via structured query language [SQL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/046 comprising network management agents or mobile agents therefor

Abstract

An apparatus and method is provided for managing a communication device using Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP). When a developer creates an SNMP interface header file through an application program at a compile time, an extractor generates a management information base (MIB) file and object identifier information (OIDInfo) on the basis of the interface header file. When a manager makes an SNMP request at a run time, an agent sends the OIDInfo included in the SNMP request message to an OIDInfo processor. The OIDInfo processor refers to an OIDInfo memory and delivers general message service (GMS) information to the agent. A GMS request/response process between the agent and the application program is then performed on the basis of the GMS information.

Claims

1. A method for performing an operation for receiving a Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) request message including a management item from a manager for managing a communication device using SNMP and making an SNMP response message including a result of processing the management item, comprising the steps of:

creating an SNMP interface header file using an application program receiving a changed management item, and storing the SNMP interface header file in a header file memory in an SNMP agent;

reading, by the SNMP agent, the SNMP interface header file, and generating a management information base (MIB) file and an object identifier information (OIDInfo) file upon reading the SNMP interface header file wherein the object identifier information (OIDInfo) file controls the generation of a general message service (GMS) message between the SNMP agent and the application program;

receiving the SNMP request message for requesting data of the management item from the manager in the SNMP agent;

sending OIDInfo included in the SNMP request message from the SNMP agent to an OIDInfo processor in the SNMP agent such that the OIDInfo processor can read GMS information for communication between the SNMP agent and the application program from an OIDInfo memory in the SNMP agent;

sending the GMS information for communication between the SNMP agent and the application program storing the management item data requested by the manager from the OIDInfo processor to the SNMP agent based on the OIDInfo;

communicating with the application program in the SNMP agent based on the GMS information received from the OIDInfo processor by the SNMP agent, and receiving the result of processing the management item requested by the manager from the application program; and

sending the received result of processing the management item from the SNMP agent to the manager.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of sending the GMS information for communication from the OIDInfo processor to the SNMP agent comprises the steps of:

retrieving GMS information, for communication between the SNMP agent and the application program, from the OIDInfo file mapped to the OIDInfo of the OIDInfo memory in the OIDInfo processor and generating the GMS message based thereon; and

sending the GMS information from the OIDInfo processor to the SNMP agent.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the GMS information comprises information about at least one of a port number, a communication type of the application program, and a payload data structure for communication between the SNMP agent and the application program.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

storing, by the SNMP agent, the MIB file for subsequently managing the communication device using Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) at the compile time, and storing, by the SNMP agent, the OIDInfo file for subsequently communicating between the SNMP agent and the application program.

5. A communication device comprising therein a Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) agent for managing a communication using SNMP for receiving an SNMP request message including a management item from a manager for managing the communication device using SNMP and making an SNMP response of a result of processing the management item, wherein the SNMP agent executes by the communication device:

an extractor for reading an SNMP interface header file created by an application program receiving a changed management item from an SNMP interface header file memory, and for generating a management information base (MIB) file and an object identifier information (OIDInfo) file upon reading the SNMP interface header file for communication by the SNMP agent with the application program wherein the object identifier information (OIDInfo) file controls the generation of a general message service (GMS) message between the SNMP agent and an application program;

an OIDInfo processor in the SNMP agent configured to read GMS information for communication between the SNMP agent and an application program from an OIDInfo memory in the SNMP agent and provide the read GMS information to the SNMP agent when receiving predetermined OIDInfo mapped to the management item in an SNMP request message received by the SNMP agent; and

an SNMP agent module for sending, to the OIDInfo processor, the OIDInfo mapped to the management item when receiving the SNMP request message from a manager, obtaining the GMS information for communication with the application program, receiving a result of processing the management item from the application program, and sending the processing result to the manager.

6. The SNMP agent of claim 5, wherein the SNMP agent comprises:

the OIDInfo memory for storing the OIDInfo data file comprising the GMS information for communication between the SNMP agent and the application program; and

the OIDInfo processor for retrieving the GMS information for communication between the SNMP agent and the application program from the OIDInfo data file of the OIDInfo memory, and sending the GMS information to the SNMP agent.

7. The SNMP agent of claim 6, wherein the OIDInfo memory is configured to store OIDInfo library application programming interfaces (APIs) and OIDInfo data files.

8. The SNMP agent of claim 5, wherein the GMS information for communication between the SNMP agent and the application program comprises general message service (GMS) information.

9. The SNMP agent of claim 8, wherein the GMS information comprises information about at least one of a port number, a communication type of the application program, and a payload data structure for communication between the SNMP agent and the application program.

10. The SNMP agent of claim 5, wherein the SNMP agent comprises:

an MIB file memory of the SNMP agent for storing the MIB file created by the extractor; and

the OIDInfo memory of the SNMP agent for storing the OIDInfo file created by the extractor.

11. The SNMP agent of claim 10, wherein the message between the OIDInfo processor and the SNMP agent comprises GMS information from the OIDInfo memory for communication between the SNMP agent and the application program, such information comprising information about a port number, a message format, a communication type, and a payload structure.