Method and apparatus for command abstraction

• US 9,268,727 B1
• Filed: 06/28/2012
• Issued: 02/23/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Emc IP Holding Company LLC (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: EMC Co. (Woodfin Heating, Inc.)
• Inventors: Jain, Anurag, Gillam, David A., Crable, Frederick, Venkatesan, Nandakishore, Santoli, Douglas J., Hunt, Patrick J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Snyder, Steven
• Application Number:
  US13/536,357
• Time in Patent Office: 1,335 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/385 for adaptation of a particular data processing system to different peripheral devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/387 for adaptation of different data processing systems to different peripheral devices, e.g. protocol converters for incompatible systems, open system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2206/1008 Graphical user interface [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/023 Arrangements for converting discrete items of information into a coded form, e.g. arrangements for interpreting keyboard generated codes as alphanumeric codes, operand codes or instruction codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0661 Format or protocol conversion arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45512 Command shells
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]

Abstract

Methods and apparatus to provide command abstraction. In one embodiment, a method includes obtaining information on commands for a plurality of devices including devices of the same type having different command structures, receiving a generic command from a user directed to one of the devices of the same type, determining, using a computer processor, whether the generic command is supported, extracting parameters from the generic command, and generating from the extracted parameters and the generic command a device-specific command for execution by the one of the devices of the same type.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

obtaining information on commands for a plurality of devices including devices of the same type having different command structures;

receiving a generic command line interface (CLI) command from a user directed to one of the devices of the same type;

determining-whether the generic CLI command is supported;

extracting parameters from the generic CLI command;

generating from the extracted parameters and the generic CLI command a device-specific command for execution by the one of the devices of the same type;

providing a single user interface to obtain information from the user for the generic CLI command that can be used for any one of the devices of the same type having different command structures; and

collecting output from a device in response to the device-specific command using terminal scraping; and

validating and transforming the collected output into a normalized model.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein a first device type includes storage devices, a second device type includes blades, a third device type includes storage area network (SAN) devices, and a fourth device type includes switches.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the first device type includes storage devices from different vendors.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the second device type includes blades from different vendors.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the third device type includes SAN devices from different vendors.

6. The method according to claim 2, wherein the fourth device type includes switches from different vendors.

7. An article, comprising:

a computer-readable medium containing non-transitory stored instructions that enable a machine to perform;

obtaining information on commands for a plurality of devices including devices of the same type having different command structures;

receiving a generic CLI command from a user directed to one of the devices of the same type;

determining, using a computer processor, whether the generic CLI command is supported;

extracting parameters from the generic CLI command;

generating from the extracted parameters and the generic CLI command a device-specific command for execution by the one of the devices of the same type;

providing a single user interface to obtain information from the user for the generic CLI command that can be used for any one of the devices of the same type having different command structures;

collecting output from a device in response to the device-specific command using terminal scraping; and

validating and transforming the collected output into a normalized model.

8. The article according to claim 7, wherein a first device type includes storage devices, a second device type includes blades, a third device type includes storage area network (SAN) devices, and a fourth device type includes switches.

9. The article according to claim 8, wherein the first device type includes storage devices from different vendors.

10. The article according to claim 8, wherein the second device type includes blades from different vendors.

11. The article according to claim 8, wherein the third device type includes SAN devices from different vendors.

12. The article according to claim 8, wherein the fourth device type includes switches from different vendors.

13. A system, comprising:

a command abstraction module comprising;

a user interface to receive generic CLI commands from a user;

a command processor module to receive the generic CLI command and confirm the generic CLI command is supported;

a parameter extraction module to extract parameters from the generic CLI command;

a command generator module to create a device-specific command from the extracted parameters and the generic CLI command, the device-specific command having a syntax specific to particular device type,

wherein the command abstraction module can generate device-specific commands for a plurality of device types from the generic CLI command; and

a module to collect output from a device in response to the device-specific command and to use terminal scraping and to validate and transform the collected output into a normalized model.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein the plurality of device types include components from different vendors.

15. The system according to claim 13, wherein the system comprises a cloud storage system comprising:

a compute layer;

a storage layer;

a network layer coupled between the compute and storage layer; and

a management layer to control the system,

wherein the plurality of device types include storage components having different command line interfaces (CLIs).

16. The system according to claim 13, the plurality of device types include a first device type including storage devices, a second device type including blades, a third device type including storage area network (SAN) devices, and a fourth device type including switches.