JP2002064491A - Method and system for managing network - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To manage a network efficiently while lessening load on the nodes, the network managing units and the network. SOLUTION: A network is divided into a plurality of sub-networks 105-1 to 105-3. Each node 101 belonging to the same sub-network manages the sub- network through distributed control for exchanging information each other. The entire network is managed by centrally controlling sub-network management nodes 104-1 to 104-3, provided at least one for each sub-network and connected with nodes belonging to other sub-network through a transmission path 102, by means of a network management unit 103.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a network management method and a network management system for managing a network including a plurality of nodes connected by a transmission line.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional network management method will be described below. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a conventional communication network system to which a network management method based on centralized control is applied. In the network management method based on centralized control, all nodes 201 on the network are managed by one network management device (hereinafter, referred to as NW-OpS) 203, and all changes and updates of the information of the nodes 201 are performed by the NW-OpS 203. Will be done through.

In the example of FIG. 5, each node 201 is connected to the transmission line 2
02. Also, all nodes 201
Are managed by the NW-OpS 203. For example,
When the node 201 sets up a connection for data transmission, the node 201 requests the NW-OpS 203 to set up a connection to the target node 201. The NW-OpS 203 that has received the request is the node 201 of the request source.
From the target node 201 to the target node 201, and instructs connection setting to the target node 201 and the relay node 201 located on the connection setting route,
Perform connection settings between nodes. When a change occurs in the network management information due to a failure or the like, the node 201 that has detected the change notifies the NW-OpS 203 of the change, and the NW-OpS 203 updates the management information held.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a conventional communication network system to which a network management method based on distributed control is applied. In the network management method based on the distributed control, unlike the centralized control, each node 301 exchanges information with an adjacent node 301 to manage the network. For example, when the node 301 performs connection setting for data transmission, the node 30
1 sets connection to the target node 301 based on information exchanged with the adjacent node 301. When a change occurs in the network management information due to a failure or the like, the contents of the change are applied to all nodes 301 on the network.
And each node 301 updates the management information.

[0005]

In a network management method using centralized control, if a network management device that manages all nodes on a network does not operate normally due to a failure or the like, the entire network becomes unmanageable. As a result, there is a problem that information cannot be exchanged with all nodes on the network and communication cannot be performed. On the other hand, in the network management method using the distributed control, unlike the centralized control, since all the nodes on the network exchange information with each other to manage the network, a failure occurs in any node. Even if that node becomes unmanageable, the impact on the entire network is small. However, the amount of information that must be managed by the node increases compared to the centralized control.
There is a problem that high reliability is required. In addition, since the same information needs to be managed in all the nodes, there is a problem that waste occurs, and connection setting may not be properly performed due to inconsistency of management information in each node.

In the network management method using the centralized control, the communication volume between each node and the network management device increases with the enlargement of the network and congestion occurs. Communication cannot be performed normally. On the other hand, in the network management method using distributed control, since the amount of information exchanged by each node increases, problems such as pressure on other traffic on the transmission path, increase in load on the nodes, and inconsistency of the node management information arise. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and a network management method and a network capable of efficiently managing nodes by reducing the load on nodes and network management devices and networks when managing the networks. The purpose is to provide a management system.

[0007]

According to the network management method of the present invention, a network is divided into a plurality of subnets (105-105).
1 to 105-3), and each node (101) belonging to the same subnet manages the subnet by distributed control for exchanging information with each other. At least one subnet management node (104-
1 to 104-3), which are connected to the subnet management nodes belonging to other subnets via a transmission line (102), and these subnet management nodes are centrally controlled by a network management device (103),
The entire network is managed. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the principle of the present invention. In the present invention, in order to solve the above-described problem, a network management method using both centralized control and distributed control is used. As shown in FIG. 4, the network is divided into subnets 105-for regional or functional reasons.
1 and 105-2, and the network is managed in units of the subnets 105-1 and 105-2. Examples of the subnet include a regional network divided for each region. In order to manage the entire network, each of the subnets 105-1 and 105-2 is assigned to a subnet management node 104-1 or 104 representing the subnet.
-2 is provided. Subnet management nodes 104-1, 10
4-2 has a transmission line 102 for connecting to a node belonging to another subnet, and the network management device 1
03 is a node that is connected to the network management apparatus 103 and can communicate with the network management apparatus 103. This subnet management node 104-
1, 104-2 is managed by centralized control over all the subnets 105-1 and 105-2 existing on the network. Also, each of the subnets 105-1 and 105-1
-2, the subnet management nodes 104-1 and 104-1
The management of the subnet is performed by distributed control in which information is exchanged among all nodes belonging to the subnet including -2. Each of the subnets 105-1 and 105-2 is independently managed, and information in the subnet is not transmitted to other subnets.

Further, the network management system according to the present invention provides a network divided into subnets (105-1 to 105-1).
105-3) at least one subnet management node (104-1 to 104-3), and a network management device (103) that centrally controls the subnet management node to manage the entire network. The subnet management node is connected to the subnet management node belonging to another subnet via the transmission path, and the nodes belonging to the same subnet are configured to share the subnet by distributed control for exchanging information with each other. To manage. Further, as one configuration example of the network management system of the present invention, the network management device includes a receiving unit (301) for receiving a signal from the subnet management node, and a signal from the subnet management node received by the reception unit. Processing unit (303) for processing
A database unit (304) that stores information on the entire network; and a transmission unit (30) that transmits information generated by the processing unit to the subnet management node.
2).

[0009]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a communication network system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The nodes 101 are connected by a transmission line 102. The entire network is configured by a set of subnets 105 each including one or more nodes 101. Examples of the subnet include a regional network divided into regions, a prefecture network, and the like. In the example of FIG.
The entire network is composed of three subnets 105-1 to 105-3.

Each node 101 in the subnet 105
In order to manage the inside of the subnet 105 by distributed control for exchanging control information with the adjacent node 101 connected via the transmission line 102, management information necessary for this management is generated. This management information is held equally by all nodes 101 in the subnet 105. The management information includes route information, wavelength information, and the like, but is not limited thereto. The management information in the subnet 105 is not transmitted to another subnet 105. Also, different subnets 10
No information is exchanged between the nodes 101 belonging to No. 5.

Each subnet 105 represents a subnet 105 connected to a node belonging to another subnet 105 via a transmission line 102 and capable of communicating with a network management device (hereinafter, referred to as NW-OpS) 103. Node exists. Hereinafter, this node is referred to as a subnet management node 104 (104-1 to 104-3). In the entire network, the entire network is managed not by centrally controlling all the nodes 101 but by managing the subnet management nodes 104 in each subnet 105 by centralized control by the NW-OpS 103.

When there are a plurality of nodes that can be the subnet management nodes in the subnet 105, one of them may be set as the subnet management node and the other node may be set as the standby system. In the example of FIG.
There are two nodes 104-1 and 106-1 that can be subnet management nodes.

In the present embodiment, it is assumed that, of these two nodes, the node 104-1 is used as a subnet management node to exchange information with another subnet and communicate with the NW-OpS 103. The other node 106-1
Normally acts as one node in the subnet 105-1 as a standby subnet management node, but when the subnet management node 104-1 which is the working system fails to operate normally due to a failure or the like, the working system is replaced with the working system. Operate as a subnet management node.

When there are a plurality of nodes that can be subnet management nodes in the subnet 105, all of these nodes are operated as subnet management nodes,
A configuration for centralized management by the NW-OpS 103 is also possible.

Next, the operation of connection setting in the communication network system of FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG. Here, node 1 belonging to subnet 105-2
01 belongs to a different subnet 105-3
A case where a connection is set to 1 will be described as an example.

A node in the subnet 105-2 (hereinafter referred to as a node)
The first node 101) recognizes, for example, from the held management information that the partner node (hereinafter, referred to as a second node) does not exist in the same subnet. Therefore, the first node 101 is connected to the same subnet 1
A connection to the subnet management node 104-2 belonging to the network management node 05-2 is set (step S1 in FIG. 2), and the route from the subnet management node 104-2 to the second node is inquired to the subnet management node 104-2 (step S2). ).

The subnet management node 104-2 has a second
NW-OpS1 indicates to which subnet the current node belongs.
03 (step S3). FIG. 3 shows NW-O
FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of pS103. NW-Op
S103 includes a receiving unit 301 that receives a signal from each subnet management node 104,
04, a transmission unit 302 for transmitting a signal, a processing unit 303 for processing a request from each subnet management node 104 and an instruction to each subnet management node 104, and a database unit 304 for holding information on the entire network. Consists of

When the receiving unit 301 receives the inquiry from the subnet management node 104-2, the processing unit 303 of the NW-OpS 103 searches the database unit 304 to indicate which subnet the second node belongs to. If the information is registered (Y in step S4)
ES), this information is transmitted to the subnet management node 104 via the transmission unit 302 (step S5).

Further, the processing unit 303 includes a database unit 3
04 is not registered (NO in step S4), the inquiring subnet management node 10
It inquires of all subnet management nodes 104 except 4-2 whether or not the second node exists in the subnet 105 (step S6).

When the second node is in the same subnet, the subnet management nodes 104-1 and 104-3 receiving the inquiry notify the NW-OpS 103 that the second node belongs to its own subnet. (Step S7). Here, the second node is subnet 10
5-3, the subnet management node 104
-3 gives notification.

Upon receiving this notification, the processing unit 303 of the NW-OpS 103 sends the inquiry to the subnet management node 1
04-2, the second node is the subnet 105-
3 (step S8). Further, the processing unit 303 of the NW-OpS 103 updates the database unit 304 based on the information newly acquired from the subnet management node 104-3, thereby updating the database unit 304 (step S9). In addition,
The processing unit 303 of the NW-OpS 103 includes the subnet management node 104-2 of the inquiry source and the subnet management node 104 of the subnet 105-3 to which the second node belongs.
-3 is not adjacent, the subnet management node 1
The route information to 04-3 is also notified to the subnet management node 104-2.

The second from the response from NW-OpS103
The subnet management node 104-2, which recognizes that the node belongs to the subnet 105-3,
The connection setting is performed for the subnet management node 104-3 belonging to 5-3 (step S10). The subnet management node 104-3 that has received the setting request performs connection setting for the second node (step S1).
1). Thus, a connection can be set between the first node and the second node.

FIG. 2 shows an operation in the case where only one subnet management node 104 exists in the subnet.
Next, the operation of connection setting when a plurality of subnet management nodes 104 exist in the same subnet will be described. The first node 101 belonging to a certain subnet is
Since the second node on the other end does not exist in the same subnet, connection setting is performed for all subnet management nodes 104 in the same subnet.

Subnet management node 1 receiving the setting request
04 makes an inquiry to the NW-OpS 103 in order to find the subnet 105 to which the second node belongs and the route to it. The processing unit 303 of the NW-OpS 103
Plural subnet management nodes 10 in one subnet
4 receives the same inquiry from the first node, obtains the subnet 105 to which the second node belongs, obtains route information from the subnet 105 to which the first node belongs to the subnet 105 to which the second node belongs, and further obtains the first information. A calculation is performed to determine from which subnet management node 104 in the subnet 105 to which the node belongs the optimal connection setting.

When the information on the second node is not held in the database unit 304, the processing unit 303 of the NW-OpS 103 sends the subnet 105 to all the subnet management nodes 104 except the inquiry-source subnet management node 104. Inquires if a second node exists in the. Then, based on a response from the subnet management node 104 in the subnet 105 to which the second node belongs, the processing unit 303 switches from the subnet 105 to which the first node belongs to the subnet 1 to which the second node belongs.
The route information up to the first node 05 is obtained, and which subnet management node 104 in the subnet 105 to which the first node belongs is most suitable for connection setting.

The processing unit 303 of the NW-OpS 103 sends the obtained route information to the subnet management node 104 that can set a connection to the second node among the plurality of subnet management nodes 104 that have made the inquiry and that can establish a connection through an optimal route. And the other subnet management nodes 10
4 is transmitted with a signal for canceling the connection setting.

The subnet management node 104, which has received the notification of the connection setting stop, stops the connection setting up to the second node in accordance with the notification. NW-OpS
Subnet management node 1 that has received the routing information from 103
In step 04, connection setting up to the second node is continuously performed. The subsequent operation is the same as the operation after step S10 in FIG.

[0028]

According to the present invention, the network is divided into a plurality of subnets, and the nodes belonging to the same subnet are managed by the distributed control for exchanging information with each other, and at least one subnet is provided for each subnet. The entire network is managed by centrally controlling the subnet management node with the network management device.
It is possible to solve the problem of the network management method based on the centralized control, the problem that the entire network cannot be communicated due to the failure of the network management device, and prevent the influence on the entire network. That is, even when the network management device stops functioning, the nodes in the subnet are managed by the distributed control, so that communication can be performed normally within the subnet. in addition,
If a standby subnet management node is provided in the subnet, even if a failure occurs in the active subnet management node, the normal status is maintained by setting the standby subnet management node to the active node. can do. Further, since the network management device does not need to manage all the nodes on the network, the amount of information exchanged with the nodes can be suppressed. As a result, even if the network becomes large-scale, congestion does not occur between the node and the network management device, and communication between the subnet management node and the network management device can be performed normally. In addition, since each node exchanges information only within the subnet, there is no need to exchange information between nodes throughout the network as in distributed control, and the amount of information exchanged by each node is reduced. The load can be reduced, the information managed by each node can be reduced, and problems such as mismatch of node management information can be solved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a communication network system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of connection setting in the communication network system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the network management device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the principle of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a conventional communication network system to which a network management method based on centralized control is applied.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a conventional communication network system to which a network management method based on distributed control is applied.

[Explanation of symbols]

101: node, 102: transmission line, 103: network management device, 104-1 to 104-3: subnet management node, 105-1 to 105-3: subnet, 301
... Receiving unit, 302 ... Transmitting unit, 303 ... Processing unit, 304 ...
Database section.

Continued on the front page F term (reference) 5K030 GA11 JA10 KA07 LE01 MC07 MC09 MD07 5K033 BA08 BA11 DA01 DA05 DB12 DB20 EA02 EA03 EA07

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A network management method for managing a network including a plurality of nodes connected by a transmission line, wherein the network is divided into a plurality of subnets, and nodes belonging to the same subnet exchange information with each other. Managing the subnets by distributed control, providing at least one subnet management node for each subnet, connecting the subnet management nodes belonging to other subnets via the transmission path, and managing these subnet management nodes A network management method, wherein the entire network is managed by performing centralized control by a device. 2. A network management system for managing a network including a plurality of nodes connected by a transmission path, wherein at least one subnet management node is provided for each subnet into which the network is divided, and the subnet management node is centralized. A network management device that controls and manages the entirety of the network, wherein the subnet management node is connected to the subnet management node belonging to another subnet via the transmission path, and belongs to the same subnet. A network management system, wherein each node manages the subnet by distributed control for exchanging information with each other. 3. The network management system according to claim 2, wherein the network management device receives a signal from the subnet management node, and processes the signal from the subnet management node received by the reception unit. A network management system, comprising: a processing unit that performs information processing; a database unit that stores information on the entire network; and a transmission unit that transmits information generated by the processing unit to the subnet management node.