JP2002278738A - Server, client, network resource for fault notice, and fault notice system and method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the load of a client user. SOLUTION: Guidance regarding a fault is performed by a server 120. When the fault is caused in network resources, for example, an image forming apparatus 100, an error code and a URL for access to the server 120 are transmitted from the image forming apparatus 100 to a client 130. The client 130 reads and displays an HTML document for guidance on the server 130 by using the URL and the error code.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a failure notification server, a client, a network resource, and the like for providing failure information to a user when a failure occurs in a network resource such as an image forming apparatus or an image acquisition apparatus. The present invention relates to a failure notification system and method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, resources such as image forming apparatuses such as printers and image acquisition apparatuses such as scanners and digital cameras have become network compatible, and are being used as image processing apparatuses.

In such network resources, troubles such as paper jams, running out of paper, running out of toner and ink, running out of memory, running out of batteries, and the like are inevitable.
Appropriate action may be required by the user or serviceman.

[0004] For this reason, for example, a conventional image processing apparatus has a mechanism for notifying a user of an error and its type.

[0005] As a general error transmitting means, there is a method of generating an error sound, turning on an error lamp, displaying an error message on a display unit, and printing an error message.

Recently, a system has been proposed which monitors the status of an image processing apparatus on an external client apparatus (abbreviated as a client) connected via a network and notifies the user of the state. By using such a system, a user can know the type and name of a failure that has occurred in the image processing apparatus on the client.

[0007]

In such a conventional image processing apparatus, the information displayed on the image processing apparatus or the information notified from the image processing apparatus to the client is poor. There is a problem that the contents of the error message cannot be fully understood. Even if you understood the contents of the error message, you had to consult a manual or call a service person to get a solution.

In existing systems for notifying a failure by an external client, there is a system in which an image or description is shown on a display device. The image data and description used in this case are stored in the external client in advance. Therefore, it takes time and effort to install the software on a large number of clients, and there is also a problem that the storage capacity of the clients is squeezed.

An object of the present invention is to provide a failure notification server, a client, a network resource, a failure notification system and a method capable of reducing the load on the client user side.

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, when a network resource detects its own failure, it receives a failure information indicating the content of the failure, a network resource, and a client. A communication means for receiving, from the client, an instruction to read out guidance information related to the failure information, and a storage means for storing guidance information corresponding to the type of failure. And reading the guidance information related to the failure information by the communication unit in response to the received read command, and transmitting the guidance information to the client.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the failure notification server according to the first aspect, access-related information for accessing the failure notification server from the client is input to the network resource. The resource transmits the access-related information input together with the failure information to the client, and the client accesses the failure notification server based on the access-related information.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the failure notification server according to the second aspect, there is further provided a means for storing the access-related information, and the communication means stores the access-related information in the network resource. Transmitting, and the input means inputs the transmitted access-related information.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the failure notification server according to the second aspect, the input means receives the access-related information by manual operation.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the failure notification server according to the third or fourth aspect, the network resource that has received the access-related information has display means for displaying the input access-related information. Features.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the failure notification server according to the second aspect, the access-related information is information indicating a position of the server on the network.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the failure notification server according to the sixth aspect, the information indicating the location of the server is indicated in a URL format.

The invention according to claim 8 is a client which receives fault information indicating the content of a fault from the network resource when the network resource detects its own fault, and reads out guidance information related to the fault information. Communication means for transmitting a command to the failure notification server, and output means for receiving guidance information corresponding to the read command from the failure notification server by the communication means, and outputting the received guidance information. Features.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the eighth aspect, access-related information for accessing the failure notification server from the client is input to the network resource. The access-related information input together with the failure information is transmitted to the client, and the client accesses the failure notification server by the communication unit based on the access-related information.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the ninth aspect, the failure notification server transmits the access-related information to the network resource, and the network resource transmits the transmitted access-related information. Is input.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the ninth aspect, the network resource accepts the access-related information by manual operation.

The twelfth aspect of the present invention provides the tenth or the first aspect.
The client according to claim 1, wherein the network resource that has received the access-related information has a display unit that displays the input access-related information.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the ninth aspect, the access-related information is information indicating a position of the server on the network.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the client according to the thirteenth aspect, the information indicating the location of the server is indicated in a URL format.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a network resource for transmitting fault information indicating a fault content to the client when detecting its own fault, the network resource being used for accessing the fault notification server from the client. Input means for inputting information, and the network resource comprises:
Communication means for transmitting the access-related information input together with the failure information to the client, wherein the client accesses the failure notification server based on the access-related information.

According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, in the network according to the fifteenth aspect, the failure notification server transmits the access-related information to the network resource, and the input unit transmits the transmitted access-related information. It is characterized by inputting.

The invention of claim 17 is characterized in that, in the network resource according to claim 15, the input means receives the access-related information by manual operation.

The invention of claim 18 is the invention of claim 16 or 1
7. The network resource according to 7, further comprising display means for displaying the input access-related information.

The invention of claim 19 is characterized in that, in the network resource according to claim 15, the access-related information is information indicating a position of the server on the network.

According to a twentieth aspect of the present invention, in the network resource according to the nineteenth aspect, the information indicating the location of the server is indicated in a URL format.

According to a twenty-first aspect of the present invention, a network resource, a client for performing information processing using the network resource, and a failure notification server are connected to a network, and the network resource detects its own failure. A failure notification system for transmitting failure information indicating the content of the failure to the client, wherein the failure notification server receives, from the client, an instruction to read out guidance information related to the failure information; When,
Storage means for storing guidance information corresponding to the content of the type of failure, wherein the first communication means reads guidance information related to the failure information in response to the received read command, and And the client transmits a guidance information readout command related to the failure information to the failure notification server, and the guidance information corresponding to the readout instruction from the failure notification server to the failure notification server. Output means for receiving by the second communication means and outputting the received guidance information.

[0031] The invention of claim 22 is the fault notification system according to claim 21, further comprising input means for inputting access-related information for accessing the server for fault notification from the client, and Transmits the access-related information input together with the failure information to the client,
Is characterized in that the communication means accesses the failure notification server based on the access-related information.

According to a twenty-third aspect of the present invention, in the fault notifying system according to the twenty-second aspect, the fault notifying server further includes means for storing the access-related information,
The first communication unit transmits the access-related information to the network resource, and the network resource input unit inputs the transmitted access-related information.

According to a twenty-fourth aspect of the present invention, in the fault notification system according to the twenty-second aspect, the network resource input means receives the access-related information by manual operation.

The invention of claim 25 is the invention of claim 23 or 2
5. The fault notification system according to 4, wherein the network resource that has received the access-related information has a display unit that displays the input access-related information.

According to a twenty-sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fault notification system according to the twenty-second aspect, the access-related information is information indicating a location of the server on the network.

According to a twenty-seventh aspect of the present invention, in the failure notification system according to the twenty-sixth aspect, the information indicating the location of the server is indicated in a URL format.

According to a twenty-eighth aspect of the present invention, a network resource, a client for performing information processing using the network resource, and a failure notification server are connected to a network, and the network resource detects its own failure. A failure notification method for transmitting failure information indicating the content of the failure to the client, wherein the failure notification server receives an instruction to read guidance information related to the failure information from the client, Is stored in advance, and in response to the received read command, guide information related to the fault information is transmitted to the client, and the client transmits the guide information related to the fault information. A plan for transmitting a read command to the failure notification server and responding to the read command from the failure notification server Receiving information, and outputs the guidance information the received.

According to a twenty-ninth aspect of the present invention, in the failure notification method according to the twenty-eighth aspect, access-related information for accessing the failure notification server from the client is input to the network resource. The access-related information input together with the failure information is transmitted to the client, and the client accesses the failure notification server based on the access-related information.

According to a thirtieth aspect of the present invention, in the failure notification method according to the twenty-ninth aspect, the failure notification server stores the access-related information and transmits the access-related information to the network resource. Is to input the transmitted access-related information.

A thirty-first aspect of the present invention is the fault notification method according to the thirty-ninth aspect, wherein the network resource receives the access-related information by manual operation.

The invention of claim 32 is the invention of claim 30 or 3
1. The failure notification method according to 1, wherein the network resource that has received the access-related information displays the input access-related information.

A thirty-third aspect of the present invention is the fault notification method according to the twenty-ninth aspect, wherein the access-related information is information indicating a location of the server on the network.

According to a thirty-fourth aspect, in the failure notification method according to the thirty-third aspect, the information indicating the location of the server is indicated in a URL format.

[0044]

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of an image forming system according to the present invention.

The image forming apparatus (100) and the image acquiring apparatus (110) are connected to a server (abbreviated as a server) (12).
0), one or more clients (130) and a network (140). Server (12
0) and the client (130) can use a commercially available computer having a CPU, a display, a keyboard, a mouse, a hard disk, a memory, an interface for network communication, and the like.

The image forming apparatus (100) as a network resource has an image forming unit (10) for forming an image.
1), a display unit 1 (10) for notifying a user of a message
2), a communication unit 1 (103) for transmitting and receiving data via a network, and a storage unit 1 (104) storing network location information of the server (120).

The image acquisition device (110) includes an image acquisition unit (111) for forming an image, a display unit 2 (112) for notifying a user of a message, a communication unit 2 (113) for transmitting and receiving data via a network, Server (120)
Storage unit 2 (114) that stores the network location information (route URL) of the network.

The server (120) is connected to the image forming apparatus (10).
0) and a storage unit 3 (121) that stores failure information data of the image acquisition device (110), and a communication unit 3 (122) that transmits and receives data via a network.

The client (130) has a display unit (13
1) and a communication unit 4 (132) for transmitting and receiving data via a network. More specifically, a network monitoring program and H
A program for displaying a TML document is installed, and an image forming apparatus (10
An HTML document (guidance information of the present invention) relating to an error (failure) occurring in (0)
0) and displays it on the display unit 131.

The server (120) includes a communication program (called a WWW server) for providing an HTML document to the client (130), and a gateway program for executing an instruction sent from the client (130). In this embodiment, a gateway program called CGI is mounted on an internal hard disk. In the present embodiment, the CGI of the server (120) receives an instruction to read an HTML document or the like relating to the network resource (MFP) in which the error has occurred, and the HGI corresponding to the error corresponds to
The TML document and related files described below are provided to the client (130). For this purpose, an HTML document for guidance and a related file are stored in the server (120) in association with the error code. Further, a read command composed of a root URL and an error code is sent from the client (130) to the server (120).

The server (120) includes hardware and OS
Is not particularly limited, and WWW (World Wid
de Web) service is running, and HTTP (Hypertext t) is externally transmitted via a network.
It is sufficient that data access is enabled by transfer protocol. W open to the outside
Some WW sites provide detailed explanations about MFPs in formats such as HTML documents, MP3 audio data, JPEG images, MEPG images, and VRML images, as well as server-side scripts and CGI (Common) to assist the explanations.
GatewayInterface) program is stored. This information includes a description of the failure,
Documents, images, audio descriptions and video clips that show how to deal with obstacles, contact information for service personnel, contact methods, URL links to service sites on the Internet, related obstacle information, glossary, etc. it can. Descriptions (documents) of various failures can be accessed for each error code, and have a storage format as shown in FIG. 3, for example.

The guide information can be installed in the server (120) from the attached CD-ROM at the time of MFP purchase or from the site of the MFP vendor on the Internet. The installation program is a server (12
0), saves various information of the MFP including the fault information in the server (120), sets a WWW server so that the fault information can be accessed, and sets the MF on the WWW server.
A route URL for accessing the P information is transmitted to the MFP.

Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described.
This will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

In this embodiment, an MFP (Multi Function Print) shown in FIG. 2 is used as an image processing apparatus.
ter) (200). The MFP is a complex system that serves both as an image forming apparatus and an image acquiring apparatus, and includes a printer unit (210), a scanner unit (211), and a fax unit (2).
12), image processing unit (213), CPU (Center)
Processor Unit) (214), Memory (215), HD (Hard Disk) (216),
NIC (Network InterfaceCont)
(217), LCD touch panel (21)
8), and each is connected via a bus (220). Printer unit (210), Scanner unit (2
11), fax unit (212) and image processing unit (2)
13) independently performs processing by an internal arithmetic unit, and performs processing such as job control, user interface, and network processing by a CPU (214).
Performs processing according to a program read from the HD (216) and the memory (215). The NIC has an Ethernet (registered trademark) (registered trademark) port, and various protocols (LPD, AppleTalk, SMB, etc.) for transmitting and receiving jobs, and S
NMP (Simple Network Management)
(Mana Protocol)
(Geometry InformationBase) is accepted.

Next, the operation of the system will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 shows a processing procedure executed by the CPU of the server (120), which is realized by a WWW server (also called a WEB server) and a CGI. Figure 5 shows the MFP
And is stored on a hard disk. Note that the MFP has
It is assumed that an error diagnosis program similar to the conventional one is installed. FIG. 6 shows a processing procedure executed by the CPU of the client (130), which is realized by a network printer monitoring program and an HTML document display program. The server (120) detects the MFP corresponding to the failure information using broadcast transmission to the MFP, or the user directly specifies the IP address of the new MFP to the server (120) from the client (130). When the server (120) detects the new MFP on the network, the server stores the error-related HTML document and the like, and transmits the location information of the server (120) on the network, that is, the route URL of the information on the MFP on the WWW site via the network. Is transmitted to the MFP (step S10 → S15 in FIG. 4).

For example, by embedding a URL in the header of a special print job having no print data, it is possible to notify the MFP. When the same MFP is connected to a plurality of networks, a route UR is assigned to each MFP.
L is sent. The installation program finally displays the root URL on the MFP for the user to manually set (step S120 in FIG. 5). For MFPs not automatically detected by the installation program,
The user can manually set the root URL. The MFP has “online manual WWW site setting” in the setting menu in order to manually set the route URL. The MFP uses the route U
Upon receiving the RL, the information is stored in the HD (step S100 → S105 in FIG. 5). Client (1
30) sends a print job to the MFP via the network in response to a print command from the user. On the client (130), a network printer monitoring application is running, and the conventional monitoring function of this program allows the user to connect the MF connected to the network.
The status of each printer including P can be known.

If any failure occurs on the MFP,
Error contents are detected by the error diagnosis program, and M
The error ID is sent from the printer unit or the scanner unit of the FP to the controller unit. The MFP uses hrPrinterDetect to notify the user of the occurrence of the error.
The MIB information such as edErrorState is changed. At this time, the error explanation access URL created from the error code and the root URL by the program in FIG.
Is disclosed as MIB information. Specifically, the route UR
L and an error code indicating the error content are transmitted to the client (130). Further, this URL is displayed on the own LCD panel together with the error code and the message (step S110 → S115 in FIG. 5).

When the network printer monitoring application in FIG. 6 on the client (130) obtains an error from the MIB information (step 200 in FIG. 6), it obtains the error description access from the root URL and the error code MFP for accessing the error explanation. Then, a program (browser) for referring to the URL is automatically started to inform the user of the details of the failure (step 220 in FIG. 6).

For example, assuming that the root URL is http://mfpwww.AAAA.co.jp/mfp/, when the printer runs out of toner and an error code E1234 is passed to the controller section of the MFP, it is displayed in the MIB. Http://mfpwww.AAAA.co.jp/mfp/err/E1234.html is published to the client (130) and this HTML
The page opens.

By utilizing the link function of the HTML, the user can easily switch the display of the browser from this trouble explanation page to a toner replacement method explanation page or an online sale toner order page published on the Internet. Is possible.

Further, when a software failure occurs in the control program, the address where the error occurred, the task number, the state of the stack, and the like can be included in the URL as parameters. In this case, the CGI program checks the parameters on the WWW server and transmits an HTML document and related files (images, sounds, etc.) corresponding to the parameters to the client (130) (step S20 → step S25 in FIG. 4). . The client (130) side displays the HTML document and the related file.
In the case of a software failure that has already been discovered, the user can notify the user of the fact and notify the user of an avoidance method and an occurrence condition.

For example, if division by zero occurs in task 13 of the controller program, http://mfpwww.AAAA.co.jp/mfp/err/E0555.html?TASK to send a parameter together with error code E0555. = 0
13 & ADDRESS = 0xE0038 & STACK = 00fa5b7e3302000505c017a05
05202ff becomes the error URL. When the WWW server of the server (120) receives the read command in the form of this URL from the client (120), it checks the parameters by the CGI program as described above, and an HTML document indicating the details and reason of the problem, a workaround method and The related file is provided to the client (130).

When the HTML document for explaining the failure is modified or when the above-mentioned known problem is found, the HTML document on the server (120) may be updated, and the client (130) There is no software change in the network resources (image forming apparatus).

If the root URL needs to be changed due to a change in the server (120) or a change in the network setting, the root URL automatically stored in the MFP by re-installation as in the first installation.
Or manually updated by the user.

(Other Embodiments) (i) In the above-described embodiment, the server (120) transmits the commentary document of the error specified by the error code to the client (1).
30), we have described the process of providing
There are several methods for the processing performed on the network resource (image forming apparatus, image reading apparatus, etc.) side and the processing performed on the client (130) side. These methods are summarized below.

(1) For the client (130),
The following can be considered as a method for reading the commentary document on the server (120) corresponding to the error code. (A) As in the above-described embodiment, a read command is composed of the position information of the server (120) on the network and the error code, and the read command is sent from the client (130) to the server. The server (120) reads out the commentary corresponding to the error code and provides it to the client (130). (B) The client (130) creates a read address of the commentary book corresponding to the error code, and sends it to the server (12).
From 0), the client (130) reads the commentary.
In this case, the client (130) has an error code and storage address correspondence table.

(2) A method for instructing the client (130) of information necessary for reading the commentary is as follows. (A) The server (120) instructs the client (130). This can be done by email, by downloading data or programs. (B) Manually input from the client (130). (C) An instruction is added from the network resource to the error code. (D) The client (130) instructs only the error code to the server (120), and the server (120) provides the client (130) with an explanatory document corresponding to the error code. (E) The client (130) is provided with a correspondence table between the error code and the storage location, and the storage location of the commentary is found from the error code using the correspondence table.

(3) Server resources (12
A method for indicating the address (root URL) of 0). (A) The server (120) notifies network resources. (B) Manually input the network resource from the network resource operation unit.

(Ii) In the above embodiment, the so-called L
The description has been given of a mode in which an error manual is provided from the server (120) to the client (130) using the intranet using the AN, but the telephone line is used between the client (130) and the server (120). You may connect. When a telephone line is used, a method using a general telephone line such as a dial-up connection and a method using a dedicated telephone line such as the Internet can be considered.

(Iii) The network is not limited to the image forming apparatus and the image acquiring apparatus.

[0071]

As described above, claims 1 to 34 are as described above.
According to the invention, even when a failure (error) occurs in a network resource such as a printer or a scanner connected to the network, a client using the network resource automatically provides guidance information ( Since the HTML document and the related file are output, the user of the client is released from the manual determination of the type of the failure and the investigation of the handling.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a basic configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a specific system configuration according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a hierarchy of fault description according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure executed by a server.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure executed by a network resource.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure executed by a client.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 100 image forming apparatus 101 image forming section 102 display section 1 103 communication section 1 104 storage section 1 110 image acquisition apparatus 111 image acquisition section 112 display section 113 communication section 2 114 storage section 2 120 server 121 storage section 3 122 communication section 3 130 Client 131 Display unit 3 132 Communication unit 4 140 Network 200 MFP 210 Printer unit 211 Scanner unit 212 FAX unit 213 Image processing unit 214 CPU 215 Memory 216 HD 217 NIC 218 LCD touch panel 300 WWW service route 310 MFP information route 320 Online manual storage Folder 330 Service information storage folder 340 Failure information storage folder

Claims (34)

[Claims] 1. A failure notification server connected via a network, comprising: a client for receiving failure information indicating the content of a failure when a network resource detects its own failure; A communication unit for receiving a guidance information read command from the client; and a storage unit for storing guidance information corresponding to the type of the failure. A failure notification server, wherein guidance information is read by the communication means and transmitted to the client. 2. The failure notification server according to claim 1, wherein access-related information for accessing the failure notification server from the client is input to the network resource, and the network resource includes failure information. And transmitting the access-related information input to the client to the client based on the access-related information. 3. The server for fault notification according to claim 2, further comprising: means for storing said access-related information, wherein said communication-related means transmits said access-related information to said network resource, and A failure notification server, wherein the means inputs the transmitted access-related information. 4. The failure notification server according to claim 2, wherein said input means receives said access-related information by manual operation. 5. The failure notification server according to claim 3, wherein the network resource that has received the access-related information has a display unit that displays the input access-related information. Server. 6. The failure notification server according to claim 2, wherein the access-related information is information indicating a position of the server on the network. 7. The failure notification server according to claim 6, wherein the information indicating the location of the server is indicated in the form of a URL. 8. A client for receiving failure information indicating the content of a failure from the network resource when the network resource detects a failure of the network resource, wherein the client receives an instruction to read guidance information related to the failure information for failure notification. A client comprising: communication means for transmitting to a server; and guide means for receiving guide information corresponding to a read command from the failure notification server by the communication means, and outputting the received guide information. 9. The client according to claim 8, wherein access-related information for accessing the failure notification server from the client is input to the network resource, and the network resource is input together with the failure information. The client transmits the access-related information to the client, and the client accesses the failure notification server by the communication unit based on the access-related information. 10. The client according to claim 9, wherein the failure notification server transmits the access-related information to the network resource, and the network resource inputs the transmitted access-related information. Features client. 11. The client according to claim 9, wherein the network resource accepts the access-related information by a manual operation. 12. The client according to claim 10, wherein the network resource that has received the access-related information has a display unit that displays the input access-related information. 13. The client according to claim 9, wherein the access-related information is information indicating a position of the server on the network. 14. The client according to claim 13, wherein the information indicating the location of the server is indicated in the form of a URL. 15. An input for inputting access-related information for accessing a failure notification server from the client, the network resource transmitting failure information indicating the content of the failure to the client when detecting its own failure. Means, the network resource comprising: communication means for transmitting the access-related information input together with the failure information to the client, wherein the client accesses the failure notification server based on the access-related information. Characteristic network resources. 16. The network according to claim 15, wherein the failure notification server transmits the access-related information to the network resource, and the input unit inputs the transmitted access-related information. And network resources. 17. The network resource according to claim 15, wherein said input means receives said access-related information by manual operation. 18. The network resource according to claim 16, further comprising display means for displaying the input access-related information. 19. The network resource according to claim 15, wherein the access-related information is information indicating a location of the server on the network. 20. The network resource according to claim 19, wherein the information indicating the location of the server is indicated in the form of a URL. 21. A network resource, a client for performing information processing using the network resource, and a failure notification server are connected to a network, and when the network resource detects its own failure, the content of the failure is determined. A failure notification system for transmitting failure information to the client, the failure notification server comprising: a first communication unit configured to receive, from the client, an instruction to read guidance information related to the failure information; Storage means for storing guidance information associated with the contents, and in response to the received read command, reads the guidance information related to the failure information by the first communication means and transmits the guidance information to the client. The client sends a read instruction of guidance information related to the failure information to the failure notification server Second communication means, and output means for receiving guidance information corresponding to a read command from the failure notification server by the second communication means, and outputting the received guidance information. Failure notification system. 22. The failure notification system according to claim 21, further comprising input means for inputting access-related information for accessing the failure notification server from the client, wherein the network resource includes the failure information together with the failure information. A failure notification system, wherein the input access-related information is transmitted to the client, and a second communication unit of the client accesses the failure notification server based on the access-related information. 23. The failure notification system according to claim 22, wherein said failure notification server further comprises means for storing said access-related information, and said first communication means stores said access-related information in said server. A failure notification system for transmitting to a network resource, wherein the network resource input means inputs the transmitted access-related information. 24. The failure notification system according to claim 22, wherein said network resource input means receives said access-related information by manual operation. 25. The failure notification system according to claim 23, wherein the network resource that has received the access-related information has a display unit that displays the input access-related information. . 26. The failure notification system according to claim 22, wherein the access-related information is information indicating a position of the server on the network. 27. The failure notification system according to claim 26, wherein the information indicating the location of the server is indicated in the form of a URL. 28. A network resource, a client for performing information processing using the network resource, and a failure notification server are connected to a network, and when the network resource detects its own failure, the content of the failure is determined. A failure notification method for transmitting failure information indicating the failure information to the client, wherein the failure notification server receives, from the client, an instruction to read guidance information related to the failure information, and provides guidance corresponding to the type of failure. Information is stored in advance, and in response to the received read command, guide information related to the fault information is transmitted to the client. The client issues a read command of guide information related to the fault information to the fault. Transmitting the guidance information corresponding to the read command from the failure notification server. And outputting the received guidance information. 29. The failure notification method according to claim 28, wherein access related information for accessing the failure notification server from the client is input to the network resource, and the network resource is input together with the failure information. Transmitting the access-related information to the client, and the client accessing the failure notification server based on the access-related information. 30. The failure notification method according to claim 29, wherein the failure notification server stores the access-related information, transmits the access-related information to the network resource, and the network resource receives the transmitted access. A failure notification method characterized by inputting related information. 31. The failure notification method according to claim 29, wherein said network resource receives said access-related information by manual operation. 32. The failure notification method according to claim 30, wherein the network resource that has received the access-related information displays the input access-related information. 33. The failure notification method according to claim 29, wherein the access-related information is information indicating a position of the server on the network. 34. The failure notification method according to claim 33, wherein the information indicating the location of the server is indicated in the form of a URL.