JP2006099494A - Operation condition notification system and operation condition notification program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique for easily obtaining information relating to the operation condition of a monitoring object stored in a general monitoring system from a remote location in the case that a trouble occurs in a monitoring object system. <P>SOLUTION: This operation condition notification system 10 comprises: a message processing part 22 for storing messages transmitted from operation condition monitoring programs of a plurality of servers 36 in a message information storage part 24; a mail processing information storage part 28 for storing the combination pattern of processing conditions and processing contents beforehand; a mail reception part 26 for receiving inquiry mail; a mail processing part 30 for extracting the processing condition described in the inquiry mail, specifying the processing contents by referring to the mail processing information storage part 28, executes required arithmetic processing to message information stored in the message information storage part 24 according to the specification, and generating answer mail describing the processing result; and a mail transmission part 32 for returning the answer mail to a transmitter. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an operation status notification system and an operation status notification program. In particular, for an integrated monitoring system that monitors the operation status of a plurality of computer systems, an expert such as an SE can remotely use an e-mail from a remote location. The present invention relates to a system and a program that make it possible to inquire about the operation status of each computer system and obtain the result via electronic mail.

In recent years, with the improvement in performance of computer software and hardware, operation requirements for software and hardware have also become complicated.
For this reason, individual operation management tools are introduced for each software and hardware, and there are increasing cases of introducing an integrated monitoring system for monitoring these plural tools in an integrated manner.
The latest integrated monitoring system collects information messages that indicate job operation status and failure messages that indicate system troubles from multiple operation management tools, and only the information required at each operation site from each collected message. Software that has a function to extract and process the image has appeared.
These softwares display the extracted and processed information on a dedicated operation management terminal to notify the operation operator of the current operation status.

For example, the following patent documents exist as prior art related to such an integrated monitoring system.
In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-134297, the security problem is cleared by adopting a method of collecting operation status data from a monitoring target system of each company via electronic mail. A remote management system that realizes integrated monitoring work is disclosed.

By the way, when any trouble occurs in the monitored system, the operator will contact the infrastructure administrator and application manager (hereinafter referred to as “SE”) to start the trouble recovery. When the time zone that occurs is a holiday or at night, it is difficult for the SE to immediately reach the operation site.
In such a case, including the remote management system disclosed in Patent Document 1, conventionally, the SE is remotely inquired of the operation operator by telephone, and the operation operator reads out the information displayed on the operation management terminal, and the system is connected to the SE. Was informed of the operation status.

However, there is a possibility that there will be a discrepancy in the recognition of information necessary for grasping the trouble situation between the SE and the operation operator, as well as the time required for telephone exchanges. If the work is proceeded without the recognition, not only the recovery work is delayed, but there is a risk that a secondary trouble may occur due to an erroneous recovery work.
Even if there is a common recognition between the two, there is a possibility that a recovery operation delay or a secondary trouble may occur due to an information transmission error of the operation operator.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described conventional problems, and the object of the present invention is to accumulate in the integrated monitoring system when any trouble occurs in the monitored system. The object is to provide a technology that enables a remote SE to easily obtain information on the operation status of a monitored system.

  In order to achieve the above object, the operation status notification system according to claim 1 is a message information storage means in which a message transmitted at any time from an operation status monitoring program set up in a plurality of computers is associated with an originating computer. , A mail processing information storage means for storing in advance a combination pattern of processing conditions and processing contents when an inquiry e-mail for inquiring operation status is transmitted, and an inquiry in which processing conditions are described Means for receiving the e-mail, means for extracting the processing conditions described in the inquiry e-mail, means for specifying the processing content corresponding to the processing conditions with reference to the mail processing information storage means, According to the processing content, necessary arithmetic processing for the message information stored in the message information storage means Means for executing, and means for generating an electronic mail for reply that describes the processing result, comprising the means for returning addressed this answer e-mail to the sender of the e-mail address.

  The operation status notification system according to claim 2 is based on the system of claim 1, and further, when an email address other than the sender is described in the inquiry email, the email address is It is characterized in that it comprises means for extracting, means for inserting it into the destination column (To column or Cc column) of the reply e-mail, and means for sending this reply e-mail.

The operation status notification system according to claim 3 is based on the system of claim 1 or 2, and further includes an authentication information storage means for registering a specific character string or a specific combination of character strings as authentication information; Means for confirming whether or not a character string or a combination of character strings registered in the authentication information storage means is included in the inquiry e-mail; and the character string or And a means for executing predetermined error processing when a combination of character strings is not included.
As the “specific character string”, for example, the e-mail address of the sender corresponds. In this case, if the sender's e-mail address described in the header of the inquiry e-mail matches any e-mail address stored in the authentication information storage means, authentication is established, and if they do not match, error processing is performed. Will be executed.
As the “specific character string combination”, for example, a set of a user name and a password is applicable. In this case, if the combination of the user and password described in the text of the inquiry e-mail is stored in the authentication information storage means, authentication is established, and if not stored, error processing is executed.
The “predetermined error processing” corresponds to, for example, sending an unprocessable e-mail to the sender and rejecting execution of the processing content corresponding to the processing condition.

  The operation status notification program according to claim 4 is a means for storing a message transmitted from an operation status monitoring program set up in a plurality of computers at any time, in a message information storage means in association with the originating computer, Mail processing information storage means for storing in advance a combination pattern of processing conditions and processing contents when an inquiry e-mail for inquiring about the operation status is transmitted, means for receiving an inquiry e-mail describing the processing conditions Means for extracting processing conditions described in the inquiry e-mail, means for specifying processing contents corresponding to the processing conditions with reference to the mail processing information storage means, and message information storage means according to the processing contents Means for executing necessary arithmetic processing on the message information stored in Means for generating an electronic mail for reply that describes the processing result, is characterized in that to function as a means for returning addressed this answer e-mail to the sender of the e-mail address.

According to the operation status notification system of claim 1 and the operation status notification program of claim 4, the SE transmits the inquiry e-mail describing the predetermined processing condition to the predetermined e-mail address, so that the monitored computer It is possible to retrieve the message information transmitted from the remote location via the reply e-mail.
For this reason, even if a trouble occurs in the computer to be monitored and a notification is received from the monitoring operator, the operation status can be accurately grasped, and a quick response can be made. Moreover, it is possible to effectively prevent the occurrence of a secondary trouble based on erroneous information.

According to the operation status notification system of claim 2, the SE can send the reply e-mail to the necessary parties by writing the e-mail address in the inquiry e-mail.
As a result, it is possible to save time and effort for transferring the sent reply e-mail to the parties concerned, which contributes to a quick solution of the situation.

  According to the operation status notification system of claim 3, it is possible to effectively prevent the message information from leaking out to unauthorized persons.

  FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the overall configuration of an operation status notification system 10 according to the present invention, which is possessed by an integrated monitoring server 12 that forms the core of the system, a plurality of computer networks 14 to be monitored, and SEα and β. A personal computer 16 or a mobile phone 18 as an electronic mail terminal, and an operation management terminal 19 operated by a monitoring operator γ.

The integrated monitoring server 12 includes a message receiving unit 20, a message processing unit 22, a message information storage unit 24, a display screen generation unit 25, a mail reception unit 26, a mail processing information storage unit 28, and an authentication information storage unit. 29, a mail processing unit 30, and a mail transmission unit 32.
The message receiving unit 20, the message processing unit 22, the display screen generating unit 25, the mail receiving unit 26, the mail processing unit 30, and the mail transmitting unit 32 are used by the CPU of the integrated monitoring server 12 according to the OS and various application programs. It is realized by executing.
The message information storage unit 24, the mail processing information storage unit 28, and the authentication information storage unit 29 are provided in the hard disk of the integrated monitoring server 12.

  The personal computer 16 and the mobile phone 18 have at least an email creation / display function and a transmission / reception function, and a mail reception unit 26 of the integrated monitoring server 12 via a communication network 34 including the Internet and a mobile communication network. And a mail transmission unit 32.

Each computer network 14 to be monitored consists of a number of servers 36 connected via a LAN, and is connected to the integrated monitoring server 12 via a dedicated line 38 and a router 40.
For convenience of illustration, only two computer networks 14 are illustrated, but in reality, a large number of computer networks 14 are connected to the integrated monitoring server 12.

In addition to a business application program, a dedicated monitoring tool (program) is set up in each server 36 included in the computer network 14.
These dedicated monitoring tools have the function of individually monitoring the target software and hardware and sending the monitoring result as a message to the integrated monitoring server 12. For example, a network monitoring tool for monitoring a network failure, operation of a database, etc. This includes DB monitoring tools that monitor status, job schedule tools that manage job operations, and so on.

Thus, when a message is transmitted from each server 36 of the computer network 14 to the integrated monitoring server 12, the message receiving unit 20 receives it and passes it to the message processing unit 22.
FIG. 2 shows an example of the structure of this message. Message ID, system name, source node ID, source APP (application program) name, severity, date and time of occurrence, message type (error message or status notification message) ), The message text data item.
The message processing unit 22 performs necessary processing on each message and then registers it in the message information storage unit 24.

When new message information is registered in the message information storage unit 24, a new message list screen is generated by the display screen generation unit 25 and transmitted to the operation management terminal 19.
As a result, the latest message is displayed on the display of the operation management terminal 19. FIG. 3 shows an example of the message list screen 42.
The operator constantly monitors the message list screen 42, and when any serious failure occurs, the operator calls the SE in charge according to the manual and asks for necessary instructions.

At this time, the operator reads out the message displayed on the screen and communicates the situation to the SE. However, if this alone cannot accurately grasp the situation, the SE sends more detailed information from the integrated monitoring server 12 via email. Can be obtained.
Hereinafter, the processing procedure in this case will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, the SE creates an inquiry e-mail (hereinafter referred to as “inquiry e-mail”) according to a predetermined format using the personal computer 16 or the mobile phone 18 and transmits it to the address of the integrated monitoring server 12.
FIG. 5 (a) shows an example of the inquiry mail. The sender's SE mail address is described in the From address, and the address of the server 12 as the destination is described in the To column.
Further, the “subject (subject)” column describes “the number of failures in the latest 30 minutes”, which is the inquiry content, and the text column is left blank.

The mail receiving unit 26 that has received this inquiry mail via the communication network 34 (S10), divides it into columns as shown in FIG. 6 (S12), and then passes it to the mail processing unit 30.
Receiving this, the mail processing unit 30 first refers to the authentication information stored in the authentication information storage unit 29, and executes the authentication processing of this inquiry mail (S14).
That is, the authentication information storage unit 29 stores in advance a table in which the mail address of a valid sender is described, and by comparing this with the description in the From column of the current inquiry mail, the mail processing unit 30 Determines whether or not the subsequent process can be executed in accordance with the inquiry mail (S16).

If the authentication is not successful, the mail processing unit 30 executes error processing (S18). For example, an e-mail describing that the authentication has not been established is generated, and the e-mail is sent back to the sender through the mail transmitting unit 32.
On the other hand, when the authentication is established, the mail processing unit 30 acquires the description content in the Subject column of the inquiry mail (S20), and then refers to the mail processing information storage unit 28 to identify the processing content (S22).
In other words, the mail processing information storage unit 28 stores a table that defines the correspondence between processing conditions and processing contents, and the mail processing unit 30 is verified by comparing the description of the subject of the current inquiry mail with the processing conditions. Can recognize specific processing contents.
FIG. 7 shows an example of a combination pattern of processing conditions and processing contents. For example, when “the number of failures in the latest 30 minutes” is described in the subject of the inquiry mail, The mail processing unit 30 specifies “count the number of cases and send the result by mail” as the processing content.

Next, the mail processing unit 30 processes the information in the message information storage unit 24 in accordance with the above-described processing contents, and generates an e-mail for reply (hereinafter referred to as “answer mail”) shown in FIG. 5B (S24). .
That is, because the processing content is “Count the number of failures in the latest 30 minutes and send the result by e-mail”, the number of failures that occurred in the computer network 14 related to the SE in the last 30 minutes is calculated, and this is mailed The response email described in the body field of is automatically generated.
This reply mail is transferred from the mail processing section 30 to the mail transmission section 32 and transmitted to the mail address of the SE (S26).
On the other hand, the SE can receive this reply mail via the communication network 34 and check the operation status of the monitored system (the number of failures in the latest 30 minutes) on the display of the personal computer 16 or the mobile phone 18. .

FIG. 8 (a) shows another example of the inquiry mail. Since “operation status acquisition” is described in the Subject column, as shown in FIG. 8 (b), the SE is displayed in the text column. A reply mail describing the current operation status in the computer network 14 in charge is automatically generated by the mail processing unit 30.
FIG. 9 (a) shows another example of the inquiry mail. Since “Help” is described in the Subject column, the inquiry mail is displayed in the body text column as shown in FIG. 9 (b). An e-mail processing unit 30 automatically generates a response e-mail in which processing conditions that can be described in the Subject column and a description of the processing content are described.

The combination pattern of “processing condition-processing content” shown in FIG. 7 is merely an example, and actually a more complicated combination of “processing condition-processing content” is stored in the mail processing information storage unit 28. By selecting these processing conditions, the SE can acquire information indicating the operation status that has been processed to a higher degree via an e-mail.
As a result, the SE can accurately grasp the operation status of the monitored system from a remote location, and there is a risk that the response will be delayed or misjudged due to a misrecognition with the operator or an operator transmission error. It is possible to avoid this, and it is possible to quickly execute the optimum countermeasure.

  In addition, the processing conditions do not necessarily have to be described in the Subject field of the inquiry mail, and the system may be configured so that the mail processing unit 30 reads the processing conditions described in the text field by the SE and sends back the necessary reply mail. it can.

The SE can also send a reply mail to other parties by writing an email address other than itself in the inquiry mail.
FIG. 10 (a) shows an example of this, and since three e-mail addresses are described with a destination type designation symbol of To or Cc in the text field of the inquiry mail, as shown in FIG. 10 (b). In addition, the mail processing unit 30 generates a reply mail in which these electronic mail addresses are transcribed in the To field or Cc field of the reply mail.
As a result, the SE can send the reply mail to the necessary parties by broadcast to the system 10, and it is possible to save time and effort for transferring the reply mail to the concerned persons.

In the above description, the sender's e-mail address is used as the authentication information. However, other character strings or combinations of character strings can be used as the authentication information.
For example, a valid user name and password combination is registered as authentication information in the authentication information storage unit 29 in advance, and the user name and password combination described in the text of the inquiry mail exists in the authentication information storage unit 29 Only in this case, the mail processing unit 30 determines that the authentication is established, and in other cases, it is determined that the authentication is not established.
Alternatively, the transmission mail server name described in the header part of the inquiry mail can be used as a part of the authentication information. For example, only when a combination of a valid user name, password, e-mail address, and mail server name is registered as authentication information in the authentication information storage unit 29 in advance, and all of these character strings are included in the inquiry mail The mail processing unit 30 determines that the authentication has been established, and otherwise determines that the authentication has not been established.

It is a conceptual diagram which shows the whole structure of the operation condition notification system which concerns on this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the message transmitted from a monitoring object system. It is a layout figure which shows a message list screen. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence when SE acquires the message information in an integrated monitoring server from a remote place. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of an inquiry mail and an answer mail. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state which decomposed | disassembled the inquiry mail for every column. It is explanatory drawing which shows the combination pattern of a process condition and process content. It is explanatory drawing which shows the other example of an inquiry mail and an answer mail. It is explanatory drawing which shows the other example of an inquiry mail and an answer mail. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of the inquiry mail and reply mail at the time of broadcast transmission of a reply mail to several persons.

Explanation of symbols

10 Operation status notification system
12 Integrated monitoring server
14 Computer network
16 PC
18 mobile phone
19 Operation management terminal
20 Message receiver
22 Message processing section
24 Message information storage
25 Display screen generator
26 Mail receiver
28 Mail processing information storage
30 Mail processing part
32 Email sending part
34 Communication network
36 servers
38 Dedicated line
40 routers
42 Message list screen α SE
β SE
γ operator

Claims (4)

Means for storing a message transmitted from the operation status monitoring program set up in a plurality of computers at any time in association with the source computer in the message information storage means;
Mail processing information storage means for storing in advance a combination pattern of processing conditions and processing contents when an inquiry e-mail for inquiring operation status is transmitted;
Means for receiving an inquiry email describing the processing conditions;
Means for extracting processing conditions described in the inquiry e-mail;
Means for referring to the mail processing information storage means and specifying the processing content corresponding to the processing conditions;
Means for performing necessary arithmetic processing on the message information stored in the message information storage means according to the processing content;
Means for generating an e-mail for reply describing the processing result;
Means for replying the reply e-mail to the e-mail address of the sender;
An operation status notification system characterized by comprising: Means for extracting the e-mail address when an e-mail address other than the sender is described in the inquiry e-mail;
A means of inserting this into the reply email address field;
Means for sending this reply email;
The operation status notification system according to claim 1, further comprising: Authentication information storage means for registering a specific character string or a combination of specific character strings as authentication information;
Means for confirming whether or not a character string or a combination of character strings registered in the authentication information storage means is included in the inquiry e-mail;
Means for executing a predetermined error handling when the character string or combination of character strings is not included in the inquiry e-mail;
The operation status notification system according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising: Computer
Means for storing a message transmitted at any time from an operation status monitoring program set up in a plurality of computers in a message information storage means in association with the originating computer;
Mail processing information storage means for storing in advance a combination pattern of processing conditions and processing contents when an inquiry e-mail for inquiring operation status is transmitted;
Means for receiving an inquiry e-mail in which processing conditions are described;
Means for extracting processing conditions described in the inquiry e-mail;
Means for specifying the processing content corresponding to the processing condition with reference to the mail processing information storage means;
Means for performing necessary arithmetic processing on the message information stored in the message information storage means according to the processing content;
Means for generating an e-mail for reply describing the processing result;
Means for replying the reply email to the sender's email address;
Operation status notification program characterized by functioning as

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