JP2006269065A - Information processor and its maintenance service system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To minimize damage to a user when a recording/reproducing device fails by controlling the removal of the recording/reproducing device having contents recorded therein and an access limit while protecting a copyright. <P>SOLUTION: The information processor incorporating a removable hard disk device is provided with: a command issuing means for notifying host ID information unique to the processor to the hard disk device; a locking means for inhibiting the removable of the hard disk device; a command issuing means for making an inquiry about removal permission to the disk device; and removal control means for permitting removal based on command response to instruct unlocking to the locking means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for protecting the copyright of content in an information processing apparatus incorporating a storage device.

  With the spread of satellite broadcasting and cable TV broadcasting, there is an information processing device that incorporates a hard disk device in a broadcast receiver such as a television, set-top box, video recorder, etc., and records the content such as transmitted movies and music on the hard disk device. Proposed. In such a system, the data handled is digitized, so protecting the copyright of the content is an important issue. For this reason, the content is encrypted and recorded, and the hard disk device cannot be easily removed from the broadcast receiver. Further, as an example of permitting easy removal of the hard disk device in consideration of security, for example, as described in JP-A-8-138307, information reading / writing prohibiting means and removal detecting means of the hard disk device are disclosed. There is a technique for prohibiting access to the disk device by the prohibiting means when the hard disk device is removed. In this case, at the time of remounting, access to the disk device is permitted when a preset key matches.

JP-A-8-138307

  Since hard disk devices have a mechanism such as a motor, there is a risk of failure, and because of rapid progress in technology, they become obsolete in a few years, so there is no need to replace the hard disk device built in the broadcast receiver. high. If the hard disk device cannot be easily removed from the broadcast receiver, the hard disk device can be replaced by a maintenance service person visiting each home and replacing the disk device, or the user can visit the retail store or service center together with the broadcast receiver. It is necessary to bring it in or send it out, and the cost and time required for replacement are inefficient.

  On the other hand, in the case of allowing the disk device to be easily removed using the above-described conventional technology, the key setting is performed by the user himself, so that the copyright protection for the user who illegally copies the content is not possible. Can not. Conversely, even if only content that does not require copyright protection is recorded, a user who does not know the key cannot use the disk device, which is not convenient. Also, if a disk device fails, the purchased content is wasted although it can be easily removed.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a technique for controlling the removal and access restriction of a disk device in which content is recorded while protecting the copyright in an information processing device incorporating a removable hard disk device. .

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a technique for minimizing the damage to the user when a disk device fails.

In order to achieve the object of the present invention, in an information processing apparatus incorporating a removable recording / reproducing apparatus, command issuing means for notifying the recording / reproducing apparatus of host ID information unique to the processing apparatus, and prohibiting the removal of the recording / reproducing apparatus Locking means, command issuing means for querying the recording / reproducing apparatus for permission of removal, and removal control means for permitting removal based on a response to the command and instructing the lock means to release the lock. In the recording / reproducing apparatus, means for holding host ID information, means for holding removal permission flag information indicating whether or not there is content prohibited from being removed from the recording / reproducing apparatus in order to protect copyright, Means for holding removal state flag information for preventing reuse of a recording / playback apparatus forcibly removed by an unauthorized person, and content record management means for performing detailed control over recorded content are provided. In addition, the content record management means includes content ID information that is unique ID information included in each content, host ID information issued by the host that instructed the content write processing, and the currently connected host accessing the content. Means is provided for holding content validity flag information indicating whether or not it is possible and detachment control information indicating whether or not the recording / reproducing apparatus on which the content is recorded is permitted to be removed.

  Furthermore, in an online maintenance service system for an information processing apparatus incorporating a removable recording / reproducing apparatus, means for holding the ID information unique to the recording / reproducing apparatus, means for performing failure prediction diagnosis of the recording / reproducing apparatus, If it is determined that a replacement is necessary due to a failure, the recording / reproducing device is permitted to be removed, and the replacement is correctly performed by managing the correspondence between the device ID of the recording / reproducing device after replacement and the device ID before replacement. And a means for re-distributing the purchased content for the substitute product upon receiving the proof. Also, if it is determined that replacement is necessary due to the risk of failure, after the data of the recording / reproducing device is backed up, the removal is permitted in the same manner as described above, and the device ID of the recording / reproducing device after replacement is replaced. Means were provided for proving that the exchange was correctly performed by managing the correspondence with the previous device ID. Further, when the user desires to upgrade the recording / reproducing apparatus, the content prohibited from being removed is moved, the removal is permitted after allowing the removal, and the apparatus ID and the old apparatus ID of the new recording / reproducing apparatus are permitted. And a means for certifying that the upgrade was successful by managing the correspondence with.

  As described above, according to the present invention, in an information processing apparatus incorporating a removable hard disk device, it is possible to lock the removal of the disk device on which the content is recorded, and to protect the copyright.

  In addition, the copyright can be protected by prohibiting access to the content other than the information processing apparatus that records the content.

  In addition, since only contents that do not require copyright protection are recorded, they can be freely removed, so that the portability and convenience of the disk device can be improved.

  In addition, if a disk device fails, it can be easily removed, and if a state that is likely to fail is detected, content that requires copyright protection is moved to another storage device, so that the copyright can be protected while the copyright is protected. User damage can be minimized. In this case, since the object of repair and replacement is only the disk device, the cost and time required for repair and replacement can be reduced.

  Also, in a service system that performs online maintenance of disk units, if a disk unit that records purchased content fails, or if a failure is detected and replaced, a failure or replacement proof is provided at the maintenance center. Since the service provider redistributes the purchased content to the replaced hard disk device based on the proof, the damage to the authorized user due to the failure while preventing the misdelivery of the content to the unauthorized person Can be minimized.

  A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows an information processing apparatus in which a set top box 102 incorporating a removable hard disk device 101 and a monitor 103 are connected. In this example, when information (external input signal 105) input from the outside, such as cable broadcasting or satellite broadcasting, is recorded on the hard disk device 101, the hard disk device 101 can be easily removed while considering copyright protection. The set top box 102 may be connected to another device such as a PC (personal computer) 104 via an external interface 106. Hereinafter, the operation of this system will be described in detail.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the set-top box 102 and the hard disk device 101 shown in FIG. The set top box 102 includes a host unit 201 and a hard disk device 101. The host unit 201 includes a tuner 203, an A / D converter 204, a demodulator 205, a descrambler 206, a host RAM 207, a monitor output unit 211, an HDD interface. It comprises a face control unit 202, an external interface control unit 208, a user interface control unit 209, and a host CPU 210. An external input signal 105 such as cable broadcasting or satellite broadcasting is detected by a tuner 203, converted into digital information by an A / D converter 204, and then sent to a host RAM 207 via a demodulator 205 and a descrambler 206. Thereafter, when viewing information, the monitor output unit 211 is connected to the monitor 103, when recording is performed on the hard disk device 101, the HDD interface control unit 202 is used for recording, and when the information is further transferred to an external device, an external interface is used. The data is transferred to an external device via the face control unit 208. The user instructs processing such as information recording, reproduction, and transfer to the set top box 102 via the user interface control unit 209, and upon receiving the instruction, the host CPU 210 controls a series of blocks.

  The HDD interface control unit 202 includes a data transfer unit 214, a removal control unit 213, and a lock mechanism unit 212. The data transfer unit 214 controls data transfer between the host RAM 207 and the hard disk device 101. The removal control unit 213 controls the removal of the hard disk device 101 in consideration of copyright protection. The lock mechanism unit 212 fixes the hard disk device 101 so that the hard disk device 101 cannot be easily removed from the set-top box 102, and unlocks only based on an instruction from the removal control unit 213. As a method of fixing and removing the hard disk device 101, a cassette tape loading mechanism in a known video cassette tape recorder may be employed, or a drawer with an electrical key is provided in the set top box 102, and the drawer is removed. The hard disk device 101 may be stored in the storage device, and the key may be electrically opened based on an instruction from the removal control unit 213.

  On the other hand, the hard disk device 101 includes a disk CPU 216, a host interface control unit 215, a disk controller 217, a disk RAM 218, a signal processing unit 220, a servo controller 219, and an HDA unit 221. The disk CPU 216 controls data processing of the entire hard disk device 101. The disk controller 217 controls data transfer between the host interface control unit 215 and the disk RAM 218 and between the signal processing unit 220 and the disk RAM 218. The signal processing unit 220 performs data encoding / decoding processing and A / D conversion. The HDA unit 221 includes a recording medium for storing data, a spindle motor for fixing the recording medium, a read / write head, an actuator for supporting the head, a voice coil motor for moving the actuator, and the like. The servo controller 219 controls the spindle motor and voice coil motor. The host interface control unit 215 includes a removal permission flag register 224, a removal state flag register 225, a content recording management table 222, and a host ID register 223, and is connected to the host unit 201 via the internal interface 226. . Specific examples of internal interfaces include ATA, IEEE 1394, SSA, Fiber Channel, and the like, but any interface standard can be applied as long as communication can be performed between the host unit 201 and the hard disk device 101.

  The removal permission flag register 224 indicates whether content stored in the hard disk device 101 is prohibited from being removed from the hard disk device 101 in order to protect the copyright. The removal state flag register 225 is flag information for preventing reuse of the hard disk device 101 that has been forcibly removed by an unauthorized person. This is controlled so that it is enabled only when the hard disk device 101 is removed following normal steps, and the access to the host unit 201 is permitted by checking the flag state when the hard disk device 101 is mounted again. Just do it. The content record management table 222 stores information for performing detailed control on the recorded content. The host ID register 223 stores the host ID notified from the host unit 201. Although not shown, a plurality of hard disk devices 101 may be connected on the internal interface 226.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of the content record management table 222. The content ID 301 indicates unique ID information included in each content. The host ID 302 indicates unique ID information owned by the host unit 201 that has instructed the hard disk device 101 to write content. The content validity flag 303 is a flag indicating whether or not the currently connected host unit 201 can access the content. The total data length 304 indicates the data length of the entire content, and the accumulated data length 305 indicates the data length already recorded during the recording of the content. The transfer status flag 306 indicates whether or not the content is being recorded and whether or not an error has occurred during recording. The copy control information 307 indicates whether the content can be copied. For example, it has information such as free copying, copying only once, copying completed, copying not possible, and the like. The removal control information 308 indicates whether or not the removal of the hard disk device 101 in which the content is recorded is permitted. The content holder can obtain a higher copyright protection level for the content by setting the copy control to non-copying and the removal control to non-removable.

Next, each process in the present embodiment will be described using a flowchart. FIG. 4 is an operation flowchart at the time of initial setting in the hard disk device 101. When it is necessary to perform initial settings such as power-on and system reset, the content recording management table information stored in the recording medium in advance, the flag information indicating the removal state, and the host ID information are read from the recording medium, the management table, It is set in each of the removal state flag register and the host ID register (S402).
In this case, the host ID information indicates the host ID 302 issued by the host unit 201 that accessed the hard disk device 101 last time. On the other hand, the host unit 201 issues the host ID 302 in order to obtain an access right to the content stored in the hard disk device 101 (S403).

  When the host ID 302 is received (S404), the host ID 302 stored in the host ID register 223 is compared with the issued host ID 302 (S405). If they do not match, the value of the removal status flag register 225 is enabled. It is determined whether or not (S406). If it is disabled, there is a possibility that the hard disk device 101 has been illegally removed, so access from the host unit 201 is prohibited, and the reason is notified to the host unit (S408). If the value of the removal status flag register 225 is enabled, it is determined that the hard disk device 101 has been removed by following a normal procedure, and the host ID 302 newly issued by the host unit 201 is stored in the host ID register 223 ( S407).

  After the determination on the presence / absence of unauthorized removal, it is determined whether each entry on the management table 222 matches the host ID 302 issued by the host unit 201 (S409). The content validity flag 303 for the entry is set to enable (S410). Further, it is determined whether there is content that cannot be removed using the removal control information 308 (S411), and if there is, the removal permission flag register 224 is set to disabled (S412).

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of content write processing in the HDD interface control unit 202 in the host unit 201. When storing externally input content in the hard disk device 101, the host CPU 210 issues a content write request to the HDD interface control unit 202 (S502). Upon receiving the write request, the data transfer unit 214 transfers the content data buffered in the host RAM 207 to the hard disk device 101 based on the standard of the internal interface 226.

  Here, the format of the transfer data will be described with reference to FIG. When a content sender such as a provider transmits content, it adds the header portion 601 to the head of the data portion that is the content and transmits the content. The header portion 601 includes a content ID 301, an overall data length 304, copy control information 307, and removal control information 308.

  The content receiver (host unit 201) divides all sent data into packets 603 so that the data can be efficiently recorded on the hard disk device 101 (S503), and inserts a header unit 604 for each packet 603 (S504). The packets 603 are sequentially transferred (S505). In this example, as shown in FIG. 6, the header portion 604 includes an address 605 and a packet length 606, but may be generated based on the standard of the internal interface 226. In other words, the host unit 201 divides the content sent from the content sender into packets 603, generates and inserts a header unit 604 for each packet 603 based on the standard of the internal interface 226, and transfers it to the hard disk device 101. To do.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart of content write processing in the hard disk device 101. When a content write request is received from the host unit 201 (S702), the content recording management table 222 is updated (S703). The content ID 301, the entire data length 304, the copy control information 307, and the removal control information 308 can be obtained from the content header 601. The host ID 302 adopts the value of the host ID register 223 and sets the content validity flag 303 to enable. After the packet data is written on the recording medium (S704), the recorded data length is added to the accumulated data length 305, and the packet transfer result is set in the transfer status flag 306 (S705). For example, it indicates the presence or absence of an error that occurred during packet transfer, whether recording on the content is in progress or has ended, and the like. Further, the value of the removal permission flag register 224 is updated based on the removal control information 308.

  Finally, the updated content recording management table 222 is stored in the recording medium (S706), and a transfer end report is notified to the host unit 201 (S707). As a method for the hard disk device 101 to grasp the header length and content of the content header portion 601, the format and content recording at the time of content recording between the host unit 201 and the hard disk device 101 or between the content sender and the hard disk device 101 are described. It is sufficient to predefine a command for use.

  When reading content from the hard disk device 101, the host unit 201 reads the content recording management table 222 in order to grasp the content accessible by the host unit 201. At this time, the hard disk device 101 transfers only the entry that matches the host ID 302 of the host unit 201 to the host unit 201. Therefore, the content can be read only by the host unit 201 that has written the content.

  FIGS. 8 and 9 show processing necessary for removing the hard disk device 101 from the set-top box 102. FIG. 8 is a flowchart of each processing in the host unit 201 and FIG. When a removal request for the hard disk device 101 is generated by an instruction from a user or the like (S802), the host CPU 210 instructs the HDD interface control unit 202 to perform removal processing. Upon receiving the instruction, the removal control unit 213 issues a removal inquiry command to the hard disk device 101 in order to determine whether or not to remove the hard disk device 101 (S803). If the response from the hard disk device 101 is permission to be removed, the lock mechanism unit 212 is instructed to release the lock fixing the hard disk device 101 (S806). If the response cannot be removed, the user or the like is notified to that effect (S807).

  When the hard disk device 101 receives a removal inquiry command (S902), the value of the removal permission flag register 224 is returned to the host unit 201 (S906). If the value of the permission flag register 224 is enabled, the removal state flag register 225 The value is set to enable (S904), and the value is stored in the recording medium (S905).

  The cause of the request for removing the hard disk device 101 is not only a request from the user but also a request based on a failure and a failure prediction. FIG. 10 is a flowchart of failure diagnosis processing of the hard disk device 101 in the host unit 201. The hard disk device 101 usually has a failure predictive diagnosis function called SMART (Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology). This is a technique for predicting a failure of the hard disk device 101 in advance by, for example, investigating the number of retries that occurred during read processing, the number of errors that could not be corrected by ECC, the number of occurrences of replacement processing, and the like. In accordance with an instruction from the host unit 201 or an instruction from the disk CPU 216, failure prediction diagnosis of the hard disk device 101 is periodically performed (S1002).

  If the hard disk device 101 is already inaccessible, that is, has failed, the removal control unit 213 instructs the lock mechanism unit 212 to forcibly release the lock (S1004). To that effect and notifies the replacement of the hard disk device 101 (S1005). In this case, since the value of the removal state flag register 225 is in a disabled state, even if an unauthorized person can remove the hard disk device 101 as if it has failed, other hosts can be removed as shown in FIG. The unit 201 cannot be used and can protect the copyright.

  If there is no failure, it is determined whether the failure danger level has been reached (S1006). The failure risk level is set in advance to a level that increases the probability of failure when reaching a certain value or higher with respect to the diagnosis result obtained by the SMART. If the risk level has been reached, the hard disk device 101 needs to be replaced, the capacity used in the hard disk device 101 to be replaced is checked (S1007), and another storage device accessible by the host unit 201 It is checked whether or not there is a free area more than the capacity (S1008). If there is a vacancy, all data including the content is moved to the vacant area (S1010), the entry on the content record management table 222 of the migration source and destination hard disk device 101 is updated (S1011), and the table information is recorded. Store in the medium (S1012). At this stage, since the hard disk device 101 to be replaced can be removed, the lock mechanism unit 212 releases the HDD fixed lock (S1013), and notifies the user of the completion of content movement and replacement advice of the hard disk device (S1014). ). If there is no free space, the user is advised to move the content (S1009).

  If the user wants to upgrade the hard disk device 101, the host CPU 210 is notified via the user interface control unit 209 and issues a removal inquiry command to the hard disk device 101. If the response from the hard disk device 101 can be removed, the HDD lock is released as described above. If the response is not removable, the content record management table 222 is read, the content prohibited to be removed is investigated, the content is moved to another storage device by following the procedure from S1008 in FIG. Is released.

  In the above description, it is assumed that the content copy control information 307 and the removal control information 308 are set by the content sender, but may be set by the user. In this case, the host unit 201 may generate header information 601 instead of the content sender and send the packet to the hard disk device 101 in accordance with the user's request.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 11 is a block diagram of an online maintenance service system for the disk recorder 1101, in which a disk recorder 1101, service provider 1103, and HDD user management center 1102 are connected via a network 1104.

  The disk recorder 1101 is a recording device incorporating the hard disk device 101 and has the same configuration as the set-top box 102 shown in FIG. 2, but in the host unit 201, the communication control unit 1105 communicates with an external network 1104. Data transfer is possible. The host unit 201 has a user ID issued by the service provider 1103. On the other hand, the hard disk device 101 has a disk ID 1107 unique to the hard disk device 101. The disk ID 1107 may be decided by the manufacturer before the hard disk device 101 is shipped, or may be issued by the HDD user management center 1102 after the shipment.

  The service provider 1103 has a communication control unit 1113 for transmitting content in response to a user's request, and has registration information 1112 for each user who subscribes to the service.

  The HDD user management center 1102 communicates with the disk recorder 1101 and the service provider 1103 through the communication control unit 1111, and the online control unit 1109 performs failure diagnosis and upgrade of the hard disk device 101 used by a user who subscribes to the provider 1103. Do. At that time, the backup control unit 1110 performs data backup of the hard disk device 101 as necessary. Further, the status of each hard disk device 101 is grasped using the disk registration information 1108. The network 1104 connects the above three parties, and a dedicated line or the Internet may be used.

  FIG. 12 shows an example of the above-described user registration information 1112 and disk registration information 1108. In the user registration information 1112 in FIG. 12A, the disk ID 1107, user information 1201, content purchase status 1202, and viewing trend information 1203 are managed for each user ID 1106 issued by the provider 1103. The disk ID 1107 indicates the disk ID 1107 of the hard disk device 101 in which the content to be transmitted is stored. User information 1201 indicates personal information such as the user's name, address, and membership expiration date, and is obtained when the user registers as a member. The content purchase status 1202 shows a list of content purchased by the user. The viewing trend information 1203 indicates the result of analyzing the user's preference from the content recorded on the hard disk device 101 by the user.

  On the other hand, the disk registration information 1108 in FIG. 12B manages the usage status 1204, diagnosis status 1205, and replacement / repair status 1206 for each disk ID 1107. The usage status 1204 indicates the frequency and tendency of the user accessing the hard disk device 101. Using this data, hard disk device manufacturers can grasp the exact user needs such as required device durability and feed back to the next product. The diagnosis status 1205 indicates the result of failure prediction diagnosis of the hard disk device 101. For diagnosis, the SMART function described in the first embodiment may be used, or a diagnosis method unique to the hard disk device manufacturer may be used. The diagnosis instruction may be given by the hard disk device 101 itself, or may be given by the disk recorder 1101 or the management center 1102. The replacement / repair status 1206 indicates the status of replacement or repair due to a failure or upgrade of the hard disk device 101.

  FIG. 13 shows an example of a business model using the online maintenance service system shown in FIG. A user 1301 purchases a disk recorder 1101 with a built-in hard disk device 101 from a retail store 1305. In addition, a service provider 1103 is contracted to receive services that can be received using the disk recorder 1101. The content provider 1304 provides content to the user 1301 via the service provider 1103. The HDD user management center 1102 performs online maintenance on the hard disk device 101 used by the user 1301 and collects a maintenance fee from the user 1301 via the service provider 1103.

  The online maintenance service provided by the HDD user management center 1102 includes replacement support such as failure diagnosis and upgrade for the hard disk device 101. Before executing the service, the HDD user management center 1102 obtains the disk registration information 1108 of the hard disk device 101 to be maintained. When the service provider 1103 performs user registration, the disk ID 1107 of the hard disk device 101 to be used can be obtained at the same time, so the service provider 1103 may notify the HDD user management center 1102. If the network 1104 is compatible with the Internet, the hard disk device 101 can be directly accessed from the HDD user management center 1102 by assigning an IP address to each of the disk recorder 1101, the host unit 201, and the hard disk device 101. It is.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart of online maintenance service processing centered on the HDD user management center 1102. The hard disk device 101 to be diagnosed is designated (S1402), and the diagnosis is executed for the disk device 101 (S1403). In this case, a diagnostic command may be issued directly from the management center 1102 or a self-diagnosis may be performed inside the disk device 101 and the result reported to the management center 1102. If the disk device 101 (for example, the disk ID “A”) is not accessible as a result of the diagnosis, the disk registration information 1108 (diagnosis status 1205 and replacement / repair status 1206) is displayed if a failure occurs. Update. That is, the fact that the diagnosis result is a failure and the failed disk device is being replaced is recorded (S1405).

  Next, in order to remove the failed disk device 101 from the disk recorder 1101, it is removed from the host unit 201 and a permission command is issued (S1406). The host unit 201 normally does not perform removal unless the value of the removal permission flag register 224 of the hard disk device 101 is enabled. However, the HDD fixed lock is released by a command from the management center, and a failure has occurred to the user 1301. A message is issued to return the removed disk device 101 to the HDD vendor 1302 (S1407).

  Also, the management center 1102 notifies the HDD vendor 1302 that the hard disk device 101 with the disk ID 1107 “A” has failed (S1408). After receiving the failed disk device 101 from the user 1301, the HDD vendor 1302 registers “A” in the replacement disk ID 1107 and returns it to the user 1301 (S 1409). When the user 1301 sets an alternative to the disk recorder 1101, the management center 1102 updates the disk registration information 1108 (replacement / repair status 1206) for the disk ID 1107 “A” (replaced S1410). Furthermore, a failure certificate with a disk ID 1107 “A” is issued to the service provider 1103 (S1411). The certificate certifies that the hard disk device 101 has failed and has been replaced with a replacement by a regular procedure. Upon receipt of the certificate, the service provider 1103 uses the user registration information 1112 to investigate the content that the user 1301 has already purchased from the content purchase status 1202 registered in the disk ID 1107 “A” and redistribute it to an alternative product. Perform (S1412).

  As a result of the diagnosis, if no failure has occurred but the failure risk level has been reached, the backup control unit 1110 performs automatic backup of the data of the disk device 101 (S1415). The automatic backup service may be able to select whether to receive the service at the time of user registration. The backup destination may be stored in a storage device held by the management center 1102 or may be stored in another storage device used by the user 1301. Further, the user use area of the hard disk device 101 may be limited to some extent, and a part of the hard disk device 101 attached to the disk recorder 1101 of another user 1301 subscribed to the service provider 1103 may be used.

  If a single user 1301 has insufficient recording capacity to back up, it is distributed to a plurality of users 1301. When receiving this service, the user 1301 can also receive a discount on the service fee. Alternatively, the user 1301 may designate a backup target directory in advance and back up only the directory. After the backup is completed, the disk registration information 1108 (diagnosis status 1205 and replacement / repair status 1206) is updated (reaching the failure danger level, replacing S1416). Further, the HDD vendor 1302 is instructed to send a replacement of the disk ID 1107 “A” (disk ID 1107 “A ′”) (S 1417). A removal permission command is issued to the host unit 201 as in the case of the failure (S1418). However, since the disk device 101 has not yet failed, the disk device 101 is directly removed and a command for enabling the value of the permission flag register 224 is issued. May be issued (S1418).

  The host unit 201 instructs the user 1301 to replace the hard disk device 101 (S1419). When the user 1301 replaces the hard disk device 101, the management center 1102 registers the disk ID 1107 “A ′” (S1420), and the service provider 1103. An exchange certificate is issued to the server (S1421). This proves that the disk device 101 has been exchanged from the disk ID 1107 “A” to the disk ID 1107 “A ′”. Upon receiving the certificate, the service provider 1103 uses the user registration information 1112 to change the disk ID 1107 “A” to “A ′”, and the user 1301 has already been purchased from the content purchase status 1202 registered in “A”. The content is investigated and redistributed to the replacement product (S1422).

  Further, when the hard disk device 101 used by the user 1301 is to be upgraded (when the old hard disk device 101 is to be used for another purpose), a request is issued to the service provider 1103. The service provider 1103 checks whether there is purchased (paid) content in the disk device 101 using the user registration information 1112, and if so, moves the content to another storage device or deletes it. To the management center 1102. The management center 1102 communicates with the disk device 101, investigates content that cannot be removed, and issues a command to move or delete.

  In the above-described embodiment, the hard disk device 101 is targeted, but it goes without saying that the present invention can also be applied to a storage device capable of recording / reproducing, for example, a magneto-optical disk device or a semiconductor memory device. Further, the content recording management table 222, the host ID register 223, the removal permission flag register 224, the removal status flag register 225, or the disk ID 1107 as shown in FIG. 11 are stored in the recording medium itself. Thus, it is possible to similarly control loading and unloading of a recording medium such as a DVD disk or a cassette tape.

It is an example of the information processing apparatus concerning this invention. 1 is a system block diagram of an information processing apparatus according to the present invention. It is an example of the content recording management table concerning this invention. 4 is a flowchart at the time of initial setting in the hard disk device according to the present invention. It is a flowchart at the time of the content write process in the host part concerning this invention. It is an example of the format of the transfer data concerning this invention. 4 is a flowchart at the time of content write processing in the hard disk device according to the present invention. It is a flowchart at the time of the removal process in the host part concerning this invention. 4 is a flowchart at the time of removal processing in the hard disk device according to the present invention. It is a flowchart at the time of the fault diagnosis process concerning this invention. 1 is a block diagram of an online maintenance service system according to the present invention. It is an example of the user registration information concerning this invention, and disk registration information. It is an example of the online maintenance service model concerning this invention. It is a flowchart at the time of the online maintenance service process concerning this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 ... Hard disk apparatus, 102 ... Set top box, 213 ... Removal control part, 222 ... Content recording management table, 223 ... Host ID register, 224 ... Removal permission register, 225 ... Removal status register, 301 ... Content ID, 1101 ... Disk Recorder 1102 HDD user management center 1103 Service provider 1106 User ID 1107 Disk ID

Claims (3)

  In a maintenance service system in which an information processing device incorporating a removable recording / reproducing device, a management center for the recording / reproducing device, and a service provider that provides content are connected to each other, the recording / reproducing device has a device ID unique to the device. And the management center permits the removal of the recording / reproducing apparatus when it is determined that the replacement is necessary due to a failure as a result of the failure diagnosis for the recording / reproducing apparatus. By managing the correspondence between the device ID and the device ID before replacement, the service provider proves that the device has been correctly replaced, and based on the proof, the service provider confirms the recording / playback device after replacement before replacement. A maintenance service system for redistributing content held by a recording / reproducing apparatus.   2. The maintenance service system according to claim 1, wherein when the management center determines that replacement is necessary due to a risk of failure as a result of failure diagnosis for the recording / reproducing device, the management center stores the data of the recording / reproducing device. The service provider permits the removal after the backup, and manages the correspondence between the device ID of the recording / reproducing device after the replacement and the device ID before the replacement. Based on this, a maintenance service system characterized in that the content held by the recording / reproducing apparatus before the exchange is redistributed to the exchanged recording / reproducing apparatus. 3. The maintenance service system according to claim 1, wherein, when the user desires to upgrade the recording / reproducing apparatus, the management center moves the content prohibited from being removed and sets the state in which the removal is permitted. The service provider proves that the upgrade has been correctly performed by managing the correspondence between the device ID of the new recording / reproducing device and the old device ID, and the service provider determines that the new recording / reproducing device is based on the proof. A maintenance service system which redistributes content held by an old recording / reproducing device to the device.

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