JP2010147803A - Communications apparatus, and method of recovering operational information when starting communications apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a communications apparatus in which an interface part can start an operation rapidly. <P>SOLUTION: A communications apparatus has an interface part, and a monitoring controller that monitors the interface part. In the communications apparatus, the interface part has an IF nonvolatile memory that stores operational information of the communications apparatus. In addition, it is preferred that the interface part starts an operation based on the operational information stored in the IF nonvolatile memory when starting a power source. Further, it is preferred that the interface part starts the operation based on the operational information stored in the IF nonvolatile memory when starting the power source. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication device and a method for restoring operation information when the communication device is activated.

  In a communication device including an interface unit (also referred to as an individual unit) and a monitoring control unit that monitors and controls the interface unit, the monitoring control unit stores all operation information of the communication device in a lump. In such a communication apparatus, the operation information is restored in the interface unit when the power is restarted after the firmware startup process in the monitoring control unit is completed.

  That is, when the communication apparatus is powered on, after the firmware startup process in the monitoring control unit is completed, the operation information in the nonvolatile memory included in the monitoring control unit is transferred from the monitoring control unit to the interface unit, and the interface unit The operation information is restored, and the service in the interface unit is resumed.

  Further, the monitoring control unit has conventionally been provided with a single nonvolatile memory, and holds only operation information in the nonvolatile memory. For this reason, if the operation information in the one nonvolatile memory is destroyed due to, for example, an unexpected power interruption during writing, the operation information is not restored.

In order to avoid such a situation, a method of providing a means for determining whether or not the contents of the nonvolatile memory are updated at the time of starting the OS and appropriately backing up, and facilitating the restoration processing of the setting information including the update information However, it is proposed in Patent Document 1 below, for example.
JP-A-5-143295

  In the conventional communication apparatus, when the power is turned on, the operation information of the interface unit is not restored until the startup of the firmware is completed, so it takes time to start the service.

  In addition, when a power failure unintended by the user due to a power failure or the like occurs, the device information stored in the nonvolatile memory may be destroyed, and the information in the nonvolatile memory is destroyed. When the device was started up, there was concern that the operation information of the individual units could not be restored normally, affecting the service.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a communication device that allows an interface unit to quickly start operation.

  The communication device according to the present invention includes an interface unit and a monitoring control unit that monitors the interface unit. The interface unit includes an IF nonvolatile memory that stores operation information of the communication device.

  In the communication apparatus according to the present invention, preferably, when the power supply is activated, the interface unit may start operation based on the operation information stored in the IF nonvolatile memory.

  In the communication apparatus according to the present invention, more preferably, the interface unit detects a plurality of IF nonvolatile memories each storing operation information, and whether or not there is an error in the operation information stored in the IF nonvolatile memory. A memory error detection unit, and when the communication device is powered on, the interface unit detects any of the plurality of IF nonvolatile memories that the IF memory error detection unit has no error in the operation information. Operation may be started based on operation information stored in one IF nonvolatile memory.

  Also, in the operation information restoring method at the time of starting the communication device according to the present invention, the interface unit includes an IF memory error detection unit that detects whether there is an error in the operation information stored in the IF nonvolatile memory, A first IF non-volatile memory and a second IF non-volatile memory for storing, and when the power is turned on, the IF memory error detection unit stores the operation information stored in the first IF non-volatile memory. When there is no error in the operation information stored in the first IF nonvolatile memory in the first error detection step for detecting whether there is an error and the first error detection step, the interface unit If there is an error in the operation information stored in the first IF non-volatile memory in the step of starting operation based on the operation information stored in the IF non-volatile memory and the first error detection step, the IF memo An error detection unit detects whether or not there is an error in the operation information stored in the second IF non-volatile memory. In the second error detection step, the second IF non-volatile memory When there is no error in the stored operation information, in the second IF non-volatile memory in the step of starting the operation based on the operation information stored in the second IF non-volatile memory and the second false detection step When there is an error in the stored operation information, an operation information restoration method is started in which operation is started based on the operation information stored in the monitoring control unit according to an instruction from the monitoring control unit.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a communication device in which the interface unit can start operation quickly.

  In the communication apparatus described in the present embodiment, the interface unit starts operation independently and provides a communication service without waiting for the firmware of the monitoring control unit to rise when the power supply is restarted. Therefore, the interface unit includes a non-volatile memory that stores operation information such as setting information of the entire communication device.

  When the power source is activated, the interface unit reads the operation information recorded in the nonvolatile memory included in the interface unit, and quickly returns to the state immediately before the power source is turned off. As a result, the service in the setting state immediately before the power is turned off is promptly restarted.

  Each of the monitoring control unit and the interface unit includes any two or more non-volatile memories in which the latest operation information is recorded, and the operation information recorded in the non-volatile memory temporarily has some problem. Even so, the operation information stored in the other nonvolatile memory is utilized to avoid the power-on startup failure of the communication device.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an overview of a monitoring control unit and an interface unit of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the communication device 100 includes a monitoring control unit 110 and an interface unit 120. Although the communication apparatus 100 actually includes a plurality of interface units 120, only one interface unit 120 is illustrated in FIG. The monitoring control unit 110 includes a monitoring control first backup memory 111 and a monitoring control second backup memory 112 that record the same operation information regarding the communication device 100.

  In addition, the monitoring control unit 110 includes a monitoring control CPU 113 that executes monitoring control program software and controls the entire communication apparatus 100. The supervisory control CPU 113 detects whether or not the operation information recorded in the supervisory control first backup memory 111 and the supervisory control second backup memory 112 cannot be properly used due to destruction, for example. An error detection unit 115 is provided. The supervisory control memory error detection unit 115 selects an appropriate memory in which usable operation information is recorded when the supervisory control unit 110 is powered on.

  In addition, the monitoring control unit 110 includes a monitoring control work memory 114 serving as a temporary storage unit for operation processing when the monitoring control CPU 113 operates. The interface unit 120 includes an IF first backup memory 121 and an IF second backup memory 122 that record the same operation information regarding the communication device 100. The same operation information recorded by the IF first backup memory 121 and the IF second backup memory 122 is the same as the operation information recorded by the monitoring control first backup memory 111 and the monitoring control second backup memory 112. To do.

  Further, the interface unit 120 includes an interface CPU 123 that executes interface program software and executes a function given to the interface unit 120. The interface CPU 123 detects an IF memory error detection unit 125 that detects whether the operation information recorded in the IF first backup memory 121 and the IF second backup memory 122 cannot be appropriately used due to, for example, destruction. Is provided. The IF memory error detection unit 125 selects an appropriate memory in which usable operation information is recorded when the interface unit 120 is powered on.

  The interface unit 120 also includes an IF work memory 124 serving as a temporary storage unit for operation processing when the interface CPU 123 operates.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory diagram of the communication apparatus. A package mounted by various communication apparatuses such as a transmission apparatus, a multiplexing apparatus, and an exchange apparatus is mounted with a large-scale integrated circuit (VLSI), a multilayer printed board, and the like to increase the density. In order to effectively use the package mounting space, a configuration in which an on-board power supply unit is mounted in each package is employed instead of the centralized power supply unit.

  In FIG. 2, reference numeral 100 (2) denotes a communication device unit, and the communication device 100 is configured by a single unit or a rack (shelf) on which a plurality of units are mounted. Reference numeral 130 denotes a CLK (clock) unit, 120 (1) to 120 (5) denote interface (IF) units, and 110 denotes a monitoring control unit.

  Further, the power supply units 230 (1) and 230 (2) show a case where the 0 system and the 1 system are duplicated, and this is used as a primary power supply to each package via the power lines 210 and 220 of the backboard. A stabilized voltage may be supplied in each package by supplying a voltage of −48 V and using the on-board power supply unit of each package as a secondary power supply. In this case, each on-board power supply unit may be configured to select either the 0 system or the 1 system as the active system.

  Each package has an on-board power supply unit (not shown). This on-board power supply unit supplies an input voltage supplied from the power supply units 230 (1) and 230 (2) through the power supply lines 210 and 220 to 5V. For example, it is configured by a switching regulator. Accordingly, it is not necessary to mount a package as a power supply unit on the unit 100 (2), so that many packages such as the interface units 120 (1) to 120 (5) can be mounted. Further, the monitoring control unit 110 collects operation information related to the mounting state and the like from each package periodically by polling.

  FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a main part of the monitoring control unit 110. In FIG. 3, the on-board power supply unit 310 stabilizes the input voltage from the power supply lines 210 and 220 and supplies it to the package. Also, 330 is a polling control unit, 320 is an operation information collecting unit, 113 is a monitoring control CPU, 115 is a monitoring control memory error detecting unit, 111 is a monitoring control first backup memory, 112 is a monitoring control second backup memory, and 114 is Monitoring control work memory.

  The polling control unit 330 transmits and receives polling information to and from each package constituting the communication device 100, and the operation information collection unit 320 that collects the mounting state and the like is the mounting state of each package that constitutes the communication device. Collect information such as. The monitoring control CPU 113 executes a monitoring control program for polling, and controls the polling control unit 330 and the operation information collection unit 320.

  The monitoring control work memory 114 stores various information as an external storage unit of the monitoring control CPU 113. The monitoring control first backup memory 111 and the monitoring control second backup memory 112 store the operation information of each unit when starting the communication device, and the maintenance person sets the operation information when the power is turned on. It may have the same operation information. In other words, the monitoring control first backup memory 111 and the monitoring control second backup memory 112 serve as auxiliary memories in preparation for a malfunction such as any destruction of recorded contents.

  As the polling control unit 330 transmits and receives polling information to each package, the operation information collection unit 320 collects information on the mounting state of each package and transfers it to the monitoring control CPU 113. In addition, operation information such as the mounting state is stored in the monitoring control first backup memory 111 and the monitoring control second backup memory 112.

  When starting up the power supply of the communication device, the information stored in the monitoring control first backup memory 111 and the monitoring control second backup memory 112 is transferred from the monitoring control unit 110 by polling control according to the command of the monitoring control CPU 113. If the setting is made for each package and the operation as a communication apparatus is started by the end of the setting, it takes time until the monitoring control unit 110 starts up.

  Therefore, in the communication device 100 and the unit 100 (2), the interface unit 120 and the interface units 120 (1) to 120 (5) set the operation information independently. The monitoring control unit 110 periodically polls to collect operation information such as confirmation of setting information and collection of alarm status.

  Here, the operation information is a term used when standing on the monitored system side, and it is understood that the term monitoring information is appropriate when standing on the monitoring system side. Information necessary for the operation of 100 (2) is collectively referred to as operation information.

  Since the supervisory control work memory 114 is a memory that requires high-speed operation, it is generally composed of a volatile memory such as a random access memory. Non-volatile memories applied to the monitoring control first backup memory 111 and the monitoring control second backup memory 112 include an electrically erasable programmable read only memory (E2PROM), a flash memory (FRAM, Or FLASH ROM).

  As described above, the communication device 100 is actually configured with a plurality of units 100 (2) in reality, but the communication device 100 may be configured with the unit 100 (2) alone. Therefore, in the following description, the communication device 100 includes the unit 100 (2).

  The communication device 100 performs polling control that configures the monitoring control unit 110 with status information (corresponding to operation information) indicating the operating status and setting status of the communication device 100 including an alarm, duplex line and device switching information, and the like. Collected in part 330. That is, the operational information defined above is a general term for alarms, status information, and the like.

  The operation information collected by the polling control unit 330 is written into the monitoring control work memory 114 and used for various control processes associated with monitoring. The supervisory control work memory 114 is composed of a volatile memory because it requires high-speed operation, but the volatile memory has a feature that the stored operation information is lost due to a power interruption or the like.

  Further, when the monitoring control unit 110 itself fails and recovers, the monitoring control work memory 114 is initialized and then restarted. Therefore, immediately after the restarting, the monitoring control work memory 114 stores operation information. It is also assumed that there will be no state. As described above, if the stored operation information is lost, the monitoring control unit 110 may hinder start-up and cannot perform a highly reliable monitoring operation.

  For this reason, the monitoring control unit 110 stores the operation information once stored in the monitoring control work memory 114 into the monitoring control first backup memory 111, the monitoring control second backup memory 112, and the IF first that are configured from a nonvolatile memory. The data is also transferred to the backup memory 121 and the IF second backup memory 122 so as to avoid the loss and start the service by prompt start-up.

  Further, when a change occurs in the operation information stored in the monitoring control work memory 114, the communication device 100 displays the change information in the monitoring control first backup memory 111, the monitoring control second backup memory 112, and the IF first backup. In the memory 121 and the IF second backup memory 122, the monitoring control first backup memory 111, the monitoring control second backup memory 112, the IF first backup memory 121, and the IF second backup memory 122 are stored. Ensure that the latest operational information is stored.

  Thereby, even if the operation information stored in the monitoring control work memory 114 is lost for some reason, the monitoring control first backup memory 111, the monitoring control second backup memory 112, and the IF first backup memory 121 and IF By expanding the operation information stored in the second backup memory 122 in the monitoring control work memory 114, the monitoring control unit 110 can execute the monitoring control operation.

  In addition, when there is a change in the operation information, the monitoring control unit 110 transfers the change information to an operation system (not shown) having a higher management function so that the operation information of the communication apparatus can be managed in the operation system. It may be. Even if there is a failure in the monitoring control unit 110, the operation information stored in the operation system when the monitoring control unit 110 is restarted is expanded in the monitoring control work memory 114, so that the operation of the monitoring control unit 110 can be performed. It may be restored.

  FIG. 4 is a process flow diagram illustrating an outline of the operation process of the monitoring control unit 110. Therefore, the processing of the monitoring control unit 110 will be described sequentially based on the steps shown in FIG. Note that the processing described below is an example of operation processing of the monitoring control unit 110 and is not limited to this.

(Step S41)
The monitoring control CPU 113 of the monitoring control unit 110 determines whether or not the communication device 100 is powered on. When the monitoring control CPU 113 of the monitoring control unit 110 determines that the power of the communication device 100 is turned on, the process proceeds to step S42. If the monitoring control CPU 113 of the monitoring control unit 110 determines that the power of the communication device 100 is not turned on, it waits in step S41.

(Step S42)
The monitoring control CPU 113 of the monitoring control unit 110 determines whether or not the startup of the firmware related to the monitoring operation has been completed. If the monitoring control CPU 113 of the monitoring control unit 110 determines that the startup of the firmware related to the monitoring operation has been completed, the process proceeds to step S43. If the monitoring control CPU 113 of the monitoring control unit 110 determines that the startup of the firmware related to the monitoring operation has not been completed, the process waits in step S42.

(Step S43)
The monitoring control memory error detection unit 115 detects whether or not the operation information stored in the monitoring control first backup memory 111 is normal and a failure such as destruction occurs. If the monitoring control memory error detection unit 115 detects that the operation information stored in the monitoring control first backup memory 111 is normal and does not cause a malfunction such as destruction, the process proceeds to step S44. If the monitoring control memory error detection unit 115 detects that the operation information stored in the monitoring control first backup memory 111 is not normal and has a malfunction such as destruction, the process proceeds to step S45.

(Step S44)
The monitoring control CPU 113 transfers the operation information stored in the monitoring control first backup memory 111 to the monitoring control work memory 114.

(Step S45)
The monitoring control memory error detection unit 115 detects whether or not the operation information stored in the monitoring control second backup memory 112 is normal and a failure such as destruction occurs. If the monitoring control memory error detection unit 115 detects that the operation information stored in the monitoring control second backup memory 112 is normal and there is no malfunction such as destruction, the process proceeds to step S46. If the monitoring control memory error detection unit 115 detects that the operation information stored in the monitoring control second backup memory 112 is not normal and has a defect such as destruction, the process proceeds to step S47.

(Step S46)
The monitoring control CPU 113 transfers the operation information stored in the monitoring control second backup memory 112 to the monitoring control work memory 114.

(Step S47)
The monitoring control unit 110 obtains operation information from the interface unit 120 that holds appropriate operation information.

(Step S48)
The monitoring control unit 110 starts the monitoring control operation and processing of the communication device 100.

  Next, operation processing of the interface unit 120 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a process flow diagram for explaining an outline of the operation process of the interface unit 120. Therefore, the processing of the interface unit 120 will be described sequentially based on the steps shown in FIG. Note that the processing shown below is an example of the operation processing of the interface unit 120 and is not limited to this.

(Step S51)
The interface CPU 123 of the interface unit 120 determines whether or not the communication device 100 is powered on. When the interface CPU 123 of the interface unit 120 determines that the power of the communication device 100 is turned on, the process proceeds to step S52. If the interface CPU 123 of the interface unit 120 determines that the power of the communication device 100 is not turned on, it waits in step S51.

(Step S52)
The IF memory error detection unit 125 detects whether or not the operation information stored in the IF first backup memory 121 is normal and a malfunction such as destruction occurs. If the IF memory error detection unit 125 detects that the operation information stored in the IF first backup memory 121 is normal and there is no malfunction such as destruction, the process proceeds to step S54. On the other hand, if the IF memory error detection unit 125 detects that the operation information stored in the IF first backup memory 121 is not normal and has a defect such as destruction, the process proceeds to step S53.

(Step S53)
The IF memory error detection unit 125 detects whether or not the operation information stored in the IF second backup memory 122 is normal and a malfunction such as destruction occurs. If the IF memory error detection unit 125 detects that the operation information stored in the IF second backup memory 122 is normal and there is no failure such as destruction, the process proceeds to step S55. If the IF memory error detection unit 125 detects that the operation information stored in the IF second backup memory 122 is not normal and has a malfunction such as destruction, the process proceeds to step S56.

(Step S54)
The interface CPU 123 transfers the operation information stored in the IF first backup memory 121 to the IF work memory 124.

(Step S55)
The interface CPU 123 transfers the operation information stored in the IF second backup memory 122 to the IF work memory 124.

(Step S56)
The interface CPU 123 transfers the operation information stored in the monitoring control unit 110 to the IF work memory 124.

  Through the above processing, the interface unit 120 quickly obtains and sets operation information and starts a service without depending on the start-up of the firmware of the monitoring control unit 110.

  In addition, one or more individual units (corresponding to the interface unit) and one or more monitoring control units that monitor / control them are connected to each other, and the nonvolatile memory in the device is necessary for service. It is possible to provide a device that mounts various setting information (corresponding to operation information) and restores the operation information from the nonvolatile memory and restores the service based on the operation information when the device is started up.

  In addition, one or a plurality of individual units and one or a plurality of monitoring control units for monitoring / controlling them are connected to each other, and are equipped with nonvolatile memory operation information in the device, It is possible to provide a device that has a plurality of operation information in the internal memory, selects normal operation information in a plurality of nonvolatile memories, and restores the service based on the operation information when the device is started up.

  When powering up a conventional communication device, the operation information is stored in the non-volatile memory in the monitoring control unit, and the operation information is restored to the individual unit after the firmware startup process is complete. ing. Since the startup of the firmware is a time-consuming process, it takes time from the startup of the apparatus to the start of service.

  In addition, in conventional communication devices, only one piece of operation information is installed in the non-volatile memory in the supervisory control unit. Therefore, the operation information in the non-volatile memory can be detected by an unexpected power interruption (such as a power failure). When the system was destroyed, the operation information before the power interruption did not exist in the device, so the operation information could not be restored and the service was affected.

  In the communication apparatus 100, the service can be started without waiting for the startup of the firmware by restoring the operation information without going through the firmware immediately after the power is turned on. By performing the restoration process of operation information only on hardware without going through firmware, the time from power on to service restoration has been greatly shortened.

  In addition, having multiple operation information in the non-volatile memory makes it possible to retain the operation information in the non-volatile memory in the device even if an unintentional power interruption occurs. It will be possible to improve quality.

  The communication device 100 and the unit 100 (2) described above and their respective constituent elements are not limited to the description in the present embodiment, and the configuration and operation processing can be appropriately changed within the obvious range. This will be understood by those skilled in the art.

It is a schematic diagram explaining an outline | summary about the monitoring control part and interface part of the communication apparatus concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic explanatory drawing of a communication apparatus. It is principal part explanatory drawing of a monitoring control part. It is a processing flowchart explaining the outline | summary of the operation processing of a monitoring control part. It is a processing flowchart explaining the outline | summary of the operation | movement process of an interface part.

Explanation of symbols

  100 ..Communication device 110 ..Monitoring control unit 111 ..Monitoring control first backup memory 112 ..Monitoring control second backup memory 113 ..Monitoring control CPU 114 ..Monitoring control work memory 115. -Monitoring control memory error detection unit, 120-Interface unit, 121-IF first backup memory, 122-IF second backup memory, 123-Interface CPU, 124-IF work memory, 125-IF memory Error detection unit.

Claims (4)

In a communication apparatus comprising an interface unit and a monitoring control unit that monitors the interface unit,
The interface unit includes an IF non-volatile memory that stores operation information of the communication device. The communication device according to claim 1,
When the power is turned on,
The interface unit starts operation based on operation information stored in the IF nonvolatile memory. The communication device according to claim 1 or 2,
The interface unit includes a plurality of IF non-volatile memories each storing the operation information, and an IF memory error detecting unit detecting whether or not there is an error in the operation information stored in the IF non-volatile memory. ,
When the power of the communication device is activated,
The interface unit is
Based on the operation information stored in any one of the IF non-volatile memories, the IF memory error detection unit detects that the operation information has no error among the plurality of IF non-volatile memories. A communication device. An operation information restoration method at the time of starting a communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The interface unit includes: an IF memory error detection unit that detects the presence or absence of an error in the operation information stored in the IF nonvolatile memory; a first IF nonvolatile memory that stores the operation information; and a second IF non-volatile memory,
When the power is turned on,
A first error detection step in which the IF memory error detection unit detects whether or not the operation information stored in the first IF nonvolatile memory has an error;
In the first erroneous detection step, when there is no error in the operation information stored in the first IF nonvolatile memory,
The interface unit starting operation based on the operation information stored in the first IF nonvolatile memory;
In the first erroneous detection step, when there is an error in the operation information stored in the first IF nonvolatile memory,
A second error detection step in which the IF memory error detection unit detects whether or not the operation information stored in the second IF nonvolatile memory has an error;
In the second erroneous detection step, when there is no error in the operation information stored in the second IF nonvolatile memory,
Starting operation based on the operation information stored in the second IF nonvolatile memory;
In the second erroneous detection step, when there is an error in the operation information stored in the second IF nonvolatile memory,
An operation information restoration method at the time of starting a communication device, characterized in that an operation is started based on the operation information stored in the monitoring control unit in response to an instruction from the monitoring control unit.

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