JP2015118413A - Information processor, control method of information processor, and program thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information processor which reduces burden on a server machine even when many redirect printers are generated on a server, and many status notification applications operate in a remote desk top environment.SOLUTION: The information processor monitors a first printer connected via network, and a second printer managed as a redirect printer connected via a client device. The information processor includes inquiry means for inquiring of the first and second printers, and control means for controlling the interval for inquiry. The control means specifies that a printer connected is the redirect printer on the basis of port information, and makes the interval for inquiring of the second printer managed as the redirect printer relatively longer than that of the first printer according to the specification.

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a control method for the information processing apparatus, and a program thereof.

  Conventionally, the status of an image forming apparatus (printer) is confirmed on a panel attached to the printer. A status notification application is provided as a means for confirming on the PC host when the printer panel cannot be confirmed, such as when the printer is not nearby. In general, the status notification application performs status polling at regular intervals and displays the status.

  In various office environments, for example, remote desktop services provided by Microsoft Windows (registered trademark) are widely used because of the advantage that all application software and data can be collected on a server. A user can connect to a server from a client PC that executes terminal service client software and execute an application using resources on the server side.

  The server is used as a print server with a plurality of printers installed. In this case, there are as many status notification applications as there are printer drivers, and each status polls the device. In the remote desktop service, the same printer driver may be installed on both the server and the client. In this case, a printer installed locally on the client PC is automatically created in the terminal environment when the terminal is connected, and has a function that enables printing to the local printer (redirect printer).

  The status polling of the status notification application increases the load on the CPU as the number of printers increases. In particular, even if the number of redirect printers described above is small per client but there are many clients logging in, the server PC operates status notification applications for a number of redirect printers in addition to the server local printer. As a result, the load on the CPU becomes very high, which may affect not only the status notification application but also the operation of the server PC.

  Therefore, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for changing the polling interval in order to reduce the load of status polling. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for counting the number of times the status does not change and extending the status acquisition time for each predetermined count.

JP 2013-088967 A

  However, the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 avoids an increase in the CPU load of the server PC when a large number of redirect printers are generated in the remote desktop environment as described above and their status fluctuates. Can not.

  In view of the above problems, the present invention provides an information processing apparatus that reduces a load on a server machine when a large number of redirect printers are generated on a server in a remote desktop environment and a large number of status notification applications operate. With the goal.

  In order to solve the above problem, an information processing apparatus of the present invention monitors a first printing apparatus connected via a network and a second printing apparatus managed as a redirect printer connected via a client apparatus. An information processing apparatus, comprising: inquiry means for making an inquiry to the first and second printing apparatuses; and control means for controlling an interval for making the inquiry, wherein the control means includes port information. Based on the identification, the inquiry interval for the second printing device managed as the redirect printer is determined from the inquiry interval of the first printing device. Is also relatively long.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an information processing apparatus that reduces the load on a server machine even when a large number of redirect printers are generated on a server in a remote desktop environment and a large number of status notification applications operate.

It is a schematic diagram showing the composition of the system concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the control structure of information processing apparatus. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a controller unit configuration of the image forming apparatus. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of a status notification application. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a status included in an image forming apparatus. It is a module block diagram of a status notification application. It is the schematic of the status notification application which operate | moves on a server. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a table defining a status polling interval according to the number of printer drivers. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the table which defines the status polling interval according to the last status. It is a figure which shows an example of the table which defines the status polling interval according to whether it is a redirect printer. It is a figure which shows an example of the table which defines a status polling interval. It is a flowchart of the process which sets the polling interval according to the table defined in FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a communication control module when the number of printer drivers changes. It is a flowchart of the process which sets a polling interval according to the table defined in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the communication control module which received the status acquisition command. 10 is a flowchart of processing for setting a polling interval according to the table defined in FIG. 9. It is a flowchart of the process which sets a polling interval according to the table defined in FIG. It is a flowchart of the process which sets a polling interval according to the table defined in FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the configuration of the entire system according to this embodiment. In FIG. 1, a server machine (information processing apparatus) 100 is connected to client machines (client apparatuses) 101 and 102 and a plurality of client machines (not shown) using a remote desktop service. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the printer 103 and a plurality of printer drivers (not shown) are installed in the server machine 100. In the client machines 101 and 102, printers 104 and 105 are installed, respectively, and a printer driver for the printer 103 is also installed. In this embodiment, it does not matter whether the printer 103 is physically connected to the client machines 101 and 102.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the server machine 100 according to the present embodiment. The CPU 201 is a processor that controls the entire system. A RAM 202 is a system work memory for the CPU 201 to operate, and is used as a program memory for recording a program. The NVMEM 203 is a nonvolatile memory, and records setting information and the like. The ROM 204 is a non-rewritable nonvolatile memory and stores various programs. The HDD 205 is a data storage area.

  The USB interface 208 is a functional unit for connecting to a USB device, and is used for acquiring status information of other devices via the USB and returning status information. The LAN interface 207 is a functional unit for connecting to the LAN, and is used for acquiring status information of other devices and returning status information via the LAN. The above devices are arranged on the system bus 206.

  FIG. 3 shows a hardware configuration of the controller unit of the printer 103. The controller unit 313 inputs and outputs image data and device information by connecting to the printer engine unit 311 that functions as an image output device. The CPU 301 is a processor that controls the entire system. A RAM 303 is a system work memory for the operation of the CPU 301, and may be a program memory for recording a program or an image memory for temporarily recording image data. The NVMEM 304 is a nonvolatile memory and records setting information and the like.

  The operation unit 316 holds keys for operating the device and a display unit indicating the state of the device. The operation unit I / F 315 is an interface unit with the operation unit 316 and transmits control information of the display unit held by the operation unit 316. Also, it plays a role of transmitting information input by the user from the operation unit 316 to the CPU 301. The FLASH ROM 302 is a rewritable non-volatile memory in which various control programs for controlling the system are recorded. The USB interface 306 enables USB connection with an external device. The LAN interface 314 enables LAN connection with an external device. The above devices are arranged on the system bus 305.

  The image bus 307 is a bus bridge that connects the system bus 305 and an image bus 312 that transfers image data at high speed and converts the data structure. The image bus 312 is configured by, for example, a PCI bus or IEEE1394. The following devices are arranged on the image bus 312. The raster image processor RIP 308 expands vector data such as a PDL code into a bitmap image. The printer I / F 310 connects the printer engine unit 311 and the controller unit 313, and performs synchronous / asynchronous conversion of image data, transmission / reception of control commands, and power supply.

  An image processing unit 309 corrects, processes, and edits input image data, and performs printer correction, resolution conversion, and the like on print output image data. In addition, the image data is rotated, and JPEG and binary image data are subjected to compression / decompression processing such as JBIG, MMR, and MH for multi-value image data. The printer engine unit 311 is a part that converts raster image data into an image on paper. This method includes an electrophotographic method using a photosensitive drum or a photosensitive belt, an ink jet method in which ink is ejected from a minute nozzle array and an image is directly printed on paper, and any method may be adopted. . The activation of the printing operation is started by an instruction from the CPU 301.

  When the status information is inquired via the USB interface 306 or the LAN interface 314, the program recorded in the FLASH ROM 302 is executed by the CPU 301. Then, the state of the printer engine unit 311 is detected and status information is returned.

  FIG. 4 shows an exemplary screen of the status notification application 401 operating on the server machine 100. The status notification application 401 is a program stored in the ROM 204 and is executed by the CPU 201. The status notification application 201 acquires the status of the printer 103 according to a polling interval (state monitoring inquiry interval), which will be described later, stored in the NVMEM 203. The display of the display unit 402 is switched according to the content of the acquired status. The response status will be described later with reference to FIG.

  When the user installs the printer driver of the printer 103, the status notification application 401 is installed at the same time. When the status notification application 401 is installed, the status notification application 401 is associated with the printer 103.

  FIG. 5 shows a list of statuses that can be acquired by the printer 103 and the statuses that the status notification application 401 displays on the display unit 402 at that time. Hereinafter, each status will be described. A ready 501 indicates a state in which the printer 103 can print. At this time, the status notification application 401 displays 511 that can be printed on the display unit 402.

  During printing 502 indicates a state in which the printer 103 is performing a printing operation. At this time, the status notification application 401 displays “printing 512” on the display unit 402. A sleep 503 indicates that the printer 103 is in a sleep state. At this time, the status notification application 401 displays “sleeping” 513 on the display unit 402.

  A jam 504 indicates that the printer 103 is jammed and printing cannot be performed. At this time, the status notification application 401 displays a jam 514 on the display unit 402. A device failure 505 indicates that printing cannot be performed because some failure has occurred in the printer 103. At this time, the status notification application 401 displays a device failure 512 on the display unit 402.

  A power OFF (error) 506 indicates a state in which the printer 103 is not turned on. At this time, the status notification application 401 cannot obtain a response to the status acquisition command. Therefore, a timeout is specified in the status acquisition command, and if it is exceeded (that is, when a predetermined time has passed), a communication error 516 is displayed. Even if only the driver is installed and there is no actual printer, no response is obtained, and a similar communication error 516 is displayed. Hereinafter, an error indicates a communication error 516 in which a response from the device cannot be obtained.

  FIG. 6 shows a module configuration of the status notification application 401. The status notification application 401 is stored in the ROM 204 and executed on the CPU 201. The status notification application 401 includes a main application unit 403 and a communication control module 404. The communication control module 404 is also stored in the ROM 204. The main application unit 403 has a process for each printer, but the communication control module 404 is commonly used for a plurality of status notification applications. The communication control module 404 provides a status acquisition command and a plurality of other commands. The main application unit 403 loads the communication control module 404 and uses commands provided by the communication control module 404 to realize various functions such as status acquisition.

  The communication control module 404 transmits a status acquisition command for acquiring the status to the printer 103 via the LAN interface 207 or the USB interface 208. When the response status corresponding to the status acquisition command is received from the printer 103 via the LAN interface 207 or the USB interface 208, the display on the display unit 402 is switched according to the content of the response status.

  FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram when a normal printer status notification application and a redirect printer status notification application operate on the server machine 100. The main application unit 403 is a main application unit of a status notification application of the printer 103 installed in the server machine 100.

  A main application unit 604 is a main application unit of a status notification application of the printer 606 installed in the client machine 101. At this time, the printer (first printing apparatus) 103 and the printer 606 are the same printer, and the printer driver of the printer 606 is installed on both the server machine 100 and the client machine 101.

  When the client machine 101 logs in to the server machine 100 by remote desktop connection, a redirect printer of the printer (second printing apparatus) 606 is automatically generated by the OS function. The communication control module 404 detects that the number of printer drivers has increased due to the generation of the redirect printer. Since the main application has a different process for each printer, the communication control module 404 activates the main application unit 602 as a main application corresponding to the generated redirect printer.

  On the client machine 101, client software for a terminal service (not shown) is executed. The main application unit 604 loads the communication control module 605 and acquires the status. The communication control module 604 is the same module as the communication control module 404 operating on the server machine 100.

  When the communication control module 404 receives a status acquisition command from the main application unit 403, the communication control module 404 transmits the command via the LAN interface 207 or the USB interface 208. On the other hand, when the status acquisition command is received from the main application unit 602, the status acquisition command is issued to the status communication control module 605 operating on the client machine 101 via the network IF (not shown).

  FIG. 8 shows a polling interval table 701 in which intervals at which the communication control module 404 inquires about the printer status are defined. The polling interval table 701 is stored on the NVMEM 204. The polling interval 701 changes the polling interval depending on the number of printer drivers a installed in the server machine 100.

  When the number of installed printer drivers a is less than N, the polling interval is set to 1 sec. When the printer driver number a is N or more and less than M, the polling interval is set to a sec. When the printer driver number a is M or more, the polling interval is set to a * 5 sec. At this time, the threshold value N (a natural number greater than or equal to 1) and the threshold value M (a natural number greater than N) are arbitrary values and are stored in the NVMEM 204. The threshold value N and the threshold value M may be fixed values or user-definable variable values.

  FIG. 9 shows a polling interval table 801 that defines intervals at which the communication control module 404 inquires about the printer status. The polling interval table 801 is stored on the NVMEM 204. The polling interval 801 changes the polling interval according to the previous status. When the previous status is sleep 503, the polling interval is set to 10 sec. If the previous status is an error, the polling interval is set to 5 seconds. If the previous status is neither sleep nor error, the polling interval is set to 1 sec.

  FIG. 10 shows a polling interval table 901 that defines intervals at which the communication control module 404 inquires about the printer status. The polling interval table 901 is stored on the NVMEM 204. The polling interval 901 relatively changes the polling interval depending on whether or not the status acquisition target printer is a redirect printer. In the case of a redirect printer, the polling interval is set to 10 seconds. In the case of a non-redirect printer, the polling interval is set to 1 sec.

  FIG. 11 shows a polling interval table 1001 in which intervals at which the communication control module 404 inquires about the printer status are defined. The polling interval table 1001 is stored on the NVMEM 204. The polling interval table 1001 is defined by three indicators. In addition to the number of printer drivers installed in the server machine 100, the previous status is error 506, sleep 503, error and sleep information, the printer is a redirect printer.

  When the status is in an error state, as described above, the control is not returned until the status acquisition command times out, and the CPU load increases. Therefore, the polling interval is changed specially when the previous status is an error. Further, when the number of printer drivers a is small (less than N), the CPU load is originally small, so the same polling interval is taken regardless of whether the printer is a redirect printer. On the other hand, if the number of printer drivers a is very large (M or more), the maximum possible polling interval is taken regardless of whether or not the printer is a redirect printer. In this embodiment, the interval is 100 seconds, but other intervals may be used.

  When the number of printer drivers a is N or more and less than M, the polling interval is a * 5 * 5 sec for a redirect printer and a * 5 sec for a redirect printer. When a large number of redirect printers are generated in a remote desktop environment and they are communication errors, the CPU load is reduced by making the polling interval longer than that of a printer locally installed on the server.

  In cases other than sleep, error, and sleep, communication with the target printer is possible, so a fixed polling interval is taken regardless of the number of drivers a, the previous status, and whether the printer is a redirect printer. Further, the polling interval table 1001 uses three indicators, ie, the number of printer drivers a, the previous status, and whether the printer is a redirect printer, but can be defined in any combination.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating processing in which the communication control module 404 that has received the polling interval determination command determines the polling interval according to the number of printer drivers installed in the server machine 100, which is defined in the polling interval table 701. is there.

  First, when receiving a polling interval determination command (step S1101), the communication control module 404 acquires the number a of printer drivers installed in the server machine 100 (step S1102). When the acquired printer driver number a is smaller than N (No in step S1103), the polling interval is set to 1 second (step S1104).

  On the other hand, when the printer driver number a is larger than N (Yes in step S1103) and smaller than M (No in step S1105), the polling interval is set to a sec (step S1106). If the printer driver number a is larger than M (Yes in step S1105), the polling interval is set to a * 5 seconds (step S1107).

  FIG. 13 is an operation flow of the communication control module 404 when the number of installed printer drivers is changed. When the communication control module 404 is loaded into the main application unit 401, the communication control module 404 acquires in advance the number of printers a installed in the server machine 100. When a change (change) in the number of printer drivers is detected (Yes in step S1201), a polling interval determination command is issued (step S1202), and the polling interval in the changed number of printer drivers is determined.

  FIG. 14 is a flow in which the communication control module 404 that has received the polling interval determination command determines the polling interval according to the previous status defined in the polling interval table 801. First, when receiving the polling interval determination command (step S1301), the communication control module 404 acquires the previous status stored in the NVMEM 204 (step S1302). If the previous status is sleep 503 (Yes in step S1303), the polling interval is set to 10 sec (step S1304).

  When the previous status is not sleep 503 (No in step S1303) and error 506 (Yes in step S1305), the polling interval is set to 5 sec (step S1306). If the previous status is neither sleep 503 (No in step S1303) nor error 506 (No in step S1305), the polling interval is set to 1 sec (step S1307).

  FIG. 15 is an operation flow of the communication control module 404 when a status acquisition command is received. In the present embodiment, the main application unit 401 issues a status acquisition command at regular intervals, but performs status acquisition according to the determined polling interval on the communication control module 404 side that has received the status acquisition command. The communication control module 404 may notify the main application side 401 of the polling interval, and the main application unit 401 may control the polling interval.

  The communication control module 404 receives a status acquisition command from the main application unit 401 (step S1401). If the elapsed time from the previous status inquiry is less than the set polling interval (No in step S1402), the previous status stored in the NVMEM 204 is returned to the main application unit 401 (step S1403).

  On the other hand, if the elapsed time exceeds the polling interval (Yes in step S1402), the status is inquired to the printer 103 (step S1404). If the acquired status has changed from the previous status (Yes in step S1405), a polling interval determination command is issued to itself (step S1406). The acquired status is stored in the NVMEM 204 (step S1407) and returned to the main application unit 401 (step S1408).

  FIG. 16 is a flow in which the communication control module 404 that has received the polling interval determination command determines the polling interval. The polling interval is determined according to whether or not the printer associated with the status notification application 401 defined in the polling interval table 901 is a printer managed as a redirect printer. First, when receiving a polling interval determination command issued to itself (step S1501), the communication control module 404 determines (specifies) whether or not the printer is a redirect printer from the port information (step S1502). In the case of a redirect printer (Yes in step S1502), the polling interval is set to 10 sec (step S1503).

  On the other hand, if the printer is not a redirect printer (No in step S1502), the polling interval is set to 1 sec (step S1504). Since whether or not the printer is a redirect printer does not change in the middle, the communication control module 404 issues a polling interval determination command to itself at any timing before starting polling (for example, initialization processing at the time of loading). To do.

  17 and 18 are flowcharts in which the communication control module 404 that has received the polling interval determination command determines the polling interval according to the polling interval table 1001. The polling interval is determined based on the number of installed printer drivers, the previous acquisition status, and whether the printer is a redirect printer. When receiving the polling interval determination command (step S1601), the communication control module 404 acquires the number a of printer drivers installed in the server machine 100 (step S1602). Subsequently, the previous status stored in the NVMEM 204 is acquired (step S1603).

  Next, in FIG. 18, when the printer driver number a is smaller than N (No in step S1604) and the previous status is sleep 503 (Yes in step S1605), the polling interval is set to 10 sec (step S1606). On the other hand, when the previous status is not sleep 503 (No in step S1605) and error 506 (Yes in step S1607), the polling interval is set to 5 sec (step S1608). If the previous status is neither sleep 503 nor error 506 (No in step S1607), the polling interval is set to 1 sec (step S1609).

  When the printer driver number a is larger than N (Yes in step S1604), smaller than M (No in step S1610), and the previous status is sleep (Yes in step S1611), the polling interval is set to 10 sec (step S1612). . If the previous status is not sleep 503 (No in step S1611) and the error is 506 (Yes in step S1613), the process proceeds to step S1613. Then, it is determined whether the printer is a redirect printer. If the printer is a redirect printer (Yes in step S1614), the polling interval is set to the number of printer drivers a * 5 * 5 (step S1615). If the printer is not a redirect printer (No in step S1614), the polling interval is set to the number of printer drivers a * 5 (step S1616). If the previous status is neither sleep 503 (No in step S1611) nor error 506 (No in step S1613), the polling interval is set to 1 sec (step S1617).

  Returning to FIG. 17, if the printer driver number a is larger than M (Yes in step S1610), if the previous status is sleep 503 (Yes in step S1618), the polling interval is set to 10 sec (step S1619). If the previous status is not sleep 503 (No in step S1618) and error 506 (Yes in step S1620), the polling interval is set to 100 sec (step S1621). If the previous status is not sleep 503 (No in step S1618) and is not error 506 (No in step S1620), the polling interval is set to 1 sec (step S1622).

  As described above, according to this embodiment, even when a large number of redirect printers are generated on a server in a remote desktop environment and a large number of status notification applications operate, an information processing apparatus that reduces the load on the server machine 100 Can be provided.

  Each process of the present invention can also be realized by executing software (program) acquired via a network or various storage media by a processing device (CPU, processor) such as a personal computer (computer).

  As mentioned above, although preferable embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to these embodiment, A various deformation | transformation and change are possible within the range of the summary.

Claims (9)

An information processing apparatus that monitors a first printing apparatus connected via a network and a second printing apparatus managed as a redirect printer connected via a client apparatus,
Inquiry means for making an inquiry to the first and second printing devices;
Control means for controlling the interval for making the inquiry,
The control means identifies that the printing device connected based on the port information is the redirect printer, and determines the inquiry interval for the second printing device managed as the redirect printer by the identification. An information processing apparatus characterized by being relatively longer than an inquiry interval of one printing apparatus. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls an interval for performing the inquiry according to the number of the first and second printing apparatuses. When the number of the first and second printing apparatuses is greater than or equal to N (a natural number greater than or equal to 1) and less than M (a natural number greater than N), the control unit sets the inquiry interval of the second printing apparatus to the first printing. When the number is less than N, the inquiry interval of the first and second printing devices is set to the same interval, and when the number is M or more, the maximum value The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an inquiry interval is controlled. The said control means changes the said inquiry space | interval according to the number after a change, when the number of the said 1st and 2nd printing apparatuses is changed. The information processing apparatus described in 1. Further comprising obtaining means for obtaining status information of the first and second printing apparatuses;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls an interval of the inquiry according to the status information acquired by the acquisition unit. The status information includes error information, and when the status information acquired by the acquisition unit is the error information, the control unit sets the inquiry interval of the second printing apparatus to the first printing apparatus. 6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the information processing apparatus is set to be relatively longer than the inquiry interval. 7. The control unit according to claim 6, wherein when the status information acquired by the acquiring unit is information other than the error information, the control unit sets the inquiry intervals of the first and second printing apparatuses to the same interval. The information processing apparatus described. A method for controlling an information processing apparatus that monitors a first printing apparatus connected via a network and a second printing apparatus managed as a redirect printer connected via a client apparatus,
An inquiry step for making an inquiry to the first and second printing apparatuses;
A control step for controlling an interval for performing the inquiry;
Have
In the control step, it is specified that the connected printing device is a redirect printer based on the port information, and the inquiry interval for the second printing device managed as the redirect printer is determined by the specification. A control method for an information processing apparatus, characterized by making the interval relatively longer than an inquiry interval of a printing apparatus. The program for functioning a computer as a means of any one of Claims 1-7.

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