JP2022028766A - Device data management system, control method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To resolve a risk that device data managed in a device data management system is easily changed by a third person not related to device setting work when the device data has easily been specified in a case where an authentication method other than user authentication is adopted to emphasize work efficiency upon application of the device data to a device.

SOLUTION: Device setting work is caused to be performed with temporary specification information in association with device data.

SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

COPYRIGHT: (C)2022,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to a device data management system, a control method, and a program for automatically executing a device setting work according to the setting data used for the device setting work.

When introducing an information processing device (for example, a digital multifunction device), it is necessary to perform appropriate setting work according to the request of the customer at the introduction destination. Setting work includes, for example, updating firmware, changing various setting values, installing applications, etc., but if there are many work items, it takes time and human error is likely to occur. In addition, in large-scale business negotiations, the same setting work may be performed on a plurality of information processing devices, which is inefficient. Therefore, a device data management system that creates setting data that defines the setting work contents in advance, and automatically changes the setting values and installs applications based on the setting data during the setting work to improve the efficiency of the setting work. There is. As a main method of using the device data management system, it is conceivable that a sales person who listens to a customer's request creates setting data in an office, and a setting person uses the setting data in a factory or the like to perform setting work. Patent Document 1 discloses such a device data management system.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2017-76857

For the purpose of improving work efficiency when a device acquires setting data used for setting work, specifically device data applied as a setting value of an information processing device (hereinafter referred to as a device) from an external device. It is conceivable that the device is acquired from an external device by an authentication method different from the user authentication. However, since user authentication is not performed, there is a risk of unauthorized access to the device data on the external device, and there is a risk that the device data will be easily changed by a third party who is not involved in the device setting work due to spoofing attacks. ..

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to reduce the possibility of unauthorized access to device data by associating temporary specific information with device data and performing device setting work using the specific information. ..

The device management system according to an embodiment of the present invention is a device data management system that stores device data used for device setting processing in association with an ID uniquely assigned to each device data. Apart from issuing the ID that can uniquely identify the device data, an issuing means that issues an alias that can uniquely identify the device data as well as the ID, and a request from the requester. The device data is specified by using the alias included in the request in connection with the receipt of the device, and the provided means for providing the specified device data is provided, and the issued alias is set to be invalid. Then, the device data is controlled so as not to be provided based on the invalid alias.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY According to the present invention, temporary specific information can be associated with device data, and the device setting work can be performed using the specific information, and the possibility of unauthorized access to the device data can be reduced.

Explanatory diagram showing the configuration of the device data management system Explanatory drawing about hardware configuration of management server 101 Explanatory diagram showing software configuration of management server 101, PC 102, and device 103 Explanatory diagram showing the hardware configuration of the device 104 Explanatory diagram showing an example of setting data Explanatory diagram showing an example of a script executed on the device 103 Explanatory diagram showing a screen example when managing setting data on PC102 Explanatory diagram showing a screen example when editing setting data on PC102 Explanatory diagram showing an example of the alias information managed by the alias management unit 303. Flow chart showing the flow of processing for the management server 101 to update the alias information A flowchart showing the flow of the process in which the PC 102 acquires the setting data list from the management server 101. Explanatory drawing which shows an example of setting data management screen and edit screen in PC 102 Explanatory diagram showing an example of a screen when the device 103 acquires a script from the management server 101. A flowchart showing the flow of processing in which the device 103 acquires a script from the management server 101. Explanatory diagram showing an example of setting data transmitted by the management server 101 to the PC 102. Explanatory diagram showing a screen example when editing setting data on PC102 Explanatory diagram showing an example of the alias information managed by the alias management unit 303. Flow chart showing the flow of processing for the management server 101 to update the alias information A flowchart showing the flow of the process in which the PC 102 acquires the setting data list from the management server 101. Explanatory diagram showing a screen example when managing setting data on PC102 Explanatory diagram showing an example of setting data transmitted by the management server 101 to the PC 102.

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

(Example 1)
FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a device data management system in which a management server to which an embodiment of the present invention is applicable operates. The management server 101 is a management server that manages data (device data) including setting values of a network device (hereinafter abbreviated as "device") represented by a digital multifunction device.

The PC 102 is an information processing device that connects to the management server 101, authenticates the user, and then creates and edits device data. The device 103 is a network device typified by a digital multifunction device. The device 103 performs authentication other than user authentication (for example, a known authentication technique such as device authentication), connects to the management server 101, and acquires device data created by the PC 102. When using a Web service other than the service related to the setting data described in the embodiment, the user authentication may be performed. All of these devices are communicably connected by the communication line 100.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the hardware configuration of the management server 101. The hard disk (HDD) 212 stores the device data management program according to the present embodiment, which is the main operating unit in all the explanations described later. Reference numeral 201 denotes a CPU, which is the main body of execution on hardware unless otherwise specified in all the explanations described below. On the other hand, the main body of control on the software is a device data management program stored in the hard disk (HDD) 212 as described above. That is, the CPU 201 realizes the function of the management server 101 described later by reading and executing the device management program readable by the computer in the HDD 212.

202 is a ROM, which stores a BIOS and a boot program. Reference numeral 203 denotes a RAM, which functions as a main memory, a work area, and the like of the CPU 201. Reference numeral 205 denotes a keyboard controller (KBC), which controls instruction input from a keyboard (KB) 209, a pointing device (PD) 210, or the like. Reference numeral 206 is a display controller (DSPC), which controls the display of the display (DSP) 211. Reference numeral 207 is a disk controller (DKC), which controls access to a storage device such as a hard disk (HDD) 212 and a CD-ROM (CD) 213. A boot program, an operating system, a database, a device data management program, data thereof, and the like are stored in the HDD 212, the CD-ROM (CD) 213, and the like. Reference numeral 208 denotes an interface controller (IFC), which performs data communication with the PC 102 and the device 103 via the network 100. Each of these components is located on system bus 204.

The device data management program according to this embodiment may be supplied in a form of being stored in a storage medium such as a CD-ROM. In that case, the program is read from the storage medium by the CD 213 or the like shown in FIG. 2 and installed in the HDD 212. The hardware configuration of the PC 102 is also as shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing software configurations of the management server 101, PC 102, and device 103. In the management server 101, the authentication unit 300 authenticates in response to an authentication request from the PC 102 or the device 103, and determines whether the PC 102 or the device 103 can use the device data management system. The access control unit 301 controls access to device data from the PC 102 and the device 103 according to the authentication result of the authentication unit 300 and the access right set by the data access right editing unit 312 described later. The device data management unit 302 manages the device data transmitted from the PC 102. The device data includes the setting data and scripts described later. The alias management unit 303 manages aliases for device data IDs managed by the device data management unit 302. The alias is identification information that is a substitute for the ID, and it is possible to correspond to the provision range of device data by changing the alias without changing the ID.

In the PC 102, the authentication request unit 310 transmits an authentication request to the management server 101. At this time, in order to determine the access right to the device data on the management server 101, the authentication request unit 310 performs user authentication using the ID and the password. The setting data editing unit 311 acquires the setting data from the management server 101, updates the setting data, and saves the setting data in the management server 101 according to an instruction from the user. The data access right editing unit 312 sets the access right to the device data managed by the management server 101. The access right may be set for each device data, for each user, or for each group (for example, an organization) in which a plurality of users are grouped.

When the setting data editing unit 311 saves the setting data in the management server 101, the script generation unit 313 generates a script (command group that can be executed by the device 103) based on the contents of the setting data, and associates it with the setting data. Save to the management server 101. In this embodiment, the script is generated by the PC 102, but it may be generated by the management server 101. In that case, the script generation unit 313 operates on the management server 101, and when the setting data is saved from the PC 102, the script generation unit 313 is called from the device data management unit 302 to generate a script. In either case, the configuration data and the script are stored one-to-one.

In the device 103, the authentication request unit 320 transmits an authentication request to the management server 101. At this time, since the device 103 only acquires a specific script from the device data managed by the management server 101, authentication other than user authentication (for example, device authentication) is performed. Since user authentication is not required, any user who knows the device data ID by turning on the device can set the device. The script acquisition unit 321 acquires a script from the device data from the management server 101. The script execution unit 322 executes the script acquired by the script acquisition unit 321 to change the settings of the device 103, download the file, and the like.

The PC 102 or the device 103 and the management server 101 communicate with each other using known techniques such as REST (Representational State Transfer) and SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol).

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a hardware configuration of the device 104. In FIG. 4, 400 is an image forming apparatus having a printing function, a scanning function, a network communication function, and the like, as an example of the device 104. Reference numeral 401 denotes a CPU that controls the entire image forming apparatus. Reference numeral 402 is a ROM for storing the print processing program and font data executed by the CPU 401. Reference numeral 403 is a work area of the CPU 401, a reception buffer, and a RAM used for drawing an image. Reference numeral 404 is a hard disk (HDD) for recording the set values of the image forming apparatus 400.

Reference numeral 405 is an operation panel including various switches and buttons, a touch panel, and a liquid crystal display unit for displaying messages. On the operation panel 405, the user can change the set value of the image forming apparatus. 406 is a network interface for connecting to a network. 407 is a printer engine that prints on recording paper. Reference numeral 408 is a scanner for reading a document. Reference numeral 409 is a communication unit for transmitting and receiving facsimile.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of setting data among the device data managed by the management server 101. As the setting data, the setting data ID, the organization ID, the setting data name, the setting value file, the address book, and the information of the target device are held. The setting data ID is an identifier for uniquely identifying the setting data, and is an ID uniquely assigned to each setting data. This information is also used by the device 103 to specify the script, and is composed of random numbers that are easy to input from the operation panel 405 of the device 103 and difficult to guess.

The organization ID is the ID of the organization that owns the setting data. The setting data name is an arbitrary character string for making it easy for the user to identify the setting data. The setting value file is an identifier of a file in which various setting values applied to the device 103 are described. The setting value file may include, for example, an administrator account and password of the device 103, confidential information such as a contact e-mail address, and personal information. The address book is an identifier of the address book applied to the device 103. The address book may contain personal information such as fax numbers and e-mail addresses. The target device is an identifier of the target device to which the setting data is applied.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a script executed by the device 103. Specifically, it is an example of a script associated with the setting data of "setting data ID = 3152486128" shown in FIG. (Order of processing), content of processing, type of content used in processing, and identifier of the content are held. The script execution unit 322 first downloads the script shown in FIG. 6 using the setting data ID as a key, and processes No. The setting process is executed sequentially according to the above. When the content ID is specified in the processing content, the script execution unit 322 acquires the content via the communication line 100 each time. Various contents are managed separately from the device data by using the content ID as a key, and may be managed by a content server (not shown in FIG. 1), or the management server 101 may have the function. ..

In the example of the script of FIG. 6, the setting value file S001 is downloaded as the first process (process No. 001), and the setting value file S001 is applied to the device 103 as the second process (process No. 002). The procedure is described. For the head office of company A where the address book information is described as the third process (process No. 003) and restarted as the fourth process (process No. 004). The csv is downloaded, and the file downloaded as the fifth process (process No. 005) is imported into the address book. The script shown in FIG. 6 is actually expressed as structured data such as JSON (Javascript Object Notification), and is interpreted and executed by the script execution unit 322 of the device 103.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a screen when the setting data is managed by the PC 102. The screen shown in FIG. 7 may be displayed by a client application running on the PC 102, or may be displayed by connecting the PC 102 to the management server 101 with a Web browser as a Web application provided by the management server 101. ..

FIG. 7A is a login screen displayed first. If the user authentication is successful here, FIG. 7B is displayed. FIG. 7B is a list screen of setting data. Only the setting data that can be referred to by the logged-in user is displayed. Specifically, among the setting data exemplified in FIG. 5, only the setting data owned by the organization ID = 0001 of the organization to which User01 belongs is displayed. ing. On this screen, you can perform management operations such as creating and deleting setting data.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a screen when editing setting data on the PC 102. FIG. 8A shows an example of a screen displayed when the edit button of the setting data of the setting data ID = 3152486128 is pressed in FIG. 7B. Since the setting data ID is an ID automatically determined by the management server 101, it cannot be changed. As other information, the setting data name, setting value file, and address book can be edited. In addition, it is possible to specify an outsourced organization as an organization that can use the setting data. The user of the outsourced organization can perform the setting work of the device 104 by using the setting data. For content data such as setting value files and address books, you may press the browse button and select the content registered in the content server (not shown in FIG. 1), or select the file saved in the HDD 212 of the PC 102. May be.

When the save button is pressed in FIG. 8A, the setting data editing unit 311 sends the setting data input by the user to the management server 101 and saves it. Further, when a file saved in the PC 102 is specified as the content, the setting data editing unit 311 sends the specified content to a content server (not shown in FIG. 1) and saves the specified content when the save button is pressed. ..

FIG. 8B is a contractor selection screen displayed when the contractor selection button is pressed in FIG. 8A, and is also a screen for determining the provision range of the contractor. If necessary, additional registration or deletion of the contractor is possible. From the organization selected here, the setting data shown in FIG. 8A can be referred to and edited, and the organization that enables such operation is the scope of provision of the contractor.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the alias information managed by the alias management unit 303. An alias is assigned to each combination of the setting data ID and the outsourced organization ID, and the status indicating whether the alias is valid or invalid is managed. If it is valid, the expiration date of the alias is set. In this embodiment, the expiration date is set to a predetermined expiration date (for example, 3 months from the start of consignment), but the user may be allowed to specify the expiration date on the screen of FIG. The information in which each information is associated and managed in this way is referred to as alias information, but it is not necessarily limited to these information, and for example, alias information in a state where the outsourced organization ID is missing may be possible.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing in which the management server 101 updates the alias information. The process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 10 is executed by the alias management unit 303 of the management server 101. That is, the processing of the flowchart of FIG. 10 is realized by the CPU 201 reading and executing the program recorded in the HDD 212.

In step S1001, the alias management unit 303 receives an alias information update instruction from the device data management unit 302, and acquires the setting data saved by the device data management unit 302. In step S1002, the alias management unit 303 determines whether or not the outsourced organization ID is specified in the setting data acquired in step S1001. If the outsourced organization ID is specified, the process proceeds to step S1003, and if not specified, the process proceeds to step S1007.

In step S1003, the alias management unit 303 determines whether or not there is alias information that matches the combination of the setting data ID acquired in step S1001 and the outsourced organization ID. If the matching alias information exists, the process proceeds to step S1005, and if it does not exist, the process proceeds to step S1004. In step S1004, the alias management unit 303 issues an alias corresponding to the combination of the setting data ID acquired in step S1001 and the outsourced organization ID, and adds the alias information. As a result, the setting data ID, the outsourced organization ID, the alias, and the alias information associated with the device data can be created.

In step S1005, the alias management unit 303 effectively sets the status of the alias information matching the combination of the setting data ID acquired in step S1001 and the outsourced organization ID, and sets a predetermined expiration date. In step S1006, the alias management unit 303 sets invalid the status of the alias information that does not match the outsourced organization ID among the alias information that matches the setting data ID. For example, when the saved setting data ID is 3152486128 and 0002 is specified as the outsourced organization ID, the status of the second line (setting data ID = 3152486128 and outsourced organization ID = 0007) is invalidated in the example of FIG. To. This is to prevent one setting data from being outsourced to multiple outsourced organizations at the same time.

In step S1007, the alias management unit 303 sets invalid the status of all the alias information matching the setting data ID. For example, when the saved setting data ID is 3152486128 and the outsourced organization is not specified, in the example of FIG. 9, the first line (setting data ID = 3152486128 and the outsourced organization ID = 0002) and the second line (setting). Data ID = 3152486128 disables both statuses of the outsourced organization ID = 0007). This means that the consignment of the setting data is canceled and the user of another organization cannot refer to or edit the setting data.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing in which the requesting PC 102 acquires a list of setting data from the management server 101. The process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 11 is executed by the device data management unit 302 of the management server 101. That is, the processing of the flowchart of FIG. 11 is realized by the CPU 201 reading and executing the program recorded in the HDD 212.

In step S1101, the device data management unit 302 receives a setting data list acquisition request from the PC 102. In step S1102, the device data management unit 302 extracts the setting data managed by the management server 101 and whose owner is the same as the organization ID of the request sending organization, and adds it to the list of setting data. ..

In step S1103, the device data management unit 302 determines, via the alias management unit 303, whether or not there is something that is outsourced to the request sending organization (that is, the alias information is valid). If there is setting data entrusted to the request sending organization, the process proceeds to step S1104, and if not, the process proceeds to step S1107. In step S1104, the device data management unit 302 determines whether or not the expiration date of the alias information has been exceeded via the alias management unit 303. If the alias information is within the expiration date, the process proceeds to step S1105, and if the alias information has exceeded the expiration date, the process proceeds to step S1106.

In step S1105, the device data management unit 302 replaces the setting data ID of the setting data with an alias corresponding to the outsourced organization ID, and then adds it to the list of setting data. The replacement referred to here does not rewrite the setting data ID of the device data itself managed by the device data management unit 302 (that is, shown in FIG. 5). It is just a rewrite of the list data (that is, FIG. 11) transmitted by the management server 101 to the PC 102 as the processing result of FIG. That is, as the data to be transmitted to the PC 102, it means that the setting data ID of the setting data read from the HDD 212 into the RAM is replaced with an alias, and the setting data itself on the HDD 212 is not rewritten.

In step S1106, the device data management unit 302 determines whether or not the processing has been completed for all the setting data entrusted to the request transmission source organization. If the processing is completed for all the setting data, the process proceeds to step S1107, and if there is unprocessed setting data, the process returns to step S1104. In step S1107, the device data management unit 302 transmits the list of the setting data added in step S1102 and step S1105 to the request source PC 102.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a setting data management screen and an editing screen in the PC 102 displayed to the user of the outsourced organization. Specifically, the screen displayed to the user with the organization ID = 0002 is illustrated. FIG. 12A is a setting data list screen displayed to the user with the organization ID = 0002. Based on the example of FIG. 5, the setting data of the setting data ID = 50857515798 is displayed as the setting data owned by the organization ID = 0002. Further, the setting data entrusted from the organization ID = 0001 is also displayed. Here, the setting data entrusted from the organization ID = 0001 displays an alias (4848762108) instead of the original setting data ID (31524886128). As shown in FIG. 12A, there is no check box in the entrusted setting data, and the user with the organization ID = 0002 cannot be deleted.

FIG. 12B is a setting data editing screen displayed when the editing button for the setting data entrusted in FIG. 12A is pressed. Here, too, the setting data ID displays an alias. Compared to the data editing screen owned by the user (that is, FIG. 8A), FIG. 12B does not have a function of selecting an outsourcer, and instead displays the organization ID of the outsourcer. As described above, as shown in FIG. 12, the alias of the setting data ID is displayed to the user whose organization ID = 0002, which is the outsourcer, and the original setting data ID is not seen.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a screen when the requesting device 103 acquires a script from the management server 101. FIG. 13A is a screen for inputting an organization ID and a setting data ID in order to search for a desired script from the device data managed by the management server 101. Here, user authentication is not used, and the setting data can be searched by using only the numerical information that can be easily input on the operation panel 405 of the device 103. When the search button is pressed, FIG. 13B is displayed when device data matching the combination of the organization ID and the setting data ID specified by the user is stored in the management server 101, and FIG. 13B is displayed when the device data is not stored. An error screen (not shown) is displayed.

FIG. 13B is a screen for confirming the contents of the setting data in which the organization ID specified in FIG. 13A and the setting data ID match. The name of the setting data and the content of the setting process are displayed, and when the execute button is pressed, the script execution unit 322 of the device executes the setting work. Specifically, the script execution unit 322 acquires the script (FIG. 6) corresponding to the setting data ID from the management server 101, and executes the setting process while appropriately downloading the content specified by the script based on the script (FIG. 6). .. When the script execution unit 322 executes the script to the end, a setting completion screen (not shown) is displayed on the operation panel 405 of the device 103.

When the device 103 starts communication with the management server 101, the authentication requesting unit 320 performs device authentication in the background. This prevents unauthorized devices from using the device data management system. Since it is device authentication instead of user authentication, it is possible to save the trouble of inputting user information for each device and improve efficiency. Further, since the setting data ID is an alias, the alias becomes invalid after the consignment contract is canceled, so that the device cannot be set. That is, as long as the outsourced organization is not changed, the user of the organization that has received the outsourced contract can acquire device data based on the alias and perform the setting work of the device 104. Further, even if the alias itself becomes invalid, the device data ID itself originally set in the device data does not become invalid, so that the uniqueness of the device data is not lost due to the change of the outsourced organization. Therefore, the management server 101 Can easily manage device data.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing in which the device 103 acquires a script from the management server 101. The process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 14 is executed by the device data management unit 302 of the management server 101. That is, the processing of the flowchart of FIG. 14 is realized by the CPU 201 reading and executing the program recorded in the HDD 212.

In step S1401, the device data management unit 302 receives a script acquisition request from the device 103 via the authentication unit 300 and the access control unit 301. In step S1402, the device data management unit 302 determines, via the alias management unit 303, whether or not the combination of the organization ID and the setting data ID specified in the request received in step S1401 exists in the alias information. If the corresponding alias information exists, the process proceeds to step S1403, and if the alias information does not exist, the process proceeds to step S1405.

In step S1403, the device data management unit 302 determines whether the status of the alias is valid and within the expiration date based on the alias information found in step S1402. If the alias is valid and within the expiration date, the process proceeds to step S1404, and if the alias is invalid or has expired, the process proceeds to step S1406. In step S1404, the device data management unit 302 acquires the script associated with the setting data specified in step S1403 or step S1405 and transmits it to the device 103.

In step S1405, the device data management unit 302 determines whether or not setting data matching the combination of the organization ID and the setting data ID specified in the request received in step S1401 exists. If the setting data that matches the condition exists, the process proceeds to step S1404, and if it does not exist, the process proceeds to step S1406. In step S1406, the device data management unit 302 determines that there is no setting data that matches the combination of the organization ID and the setting data ID specified in the request received in step S1401, and transmits an error to the device 103.

In this embodiment, the setting data ID is not included in the script because it is unnecessary, but if it is included, the setting data ID included in the script is aliased when proceeding from step S1403 to step S1404. After replacing with, it may be transmitted to the device 103. The replacement referred to here is not the script itself managed by the device data management unit 302, but the rewriting of the data transmitted by the management server 101 to the PC 102 as the processing result of FIG. 14, as in the above-mentioned step S1105. The screen shown in FIG. 13B is displayed based on the script acquired as a result of the processing of FIG. 14, and the script execution unit 322 executes the setting processing by pressing the execute button.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of setting data transmitted by the management server 101 to the PC 102 as a result of the process of FIG. FIG. 15A is an example in which the owner of the setting data, that is, the user with the organization ID = 0001 logs in to the device data management system using the PC 102 and acquires the setting data. As shown in FIG. 5, the original value is set in the setting data ID 1501. FIG. 15B is an example in which a contractor, that is, a user with an organization ID = 0002, logs in to the device data management system using the PC 102 and acquires the same setting data as in FIG. 15A. The only difference from FIG. 15A is the portion of the setting data ID 1502. As a result of the processing in step S1105, an alias value is set in the setting data ID 1502 as shown in FIG.

According to the first embodiment, the management server 101 manages the alias of the setting data ID, and only when the alias is valid, the device data is stored by allowing access to the setting data using the ID of the alias from another person. It can be provided appropriately to others while being temporarily provided.

(Example 2)
In Example 2 of the present invention, since the configurations shown in FIGS. 1 to 7 and 13 to 14 are the same as those of the first embodiment, the same reference numerals are used for the same parts and the description thereof will be omitted. FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a screen when editing setting data on the PC 102. Compared with FIG. 8B, the difference is that it is possible to specify whether or not to allow the outsourced organization to set up the device.

The case of permitting the setting work to the outsourced organization is the same as in the first embodiment. That is, when a certain organization (organization A) creates setting data and outsources only the execution of the setting work to another organization (organization B), the setting data ID is set from the organization A to the outsourced organization B. By issuing the alias of, it is possible to acquire the script corresponding to the setting data from the device 103.

On the other hand, as a use of the setting that does not allow the setting work to the outsourced organization, another organization (organization D) may create the setting data and execute the setting based on the instruction from one organization (organization C). For example, when the setting work is not successful due to inconsistency in the setting of the instruction from the organization C and the incompleteness of the setting data cannot be solved by the organization D, the organization D sets the outsourced organization C. It is conceivable to share the data and have the contents confirmed. In this case, since the outsourced organization C does not perform the setting work, it is not necessary for the organization D to issue an alias of the setting data ID to the organization C. In addition, it is desirable to keep the setting data ID confidential so that the setting data that may contain personal information and confidential information is not easily identified. Therefore, if the outsourced organization is not allowed to perform the setting work, it is necessary to mask it to a meaningless value instead of issuing an alias for the setting data ID to the management server 101 outsourced organization (details of mask processing). Will be described later in FIG. 19).

FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of alias information managed by the alias management unit 303. The difference from FIG. 9 is that there is an alias whose status is "valid (cannot be set)". In FIG. 16, when the setting work is not permitted, the status becomes "valid (cannot be set)" as shown in FIG. In the example of FIG. 17, the alias is issued even if the status is "valid (cannot be set)", but since it is not actually used, the alias value may be empty without issuing the alias.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing in which the management server 101 updates the alias information. Compared with FIG. 10, the difference is that the processes of steps S1801 to S1802 are added. The same processing as in FIG. 10 will be omitted by using the same reference numerals.

In step S1801, the alias management unit 303 determines whether or not the outsourced organization is permitted to perform the setting work in the setting data acquired in step S1001. If the outsourced organization is permitted to perform the setting work, the process proceeds to step S1005, and if not permitted, the process proceeds to step S1802.

In step S1802, the alias management unit 303 sets the status of the alias information matching the combination of the setting data ID acquired in step S1001 and the outsourced organization ID to be valid and non-setting work, and sets a predetermined expiration date. ..

FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing in which the PC 102 acquires a list of setting data from the management server 101. Compared with FIG. 11, the difference is that the processes of steps S1901 to S1902 are added. The same processing as in FIG. 11 will be omitted by using the same reference numerals.

In step S1901, the device data management unit 302 determines, via the alias management unit 303, whether or not the status of the alias information cannot be set. If the alias information is not incapable of setting work, the process proceeds to step S1105, and if the alias information is not incapable of setting work, the process proceeds to step S1902.

In step S1902, the device data management unit 302 masks the setting data ID of the setting data, for example, "*****" and adds it to the list of setting data. The mask referred to here is not the device data itself managed by the device data management unit 302, as in step S1105 described above, but the rewriting of the list data transmitted by the management server 101 to the PC 102 as the processing result of FIG. Is.

FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a screen when managing setting data on the PC 102. Compared with FIG. 12A, the difference is that the setting data ID of the outsourced setting data is masked with "********". This is a result of executing the process of step S1902 without permitting the outsourced organization to perform the setting work in FIG.

FIG. 21 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of setting data transmitted by the management server 101 to the PC 102. Compared with FIG. 15, the difference is that the value of the setting data ID 2101 is masked as "*****". This is the result of executing step S1902 in FIG.

According to the second embodiment, when it is desired to allow the outsourced organization to only refer to and edit the setting data, the ID of the setting data will not be disclosed, so that there is a risk that the setting data will be easily specified by a third party. Can be reduced.

(Other examples)
The present invention is also realized by executing the following processing. That is, software (program) that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiment is supplied to the system or device via a network or various storage media, and the computer (or CPU, MPU, etc.) of the system or device reads the program. This is the process to be executed.

100 Communication line 101 Management server 102 PC
103 Device 300 Authentication unit 301 Access control unit 302 Device data management unit 303 Alias management unit 310 Authentication request unit 311 Setting data editing unit 312 Data access right editing unit 313 Script generation unit 320 Authentication request unit 321 Script acquisition unit 322 Script execution unit

Claims (11)

A device data management system that stores device data used for device setting processing in association with an ID uniquely assigned to each device data.
Apart from issuing the ID that can uniquely identify the device data, an issuing means that issues an alias that can uniquely identify the device data as well as the ID.
It has a providing means for specifying the device data by using the alias included in the request when the request is received from the request source and providing the specified device data.
A device data management system characterized in that when the issued alias is set to be invalid, the device data is controlled so as not to be provided based on the invalid alias. To invalidate the issued alias means to disable it.
The device data management system according to claim 1, wherein the status information of the alias is changed to invalid. If the first alias associated with one ID and issued to the first organization is invalidated, even if a request is received from the first organization, it is specified by the one ID. The device data management system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the device data is not provided to the first organization. The first alias among the first alias and the second alias associated with one ID, which is the second alias issued to the second organization related to one ID. If only is disabled, even if a request is received from the first organization, the device data specified by the one ID is not provided to the first organization, and a request is received from the second organization. Then, the device data management system according to claim 3, which provides the device data specified by the one ID to the second organization. The device data management system is
The device data management system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a holding means for holding alias information in which the alias issued by the issuing means is further associated with the ID. .. The issuing means issues an alias every time it receives an instruction to change the provision range of the device data.
The device data management system according to claim 5 , wherein the holding means holds information in which an alias issued by the issuing means is further associated with the ID. When a new alias is issued by the issuing means, the holding means enables the alias information associated with the new alias and invalidates the alias information associated with the old alias. Item 5. The device data management system according to Item 5 or 6 . The providing means provides a script of the device data in response to receiving a request from the requesting device.
The script according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , wherein the script contains an instruction to download setting data including a file related to the setting value, and the script is executed by the device. Device data management system. The device data management system according to any one of claims 1 to 8 , wherein the device is an image forming apparatus including a printer engine that prints on recording paper. It is a control method of a device data management system that stores device data used for device setting processing in association with an ID uniquely assigned to each device data.
In addition to issuing the ID that can uniquely identify the device data, an issuance step that issues an alias that can uniquely identify the device data as well as the ID.
It has a provision step of specifying the device data using the alias included in the request in connection with receiving the request from the request source and providing the specified device data.
A control method of a device data management system, characterized in that when the issued alias is set to be invalid, the device data is controlled so as not to be provided based on the invalid alias. Computer,
It is a program for operating as a device data management system that stores device data used for device setting processing in association with an ID uniquely assigned to each device data.
Apart from issuing the ID that can uniquely identify the device data, an issuing means that issues an alias that can uniquely identify the device data as well as the ID.
It has a providing means for specifying the device data by using the alias included in the request when the request is received from the request source and providing the specified device data.
To operate as a device data management system characterized in that when the issued alias is set to invalid, the device data is controlled so as not to be provided based on the invalid alias. program.

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