JP4802159B2 - Network equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a network device having a plurality of network interfaces.

In IEEE802.3ad described in Non-Patent Document 1 below, load distribution for data transmission is realized using a plurality of network interfaces. In this technique, a network interface to be actually used is determined from a plurality of network interfaces based on a transmission destination address, and data is transmitted.
IEEE Std 802.3-2005, 43. Link Aggregation, [online], 2005, IEEE, [searched August 6, 2007], Internet <URL: http://standards.ieee.org/getieee802/download/ 802.3-2005_section3.pdf>

  However, if the destination address is biased, the load on a specific network interface card increases, and the network quality required by the service may not be realized. In other words, even if an attempt is made to distribute the load of the network interface card to be used by using the transmission destination address or the like, the network interface card to be used is uniquely determined by the transmission destination address or the like. It becomes impossible to load balance cards.

Therefore, in order to solve the above-described problem, the present invention provides a network device that can be controlled so as not to be biased to one communication means when there are a plurality of communication means such as a network interface. For the purpose.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a plurality of service means for generating communication data, a plurality of communication means for executing communication of communication data generated by the service means, and the plurality of service means. A storage unit that stores a correspondence table that associates the plurality of communication units, a status determination unit that determines a communication status of each of the plurality of communication units, and a communication from one service unit among the plurality of service units Upon receiving the request, a selection unit that selects one communication unit corresponding to the one service unit based on the correspondence table stored in the storage unit and the communication status determined by the status determination unit; includes, in the one communication means selected by the selecting means, performs communication of the communication data provided by the one service means, said selecting means , Determining whether the one communication means can be used by another service means other than the one service means, and determining that the one communication means is usable, wherein the one communication means is one When used by a service means, selection control is performed so that the one communication means is not used by the other service means .

According to this invention, when a communication request is received from one service means among a plurality of service means, it corresponds to one service means based on the correspondence table between the service means and the communication means and the communication status in each communication means. One communication means is selected, and the selected one communication means executes communication of communication data provided by one service means. Thereby, the use can be distributed to each communication means in a plurality of communication means, and the communication efficiency can be improved without the use being concentrated on one communication means. Further, it is a case where it is determined whether or not one communication means can be used by another service means other than one service means, and one communication means is one service means. If the service is used by the other service means, the use bandwidth of the one communication means can be secured by performing selection control so that the other communication means is not used, and the load on the one communication means can be secured. Can be reduced and communication efficiency can be improved.

  In the network apparatus according to the present invention, it is preferable that a plurality of the selection means are provided, and each selection means selects a predetermined communication means from among the plurality of communication means.

  Further, in the network device of the present invention, when the selection unit determines that the communication state in the one communication unit is less than or equal to a predetermined amount by the state determination unit, the selection unit determines the one communication unit. When it is determined that the communication status of the one communication unit is greater than a predetermined amount, it is preferable to perform control to select a communication unit other than the one communication unit.

  According to this invention, when it is determined that the communication status of one communication means is less than or equal to the predetermined amount, the one communication means is selected, and the communication status of the one communication means is greater than the predetermined amount. When it is determined that a lot of communication is occurring, by selecting a communication means other than the one communication means, the use is not concentrated on one communication means, and the load can be reduced. .

  The present invention can distribute the use to a plurality of communication means, and can improve the communication efficiency without concentrating the use on one communication means.

  The present invention can be readily understood by considering the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings shown for the embodiments. Subsequently, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Where possible, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

  A multiple service providing system which is a network device using a plurality of NICs (network interface cards) according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  First, the configuration of a multiple service providing system on a computer according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a multiple service providing system according to the present embodiment. The multiple service providing system 100 includes an application unit 101 (applications 101a to 101c: service unit), a virtual network interface (NWI / F) unit 102 (selection unit), and a service / real network interface card (NIC) table 103 (storage unit). , Real network interface card unit 104 (real network interface cards 104a to 104c: communication means), virtual network interface (NWI / F) control unit 105, real network interface card (NIC) monitor 106 (situation judging means), and real network The situation table 107 is included.

  FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of the multiple service providing system 100. As shown in FIG. 2, the multiple service providing system 100 shown in FIG. 1 physically includes a CPU 11, a RAM 12 and a ROM 13 as main storage devices, an input device 14 such as a keyboard and a mouse as input devices, a display, and the like. Output device 15, a communication module 16 which is a data transmission / reception device such as a network card, an auxiliary storage device 17 such as a hard disk, and the like. Each function described in FIG. 1 has the input device 14, the output device 15, and the communication module 16 under the control of the CPU 11 by reading predetermined computer software on the hardware such as the CPU 11 and the RAM 12 shown in FIG. This is realized by reading and writing data in the RAM 12 and the auxiliary storage device 17. Hereinafter, each functional block will be described based on the functional blocks shown in FIG.

  The application unit 101 includes an application 101a (Appli-1), an application 101b (Appli-2), and an application 101c (Appli-3), and is a service means for providing a service. The application unit 101 is for realizing, for example, a function for providing a service as a mail server and a function for providing a service as an HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) server. In order to realize these services, the application unit 101 generates data for a predetermined destination, and outputs the data to the virtual network interface unit 102 so that the real network interface card unit 104 transmits the data to the predetermined destination. .

  The virtual network interface (virtual NWI / F) unit 102 controls data transfer between the application unit 101 and the real network interface card unit 104, and selects which network interface is used according to the application. It has a function as a driver. The virtual network interface unit 102 receives data from one application 101 n (n is an arbitrary one of a to c) of the application unit 101, and is a real network interface card according to information stored in the service / real NIC table 103. The unit 104 selects one real network interface card 104n (n is an arbitrary one of a to c), that is, one of the real network interface cards 104a to 104c.

  Specifically, the virtual network interface unit 102 designates one real network interface card 104n according to the correspondence table stored in the service / real NIC table 103, and can be used in the designated real network interface card 104n. By determining the bandwidth, it is determined whether or not the actual network interface card 104n can be used (whether or not it is a predetermined threshold value or more).

  Here, the virtual network interface unit 102 inquires of the available bandwidth to the network interface (NIC) monitor 106 about availability. When the virtual network interface unit 102 receives a response to the inquiry from the NIC monitor 106 and determines that it can be used (is equal to or greater than the threshold value), the virtual network interface unit 102 uses the designated real network interface card 104n for communication. Select as interface.

  When the virtual network interface unit 102 receives a response to the above inquiry from the network interface card monitor 106 and determines that the virtual network interface unit 102 cannot be used (below the threshold), the virtual network interface unit 102m (a -C, which is different from n), or another application 101m (from any of a-c, which is different from n) to one real network interface card 104n If there is a use request, control is made so that it is rejected. Thereby, a use band can be ensured.

  This process will be described in detail. When the virtual network interface unit 102 receives a data transmission request from the application 101n and determines that the usable bandwidth of the designated real network interface card 104n is less than the threshold, The other service use availability column corresponding to the real network interface in the real network status table 107 is rewritten to “0” so that the real network interface card 104n thus received does not receive a transmission request from another application 101m.

  Further, when the virtual network interface unit 102 determines that the available bandwidth is less than the threshold, the virtual network interface unit 102 determines whether there is another real network interface card 104m. For example, the virtual network interface unit 102 determines whether there is a real network interface card 104m whose available bandwidth is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold.

  Here, if there is no other real network interface card 104m, the designated real network interface card 104n is selected. If it exists, another real network interface card 104m is selected. As another method of selecting the real network interface card 104m, it is conceivable to preferentially select one having a high available bandwidth. Other than this, a card other than one real network interface card 104n may be arbitrarily selected, or priorities are set in advance, for example, when the real network interface card 104a cannot be selected. Priority may be given so that the actual network interface card 104b is selected.

  The service / real NIC table 103 is a part that stores a correspondence table indicating a correspondence relationship of which real network interface cards 104a to 104c are used by the applications 101a to 101c in the application unit 101. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, information for specifying the applications 101a to 101c and the actual network interface cards 104a to 104c to be used are stored in association with each other. The information for specifying the application includes, but is not limited to, a transmission port number in TCP. Na

  The real network interface card unit 104 includes a plurality of real network interface cards 104a to 104c and is a communication unit for communicating with an external device. The real network interface card unit 104 is a part that transmits and receives transmission data output from the virtual network interface unit 102 to a designated destination.

  The virtual NWI / F control unit 105 registers in the service / real NIC table 103 which application 101a to 101c uses which real network interface card 104a to 104c in advance by an operator operation. In addition, the virtual network interface control unit 105 registers the available bandwidth threshold value of each of the real network interface cards 104a to 104c in the real network status table 107 in advance.

  A network interface card (NIC) monitor 106 is a part that connects to the actual network status table 107 and monitors the communication status. The network interface card monitor 106 acquires the utilization rate (usable bandwidth) of each real network interface card 104a to 104c at regular intervals, and updates the real network status table 107.

  Then, the virtual network interface unit 102 receives a use request for one application 101n, and then the network interface card monitor 106 inquires from the virtual network interface unit 102 about the available bandwidth of the real network interface card 104n and the availability of other services. In response to this, it refers to the other service availability column in the actual network status table 107, and responds with the available bandwidth and threshold and availability of other services. That is, the network interface card monitor 106 outputs the current usable bandwidth, threshold value, and other service availability information to the virtual network interface unit 102. When the virtual network interface unit 102 determines that the available bandwidth is less than the threshold and “1” is described in the other service availability column, the virtual network interface unit 102n of the actual network interface card 104n in the other service If the temporary use is permitted and it is determined that “0” is described in the other service use availability column, a process of rejecting the use of the real network interface card 104n in the other service is executed.

  The real network status table 107 stores a status table in which the availability of other applications, the current available bandwidth, and the threshold are associated with each real network interface card. Specifically, the situation table shown in FIG. 4 is stored. In FIG. 4, NIC-1 (real network interface card 104a) describes “0” indicating that other services cannot be used, the current available bandwidth is 50 MBps, and the threshold is 100 MBps. The availability of other services can be rewritten by the network interface card monitor 106. It should be noted that “1” is described as the availability of other services, and it is preferable that “1” is normally described as a default. In addition, the available bandwidth is periodically updated, and is updated according to the usage status in the actual network interface card.

  The operation of the multiple service providing system 100 configured as described above will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the multiple service providing system 100.

  First, transmission data is received by the virtual network interface unit 102 from the application 101n for providing a service (S101). Then, the virtual network interface unit 102 searches the real network interface card 104n corresponding to the service based on the service / real NIC table 103, and designates one real network interface card 104n (S102).

  Next, the virtual network interface unit 102 determines whether or not the usable bandwidth of the designated real network interface card 104n is equal to or larger than the threshold value by inquiring the network interface card monitor 106 (S103). If the virtual network interface unit 102 determines that the threshold value is equal to or greater than the threshold, the designated real network interface card 104n is selected, and transmission data is designated by the application 101n from the application 101n via the real network interface card 104n. Is transmitted to the destination (S104).

  If the virtual network interface unit 102 determines that the value is less than the threshold, it is determined whether or not another service can use the real network interface card 104n (S105). Here, if the virtual network interface unit 102 determines that it can be used in another service, the network interface card monitor 106 makes the specified real network interface card 104n unavailable to other services. The other service availability column in the actual network status table 107 is rewritten to “0” (S106). Then, the transmission data is transmitted from the designated real network interface card 104n (S107).

  If the virtual network interface unit 102 determines that no other service is available in S105 (S105: NO), it is determined whether there is another real network interface card 104m whose available bandwidth is equal to or greater than the threshold. (S108). If it is determined that there is a real network interface card 104m that is equal to or greater than the threshold, the virtual network interface unit 102 selects the real network interface card 104m and transmits transmission data (S109). If it is determined that there is no real network interface card 104m equal to or greater than the threshold, transmission data is transmitted by the real network interface card 104n designated in S102 (S107).

  In this way, the virtual network interface unit 102 selects one network interface from the actual network interface card unit 104 used based on the usage status, so that the use is not concentrated on one network interface. Efficient communication can be realized.

  Next, a multiple service providing system 100a according to a modification of the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 6 shows a configuration of a multiple service providing system 100a in the modified example. The multiple service providing system 100a includes an application unit 101 (applications 101a to 101d), virtual network interface units 102a and 102b, a service / real network interface (NIC) table 103, a real network interface card unit 104 (real network interface cards 104a to 104a). 104d), a virtual network interface (NWI / F) control unit 105, a network interface (NIC) monitor 106, and an actual network status table 107. The multi-service providing system 100a is configured by the hardware shown in FIG.

  Each configuration will be described below. The multiple service providing system 100 is different from the multiple service providing system 100 in that an application 101d and a real network interface card 104d are added and virtual network interface units 102a and 102b are provided instead of the virtual network interface unit 102. Here, differences will be described.

  The applications 101a to 101d can instruct which virtual network interface unit 102a or 102b is to be connected to by specifying using source information or destination information such as an IP address. The applications 101a to 101b output transmission data to the designated virtual network interface unit 102a or 102b.

  The virtual network interface unit 102a is a part that performs communication control of the real network interface cards 104a and 104b. The virtual network interface unit 102b is a part that performs communication control of the real network interface cards 104c and 104d. The virtual network interface unit 102 a receives transmission data from the applications 101 a and 101 b and selects one network interface of the real network interface cards 104 a or 104 b according to the correspondence table described in the service / real NIC table 103. . Similarly, the virtual network interface unit 102b receives transmission data from the applications 101c and 101d, and according to the correspondence table described in the service / real NIC table 103, one of the real network interface cards 104c or 104d. Select a network interface.

  Thus, in a modification, you may comprise so that multiple virtual network interface parts 102a and 102b may be provided. In this case, in the service / real NIC table 103, it is necessary to store an application and a network interface in association with each other for each of the virtual network interface units 102a and 102b.

  In other virtual network interface units 102a and 102b, the detailed processing is the same as that of the virtual network interface unit 102, and the multiple service providing system 100a can execute the operation processing shown in FIG. Naturally, the network interface card monitor 106 and the real network status table 107 store and process information including the real network interface card 104d.

  Next, operational effects of the multiple service providing system 100 of the present embodiment will be described. Upon receiving a communication request from one application 101n (any of a to c) among the applications 101a to 101c, which are a plurality of service means, the multiple service providing system 100 according to the present embodiment receives the service / real NIC table 103. The real network interface card 104n corresponding to one application 101n is selected based on the correspondence table stored in the table and the communication status of each real network interface card 104a to 104c, and the selected real network interface card 104n is selected. Performs communication of communication data provided by one application 101n. Thereby, the use can be distributed among the real network interface cards 104a to 104c, and the communication efficiency can be improved without concentrating the use on one real network interface card.

  In particular, as a difference from IEEE 802.3ad described as the prior art, IEEE 802.3ad is a device (PC) and switch (or router) that cooperate with each other to provide the functions of IEEE 802.3ad. On the other hand, the present invention is a system that is completed within a multiple service providing system, and does not require cooperation with a switch (or router), and the configuration can be simplified.

  Moreover, as this modification, it can comprise as the multiple service provision system 100a. According to this, the virtual network interface units 102a and 102b are provided as a plurality of selection means, each virtual network interface unit 102a selects the network interface card 104a or 104b, and each virtual network interface unit 102b is a network interface card. Select 104c or 104d.

  In the multiple service providing system 100 according to the present embodiment, when the network interface card monitor 106 determines that the communication status of one network interface card 104n is less than a predetermined amount, that is, it can be used. When the bandwidth is equal to or greater than the threshold, when the one network interface card 104n is selected and it is determined that the communication status in the one network interface card 104n is more than a predetermined amount, that is, the available bandwidth Is less than the threshold, by selecting a network interface card 104m other than the one network interface card 104n, its use is not concentrated on one network interface card 104m. It is possible to reduce the load.

  In the multiple service providing system 100 according to the present embodiment, the virtual network interface unit 102 is configured such that one network interface card 104n is an application 101m other than the one application 101n (any one of ac, not n). ) To determine whether it can be used. If one network interface card 104n is used by one application 101n, it is determined by another application 101m. By performing selection control so that one network interface card 104n is not used, the bandwidth used in one network interface card 104n can be secured, and one network interface card 10 Reduce the load in the n, it is possible to improve the communication efficiency.

  Note that the above-described effects can also be obtained in the multiple service providing system 100a.

It is a block diagram of the multiple service provision system concerning this embodiment. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of a multiple service providing system 100. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a correspondence table stored in a service / real NIC table 103. FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the status table memorize | stored in the real network status table. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the multiple service providing system 100. It is a block diagram of the multiple service provision system 100a in a modification.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Multiple service provision system, 100a ... Multiple service provision system, 101 ... Application part, 102 ... Virtual network interface part, 102a ... Virtual network interface part, 102b ... Virtual network interface part, 103 ... Service and real NIC table, 104 ... Real network interface card unit 105... Virtual network interface control unit 106... Network interface card monitor 107.

Claims (3)

A plurality of service means for generating communication data;
A plurality of communication means for executing communication of communication data generated by the service means;
Storage means for storing a correspondence table in which the plurality of service means and the plurality of communication means are associated with each other;
Status determination means for determining the communication status of each of the plurality of communication means;
When a communication request is received from one service means among the plurality of service means, it corresponds to the one service means based on the correspondence table stored in the storage means and the communication status determined by the status determination means. Selecting means for selecting one communication means to perform,
The one communication means selected by the selection means executes communication of communication data provided by the one service means ,
The selecting means determines whether or not the one communication means can be used by other service means other than the one service means, and determines that the one communication means can be used. When the means is used by one service means, selection control is performed so that the other communication means does not use the one communication means . A plurality of the selection means are provided,
2. The network device according to claim 1, wherein each of the selection units selects a predetermined communication unit from among the plurality of communication units. The selecting means selects the one communication means when it is determined by the situation determining means that the communication status of the one communication means is less than or equal to a predetermined amount.
The control for selecting a communication unit other than the one communication unit is performed when it is determined that the communication status of the one communication unit is greater than a predetermined amount. 3. The network device according to 2.

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