JP6809429B2 - Communication relay device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a communication relay device.

Conventionally, in a network, a redundant configuration is adopted so that communication is not stopped due to a failure of a line or a device. There is also a demand to secure communication bandwidth. Therefore, a link aggregation function using LACP (Link Aggregation Control Protocol) defined by IEEE802.3ad is attracting attention as one of means for expanding the communication bandwidth and realizing a redundant configuration. The link aggregation function is a function that logically treats a plurality of LAN ports of a LAN switch as one line.

By the way, in order to logically handle a plurality of LAN ports as one line, it is common to set a LAN switch with a command (for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-349764

However, there is a problem that the command setting is complicated.

The present invention is intended to solve the above-mentioned problems associated with the prior art, and an object of the present invention is communication that can more easily handle a plurality of LAN ports as one line logically. It is in the place of providing a relay device.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of LAN ports, a switch capable of switching a plurality of states, and a combination of a state specified for the switch and two or more LAN ports among the plurality of LAN ports. By specifying a combination of two or more LAN ports out of the plurality of LAN ports based on the information associated with the above, redundancy is realized for communication via the LAN cable inserted into the specified LAN port. A communication relay device including an aggregation unit is provided.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a combination of a plurality of LAN ports, a switch capable of switching a plurality of states, and two or more LAN ports of the state specified by the switch and the plurality of LAN ports. Based on the information associated with, the combination of two or more LAN ports among the plurality of LAN ports is specified, and the communication bandwidth is used for communication via the LAN cable inserted into the specified LAN port. A communication relay device including an aggregation unit that realizes the expansion of the above is provided.

The switch may be an electrically or optically detected switch or a physical switch.

The switch is a physical switch, the physical switch has a movable region, and the plurality of states may be switched according to the movement of the physical switch.

The setting unit for associating the state designated for the switch with the combination of the LAN ports may be further provided, and the aggregation unit may be specified based on the association of the setting unit.

In the setting unit, the LAN cable is inserted into one of the plurality of LAN ports after the first setting operation in the designated state of the switch to be set, and the LAN port is inserted at the time of the second setting operation. You may associate the combination of.

The first setting operation may be an operation for a switch or a button different from the switch.

When the state specified for the switch is a specific state, there may be a plurality of combinations of two or more LAN ports among the plurality of LAN ports.

The information that associates the state specified for the switch with the combination of two or more LAN ports among the plurality of LAN ports can associate the first combination and the second combination with a specific state. The first combination and the second combination may be combinations using different LAN ports.

The communication relay device may be a LAN switch.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a communication relay device capable of more easily treating a plurality of LAN ports as one line logically.

It is a figure which shows the structural example of the communication relay device which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the communication relay device which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the storage part of the communication relay device which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the operation flow when the user sets the combination of LAN ports in the communication relay device which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the communication relay device which concerns on other embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the storage part of the communication relay device which concerns on other embodiment of this invention.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The embodiments shown below are examples of embodiments of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. In the drawings referred to in the present embodiment, the same part or a part having the same function is given the same code or a similar code (a code in which a, b, etc. are simply added after the numbers), and the process is repeated. The description of may be omitted.

<First Embodiment>
[Communication relay device configuration]
The communication relay device 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a structural example of a communication relay device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a communication relay device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The communication relay device 1 includes a plurality of LAN ports 11a to 11d, switches (physical switches) 13a and 13b, an aggregation unit 15, a storage unit 17, a switch 19, a setting unit 20, and LEDs (notification units) 21a to 21d. The communication relay device 1 is, for example, a network device such as a router or a LAN switch. When it is not necessary to distinguish the LAN ports 11a to 11d, the switches 13a and 13b, and the LEDs 21a to 21d, the reference numerals after the numbers are omitted, and the LAN ports 11, the switches 13 and the LEDs 21 will be described.

A LAN cable can be inserted into the LAN port 11. The switch 13 can switch any of a plurality of states. The switch 13 has a movable region. The plurality of states are switched according to the movement of the switch 13. For example, the switch 13 can switch the state to ON or OFF. However, the switch 13 may be switchable not only in two stages of ON or OFF but also in multiple stages of two or more stages. In this example, the switch 13 is a DIP (Dual In-line Package) switch, but is not limited to the DIP switch as long as the state can be physically switched.

The number of switches 13 is two in this example, but may be one or more than two depending on the number of combinations of LAN ports. When the number of switches 13 is one, there are two types of LAN port combinations. When the number of switches 13 is 2, there are 4 types of LAN port combinations, and when the number of switches 13 is n, there are 2 ⁿ types of LAN port combinations. The switch 13 in this example is not associated with the LAN port 11.

The storage unit 17 stores a table in which the state specified by the switch 13 and the combination of LAN ports are associated with each other. Here, the storage unit 17 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a storage unit of the communication relay device according to the embodiment of the present invention. The storage unit 17 stores that when the memory ID is "1", the switch 13a is OFF and the switch 13b is OFF, and there is no combination of LAN ports. “-” In FIG. 3 means that the LAN ports are used independently without being bundled. When the memory ID is "2", the storage unit 17 stores that the switch 13a is OFF and the switch 13b is ON, and that the LAN port 11a and the LAN port 11b are combined (bunched) as a group A. .. In this example, the storage unit 17 stores four types of combinations, but the number of combinations to be stored may differ depending on the number of switches 13.

When the combination of the storage units 17 is determined without being set by the user, it can be said that the "initial setting" has been made. When the initial settings are made in this way, when the user specifies the ON or OFF state of the switch, the combination of the LAN port 11 associated with the state specified in the switch is read from the storage unit 17. Therefore, it becomes possible to logically handle a plurality of LAN ports 11 as one line. For example, if the user wants to use the LAN ports 11a and 11b as the group A and the LAN ports 11c and 11d as the group B, the switch 13a may be turned on and the switch 13b may be turned off.

The storage unit 17 includes a storage area for storing programs for realizing the functions of the aggregation unit 15 and the setting unit 20, which will be described later, and application programs for realizing various functions. Examples of the storage unit 17 include a magnetic recording medium such as a hard disk, a non-volatile memory such as an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory) and a flash memory. The program may be provided as stored in a computer-readable recording medium such as a magnetic recording medium, an optical recording medium, a photomagnetic recording medium, or a semiconductor memory, as long as it can be executed by a computer. In this case, the communication relay device 1 may include a device for reading the recording medium. The storage unit 17 may be outside the communication relay device 1.

This will be described again with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. The aggregation unit 15 identifies a combination of two or more LAN ports 11 among the plurality of LAN ports 11 according to the state specified by the switch 13, and the LAN cable inserted into the specified LAN port. Achieve redundancy or extension of communication bandwidth for communication via. In the example of FIG. 3, when the switch 13a is designated as OFF and the switch 13b is designated as OFF, the aggregation unit 15 identifies the combination of LAN ports as LAN ports 11a and 11b from the corresponding table of the storage unit 17. Redundancy or extension of communication bandwidth is realized for communication via the LAN cable inserted into the LAN ports 11a and 11b. That is, the aggregation unit 15 realizes a function of logically treating the LAN ports 11a and 11b as one line. Here, as an example of realizing redundancy, not only the link aggregation using the LACP defined in IEEE802.3ad but also the method not using the LACP defined in the IEEE802.3ad (link redundancy, etc.) may be used. ..

The setting unit 20 associates the state specified in the switch with the combination of the LAN ports and writes them in the table of the storage unit 17. The setting unit 20 operates when the user sets the association between the state specified in the switch and the combination of the LAN ports. The same applies to the switch 19. Details will be given in the description of FIG.

The aggregation unit 15 and the setting unit 20 realize a function for executing each process by executing the program stored in the storage unit 17 by the CPU (computer). A part or all of the configuration that realizes the function here is not limited to the case where it is realized by software by executing the program, and may be realized by hardware.

Each LED 21 notifies that a LAN cable has been inserted into each LAN port 11. The LEDs 21a to 21d are associated with LAN ports 11a to 11d, respectively.

The structure and configuration of the communication relay device 1 have been described above. The minimum configuration of the communication relay device 1 is a LAN port 11, a switch 13, and an aggregation unit 15 surrounded by a dotted line in FIG. Other configurations of FIG. 2 can be added as appropriate.

[Setting mode]
Next, the case where the user himself sets the combination of LAN ports instead of the initial setting, that is, the setting mode will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an operation flow when a user sets a combination of LAN ports in the communication relay device according to the embodiment of the present invention. Here, in the example of FIG. 3, a case where LAN ports 11a, 11b and 11c are set as the group A in the memory ID “2” will be described.

First, the flow starts when the power of the communication relay device 1 is turned on. Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the switch 19 is turned on (whether or not the first setting operation has been performed) (step S101). When the switch 19 is turned on (Yes in step S101), the communication relay device 1 switches to the setting mode (step S103). On the other hand, if the switch 19 is not turned on (No in step S101), step S101 is repeated. The memory ID stored in the storage unit 17 is determined by the designation of the switch when the switch 19 is turned on. Explaining with the example of FIG. 3, when the switch 13a is OFF and the switch 13b is ON at the time when the switch 19 is turned ON, the stored memory ID is “2”.

Subsequently, the communication relay device 1 determines whether or not the LAN cable is inserted into the LAN port 11 (step S105). In this example, whether or not the LAN cable is inserted into the LAN port 11 is determined by whether or not the communication relay device 1 has detected the link-up. When the LAN cable is inserted into the LAN port 11 (Yes in step S105), the LED 21 notifies that fact (step S107). For example, when the LAN cable is inserted into the LAN port 11a, the LED 21a corresponding to the LAN port 11a lights up. On the other hand, if the LAN cable is not inserted into the LAN port 11 (No in step S105), the process proceeds to step S109.

Next, it is determined whether or not the switch 19 has been turned off (whether the second setting operation has been performed) (step S109). When the switch 19 is turned off (Yes in step S109), the LAN port 11 into which the LAN cable is inserted at this point is stored (step S111). If LAN cables are inserted into the LAN ports 11a, 11b and 11c, the positions of these LAN ports are stored. When this memory is stored, the process returns to step S101. Even if the LAN cable is inserted into the LAN port 11 at the time of step S105, if the LAN cable is disconnected from the LAN port 11 before the switch 19 is turned off (second setting operation), the LAN port 11 will be opened. It is not stored in the storage unit 17. On the other hand, if the switch 19 is not turned off (No in step S109), the process returns to step S105. The operation flow in the setting mode has been described above.

<Second Embodiment>
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a structural example of a communication relay device according to another embodiment of the present invention. The communication relay device 1A in the present embodiment has substantially the same structure as the communication relay device 1 in the first embodiment. Unlike the communication relay device 1, the communication relay device 1A is provided with a switch 13 for each LAN port 11. In other words, the switch 13 and the LAN port 11 are linked.

The switches 13a to 13d are associated with the LAN ports 11a to 11d, respectively. In the setting mode, for example, when it is desired to set the LAN ports 11a, 11b and 11c as group A, the setting can be made by turning on the corresponding switches 13a, 13b and 13c and turning off the switch 13d. It becomes.

Also in this embodiment, the same effect as that of the first embodiment is obtained. Further, since the switch 13 is provided for each LAN port 11, there is an effect that the setting in the setting mode becomes easier for the user to understand.

<Modification example 1>
In the above embodiment, the switch 19 is a DIP switch, and the description has been made on the premise that the first setting operation turns on the switch 19 and the second setting operation turns off the switch 19. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the pattern may be reversed in the first setting operation and the second setting operation. Further, if the switch 19 can perform a predetermined operation for switching to the setting mode and a predetermined operation for storing the position of the LAN port in the state where the LAN cable is inserted in the LAN port, the above method can be used. The operation is not limited, and may be an operation of long-pressing a button that can be long-pressed or an operation of pressing the button a predetermined number of times.

In this modified example, the same effect as that of the above embodiment is obtained.

<Modification 2>
In the above embodiment, it has been described on the premise that whether or not the LAN cable is inserted into the LAN port 11 is determined by whether or not the communication relay device 1 has detected the link-up. However, the method is not limited to this method, and a photo interrupter or other non-contact sensor may be used to determine whether or not a LAN cable has been inserted into the LAN port 11.

Also in this modified example, the same effect as that of the above-described embodiment and modified example 1 is obtained.

<Modification example 3>
In the above embodiments, the LAN port 11 has been described on the premise that it is a target that can be combined as a group. However, the LAN port 11 may be a target to be combined as a group and a target not to be combined as a group. In the example of FIG. 6, LAN ports 11e, 11f, 11g and 11h are not objects to be combined as a group. However, it may be possible to switch the LAN port 11 to be combined as a group according to the user's setting.

Also in this modification, the same effect as that of the above-described embodiment and the above-mentioned modification is obtained.

<Modification example 4>
In the above embodiment, the switch 13 has been described on the premise of a switch such as a DIP switch that can be physically moved. However, the switch 13 is not limited to this. It may be a button type switch that returns to its original position when pressed. Further, the touch may be detected electrically or optically instead of being physically moved like a touch sensor type switch. For example, if you touch it once, it will be in the ON state, and if you touch it again, it will be in the OFF state. By designating this ON or OFF state, the combination of the LAN ports 11 associated with the state specified in the switch is read from the storage unit 17, and the plurality of LAN ports 11 are logically one line. It becomes possible to treat as.

Also in this modification, the same effect as that of the above-described embodiment and the above-mentioned modification is obtained.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be appropriately modified without departing from the spirit.

1, 1A: Communication relay device 11a, 11b, 11c, 11d: LAN port 13a, 13b, 13c, 13d: Switch 15: Aggregation unit 17: Storage unit 19: Switch 20: Setting unit 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d: LED (Notification unit)

Claims (9)

With multiple LAN ports
A switch that can switch between multiple states and
Based on the information that associates the state specified for the switch with the combination of two or more LAN ports among the plurality of LAN ports, the combination of two or more LAN ports among the plurality of LAN ports is specified. An aggregation unit that realizes redundancy for communication via a LAN cable inserted into the specified LAN port,
Communication relay device including. With multiple LAN ports
A switch that can switch between multiple states and
Based on the information that associates the state specified for the switch with the combination of two or more LAN ports among the plurality of LAN ports, the combination of two or more LAN ports among the plurality of LAN ports is specified. An aggregation unit that realizes expansion of communication bandwidth for communication via a LAN cable inserted into the specified LAN port,
Communication relay device including. The communication relay device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the switch is a switch or a physical switch that detects electrically or optically. Further provided with a setting unit for associating the state specified for the switch with the combination of the LAN ports.
The communication relay device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the aggregation unit is specified based on the association of the setting unit. In the setting unit, the LAN cable is inserted into one of the plurality of LAN ports after the first setting operation in the designated state of the switch to be set, and the LAN port is inserted at the time of the second setting operation. The communication relay device according to claim 4 , wherein the combination of the above is associated with each other. The communication relay device according to claim 5 , wherein the first setting operation is an operation for a switch or a button different from the switch. The first or second aspect of the present invention, wherein there are a plurality of combinations of two or more LAN ports among the plurality of LAN ports when the state designated for the switch is a specific state. Communication relay device. The information for associating the state specified for the switch with the combination of two or more LAN ports among the plurality of LAN ports can associate the first combination and the second combination with a specific state. The communication relay device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first combination and the second combination are combinations using different LAN ports. The communication relay device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the communication relay device is a LAN switch.

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