JPH0697987A - Communication processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To shorten down loading time by storing the control program of a communication processor in an internal storage part and performing self-loading. CONSTITUTION:The arithmetic processing part 2 of the communication processor analyzes a down loading command and in the case of normal loading processing, generates the control program based on information supplied from a host and stores the generated control program in the control program storage area of the internal storage part 7. Then, in the case of self-loading processing, the arithmetic processing part 2 starts the processing using the control program stored in the internal storage part 7.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a communication processing device, and more particularly to a method for loading a communication processing device control program which the communication processing device executes in response to an instruction from a host computer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional communication processing apparatus, as shown in FIG. 5, includes a base program including various transmission control procedures given by a download from a host computer and a control module of a terminal device, a definition of a network and a terminal configuration, Parameter information indicating the designation of an optional function is received via the host interface, only the necessary modules are selected based on this base program and the configuration information, and a control program suitable for each network configuration is generated and stored in the memory. Then, under the generated control program, the communication processing device starts processing and controls data transfer between the host computer and various lines.

[0003]

In the above-mentioned conventional communication processing apparatus, the information for generating the control program is always downloaded from the host and the control program is generated by the communication processing apparatus when the communication processing apparatus is activated. It had the drawback of taking a long time.

In particular, in a system in which a plurality of communication processing devices having different network configurations are operated as a production system and there is only one communication processing device as these standby systems, when switching to the standby system due to an abnormality in the production system, an error occurs. In order to continue the processing of the communication processing device in which the error occurred, the base program and network configuration information of this communication processing device are downloaded to the standby communication processing device, and the communication processing device of the standby system downloads the control program according to the downloaded information. Since it is generated and starts the operation, it takes a long time from the occurrence of the abnormality until the communication processing device of the standby system starts the operation and takes over the processing.

[0005]

A communication processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a normal loader for performing control for receiving information for generating a control program from a host computer,
A ROM in which a self-loader for loading the control program from the internal storage unit is stored; and, when a download command is received from the host computer, the command is analyzed, and if normal loading, the control program is based on information provided from the host computer. Is generated and stored in the internal storage unit, and if it is self-loading, an arithmetic processing unit that controls reading the control program stored in the internal storage unit; It is characterized by comprising an internal storage unit for storing the control program generated by the stored information as a memory image as it is and a memory for generating and expanding the control program.

[0006]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings.

Referring to FIG. 1 showing an embodiment of a communication processing apparatus of the present invention, this embodiment controls a host interface 1 for interfacing with a host computer (hereinafter referred to as a host) and a communication processing apparatus. An arithmetic processing unit 2, a memory 5 in which a control program of the communication processing device, line data and the like are stored, a line connection unit 4 for interfacing with various lines, a normal loader and a self loader are stored. A magnetic disk control unit 6 for controlling the ROM 3 and a magnetic disk device 7 which stores a control program as a memory image is connected via a common bus 10.

When a host connected to the host interface 1 tries to execute a download, the host sends a download request command in the format shown in FIG.
Give to. The host interface 1 gives a download request command to the arithmetic processing unit 2.

When the command shown in FIG. 2 is given, the arithmetic processing unit 2 recognizes a download request from the host with the upper bits and selects normal load or self load processing with the subsequent bits. When the normal load process is selected, the arithmetic processing unit 2 reads the normal loader stored in the ROM 3 to start the process, and a base program including various transmission control procedures given by the host and a control module of the terminal device. Parameter information indicating the definition of network and terminal configurations and the designation of optional functions is downloaded to the memory 5 via the host channel 11 and the host interface 1.

When the download is completed, the arithmetic processing unit 2
Generates a control program suitable for the network configuration managed by this communication processing device based on the definition of the network and terminal configurations given the base program stored in the memory 5 and the parameter information of the optional function, and stores it in the memory 5. expand.

When the generation of the control program is completed, the arithmetic processing section 2 uses the memory 5 for use in the selection processing.
The control program expanded in step (3) is stored in the magnetic disk device 7 as it is as a memory image by using the magnetic disk controller 6. Then, the arithmetic processing unit 2 starts the processing of the control program expanded in the memory 5, and the communication processing device enters the normal operating state.

When the self load is selected by the download request command from the host, the arithmetic processing unit 2 causes the RO
The self-loader stored in M3 is read to start the processing. The self-load process does not generate the control program by the base program and the network configuration parameter given from the host, but expands the control program previously generated by the normal load process and stored in the magnetic disk device 7 in the memory 5. The process is started.

Therefore, when the arithmetic processing unit 2 starts the self-loading process, it reads the control program of the memory image stored in the magnetic disk device 7 via the magnetic disk control unit 6 and stores it in the memory 5 via the common bus 10. . When the reading of the control program is completed, the arithmetic processing unit 2 expands it in the memory 5 and starts the processing of the control program, and the communication processing device enters the normal operating state.

By performing the above operation, the communication processing device performs a normal mode process from the host to various transmission control procedures and a base program including a control module of the terminal device, a definition of the network and terminal configuration, and a parameter indicating designation of an optional function. When given information, a control program suitable for the network configuration managed by this communication processing device is generated and expanded in the memory, and this control program is stored in the magnetic disk device as a memory image. After that, the communication processing device can be started by using the control program generated by the normal load process by the self-load process, so that the restart time can be significantly shortened.

Referring to FIG. 3 showing a second embodiment of the present invention, the present embodiment has a configuration in which a plurality of control program storage areas in the magnetic disk device are provided in the first embodiment.

In FIG. 3, one host has four communication processing devices 50-1, 50-2, 50-3 and 50-4.
Are connected by host channels 1-1, 1-2, 1-3 and 1-4, respectively, and various transmission control procedures given by the host and a base program including a control module of a terminal device, a network, and a terminal configuration A control program suitable for the network configuration managed by each of the communication processing devices 50-1, 50-2, and 50-3 is generated by the parameter information indicating the definition and the designation of the optional function, and operates independently.

The communication processing device 50-4 is a communication processing device 50.
It is prepared to take over network processing when the above occurs in -1, 50-2 or 50-3. The communication processing device 50-4 includes a plurality of control program storage areas in the magnetic disk device 27. The host instructs the communication processing device 50-4 to perform the download process in the command format shown in FIG. The host stores the same program as the control program 2-1 of the communication processing device 50-1 in the control program storage area 12-1, and the same program as the control program 2-2 of the communication processing device 50-2 in the control program storage area 12-2. To the communication processing device 50-
In order to store the same one as the control program 2-3 of No. 3 in the control program 12-3, an instruction is given to the communication processing device 50-4 in the format shown in FIG. The host also gives a download request command to the arithmetic processing unit 22 via the host channels 1-4.

When a command is given, the arithmetic processing unit 22 recognizes a download request with the upper bits and selects normal load or self load processing and a control program storage area with the subsequent bits. Arithmetic processing unit 2
2 is a normal load control program storage area 12-
When 1 is selected, the processing of the normal loader stored in the ROM 23 is started, and the base program including various transmission control procedures and the control module of the terminal device from the host and the definition of the network and the terminal of the communication processing device 50-1. , Parameter information indicating an instruction of an optional function is downloaded to the memory 25 via the host channel 1-4 and the host interface 21.

When the download is completed, the arithmetic processing unit 22
Based on the network information of the communication processing device 50-1 based on the base program stored in the memory 25,
The control program 2-1 suitable for the network configuration managed by the communication processing device 50-1 is generated and loaded in the memory 25. When the generation of the control program is completed, the arithmetic processing unit 2
Reference numeral 2 stores the control program 2-1 expanded in the memory 25 for the self-load processing in the control program storage area 12-1 of the magnetic disk device 27 using the magnetic disk control unit 26 as it is as a memory image.

The same processing is performed by the communication processing devices 50-2 and 50.
-3 for the control programs 2-2 and 2-3 used in the communication processing device 50, the control program storage areas 12-1, 12-2 and 12-3 of the magnetic disk device 27 are respectively stored in the communication processing device 50. Control programs 2-1, 2-2, 2-3 for -1, 50-2, 50-3 are stored.

The host is the communication processing device 50-1, 50-.
When the operation of the network is started using 2, 50-3, the communication processing devices 50-1, 50-2, 50-3 are constantly monitored, and when an abnormality is detected, the processing of the communication processing device that has detected the abnormality is performed. In order to continue, the communication processing device 50-provides a control program corresponding to the communication processing device that has detected the abnormality.
Issue a request to self-load No. 4 in the format of FIG.

The arithmetic processing unit 22 of the communication processing device 50-4.
When receiving the self-load command, reads out the self-loader stored in the ROM 23 and starts processing.
The control program designated by the self-load command given from the host is selected from the control program storage areas 12-1, 12-2, 12-3 of the magnetic disk device 27, expanded in the memory 25, and the processing is started.

By performing the above operation, the communication processing device 5
0-4 can take over the network processing of the communication processing device in which the host detects an abnormality in a short time and continue the network processing.

[0024]

As described above, the communication processing apparatus of the present invention analyzes the received download request, and at the time of normal loading, various transmission control procedures and the base program including the control module of the terminal device, the definition of the network and the terminal configuration, By storing the control program generated from the parameter information indicating the specification of the optional function in the internal storage as it is and using it during self-loading, the time for generating the control program during self-loading is not required, so that the communication processor can be reconfigured. The startup time can be shortened.

Further, a plurality of communication processing devices having different network configurations are operated as a production system, and all the control programs of the production system are stored in the communication system of the standby system. When an error occurs in the production system, the standby system Can read the control program of the production system in which the abnormality has occurred from the internal storage unit and start processing, so when the abnormality occurs in the communication processing device, the processing of the communication processing device in which the abnormality has occurred can be taken over in a short time. There is an effect that can be.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a format of a download command for the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a format of a download command for the second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

1,21 Host interface 2,22 Arithmetic processing unit 3,23 ROM 4,24 Line connection unit 5,25 Memory 6,26 Magnetic disk control unit 7,27 Magnetic disk device 10,10-1 Common bus 11,1-1 , 1-2, 1-3, 1-4 Host channel 50-1, 50-2, 50-3, 50-4 Communication processing device 2-1, 2-2, 2-3 Control program 12-1, 12 -2,12-3 Control program storage area

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A normal loader for performing control to receive information for generating a control program from a host computer, a ROM storing a self-loader for loading the control program from an internal storage unit, and the host. When a download command is received from the computer, the command is analyzed. If it is a normal load, the control program is generated from the information given by the host computer and stored in the internal storage unit. If it is a self-load, the internal storage unit is generated. An arithmetic processing unit that controls the reading of the control program stored therein, an internal storage unit that stores the control program generated by the information given from the host computer by the normal load as a memory image, and the control program But A communication processing device comprising: a memory that is generated and expanded. 2. The control, wherein the control program has a plurality of areas to be stored in the internal storage unit, and the network configuration is different according to the normal load request issued from the host computer a plurality of times to each storage area. 2. The communication processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication processing apparatus stores a program, expands a control program selected from the plurality of control programs by a self-load command from a host computer into the memory, and starts processing. .