JPWO2014199692A1 - Network communication confirmation device, network communication confirmation method, and network communication confirmation program - Google Patents

Abstract

Even when the number of bases to be monitored increases, the system is prevented from becoming complicated and the occurrence of software failure on the system is prevented. A communication confirmation device connected to one or more segments via a computer bus network, for at least one segment included in the one or more segments, one or more operation nodes included in the segment and the communication confirmation device; Communication with the operation node as a transmission destination, whether communication is established between the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node and the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device. Whether or not communication is established between the confirmation packet and the communication confirmation response packet which is a response packet to the confirmation packet and the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. Confirm using the packet to send and receive.

Description

  The present invention relates to a network communication confirmation device, a network communication confirmation method, and a network communication confirmation program for confirming communication in a network.

  Generally, a local area network is constructed at each of a plurality of bases, and the plurality of local area networks are further connected by a global network such as the Internet. In such a case, before starting the service, the communication confirmation is performed for the segment of the local area network at each base. Here, the segment is a subnetwork to which the operation node belongs. An operation node is a node that communicates with other operation nodes, a master node, and the like.

  When performing such communication confirmation, generally a communication confirmation node is brought into each of a plurality of local area networks, and a communication test is performed using a technique such as Ping. In addition, it is also common to monitor the communication confirmation status of multiple bases by connecting the communication confirmation nodes of each base to a remote host via the Internet etc., and the remote host remotely operating the communication confirmation node. .

  As a technique related to such communication confirmation, for example, a technique described in Patent Document 1 can be cited. In the technique described in Patent Document 1, a monitoring terminal transmits a trace route command to each terminal, and detects a router by returning response information to each router on a delivery route.

  Whether or not the status of each router is normal depending on whether or not a response to the Ping command is returned from the router that transmits the Ping command to the detected router that is the router that returned the response information Monitor.

  Such a general technique will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a general network communication confirmation system as a whole.

  The network communication confirmation system in this example includes a remote host 500 and a plurality of segments 600-i (i = 1, 2, 3,..., M). The remote host 500 and the plurality of segments 600-i are connected to each other via the network 700. In the following description, i, which is segment identification information, may be omitted.

  The remote host 500 is a device having at least a function of remotely operating each of the communication confirmation nodes 610.

Each of the segments 600 includes a communication confirmation node 610 and operation nodes 621 to 62N. Here, the segment 600 is a sub-network that interconnects the communication confirmation node 610 and the operation nodes 621 to 62N, is installed at each different base, and is separated at each base. Also, the communication confirmation node 610 includes: A communication confirmation unit 611-1 for confirming communication of the segment 600 is included.

  The operation nodes 621 to 62N may be any devices that can communicate with the communication confirmation node 610 and are not particularly limited.

  Next, functional blocks included in the communication confirmation unit 611 that operates on the communication confirmation node 610 of a general network communication confirmation system will be described with reference to FIG.

  The communication confirmation unit 611 includes a communication confirmation packet generation unit 611-1, a communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 611-2, a communication confirmation determination unit 611-3, and a communication confirmation information table 611-4.

  The communication confirmation packet generation unit 611-1 has a function of generating a communication confirmation packet.

  Further, the communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 611-2 transmits the communication confirmation packet generated by the communication confirmation packet generation unit 611-1 to the operation nodes 621 to 62N. The operation nodes 621 to 62N that have received the communication confirmation packet transmit a communication confirmation response packet to the communication confirmation unit 611 as a response to the received communication confirmation packet. The communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 611-2 has a function of receiving the communication confirmation response packet.

  Furthermore, the communication confirmation determination unit 611-3 performs communication confirmation. A specific method for confirming communication will be described later.

  Further, the communication confirmation information table 611-4 holds communication confirmation information that is information including a result of the communication confirmation together with information used when the communication confirmation is performed.

  Next, specific contents of the communication confirmation information table 611-4 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of the communication confirmation information table 611-4.

  Referring to FIG. 3, in the communication confirmation information table 611-4, “operation node” which is an item indicating the operation nodes 621 to 62 N that are objects of communication confirmation and managed by the communication confirmation information table 611-4. Is provided as an item. In addition, the communication confirmation information table 611-4 includes “communication confirmation” as an item indicating a communication confirmation result of each operation node. Further, in the communication confirmation information table 611-4, after the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 611-2 transmits the communication confirmation packet from the remote host 500, the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 611-2 transmits the communication confirmation response packet. A “delay” indicating an elapsed time until reception is provided as an item.

  Next, the hardware configuration of the communication confirmation node 610 will be described with reference to FIG. 4, which is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the communication confirmation node 610.

  Referring to FIG. 4, the communication confirmation node 610 includes a CPU 610-1, a communication control unit 610-2, a memory 610-3, a first network interface unit 610-4, and a second network interface unit 610-. 5 is included. It should be noted that the “network interface unit” is referred to as “NW I / F unit” as appropriate in the drawings, including the diagrams related to the embodiments of the present invention described below.

  And CPU610-1 and memory 610-3 are connected to the communication control part 610-2 which is a device for performing communication.

  Each functional block included in the communication confirmation unit 611 described above performs arithmetic processing by the CPU 610-1 according to a program stored in a storage device such as the memory 610-3 or another memory (not shown). This is realized by controlling each hardware included in the communication confirmation node 610 according to the calculation processing result.

  The first network interface unit 610-4 is a network interface unit for the communication confirmation node 610 to connect to the remote host 500. Further, the second network interface unit 610-5 is a network interface unit for connecting the communication confirmation node 610 to the operation nodes 621 to 62N in the segment 600.

  A general network communication confirmation system configured as described above operates as follows.

  First, the remote host 500 connects to each communication confirmation node 610 via the first network interface unit 610-4. Then, when the remote host 500 performs a remote operation, the communication confirmation unit 611 of each communication confirmation node 610 is operated.

  The communication confirmation packet generation unit 611-1 of each communication confirmation unit 611 performs communication confirmation on the operation nodes 621 to 62N in the segment 600 to which the communication confirmation node 610 including the communication confirmation packet generation unit 611-1 itself belongs. A communication confirmation packet (for example, a Ping echo request packet) is generated. Then, the generated communication confirmation packet is transmitted to the communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 611-2.

  The communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 611-2 receives the communication confirmation packet received from the communication confirmation packet generation unit 611-1 from the second network interface unit 610 connected to the segment 600 corresponding to the IP address described in the packet header. Send to -5. At this time, a communication confirmation packet timer for measuring the time when the communication confirmation packet is transmitted is started.

  The second network interface unit 610-5 sends the communication confirmation packet to any one of the operation nodes 621 to 62N that are operation nodes corresponding to the IP address described in the packet header received from the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 611-2. Send.

  Upon receiving the communication confirmation packet, any of the operation nodes 621 to 62N that are the operation nodes to which the communication confirmation packet is transmitted transmits a communication confirmation response packet (for example, a Ping echo reply packet) to the communication confirmation node 610. To do.

  When the communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 611-2 receives the communication confirmation response packet, the communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 611-2 stops the communication confirmation packet timer. Then, the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 611-2 transmits the communication confirmation response packet and information indicating the elapsed time from the transmission of the communication confirmation packet to the reception of the communication confirmation response packet to the communication confirmation determination unit 611-3. Send.

  The communication confirmation determining unit 611-3 receives the communication confirmation response packet and information indicating the elapsed time. In response to the return of the communication confirmation response packet, the communication confirmation determination unit 611-3 updates information on the operation node that has transmitted the communication confirmation packet in the communication confirmation information table 611-4.

  As an example, an example when a communication confirmation response packet of the operation node 621-1 is received will be described.

  In the case of this example, “YES” is written in the item “communication confirmation” for the operation node 621-1 in the communication confirmation information table 611-4, and after transmitting the communication confirmation packet, the communication confirmation response packet is sent. The elapsed time until reception is written in the item “delay” for the operation node 621-1 in the communication confirmation information table. In this example, assuming that the elapsed time is 1 [ms], “1” is described in the item “delay”.

  As another example, an example will be described in which the communication confirmation response packet of the operation node 622-1 is not received before the timer expires.

  After a communication confirmation packet is sent, the timer expires after a certain period. In this case, the communication confirmation determining unit 611-3 updates the information of the operation node that has transmitted the communication confirmation packet in the communication confirmation information table 611-4.

  In the case of this example, “NO” is written in the item “communication confirmation” of the operation node 622-1 of the communication confirmation information table 611-4. Further, since the communication confirmation response packet has not been received and the delay cannot be measured, for example, a numerical value indicating an invalid value is written in the item “delay”. In FIG. 3, “N / A” is shown as an example of a numerical value indicating an invalid value.

JP 2002-111665 A International Publication No. 2011/090145

  By using the general technique as described above, it is possible to confirm the communication between the operation nodes 621 to 62N included in each segment 600 of each base. However, the general technique as described above has a plurality of problems as described below.

  The first problem is that in the above-described general network monitoring system, the system becomes complicated as the number of bases to be monitored increases.

  The reason is that when the number of bases increases, it is necessary to install the number of communication confirmation nodes as many as the number of bases or to create the number of bases for VPN (Virtual Private Network) connection.

  The second problem is that, in the above-described general network monitoring system, the possibility of a software failure in the entire system increases as the number of bases to be monitored increases.

  This is because an OS (Operating System) and a communication confirmation program need to operate on all communication confirmation nodes installed at each base.

  Therefore, in the present invention, even when the number of monitored bases increases, a network communication confirmation device capable of preventing the system from becoming complicated and preventing the occurrence of a software failure on the system, It is an object to provide a network communication confirmation method and a network communication confirmation program.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication confirmation apparatus connected to one or more segments via a computer bus network, wherein at least one segment included in the one or more segments is included in the segment. Whether or not one or more operation nodes included can communicate with the communication confirmation device, and whether communication is established between the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node and the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device. A communication confirmation packet having the operation node as a transmission destination, a communication confirmation response packet that is a response packet to the communication confirmation packet, an upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device, and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. Packets for sending and receiving between the bridges Traffic checking device is provided, characterized in that it comprises a communication confirming means for confirming in this household.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication confirmation method performed by a communication confirmation apparatus connected to one or more segments via a computer bus network, wherein at least one segment included in the one or more segments. Between one or more operation nodes included in the segment and the communication confirmation device, and between the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node and the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device. Whether or not communication is established is determined in the segment including the operation node, the communication confirmation packet with the operation node as the transmission destination, the communication confirmation response packet that is a response packet to the communication confirmation packet, the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device, and Sends and receives between the bridges whether or not communication with the downstream bridge is provided Traffic checking method characterized by having a communication confirmation step of confirming with the packet for can be provided.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication confirmation program for causing a computer to function as a communication confirmation device connected to one or more segments via a computer bus network, the computer comprising the one or more computers. For at least one segment included in the segment, whether or not one or more operation nodes included in the segment can communicate with the communication confirmation device, and a downstream bridge included in the segment including the operation node and the communication confirmation Whether or not communication is established with an upstream bridge provided in the apparatus, a communication confirmation packet having the operation node as a transmission destination, a communication confirmation response packet that is a response packet to the communication confirmation packet, and an upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation apparatus , A downstream bridge included in the segment including the operation node. Communication confirmation program for causing to function as communication confirming means for confirming with a packet for transmitting and receiving whether communication between the di are taken across the bridge is provided.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the system from becoming complicated and to prevent the occurrence of a software failure on the system even when the number of bases to be monitored increases.

It is a block diagram showing the whole structure of a general network communication confirmation system. It is a block diagram showing the detail of the communication confirmation node of a general network communication confirmation system. It is a table | surface which shows the communication confirmation information table which a general communication confirmation part holds. It is a block diagram showing in detail the functional block of the communication confirmation part which operate | moves in the communication confirmation node of a general network communication confirmation system. It is a figure showing the schematic structure of embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram showing the whole structure of embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram showing in detail the functional block of the communication monitoring part which operate | moves at the communication confirmation node of embodiment of this invention. It is a table | surface which shows an example of the communication confirmation information table which the communication confirmation part by embodiment of this invention holds. It is a block diagram showing the hardware constitutions of the structure of embodiment of this invention. It is an image figure showing the data structure of a communication confirmation packet and a communication confirmation response packet. It is a flowchart showing the operation | movement at the time of the packet transmission / reception by the communication confirmation part by embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart showing operation | movement when the network interface part which performs the communication confirmation by embodiment of this invention is newly added.

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

  As shown in FIG. 5, the present embodiment is a communication confirmation device 800 that is connected to one or more segments 900 via a computer bus network 1000, and is included in the one or more segments 900. For at least one segment 900, whether or not one or more operation nodes 920 included in the segment 900 and the communication confirmation device 800 can communicate with each other, and the downstream bridge 910 included in the segment including the operation node 920 and the communication Whether or not communication is established with the upstream bridge 820 provided in the confirmation device, a communication confirmation packet with the operation node 920 as a transmission destination and a communication confirmation response packet 1001 which is a response packet thereto, and the communication confirmation device. And an upstream bridge 820 included in the operation node 920 The communication confirmation device 800 includes a communication confirmation unit 810 for confirming whether or not communication with the downstream bridge 910 included in the segment 900 is established using a packet 1002 for transmission / reception between the bridges. That's it.

  Next, FIG. 6 which is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the communication confirmation system that is the overall embodiment of the present invention will be referred to.

  Referring to FIG. 6, the present embodiment includes a communication confirmation node 100 and a plurality (or a single) segment 200. The communication confirmation node 100 and the plurality of segments 200 are connected via the computer bus network 300.

  Here, the computer bus network 300 corresponds to a technique called ExpEther (Express Ether) (registered trademark) as described in Patent Document 2, for example. ExpEther is a PCI Express that allows a computer resource connected to a computer via Ethernet (registered trademark) to be used as a computer resource compatible with PCI Express. It is a technology related to over Ether. More specifically, ExpEther refers to, for example, a PCI Express board (functioning as an upstream bridge) connected to a PCI Express bus of a computer and a PCI Express board (as a downstream bridge) connected to a PCI Express bus of an expansion device. The PCI Express device connected to the PCI Express bus of the expansion device can be used as a computer resource by communicating with a predetermined protocol on the Ethernet between both boards. This is the technology that I did.

  The communication confirmation node 100 performs communication confirmation for each segment 200 provided at each site via the computer bus network 300. The communication confirmation node 100 includes a communication confirmation unit 110 and an upstream bridge 120 as functional blocks for executing the communication confirmation. Further, the upstream bridge 120 includes a communication monitoring unit 121.

  The communication confirmation unit 110 generates a communication confirmation packet for performing communication confirmation, and performs communication confirmation by transmitting and receiving the communication confirmation packet. In addition, the upstream bridge 120 realizes communication with each segment 200 via the computer bus network 300. Furthermore, the communication monitoring unit 121 acquires information for the communication confirmation unit 110 to perform communication confirmation by monitoring communication via the computer bus network 300.

  Each of the segments 200 includes a downstream bridge 210, a network interface unit 220, and a plurality of (or a single) operation nodes 231 to 23N.

  Here, the segment 200 is a subnetwork that interconnects the operation nodes 231-1 to 23 </ b> N-M, is installed at each different base, and is separated at each base.

  The downstream bridge 210 is connected to the communication confirmation node 100 via the computer bus network 300. The network interface unit 220 is an interface for the operation nodes 231-1 to 23 </ b> N-M to connect to the computer bus network 300 via the downstream bridge 210.

  In this description, it is assumed that the network interface unit 220 is a LAN adapter (also called a NIC: Network Interface Card) connected to the PCI Express bus. That is, the network interface unit 220 and the operation nodes 231 to 23N connected to the network interface unit 220 are connected by Ethernet to construct a LAN.

  Further, the operation nodes 231-1 to 23 </ b> N-M are nodes that are targets of communication confirmation by the communication confirmation node 100. The operation nodes 231-1 to 23 </ b> N-M are devices having a function of communicating with the communication confirmation unit 110 via the upstream bridge 120, the downstream bridge 210, the network interface unit 220, and the computer bus network 300. Any device may be used.

  The communication confirmation packet generated by the communication confirmation node 100 is transmitted to the operation node 231-1 to the operation node 23N-M via the upstream bridge 120, the computer bus network 300, the downstream bridge 210, and the network interface unit 220. The The operation nodes 231-1 to 23N-M that have received the communication confirmation packet generate a communication confirmation response packet as a response to the received communication confirmation packet, and send the generated communication confirmation response packet to the communication confirmation node 100. Send. The communication confirmation node 100 receives this communication confirmation response packet.

  Subsequently, the communication confirmation unit 110 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 7 which is a functional block diagram showing in detail an example of a functional block realized by cooperation of hardware and software included in the communication confirmation node 100 of the present invention. The functional blocks included in will be described.

  Referring to FIG. 7, the communication confirmation unit 110 includes a communication confirmation packet generation unit 111, a communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 112, a communication confirmation determination unit 113, a network interface registration unit 114, and a communication confirmation information table 115. In addition, the communication confirmation determination unit 113 includes an inter-bridge communication confirmation determination unit 113-1 and an intra-segment communication confirmation determination unit 113-2.

  The communication confirmation packet generator 111 has a function of generating a communication confirmation packet.

  The communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112 has a function of transmitting / receiving a communication confirmation packet.

  Further, the communication confirmation determination unit 113 has a function of determining communication confirmation with the operation nodes 231-1 to 23N-M to be monitored. More specifically, the inter-bridge communication confirmation determination unit 113-1 determines communication confirmation between the upstream bridge 120 and the downstream bridge 210. This means that communication between the bridges is confirmed. On the other hand, the intra-segment communication confirmation determining unit 113-2 performs the internal communication confirmation of each of the segments 200-1 to 200-M. That is, the communication confirmation is performed between the downstream bridge 210 and the operation nodes 231-1 to 23N-M in the communication path via the network interface 220-1. On the other hand, the intra-segment communication confirmation determining unit 113-2 performs communication confirmation between the downstream bridge 210 and the operation nodes 231-1 to 23N-M in the communication path via the network interface 220-1. That is, the internal communication confirmation of each of the segments 200-1 to 200-M is performed.

  Further, the network interface registration unit 114 performs connection monitoring as to whether or not a new network interface unit 220 is newly connected. The network interface registration unit 114 registers the newly connected network interface unit 220 in the communication confirmation information table 115 when the new network interface unit 220 is newly connected.

  Further, the communication confirmation information table 115 is a table for managing the determination result of the communication confirmation by the communication confirmation determination unit 113.

  Next, the communication confirmation information table 115 will be described with reference to FIG. 8 showing an example of the contents of the communication confirmation information table 115 included in the communication confirmation unit 110.

  Referring to FIG. 8, the communication confirmation information table 115 includes “corresponding network interface” that is an item indicating the network interface unit 220 managed by the communication confirmation information table 115 as an item. The network interface unit 220 managed by the communication confirmation information table 115 is the network interface unit 220 to be monitored by the communication confirmation node 100.

  In addition, the communication confirmation information table 115 includes “operation node” as an item indicating the operation nodes 231 to 23N connected to the network interface unit 220 described in the corresponding network interface item.

  Further, in the communication confirmation information table 115, “between communication confirmation bridges” which is an item indicating a communication confirmation result between the downstream bridge 210 and the upstream bridge 120 connected to the network interface unit 220 described in the corresponding network interface item. Is provided as an item. “Between communication check bridges” indicates whether communication is established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node.

  Further, in the communication confirmation information table 115, an item indicating a connection confirmation result between the operation nodes 231 to 23N described in the item of the operation node and the network interface unit 220 in the same segment 200 as the operation nodes 231 to 23N. “In the communication confirmation segment” is provided as an item. “In the communication confirmation segment” indicates whether or not communication is established between the operation node and the downstream bridge in the segment including the operation node.

  Further, in the communication confirmation information table 115, a delay time from when the communication confirmation unit 110 transmits the communication confirmation packet to when the communication confirmation response packet is received from the operation nodes 231 to 23N described in the operation node item is displayed. “Delay” which is an item to be shown is provided as an item.

  Next, an example of a hardware configuration for realizing the communication confirmation node 100 will be described with reference to FIG. Referring to FIG. 9, the communication confirmation node 100 includes a CPU 101, a root complex 102, a memory 103, and an upstream bridge 120. The upstream bridge 120 is connected to the computer bus network 300.

  Here, in the hardware configuration example, as an example of a specific communication method, the PCI Express (registered trademark) standard, which is a standard standardized by PCI-SIG (PCI Special Interest Group) for communication by the communication confirmation node 100. It is an example of a hardware configuration when it is assumed that it is performed in conformity with the above.

  Therefore, the communication confirmation node 100 includes a root complex 102 located at the top of the tree structure of the PCI Express standard. A CPU 101 is connected to the root complex 102 via a system bus, and a memory 103 is connected via a memory bus.

  Each functional block included in the communication confirmation unit 110 described above performs arithmetic processing by the CPU 101 according to a program unique to the present embodiment stored in a storage device such as the memory 103 or another memory (not shown). This is realized by controlling each hardware included in the communication confirmation node 100 according to the calculation processing result.

  In the present embodiment, the upstream bridge 120 and each downstream bridge 210 cooperate to cause each network interface unit 220 to function as a network interface unit included in the communication confirmation node 100. In order to realize this, for example, the above-described ExpEther technique is used.

  By using such a technique, for example, if a PCI Express device is used as the 1-1st operation node 231-1 to the NM-th operation node 23 </ b> N-M, these become the route of the communication confirmation node. It can be handled as if it is a PCI Express device connected to the complex 102. Therefore, only one communication confirmation node 100 can perform communication confirmation from the 1-1st operation node 231-1 to the NMth operation node 23N-M.

  The description will be repeated, but in the normal technique, it is necessary to provide the communication confirmation nodes 610 at all the bases as shown in FIG. In the ordinary technology, it is necessary to separately introduce a complicated program for the communication confirmation node provided at each base.

  In the present embodiment, for example, when the communication confirmation unit 110 is realized by a program and hardware, it is sufficient to incorporate a program unique to the present embodiment into only one communication confirmation node 100. This makes it possible to adopt a simple system configuration even when the number of bases monitored by the network monitoring system increases.

  Next, the operation of the communication monitoring unit 121, which is a functional block in the upstream bridge 120, will be described in detail.

  The communication monitoring unit 121 monitors packet transmission / reception status. There are two types of packets to be monitored. The first is a packet generated by the root complex 102 and transmitted from the root complex 102 to the computer bus network 300. The other is a packet received via the computer bus network 300. The communication monitoring unit 121 monitors transmission / reception of these packets.

  For example, two methods can be considered as specific examples of the monitoring method performed by the communication monitoring unit 121. The first method measures the time until a response packet is returned when a packet that is generated by the route complex 102 and requires a response packet to the packet to be transmitted is transmitted from the route complex 102. This is a method of detecting when the timer expires. Another method is a method in which the upstream bridge 120 and the downstream bridge 210 transmit an inter-bridge connection monitoring packet for periodically monitoring the connection.

  First, when a packet that is generated by the first route complex 102 and requires a response packet to the packet to be transmitted is transmitted from the route complex 102, the time until the response packet is returned is measured, A method for detecting timer expiration will be described.

  In this method, a packet that is generated by the route complex 102 and requires a response packet with respect to a packet to be transmitted is used. Here, a packet that requires a response packet refers to, for example, memory read access or configuration access that conforms to the PCI Express standard.

  When the communication confirmation node 100 transmits a packet that requires a response packet to any of the downstream bridges 210, the communication monitoring unit 121 stores a sequence number of the packet and starts a timer.

  When the communication confirmation node 100 receives a response packet for the transmitted packet before the timer expires, the communication monitoring unit 121 stops the timer and transmits the response packet to the route complex 102.

  On the other hand, the communication monitoring unit 121 recognizes that the connection with the downstream bridge 210 that is the transmission target of the packet in which the timer has expired is disconnected when the timer expires for a certain period of time, and the communication monitoring unit 121 The downstream bridge 210 to be disconnected is described in the register of (1).

  Next, another method for transmitting packets for periodically monitoring connection by the upstream bridge 120 and the downstream bridge 210 will be described.

  In this method, bridge identification information is used. Here, the bridge identification information is information for identifying each bridge, and is generated by assigning a predetermined ID, for example. The communication monitoring unit 121 and each communication monitoring unit 211 periodically connect the bridges that describe the bridge identification information of the bridge including the communication monitoring unit 121 and each communication monitoring unit 211 itself with respect to other bridges. Send monitoring packets. Transmission is performed by broadcast, for example.

  The communication monitoring unit 121 in the upstream bridge 120 acquires bridge identification information when the downstream bridge 210 is connected to the upstream bridge 120. That is, the communication monitoring unit 121 in the upstream bridge 120 registers the bridge identification information of all the downstream bridges 210 connected to the upstream bridge 120.

  When the communication monitoring unit 121 in the upstream bridge 120 receives the inter-bridge connection monitoring packet from the downstream bridge 210, the communication monitoring unit 121 refers to the bridge identification information described in the packet.

  As a result of the reference, if the bridge identification information of the downstream bridge 210 registered in the upstream bridge 120 is recognized, the connection between the upstream bridge 120 and the downstream bridge 210 is established.

  On the other hand, if bridge identification information that should be periodically transmitted from a certain downstream bridge 210 registered in the upstream bridge 120 is not transmitted, the connection between the upstream bridge 120 and this certain downstream bridge 210 is not performed. It is recognized that is disconnected, and the information is written in the register.

  By performing each operation as described above, it is possible to grasp which downstream bridge 210 is disconnected. Then, information indicating that the connection with a certain downstream bridge 210 is disconnected can be written in the register.

  Further, when the information described in the register is read from the communication confirmation unit 110, the register is cleared and the read information is deleted. As a result, the communication confirmation unit 110 can grasp that the connection with the certain downstream bridge 210 is disconnected.

  Next, the operation of each functional block included in the communication confirmation unit 110 will be described in detail.

  The network interface registration unit 114 registers each network interface unit 220 to be monitored by the communication confirmation unit 110 and registers each operation node 231 to 23N monitored by the network interface unit 220.

  Further, the network interface registration unit 114 connects the new network interface 220 to the communication confirmation node 100 when a new network interface unit 220 to be monitored while the communication confirmation unit 110 is operating is newly connected. New connection target. The network interface registration unit 114 registers the operation nodes 231 to 23N included in the segment 200 to which the newly connected network interface unit 220 is connected as a new monitoring target.

  The registration of the operation nodes 231 to 23N may be performed by a method in which a network communication confirmer inputs a new connection, or the operation nodes 231 to 23N to be added to the communication confirmation software are registered in advance. You may take a method.

  The communication confirmation packet generator 111 generates a communication confirmation packet for the operation nodes 231 to 23N registered by the network interface registration unit 114.

  Here, the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation response packet will be described with reference to FIG. 10 which is a diagram showing the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation response packet.

  Referring to FIG. 10, the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation response packet include three headers. The main body is a Ping packet.

  First, referring to the communication confirmation packet, the Ethernet header includes the MAC address of the downstream bridge 210 as a transmission destination MAC address and the MAC address of the upstream bridge 120 as a transmission source MAC address. The TLP (Transaction Layer Packet) header includes the address of the downstream bridge 210 as a transmission destination address and the address of the upstream bridge 120 as a transmission source address. For example, address information conforming to PCI Express can be used as address information used in the TLP header. Further, the intra-segment header includes the IP addresses of the operation nodes 231-1 to 23N-M as transmission destination IP addresses, and the IP address of the network interface unit 220 as a transmission source IP address.

  On the other hand, referring to the communication confirmation response packet, the Ethernet header includes the MAC address of the downstream bridge 210 as a transmission source MAC address and the MAC address of the upstream bridge 120 as a transmission destination MAC address. Further, the TLP header includes the address of the downstream bridge 210 as a transmission source address and the address of the upstream bridge 120 as a destination address. Further, the intra-segment header includes the IP addresses of the operation nodes 231-1 to 23N-M as the source IP address and the IP address of the network interface unit 220 as the destination IP address.

  The packet generated by the communication confirmation packet generator 111 includes, for example, the Ethernet header, the MAC address of the downstream bridge 210 of the segment to which the operation node to be monitored as the transmission destination MAC address belongs, and the upstream bridge as the transmission source MAC address. The MAC address of 120 is the TLP header, the address of the downstream bridge 210 of the segment to which the operation node to be monitored this time belongs as the destination address, the address of the upstream bridge 120 as the source address, and the A Ping packet in which the IP address of the current monitoring target operation node is described as the destination IP address, and the IP address of the network interface unit 220 of the segment to which the current monitoring target operation node belongs is described as the transmission source IP address. It is formed.

  Then, the communication confirmation packet generating unit 111 transmits the generated communication confirmation packet to the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112.

  When the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112 receives the communication confirmation packet from the communication confirmation packet generating unit 111, the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112 starts a timer and transmits the received communication confirmation packet to the computer bus network 300.

  Further, when the communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 112 receives a communication confirmation response packet for the transmitted communication confirmation packet, the communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 112 stops the timer, and at least the transmission destination described in the intra-segment header in the communication confirmation response packet information The communication confirmation determining unit 113 is notified of the IP address of the transmission source and the fact that the timer has not expired.

  On the other hand, the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112 is described in the intra-segment header described in the transmitted communication confirmation packet when the timer expires without receiving the communication confirmation response packet and the timer expires. The communication confirmation determining unit 113 is notified of the destination and source IP addresses, the address specifying the downstream bridge 210 described in the TLP header or Ethernet header, and the fact that the timer has expired.

  The communication confirmation determining unit 113 updates the communication confirmation information table 115 based on the notification information from the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112.

  Here, the communication confirmation determination unit 113 is an inter-bridge communication confirmation determination unit 113-1, which performs communication determination between the upstream bridge 120 and the downstream bridge 210, and an intra-segment communication confirmation determination, which performs communication determination between the network interface and the operation node. Part 113-2.

  When the communication confirmation determining unit 113-1 between the bridges receives the communication confirmation response packet for the communication confirmation packet from the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112, the communication confirmation packet is described in the transmission destination IP address of the intra-segment header of the communication confirmation response packet. It is determined that the downstream bridge 210 connected to the network interface unit 220 is connected, and the information is transmitted to the communication confirmation information table 115. That is, “Yes” is described in the item “between communication confirmation bridges” for the downstream bridge 210 that is the current determination target of the communication confirmation information table 115.

  On the other hand, when the communication confirmation determining unit 113-1 between the bridges receives a notification that the communication confirmation packet has expired from the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112, the network interface unit described in the transmission source of the intra-segment header of the communication confirmation packet In order to confirm whether the downstream bridge 210 connected to 220 is connected, the network interface unit 220 described in the transmission confirmation packet transmission source is referred to by referring to the information described in the register in the communication monitoring unit 121. Get the connection status of the bridge.

  Then, when the connection state between the bridges indicates that the connection is broken, the inter-bridge communication confirmation determining unit 113-1 sets the item “between communication confirmation bridges” for the downstream bridge 210 as the current determination target in the communication confirmation information table 115. No "is described.

  On the other hand, when the inter-bridge connection state indicates connection, the inter-bridge communication confirmation determination unit 113-1 sets “Yes” to the item “communication confirmation bridge” for the downstream bridge 210 that is the current determination target of the communication confirmation information table 115. Is described.

  In addition, when the intra-segment communication confirmation determining unit 113-2 receives a communication confirmation response packet for the communication confirmation packet from the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112, it is described in the transmission source IP address in the segment header of the communication confirmation response packet. It is determined that the operation nodes 231 to 23N can communicate with each other, and the communication confirmation table 115 is updated. That is, “Yes” is described in the item “within communication check segment” for the operation nodes 231 to 23N as the current determination targets of the communication check information table 115.

  On the other hand, when the communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 112 is notified of the expiration of the communication confirmation packet timer, the intra-segment communication confirmation determination unit 113-2 communicates with the operation nodes 231 to 23N described in the transmission destination of the communication confirmation packet. The communication confirmation information table 115 is updated by determining that it is impossible. That is, “No” is described in the item “within communication confirmation segment” for the operation nodes 231 to 23N as the current determination targets in the communication confirmation information table 115.

  The communication confirmation information table 115 indicates the continuity of all pairs of the upstream bridge 120 and the downstream bridge 210, the network interface 220, and the operation nodes 231 to 23N monitored by the communication confirmation program, and delays from transmission to reception of the communication confirmation packet. Possess. This information is updated by the communication confirmation determination unit 113.

  Next, the operation of the communication confirmation method of the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

  Referring to the flowchart in FIG. 11, first, the communication confirmation packet generation unit 111 generates a communication confirmation packet to be transmitted to the communication confirmation packet transmission target operation node registered in the network interface registration unit 114. Then, the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112 transmits the generated packet to the designated network interface unit 220. The route complex 102 receives a command for transmitting a communication confirmation packet to the network interface unit 220 described above, and generates and transmits a packet to the network interface unit 220 (step S1).

  The packet transmitting / receiving unit starts a timer corresponding to the transmission source IP address and the transmission destination IP address of the communication confirmation packet after transmitting the communication confirmation packet (step S2). The timer expiration value of this timer is a predetermined value, and it is assumed that this predetermined value can be determined by the network communication confirmation manager.

  Next, it is monitored whether or not a communication confirmation response packet, which is a response to the transmitted communication confirmation packet, is received before the time expires (step S3).

  If the intra-segment communication confirmation determining unit 113-2 receives a communication confirmation response packet for the communication confirmation packet from the communication confirmation packet transmitting / receiving unit 112 before the time expires (Yes in step S3), the process proceeds to step S4. To do.

  In step S4, the intra-segment communication confirmation determination unit 113-2 determines that the operation node described in the transmission source IP address of the intra-segment header of the communication confirmation response packet received in step S3 is communicable. The confirmation table 115 is updated.

  That is, the inter-bridge communication confirmation determining unit 113-1 communicates between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. In addition, since the intra-segment communication confirmation determination unit 113-2 communicates between the operational node and the downstream bridge in the segment including the operational node, “intra-communication confirmation segment” is also “ YES ”.

  For example, when a communication confirmation response packet for the communication confirmation packet transmitted to the operation node 231-1 is returned, “Yes” is displayed in the item “between communication confirmation bridges” for the network interface unit 220-1 in the communication confirmation information table 115. Is described. Furthermore, “Yes” is described in the item “in the communication confirmation segment” for the operation node 231-1, and in addition, the communication confirmation packet transmission time and the communication confirmation response packet reception are received in the item “delay” for the operation node 231-1. Write the difference from time.

  On the other hand, when the timer expires in step S3 (No in step S3), the process proceeds to step S5.

  In step S 5, the register of the communication monitoring unit 121 is referred to in order to confirm whether the communication between the bridges is established by the inter-bridge communication confirmation determining unit 113-1. This is because, as described above, the register of the communication monitoring unit 121 records whether communication between each bridge is confirmed. If the communication is confirmed as a result of the reference (Yes in step S5), the process proceeds to step S6.

  In step S6, the communication between the bridges can be confirmed, but it is determined that the communication confirmation cannot be obtained from the network interface unit 220 to the operation nodes 231 to 23N, and the communication confirmation table 115 is updated.

  That is, the inter-bridge communication confirmation determining unit 113-1 communicates between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. In addition, since the intra-segment communication confirmation determining unit 113-2 does not establish communication between the operational node and the downstream bridge in the segment including the operational node, “intra-communication confirmation segment” is set to “ NO ”.

  For example, when the process transitions to step S6 in the determination on the communication confirmation packet for the operation node 232-1, the communication confirmation determination unit 113 sets the item “communication confirmation bridge interval” for the network interface unit 220-1 in the communication confirmation information table 115. "Yes" is described in "", and "No" is described in the item "in the communication confirmation segment" for the operation node 232-1.

  If it is determined in step S5 that communication between the bridges is not established, the process proceeds to step S7. In step S7, not only the communication confirmation cannot be obtained from the network interface unit 220 to the operation nodes 231 to 23N but also the communication between the bridges is not obtained.

  That is, the inter-bridge communication confirmation determining unit 113-1 does not establish communication between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. And Although it is not possible to determine whether or not communication is established between the operation node and the downstream bridge in the segment including the operation node, the intra-segment communication confirmation determination unit 113-2 performs the “communication confirmation”. “Intra-segment” is also set to NO.

  For example, when the communication confirmation between the bridges for the network interface unit 220-M cannot be obtained, “No” is described in the item “between communication confirmation bridges” for the network interface unit 220-M. Further, “No” is described in all of the items “in the communication confirmation segment” for the operation nodes 231 -M to 23 N-M, which are operation nodes connected to the network interface unit 220 -M.

  According to the present embodiment, the communication confirmation table 115 is updated according to each situation and the communication confirmation can be executed by the above operation.

  Next, referring to FIGS. 6, 7, 9, and 12, details of the operation when a new monitoring target base, that is, a new segment 200 is added during the operation of the communication confirmation unit 110 of the present embodiment. Explained.

  First, the network interface registration unit 114 confirms whether a new network interface unit 220 has been added (step S11).

  For example, if the network interface unit 220 is a device connected by PCI Express, this confirmation method detects the addition of a new network interface unit 220 by using the HotPlug function defined by PCI Express. In this method, the network interface registration unit 114 acquires information.

  If the addition of a new network interface unit 220 is not confirmed in step 11 (No in step S11), the current process is terminated, and the process from step S11 is performed again when the predetermined time period is reached. To start.

  On the other hand, when addition of a new network interface unit 220 is confirmed in step 11 (No in step S11), the process proceeds to step S12.

  In step S12, the operation nodes 231 to 23N of the segment 200 with which the new network interface unit 220 confirms communication are registered. This registration method may be a method in which a network communication confirmation person inputs, or a method in which the operation nodes 231 to 23N added to the communication confirmation software are registered in advance. After registration is completed, the process proceeds to step S13.

  In step S13, a new network interface unit 220 is registered as a transmission target of the communication confirmation packet, and further, transmission destination operation nodes 231 to 23N transmitted from the network interface unit 200 are registered.

  Thereafter, in step S14, the new network interface unit 220 added to the communication confirmation information table 115 is registered, and the destination operation nodes 231 to 23N transmitted from the network interface unit 220 are further registered in the communication confirmation information table 115. .

  Then, the effect which this embodiment has is explained in detail.

  The first effect is that a simple system configuration can be obtained even when the number of bases monitored by the network monitoring system increases, and the time required for constructing a system for checking network communication can be reduced.

  The reason is that the communication confirmation node and the network interface unit distributed at each site operate as a single computer.

  The second effect is that the number of operating programs can be reduced as compared with a general network monitoring system.

  The reason is that even when the number of bases increases, there is only one communication confirmation node, and no program other than the communication confirmation program is added or operated.

  That is, when the first and second effects are summarized, in this embodiment, it is possible to perform communication confirmation from a single communication monitoring node to a plurality of bases without greatly modifying a general program. Therefore, the system configuration is simplified and the reliability of the program is improved.

  Furthermore, the third effect is that the point for confirming communication becomes clear.

  The reason is that the information confirmed by the communication confirmation packet can be used to determine whether the failure is between the upstream bridge and the downstream bridge or the failure between the network interface unit and the operation node.

  Furthermore, the fourth effect is that the number of monitoring targets can be increased while the program is operated even when a monitoring base is added during the communication confirmation node operation.

  The reason is that the network interface registration unit confirms whether a new network interface unit has been added. For example, if the network interface unit is a device connected by PCI Express, the addition of a new network interface unit is detected by using the function of HotPlug defined by PCI Express, and the information is transferred to the network interface registration unit. Because it registers.

  The communication confirmation node described above can be realized by hardware, software, or a combination thereof. Also, the communication confirmation method performed by the communication confirmation node can be realized by hardware, software, or a combination thereof. Here, “realized by software” means realized by a computer reading and executing a program.

  The program may be stored using various types of non-transitory computer readable media and supplied to the computer. Non-transitory computer readable media include various types of tangible storage media. Examples of non-transitory computer readable media include magnetic recording media (for example, flexible disks, magnetic tapes, hard disk drives), magneto-optical recording media (for example, magneto-optical disks), CD-ROMs (Read Only Memory), CD- R, CD-R / W, and semiconductor memory (for example, mask ROM, PROM (Programmable ROM), EPROM (Erasable PROM), flash ROM, RAM (random access memory)). The program may also be supplied to the computer by various types of transitory computer readable media. Examples of transitory computer readable media include electrical signals, optical signals, and electromagnetic waves. The temporary computer-readable medium can supply the program to the computer via a wired communication path such as an electric wire and an optical fiber, or a wireless communication path.

  A part or all of the above-described embodiment can be described as in the following supplementary notes, but is not limited thereto.

(Supplementary note 1) A communication confirmation device connected to one or more segments via a computer bus network,
For at least one segment included in the one or more segments, whether or not one or more operation nodes included in the segment can communicate with the communication confirmation device, and a downstream bridge included in the segment including the operation node; Whether or not communication is established with the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device, the communication confirmation packet having the operation node as a transmission destination and the communication confirmation response packet which is a response packet to the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation device are provided. A communication confirmation means is provided for confirming whether or not communication is established between an upstream bridge and a downstream bridge included in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between the bridges. Communication confirmation device.

(Supplementary note 2) The communication confirmation device according to supplementary note 1, wherein
The communication confirmation means includes
Between bridges that determine whether communication is established between an upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between these bridges A communication confirmation judging means;
Intra-segment communication confirmation determination means for determining whether communication is established between the operational node and the downstream bridge in the segment including the operational node, using the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation response packet. When,
A communication confirmation device comprising:

(Appendix 3) The communication confirmation device according to appendix 2,
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
An upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device when communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, and communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. And a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. The judgment result that the communication is taken,
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the segment including the operation node A communication confirmation device that outputs a determination result that communication is not established with a downstream bridge included in the device.

(Additional remark 4) It is a communication confirmation apparatus of Additional remark 2 or 3,
The intra-segment communication confirmation judging means
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, a determination result is obtained that communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node.
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
Communication is established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, but communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. A communication between the communication confirmation device and the operation node when communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. A communication confirmation device characterized in that a judgment result is given indicating that a problem has not occurred.

(Supplementary note 5) The communication confirmation device according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 4,
The communication confirmation determining unit measures a delay time from the time when the communication confirmation packet is transmitted to the time when the communication confirmation response packet is received for the operation node that can communicate with the communication confirmation device. A communication confirmation device.

(Supplementary note 6) The communication confirmation device according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 5,
The communication confirming apparatus is an apparatus conforming to Express Ether (registered trademark).

(Supplementary note 7) The communication confirmation device according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 6,
A communication confirmation device that detects a new connection of a new downstream bridge even while the communication confirmation means is operating, and continues the operation of the communication confirmation means.

(Appendix 8) The communication confirmation device according to appendix 7,
A communication confirmation apparatus, wherein a segment including the new downstream bridge is newly set as a communication confirmation target.

(Supplementary Note 9) A communication confirmation method performed by a communication confirmation device connected to one or more segments via a computer bus network,
For at least one segment included in the one or more segments, whether or not one or more operation nodes included in the segment can communicate with the communication confirmation device, and a downstream bridge included in the segment including the operation node; Whether or not communication is established with the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device, the communication confirmation packet having the operation node as a transmission destination and the communication confirmation response packet which is a response packet to the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation device are provided. A communication confirmation step of confirming whether or not communication is established between an upstream bridge and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between the bridges. Communication confirmation method.

(Supplementary note 10) The communication confirmation method according to supplementary note 9, wherein
The communication confirmation step includes:
Between bridges that determine whether communication is established between an upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between these bridges A communication confirmation determination step;
Intra-segment communication confirmation determining step of determining whether communication is established between the operational node and the downstream bridge in the segment including the operational node, using the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation response packet. When,
The communication confirmation method characterized by having.

(Additional remark 11) It is the communication confirmation method of Additional remark 10, Comprising:
The inter-bridge communication confirmation determining step includes:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
An upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device when communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, and communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. And a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. The judgment result that the communication is taken,
The inter-bridge communication confirmation determining step includes:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the segment including the operation node A communication confirmation method characterized by issuing a determination result that communication is not established with a downstream bridge provided in the network.

(Additional remark 12) It is the communication confirmation method of Additional remark 10 or 11,
The intra-segment communication confirmation determining step includes:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, a determination result is obtained that communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node.
The inter-bridge communication confirmation determining step includes:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
Communication is established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, but communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. A communication between the communication confirmation device and the operation node when communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. A communication confirmation method characterized in that a judgment result is given that the information is not taken.

(Supplementary note 13) The communication confirmation method according to any one of supplementary notes 9 to 12,
The communication confirmation determining step measures a delay time from the time when the communication confirmation packet is transmitted to the time when the communication confirmation response packet is received for the operation node that can communicate with the communication confirmation device. A characteristic communication confirmation method.

(Supplementary note 14) The communication confirmation method according to any one of supplementary notes 9 to 13,
The communication confirmation method is a communication confirmation method characterized in that the communication confirmation device is a device compliant with Express Ether (registered trademark).

(Supplementary note 15) The communication confirmation method according to any one of supplementary notes 9 to 14,
A communication confirmation method characterized by detecting a new connection of a new downstream bridge even during the communication confirmation step operation and continuing the operation of the communication confirmation step.

(Supplementary note 16) The communication confirmation method according to supplementary note 15,
A communication confirmation method, wherein a segment including the new downstream bridge is newly set as a communication confirmation target.

(Supplementary Note 17) A communication confirmation program for causing a computer to function as a communication confirmation device connected to one or more segments via a computer bus network,
The computer,
For at least one segment included in the one or more segments, whether or not one or more operation nodes included in the segment can communicate with the communication confirmation device, and a downstream bridge included in the segment including the operation node; Whether or not communication is established with the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device, the communication confirmation packet having the operation node as a transmission destination and the communication confirmation response packet which is a response packet to the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation device are provided. It functions as a communication confirmation means for confirming whether or not communication is established between an upstream bridge and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between the bridges. Communication confirmation program.

(Supplementary note 18) The communication confirmation program according to supplementary note 17,
The communication confirmation means includes
Between bridges that determine whether communication is established between an upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between these bridges A communication confirmation judging means;
Intra-segment communication confirmation determination means for determining whether communication is established between the operational node and the downstream bridge in the segment including the operational node, using the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation response packet. When,
A communication confirmation program characterized by comprising:

(Supplementary note 19) The communication confirmation program according to supplementary note 18,
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
An upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device when communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, and communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. And a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. The judgment result that the communication is taken,
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the segment including the operation node A communication confirmation program characterized by issuing a judgment result that communication is not established with the downstream bridge provided in.

(Supplementary note 20) The communication confirmation program according to supplementary note 18 or 19,
The intra-segment communication confirmation judging means
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, a determination result is obtained that communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node.
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
Communication is established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, but communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. A communication between the communication confirmation device and the operation node when communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. A communication confirmation program characterized in that a judgment result is given that it is not taken.

(Supplementary note 21) The communication confirmation program according to any one of supplementary notes 17 to 20,
The communication confirmation determining unit measures a delay time from the time when the communication confirmation packet is transmitted to the time when the communication confirmation response packet is received for the operation node that can communicate with the communication confirmation device. A characteristic communication confirmation program.

(Supplementary note 22) The communication confirmation program according to any one of supplementary notes 17 to 21,
The communication confirmation device is a communication confirmation program characterized by being a device compliant with Express Ether (registered trademark).

(Supplementary note 23) The communication confirmation program according to any one of supplementary notes 17 to 22,
A communication confirmation program characterized by detecting a new connection of a new downstream bridge even when the communication confirmation means is operating, and continuing the operation of the communication confirmation means.

(Supplementary Note 24) The communication confirmation program according to Supplementary Note 23,
A communication confirmation program characterized in that a segment including the new downstream bridge is newly set as a communication confirmation target.

  This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-121790 (filed on June 10, 2013), and claims the priority of the Paris Convention based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-121790. The disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-121790 is incorporated herein by reference to Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-121790.

  Although exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail, various changes, substitutions and alternatives may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims. It should be understood that this is done. Moreover, even if the claim is amended in the application procedure, the inventor intends that the equivalent scope of the claimed invention is maintained.

  The present invention is widely suitable for applications in which communication confirmation is performed.

100 Communication confirmation node 101 CPU
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 102 Route complex 103 Memory 110 Communication confirmation part 111 Communication confirmation packet generation part 112 Communication confirmation packet transmission / reception part 113 Communication confirmation judgment part 113-1 Communication confirmation judgment part 113-2 Inter-segment communication confirmation judgment part 114 Network interface registration part 115 Communication Confirmation Information Table 120 Upstream Bridge 121 Communication Monitoring Unit 200 Segment 210 Downstream Bridge 220 Network Interface Units 231-23N Operation Node 300 Computer Bus Network 500 Remote Host 600 Segment 610 Communication Confirmation Node 610-1 CPU
610-2 Communication control unit 610-3 Memory 610-4 First network interface unit 610-5 Second network interface unit 611 Communication confirmation unit 611-1 Communication confirmation packet generation unit 611-2 Communication confirmation packet transmission / reception unit 611- 3 Communication Confirmation Determination Unit 611-4 Communication Confirmation Information Tables 621-62N Operation Node 700 Network

Claims (24)

A communication confirmation device connected to one or more segments via a computer bus network,
For at least one segment included in the one or more segments, whether or not one or more operation nodes included in the segment can communicate with the communication confirmation device, and a downstream bridge included in the segment including the operation node; Whether or not communication is established with the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device, the communication confirmation packet having the operation node as a transmission destination and the communication confirmation response packet which is a response packet to the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation device are provided. A communication confirmation means is provided for confirming whether or not communication is established between an upstream bridge and a downstream bridge included in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between the bridges. Communication confirmation device. The communication confirmation device according to claim 1,
The communication confirmation means includes
Between bridges that determine whether communication is established between an upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between these bridges A communication confirmation judging means;
Intra-segment communication confirmation determination means for determining whether communication is established between the operational node and the downstream bridge in the segment including the operational node, using the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation response packet. When,
A communication confirmation device comprising: The communication confirmation device according to claim 2,
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
An upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device when communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, and communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. And a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. The judgment result that the communication is taken,
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the segment including the operation node A communication confirmation device that outputs a determination result that communication is not established with a downstream bridge included in the device. The communication confirmation device according to claim 2 or 3,
The intra-segment communication confirmation judging means
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, a determination result is obtained that communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node.
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
Communication is established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, but communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. A communication between the communication confirmation device and the operation node when communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. A communication confirmation device characterized in that a judgment result is given indicating that a problem has not occurred. The communication confirmation device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein
The communication confirmation determining unit measures a delay time from the time when the communication confirmation packet is transmitted to the time when the communication confirmation response packet is received for the operation node that can communicate with the communication confirmation device. A communication confirmation device. The communication confirmation device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The communication confirming apparatus is an apparatus conforming to Express Ether (registered trademark). The communication confirmation device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
A communication confirmation device that detects a new connection of a new downstream bridge even while the communication confirmation means is operating, and continues the operation of the communication confirmation means. The communication confirmation device according to claim 7,
A communication confirmation apparatus, wherein a segment including the new downstream bridge is newly set as a communication confirmation target. A communication confirmation method performed by a communication confirmation device connected to one or more segments via a computer bus network,
For at least one segment included in the one or more segments, whether or not one or more operation nodes included in the segment can communicate with the communication confirmation device, and a downstream bridge included in the segment including the operation node; Whether or not communication is established with the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device, the communication confirmation packet having the operation node as a transmission destination and the communication confirmation response packet which is a response packet to the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation device are provided. A communication confirmation step of confirming whether or not communication is established between an upstream bridge and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between the bridges. Communication confirmation method. The communication confirmation method according to claim 9,
The communication confirmation step includes:
Between bridges that determine whether communication is established between an upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between these bridges A communication confirmation determination step;
Intra-segment communication confirmation determining step of determining whether communication is established between the operational node and the downstream bridge in the segment including the operational node, using the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation response packet. When,
The communication confirmation method characterized by having. It is the communication confirmation method of Claim 10, Comprising:
The inter-bridge communication confirmation determining step includes:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
An upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device when communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, and communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. And a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. The judgment result that the communication is taken,
The inter-bridge communication confirmation determining step includes:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the segment including the operation node A communication confirmation method characterized by issuing a determination result that communication is not established with a downstream bridge provided in the network. The communication confirmation method according to claim 10 or 11,
The intra-segment communication confirmation determining step includes:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, a determination result is obtained that communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node.
The inter-bridge communication confirmation determining step includes:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
Communication is established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, but communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. A communication between the communication confirmation device and the operation node when communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. A communication confirmation method characterized in that a judgment result is given that the information is not taken. The communication confirmation method according to any one of claims 9 to 12,
The communication confirmation determining step measures a delay time from the time when the communication confirmation packet is transmitted to the time when the communication confirmation response packet is received for the operation node that can communicate with the communication confirmation device. A characteristic communication confirmation method. The communication confirmation method according to any one of claims 9 to 13,
The communication confirmation method is a communication confirmation method characterized in that the communication confirmation device is a device compliant with Express Ether (registered trademark). The communication confirmation method according to any one of claims 9 to 14,
A communication confirmation method characterized by detecting a new connection of a new downstream bridge even during the communication confirmation step operation and continuing the operation of the communication confirmation step. The communication confirmation method according to claim 15,
A communication confirmation method, wherein a segment including the new downstream bridge is newly set as a communication confirmation target. A communication confirmation program for causing a computer to function as a communication confirmation device connected to one or more segments via a computer bus network,
The computer,
For at least one segment included in the one or more segments, whether or not one or more operation nodes included in the segment can communicate with the communication confirmation device, and a downstream bridge included in the segment including the operation node; Whether or not communication is established with the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device, the communication confirmation packet having the operation node as a transmission destination and the communication confirmation response packet which is a response packet to the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation device are provided. It functions as a communication confirmation means for confirming whether or not communication is established between an upstream bridge and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between the bridges. Communication confirmation program. The communication confirmation program according to claim 17,
The communication confirmation means includes
Between bridges that determine whether communication is established between an upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, using a packet for transmission / reception between these bridges A communication confirmation judging means;
Intra-segment communication confirmation determination means for determining whether communication is established between the operational node and the downstream bridge in the segment including the operational node, using the communication confirmation packet and the communication confirmation response packet. When,
A communication confirmation program characterized by comprising: The communication confirmation program according to claim 18, wherein
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
An upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device when communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, and communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. And a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node and a downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. The judgment result that the communication is taken,
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, the upstream bridge provided in the communication check device and the segment including the operation node A communication confirmation program characterized by issuing a judgment result that communication is not established with the downstream bridge provided in. The communication confirmation program according to claim 18 or 19,
The intra-segment communication confirmation judging means
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
When communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node, a determination result is obtained that communication is established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node.
The inter-bridge communication confirmation judging means is:
Regarding the operation node that is subject to communication check,
Communication is established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node, but communication is not established between the communication confirmation device and the operation node. A communication between the communication confirmation device and the operation node when communication is not established between the upstream bridge provided in the communication confirmation device and the downstream bridge provided in the segment including the operation node. A communication confirmation program characterized in that a judgment result is given that it is not taken. A communication confirmation program according to any one of claims 17 to 20,
The communication confirmation determining unit measures a delay time from the time when the communication confirmation packet is transmitted to the time when the communication confirmation response packet is received for the operation node that can communicate with the communication confirmation device. A characteristic communication confirmation program. The communication confirmation program according to any one of claims 17 to 21,
The communication confirmation device is a communication confirmation program characterized by being a device compliant with Express Ether (registered trademark). A communication confirmation program according to any one of claims 17 to 22,
A communication confirmation program characterized by detecting a new connection of a new downstream bridge even when the communication confirmation means is operating, and continuing the operation of the communication confirmation means. A communication confirmation program according to claim 23, wherein
A communication confirmation program characterized in that a segment including the new downstream bridge is newly set as a communication confirmation target.

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