KR20050112402A - Method and apparatus for computer system diagnosis - Google Patents

Abstract

In a computer system, a computer system device and diagnostic method provided with a diagnostic memory connected to a USB interface for checking a peripheral device of a computer and diagnosing the system are provided. The computer system according to the present invention includes a diagnostic memory in which a test program for diagnosing a computer system is stored. The computer system may branch to a diagnostic memory area according to a user input at boot time to check a state of the system.

Description

Method and apparatus for computer system diagnosis

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for diagnosing a computer system, and more particularly, a system for diagnosing a system separately from a recording medium such as a hard disk or a floppy disk by storing a diagnostic program for diagnosing a computer system in a diagnostic memory connected to a USB port. This relates to a possible computer system diagnostic method and apparatus.

First, the configuration and operation principle of a conventional computer system are as shown in FIG. 1. A computer in normal operation can be divided into a hardware part 100 and a software part 110, 120, 130, 140. The hardware part is largely a CPU, a memory such as RAM or ROM, a hard disk or a floppy disk. And auxiliary storage devices and computer peripheral devices such as printers and speakers. In the software part, the BIOS 110 necessary for peripheral device testing and operating system loading, various operating systems 120 directly controlling the hardware so that the computer can process the request of the user, and interact with a specific device or a specific program of the computer Various drivers 130 and various applications 140 operating within the operating system based on the operating system are included. As shown in FIG. 2, the computer system is configured to have a BIOS (Basic Input Output System, BIOS) recorded in a ROM when the user powers on the computer (S200), RAM (Random Access Memory, RAM) and the computer. Checking and initializing whether other peripheral devices connected to the device are in position or in an operational state (S210), and searching for a recording medium such as a hard disk or a floppy disk (S220) to load the operating system into main memory. The initial program loader (Initial Program Loader, IPL) may be loaded into the main memory (S230), the booting consisting of the step of loading files related to the operating system into the main memory by the IPL having computer control (S240), etc. Through the process, it becomes a state capable of processing various tasks according to the user input (S250).

After the booting process, the user can perform various tasks and system diagnosis through various applications. The conventional computer system diagnosis method is performed after the operating system is loaded through the booting process as described above. System diagnostics independent of storage media such as hard disks were not possible.

Also, for system diagnosis of DOS environment or system setting such as Fdisk, it is necessary to use a floppy disk drive or connect another memory device to the expansion port of a computer to execute a program in the corresponding recording medium. Increasingly, floppy disk drives are not supported, and in the case of a memory device connected to an expansion port of a computer, there is a risk of losing the memory device when carrying.

In the case of a recording medium such as a hard disk, one hard disk may be logically divided, and then a certain area may be designated and used for installing a system diagnostic program. All of the data in the disk is erased, and when using Fdisk, not only the data in the hard disk but also the divided partition area disappears, so that diagnostic programs stored in the hard disk cannot be used.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems. By connecting a separate diagnostic memory in which a diagnostic program is stored in a computer system, a system diagnosis method capable of diagnosing a system without relying on a storage medium such as a hard disk or a floppy disk is provided. And to provide a device.

However, the object of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned object, another object that is not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

A computer system for achieving the above object is directly connected to the main board controller without going through a ROM BIOS and a controller in which a power-on and POST program for performing hardware initialization and self-test of the computer system is stored. Contains stored flash memory.

In addition, the computer system diagnostic method for achieving the above object is the step of applying power to the computer to initialize the hardware of the computer system and perform a self-test, the mode selected by the user after initializing the hardware of the computer system and performing a self-test Selectively accessing the flash memory, accessing the flash memory to load a program stored in the flash memory into the main memory, diagnosing a computer system according to the loaded program, and after completing the system diagnosis. Rebooting the computer system.

Specific details of other embodiments are included in the detailed description and drawings, and the advantages and features of the present invention and methods for achieving them will be apparent with reference to the embodiments described below in detail with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below, but may be embodied in various different forms, and the present embodiments merely make the disclosure of the present invention complete and common knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention belongs. It is provided to fully inform the person having the scope of the invention, which is defined only by the scope of the claims. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

Hereinafter, a method and apparatus for diagnosing a computer system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First, Figure 3 shows the overall configuration of a computer system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. In general, a computer is composed of a monitor, a keyboard, and a main body. The main body is largely connected to a storage device such as a hard disk or a CD-ROM, a power supply device, a main board 300, and the storage device and the main board. And a system bus 390 for transmitting an address and data.

The main board 300 includes a main board controller including a NorthBridge 301 and a SouthBridge 302, a central processor 310 controlled through the main board controller, and a ROM bias 340. AGP controller 330, PCI controller 350, IDE controller 360, and USB controller 370 may be provided to connect and use a memory device 320 such as a RAM, a graphics card, and the like. The computer system components and the motherboard controller are connected to, for example, a PCI bus 390, which is one of the system buses, and together with other circuits form a chipset to integrate the chipset. Oversee the system.

In addition to the general computer system configuration as described above, the computer system according to the present invention includes a flash memory 380 directly connected to the motherboard controller, not through a USB controller. A system diagnostic program is stored in the flash memory 380. After the computer is powered on, the flash memory 380 selectively accesses the flash memory according to a mode selected by the user to load the program stored in the flash memory into the main memory, and the contents of the program. Check the status of your computer.

The northbridge 301 of the motherboard controller controls a device having a high data transfer rate such as a central processing unit 310, a memory device 320, an accelerated graphics port (AGP) 330, and the like. Is connected through a host interface, the AGP 330 to which a large data transfer device such as a 3D graphics card is connected is connected through an accelerated graphics port interface (AGP), and a memory device 320 such as a RAM. ) Is connected via a memory interface.

Also, the southbridge 302 of the memory controller controls data flow of relatively slow peripheral devices such as the PCI controller 350, the IDE controller 360, and the USB controller 370, and performs input / output management or power management. do. Storage devices such as hard disk drives, floppy disk drives, and CD-ROMs are connected to an integrated drive electronics (IDE) controller 360 and connected to a LAN card, modem, video card, or SCSI (Small Computer System Interface). Boards requiring high speed data transmission are mainly connected to a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) controller 350.

The ROM 340 is connected to the South Bridge 302 through a firmware hub (not shown). The ROM stores a BIOS for booting or resetting the computer. The Basic Input Output System (BIOS) is the first program that starts when the computer is started. It is a set of programs that handle the most basic functions of the computer, that is, a collection of routines for operating the I / O or peripherals in the operating system. It is the lowest part and is also called a lombios because it is in the ROM. The routines that make up the BIOS are typically a start-up routine, a service routine, and a hardware interrupt handling routine. The startup routine is automatically executed when the computer is turned on to check the state of the computer (Power-On). Self Test, POST), initializes the system, and checks which peripheral devices are connected during initialization.

In addition to the PCI or IDE controller, the southbridge 302 includes a USB (Universal Serial Bus) controller 370, to which computer peripheral devices such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a memory device are connected through a USB interface.

The USB interface is a Plug and Play interface between the computer and other peripherals, such as a keyboard and mouse, and is automatically recognized without rebooting or setup, even if a new peripheral is connected while the computer is in use. It can supply up to 500mA, so low-power devices such as mice and keyboards don't need a separate power source, and the same principle as a serial port or faster data transfer than a serial port. Typically, a total of three USB controller hubs are supported, with two USB ports per hub. Each USB port that is expanded through the hub is connected to a variety of USB peripherals such as keyboards, mice, and portable storage devices.

Meanwhile, the flash memory 380 in which the system diagnostic program is stored is directly connected to the main board controller in a circuit according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. In this case, the direct connection is performed between the main board controller and the flash memory. This means that there is no separate USB controller. For example, the address pin of the flash memory and the corresponding pin of the motherboard controller are directly connected. As described above, the flash memory directly connected to the main board controller checks the connection status and operation of not only the central processing unit 310, the memory device 320, and the controller included in the computer, but also various storage media and peripheral devices. . In addition, the flash memory 380 that can be connected to the motherboard controller is not limited in size and connected to one of a plurality of USB ports 371 supported by the motherboard controller in addition to a method of directly connecting to the motherboard controller. Thus, a connection method of a computer system and a method that can be attached and detached is possible.

When the computer system is powered on, it goes through a power-on self test (POST) step that initializes the hardware and performs a self-test, and then selectively accesses the flash memory according to the user's selected mode. Mode, or a normal boot mode. The mode selection can be made through the BIOS setup settings or through a specific user input environment such as a hotkey or a button. When the mode is selected through the BIOS setup, the system is automatically diagnosed as one of the entire booting processes each time the computer is powered up without a separate user input environment.

Next, a computer system diagnostic method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 4. First, when the computer is powered on, while the ROM BIOS is driven (S400), the hardware and other peripheral devices are checked (S410), and the system diagnosis or booting is determined (S420). If the booting continues, the drive is searched (S460) to load the IPL from the predetermined storage device into the main memory (S470), and the IPL loaded into the main memory loads the operating system into the main memory (S480). After that, the user can use the computer normally (S490). If the system diagnosis is to be performed, the flash memory is accessed (S430), the system diagnostic program stored in the flash memory is loaded into the main memory, and the entire computer system diagnosis is performed according to the contents of the program loaded into the main memory. (S440). After the system diagnosis is completed according to the program stored in the flash memory, the monitor outputs a message asking whether to reboot the system (S450), and the computer is normally operated by shutting down or rebooting according to the user's selection. To help.

In the method of diagnosing a computer system as described above, a method of determining whether to perform a system diagnosis or continue booting after checking a peripheral device is a manual method through a user input environment such as a hotkey or a button input, or a BIOS setup setting. Both automatic methods are possible.

For example, in FIG. 4, after the ROM device is powered on (S400) and the peripheral device is checked (S410), when a user inputs a predetermined shortcut key, the system diagnosis process may be selected. If you do not enter a shortcut key, you can continue the boot process after the POST phase.

If there is no key input by the user at the step of selecting whether to diagnose the system, without searching the system, a drive such as a hard disk or a floppy disk is searched (S460) and the IPL is loaded into the main memory (S470). In operation S490, the IPL loads the operating system into main memory (S480), thereby allowing the computer to operate normally (S490). In the step of selecting whether to diagnose the system, if a shortcut key determined by the user is input, the flash memory is accessed (S430), the system diagnostic program stored in the flash memory is loaded into the main memory, and the system is stored in the flash memory. The computer system is diagnosed according to the diagnostic program (S440). After the system diagnosis is completed according to the diagnostic program stored in the flash memory, a message asking whether to reboot the system is output to the monitor (S450) and the system is rebooted or terminated according to the user's selection.

Alternatively, as illustrated in FIGS. 5A and 5B, a flash memory button 520 may be implemented outside the computer system in addition to the power button 510 to select whether to diagnose the system according to the selection of the button. In FIG. 4, after the POST step (S410), if the button is selected, the system diagnostic process is selected. After the POST step (S410), if the button is not selected, the boot process is selected, and then the POST step is followed. Allow booting without system diagnostics.

FIG. 6 illustrates another computer system diagnostic method according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. A flowchart illustrating a method of automatically diagnosing a system whenever a computer is turned on or reset through a BIOS setup. to be. First, when power is applied to the computer, the BIOS stored in the ROM is driven (S500) and the hardware and other peripheral devices are checked (S510). However, since the flash memory 380 according to the embodiment of the present invention is directly connected to the south bridge 302 by a circuit, the flash memory 380 is also recognized as one peripheral device at boot time. Therefore, if the user sets the flash memory 380 as a boot region in the BIOS setup, the program stored in the flash memory is loaded into the main memory and the system is diagnosed according to the contents stored in the flash memory (S530). You can diagnose the system automatically without any separate user input environment. After the system diagnosis is completed, the system is rebooted (S540), a drive such as a hard drive or a floppy disk is searched (S550), and the IPL is loaded from the predetermined storage device into the main memory (S560). The IPL loads the operating system into the main memory (S570) to enable the user to use the computer normally (S580).

Alternatively, you can set your BIOS setup so that it does not go through system diagnostics, so that you don't go through system diagnostics every time you turn on or reset your computer. However, even if the BIOS setup is set so that the system does not go through a system diagnostic process every time the computer is turned on or reset, as described in FIG. 4, if there is a designated hotkey input during booting, the system diagnosis may be performed.

As described above, the computer system diagnostic method and apparatus according to the present invention have been described with reference to the illustrated drawings. However, the present invention is not limited by the embodiments and drawings disclosed herein, and is defined by those skilled in the art within the technical scope of the present invention. Of course, various modifications may be made.

The computer system diagnostic method and apparatus according to the present invention as described above have one or more of the following effects.

First, computer system diagnosis is possible regardless of whether a recording medium such as hard disk or floppy disk is installed.

Second, it is very useful for diagnosing computer systems that do not support floppy disk drives such as laptops.

Third, there is no concern about losing the floppy disk where the diagnostic program is stored.

Fourth, there is an advantage that the flash memory can be used as another recording medium to provide a more diverse environment to the computer system user.

Fifth, the flash memory area can be easily accessed through the button for the flash memory, and the diagnostic program stored in the flash memory can be updated.

1 is a view for explaining the operating principle of a conventional computer system.

2 is a flowchart illustrating a booting process of a conventional computer system.

3 is an internal configuration diagram of a computer system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flow chart illustrating a process in which computer system diagnostics are manually performed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a process of automatically performing computer system diagnostics in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

6 illustrates an appearance of a computer system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols on main parts of the drawings>

301: North Bridge (MCH) 310: Central processing unit

320: memory device 302: south bridge (ICH)

370: USB port 371, 380: flash memory

390: system bus 610: power button

620: Flash memory button

Claims (8)

A ROM BIOS that stores a POST program that is powered on and performs hardware initialization and self-test of the computer system; A flash memory for storing computer system diagnostics; And And a central processing unit configured to selectively load the computer system diagnostic program according to a mode selected by a user and perform a diagnosis after the hardware initialization and self-test. The method of claim 1, And the flash memory is directly circuited directly to a motherboard controller connected to the central processing unit. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the central processing unit reboots after the diagnosis is finished. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the mode is determined by whether an externally attached button is selected. Applying power to perform hardware initialization and self-test of the computer system; After the hardware initialization and self-test, selectively accessing a flash memory area according to a mode selected by a user; And Loading a program stored in the flash memory, and diagnosing the computer system according to the loaded program. 6. The method of claim 5, further comprising the step of rebooting the computer system after the diagnosis ends. The method of claim 5, wherein the mode is determined by whether a designated shortcut key is input. The method of claim 5, wherein the mode is determined by selecting a button attached to an exterior of the computer system.