KR20120130690A - Management server, management device and method of management for plural image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A management method for a management server, a management device, and image forming devices is provided to easily match the management device, which easily manages the image forming devices, with a client group, which the management server manages. CONSTITUTION: A storing unit(140) stores information of client groups. A communication interface unit(110) receives identifying information for identifying the management device from a remote place management device connected to an image forming device. A mapping unit(150) matches the management device with the client group based on the identifying information. A controlling unit(170) transmits an activation command to the matched management device and collects information from the image forming device connected to the management device matched with the client group. The identifying information includes a name, an IP address, and a serial number of the management device. [Reference numerals] (110) Communication interface unit; (120) Display unit; (130) Input unit; (140) Storing unit; (150) Mapping unit; (160) Managing unit; (170) Controlling unit

Description

MANAGEMENT SERVER, MANAGEMENT DEVICE AND METHOD OF MANAGEMENT FOR PLURAL IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS}

The present invention relates to a management server, a management device and a management method for a plurality of image forming apparatuses, and easily manages a management device for managing a plurality of image forming apparatuses located at remote locations in a client group managed by the management server. A management server, a management apparatus, and a management method for a plurality of image forming apparatuses that can be mapped.

The image forming apparatus refers to an apparatus for printing print data generated by a terminal apparatus such as a computer onto a recording sheet. Examples of such an image forming apparatus may include a copier, a printer, a facsimile, or a multi function peripheral (MFP) that implements their functions in a single device.

In recent years, the B2B market has developed, in which printer management solution providers manage printers in government offices, universities or businesses. In this B2B market, a printer management solution provider manages a job log of an image forming apparatus such as a printer in a network, calculates a job amount, and charges a usage amount on an individual or group basis.

Printers in these government offices, universities, or businesses are located remotely from the management server of the printer management solution provider. In recent years, the government offices, universities, or businesses use firewalls or internal networks, so the management server is located at a remote location. Or information on a plurality of image forming apparatuses using an agent.

Meanwhile, in order for the management apparatus to collect information of the plurality of image forming apparatuses, the management apparatus must be mapped with any one of a client group (or management group) managed by the management server. In this regard, the management apparatus and the client group are conventionally mapped in the manner as shown in FIG.

12 is a view for explaining a method of mapping a conventional management device and a client group.

Referring to FIG. 12, first, an administrator generates an agent key file corresponding to a client group to which a management device is to be mapped (1), and an administrator generates an agent key file. ) Or directly to the remote location where the management device is located (2), and the installer (or administrator) applies the received agent key file to the management device (3) The device obtains the ID of the client group to be mapped from the applied agent key file (4), and completes the mapping operation by transferring the obtained client group ID and its information to the management server.

However, in the case of mapping the management device and the client group in the conventional manner, in order to perform the mapping, the administrator has to manually move to a remote location and install an agent key file. In the case of changing the connection relationship between the management device and the management server, there is an inconvenience in that the above-described operation must be performed for each of the changed management devices.

In addition, since such a mapping operation requires a dash time, there is a problem in that the image forming apparatus connected to the management apparatus cannot be managed during the waiting time.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is a management server, a management device, and a plurality of image forming devices that can easily map a management device that facilitates management of a plurality of image forming devices located at remote locations to a client group managed by the management server. To provide a management method for.

The management server according to the present embodiment for achieving the above object, the storage unit for storing information of a plurality of client groups, it is possible to identify the management device from a remote management device connected to at least one image forming apparatus A communication interface to receive identification information, a mapping unit to map at least one client group of the plurality of client groups and the management device based on the received identification information, and a management device mapped to the client group And a control unit which transmits an activation command for collecting information to the image forming apparatus to the mapped management apparatus.

In this case, the identification information includes at least one of a name of the management device, an IP address of the management device, and a unique serial number of the management device.

On the other hand, the management server is selected by the display unit for displaying a management device that is not mapped to the plurality of client groups, and at least one management device of the unmapped management device, the selected management device from a plurality of client groups And an input unit configured to select a client group to be mapped with the mapping unit, wherein the mapping unit maps the selected management device to the selected client group.

The management server may further include a management unit for requesting and receiving information on an image forming apparatus connected to the management device to which the activation command is transmitted, from the management device to which the activation command is transmitted.

In this case, the information of the image forming apparatus is preferably at least one of unique information, status information, and job information of the image forming apparatus.

In this case, the job information is preferably at least one of the number of prints, the job log, and the operation rate in the image forming apparatus.

On the other hand, the storage unit, it is preferable to store the received information of the image forming apparatus divided by the corresponding client group.

Meanwhile, a plurality of image forming apparatuses and a management apparatus connectable to a remote management server according to the present embodiment may include a user interface unit for receiving an agent start command for providing information of the plurality of image forming apparatuses to the management server; The communication interface unit transmits identification information for identifying the management device to the management server when the agent start command is input, and information about the connected image forming apparatus when an activation command is received from the management server. And a control unit for controlling the communication interface unit to transmit to the management server.

In this case, the user interface unit may receive a name of the management device, and the identification information may include the name of the received management device.

The identification information may include at least one of a name of the management device, an IP address of the management device, and a unique serial number of the management device.

On the other hand, it is preferable that the management apparatus is at least one of an image forming apparatus and a print control terminal apparatus connectable with the image forming apparatus.

On the other hand, the management method for a plurality of image forming apparatus in the management server according to the present embodiment, receiving identification information for identifying the management device from a remote management device connected to at least one image forming apparatus, Mapping at least one client group of the plurality of client groups and the management device based on the received identification information, and an activation command to collect information of an image forming apparatus connected to the management device mapped to the client group Transmitting to the mapped management device.

In this case, the identification information preferably includes at least one of a name of the management device, an IP address of the management device, and a unique serial number of the management device.

The management method may further include displaying a management device that is not mapped to the plurality of client groups, receiving at least one management device that is not mapped, and selecting the selected management device from among the plurality of client groups. The method may further include receiving a selection of a client group to be mapped with the device, and the mapping may include mapping the selected management device to the selected client group.

The management method may further include requesting and receiving information of an image forming apparatus connected to the management apparatus to which the activation command is transmitted, from the management apparatus to which the activation command is transmitted.

In this case, the information of the image forming apparatus is preferably at least one of unique information, status information, and job information of the image forming apparatus.

In this case, the job information is preferably at least one of the number of prints, the job log, and the operation rate in the image forming apparatus.

Meanwhile, the managing method may further include classifying and storing the received information of the image forming apparatus for each corresponding client group.

On the other hand, the management method for a plurality of image forming apparatus in the management apparatus according to the present embodiment, the step of receiving an agent start command to provide information of the plurality of image forming apparatus to the management server, the agent function command When the input is received, transmitting identification information for identifying the management device to the management server, receiving an activation command from the management server, and information on the image forming apparatus connected to the management device the management server Sending to.

In this case, the management method may further include receiving a name of the management device, and the identification information may include a name of the received management device.

The identification information may include at least one of a name of the management device, an IP address of the management device, and a unique serial number of the management device.

On the other hand, it is preferable that the management apparatus is at least one of an image forming apparatus and a print control terminal apparatus connectable with the image forming apparatus.

1 is a block diagram illustrating an MPS management system according to an embodiment of the present invention;
2 is a block diagram showing a specific configuration of the management server of FIG.
3 is a block diagram showing a specific configuration of the management device of FIG.
4 to 6 are views for explaining a method of mapping a management device and a client group according to the present embodiment;
7 to 9 illustrate examples of a user interface window displayed on the display unit of FIG. 2;
10 is a flowchart illustrating a management method for a plurality of image forming apparatuses in a management server according to an embodiment of the present invention;
11 is a flowchart illustrating a management method for a plurality of image forming apparatuses in a management apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;
12 is a view for explaining a method of mapping a conventional management device and a client group.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram illustrating an MPS management system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the MPS management system 1000 includes a management server 100 and a plurality of management apparatuses 200-1,..., 200-n.

The management server 100 is an image forming apparatus 10-1, 10-2, ..., 10-n, 11-1 connected to each of the plurality of management apparatuses from the plurality of management apparatuses 200-1, ..., 200-n. , 11-2, ..., 11-n), and performs a management operation on each of the image forming apparatuses based on the received information of the image forming apparatus. A detailed configuration and operation of the management server 100 will be described later with reference to FIG. 2.

The plurality of management apparatuses 200-1,..., 200-n are connected to the management server 100, and at least one image forming apparatus 10-1, 10-2,. , 11-2, ..., 11-n). The plurality of management apparatuses 200-1,..., 200-n collect information of an image forming apparatus connected in response to a request of the management server 100, and manage the collected image forming apparatus information. To transmit. A detailed configuration and function of the management device 200 will be described later with reference to FIG. 3. The management apparatus 200 may be a print control terminal such as a PC or a notebook, or may be an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a copier, a multifunction printer, or the like.

In FIG. 1, only two types of management devices 200-1 and 200-n are connected to the management server 100, but only three types of management devices are connected to the management server 100. Can be connected. In addition, although the management apparatus 200 has been described in connection with the three image forming apparatuses 10-1, 10-2, ..., 10-n, respectively, the number of image forming apparatuses connected to each of the management apparatus 200 is described. May be different, and at least one image forming apparatus may be connected to the management apparatus 200.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of the management server of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 2, the management server 100 may include a communication interface 110, a display 120, an inputter 130, a storage 140, a mapping unit 150, a management unit 160, and a controller 170. It can be composed of).

The communication interface 110 is connected to the plurality of management apparatuses 200-1,..., 200-n. Specifically, the communication interface 110 is formed to connect the management server 100 to an external device, and the plurality of management devices 200-1,..., Through a local area network (LAN) and the Internet network. 200-n).

The communication interface 110 receives identification information for identifying the management device from the management device 200. Specifically, the communication interface 110 may include a name (or alias) of a management device capable of identifying the management device from a management device 200 located at a remote location, an IP address of the management device, and a uniqueness of the management device. Information such as the serial number of the (eg, MAC information) can be received.

The communication interface 110 transmits an activation command to the management device 200. In detail, the communication interface 110 may include the image forming apparatuses 10-1, 10-2,..., 10 connected to the management apparatus 200 to the management apparatus 200 newly mapped by the mapping unit 150 to be described later. -n) can send an activation command to collect information.

The communication interface 110 receives information of the image forming apparatus from each of the management apparatuses 200-1,..., 200-n. Specifically, the communication interface 110 may be an image forming apparatus 10-1 connected to each of the management apparatuses 200-1,..., 200-n. , 10-2, ..., 10-n, 11-1, 11-2, ..., 11-n, request the transmission of information, and each management device 200-1, ..., 200- in response to the request. n) information of the image forming apparatus connected to the management apparatus may be received. The information of the image forming apparatus received here may be unique information of the image forming apparatus (eg, model name, IP address, driver information, location information of the image forming apparatus), and state information of the image forming apparatus (eg, the image forming apparatus). On / off status of the camera, the presence or absence of an error in the image forming apparatus such as a jam, the recording agent information (for example, the type of recording agent, the amount of the recording agent, etc.) of the image forming apparatus, the operation information of the image forming apparatus (for example , The number of prints of the image forming apparatus, the job log, the operation rate, and the like.

The communication interface 110 may receive a request for information from each of the management devices 200-1,..., 200-n, and transmit the requested information to the corresponding management device with information corresponding to the received information request. have. In detail, the administrator (or user) may request the management server 100 for the operation log of the image forming apparatus through the management apparatus or the image forming apparatus, and in response to the request, the management server 200 applies the corresponding information. It may transmit to the management device 200.

The display unit 120 may display various information supported by the management server 100. The display unit 120 may display information of a plurality of client groups (or management groups, hereinafter referred to as client groups) managed by the management server 100. In detail, the display unit 120 may display a plurality of client groups managed by the management server 100, together with a management device mapped to the corresponding client group. In this case, the display 120 may classify and display the client group to which the management device is not mapped and the management device to which the client group is not mapped. Various user interface windows that may be displayed on the display unit 120 will be described later with reference to FIGS. 7 to 9.

The input unit 130 includes a plurality of function keys for the administrator to set or select various functions supported by the management server 100. In detail, the input unit 130 may receive at least one management device that is not mapped and receive a client group to be mapped with the selected management device. The input unit 130 may receive a command for modifying or deleting a connection relationship between the mapped management device and the client group. Meanwhile, in the present exemplary embodiment, the display unit 120 and the input unit 130 are described as separate components. However, the display unit 120 and the input unit 130 may be implemented as one device in which input and output are simultaneously implemented, such as a touch pad.

The storage 140 stores information of a plurality of client groups. In detail, the storage 140 may store information of a plurality of client groups managed by the management server 100. Here, the information of the client group is information such as a name of the client group and a management device mapped to the client group.

In addition, the storage 140 stores identification information for identifying the management apparatus. In detail, the storage 140 may store 'identification information for identifying the management apparatus' received through the communication interface 110. Meanwhile, identification information for identifying the management apparatus may be input through the input unit 130, and identification information for identifying the input management apparatus may be stored in the storage 140.

The storage unit 140 stores information of the image forming apparatus. In detail, the storage 140 stores information of the image forming apparatus (for example, the unique information, the state information, and the job information) received from the management apparatus 200 through the communication interface 110. It may be stored separately for each client group corresponding to the transmitted management device.

The storage 140 may be implemented as a storage medium and an external storage medium in the management server 100, for example, a removable disk including a USB memory, a database connected to a management server (Host), and the like.

The mapping unit 150 maps the management device and the client group. In detail, the mapping unit 150 may map the plurality of client groups and the plurality of management devices to each other. In this case, the mapping unit 150 may map one management device to be connected to one client group, and may map the plurality of management devices to one client group.

This mapping operation may be automatically performed or may be performed by the administrator. First, the mapping operation performed automatically, the mapping unit 150 is identification information for identifying the corresponding device received from the management device, identification information for identifying the pre-stored device through the input unit 130 and By comparing the information of the client group, the client device to which the management device is mapped may be selected, and the selected client group and the management device may be mapped. For example, if the name of the management device in the identification information that can identify the device received from the management device is "Company 1 Agent" and "Company 1" in the client group, the mapping unit 150 manages the management. The device can be mapped to a client group of "company 1".

In addition, when the mapping operation performed by the selection of the manager is described, if identification information for identifying the corresponding management device is received from the management device 200, the mapping unit 150 may indicate that there is a management device that is not mapped. The display unit 120 may be controlled to be displayed, the client group to which the corresponding management device is mapped from the administrator may be input through the input unit 130, and the corresponding management device may be mapped to the selected client group. Meanwhile, in the present embodiment, only the mapping of the management device and the client group by the manager using the display unit 120 and the input unit 130 of the management server 100 has been described. When providing a web server for managing the image forming apparatus, the administrator may access the web server from a remote location and map the management apparatus and the client group.

The manager 160 performs a management operation on the plurality of image forming apparatuses. In detail, the management unit 160 requests information on the image forming apparatus connected to the management apparatus from the plurality of management apparatuses 200 connected to the plurality of management apparatuses 200 according to a preset time or a request of the administrator, and in response to the request, The information is stored in the storage 140. The manager 160 may perform a management operation in a typical MPS system such as print history management, billing management, and lifespan management based on the received information of the image forming apparatus.

The controller 170 controls each component in the management server 100. Specifically, when the control unit 170 receives the identification information for identifying the corresponding management device from the management device 200 through the communication interface unit 110, the management device that has transmitted the information is one of the plurality of client groups. The mapping unit 150 may be controlled to be mapped to the client group. In addition, the controller 170 may control the communication interface 110 to transmit an activation command for operating the corresponding management device as an agent to the corresponding management device.

As described above, the management server 100 according to the present exemplary embodiment may perform a separate agent key file generation operation and an operation of installing the generated agent key file in the remote management apparatus 200, without using the management apparatus 200 and the client group. It's easy to map. In addition, the management server 100 according to the present embodiment can easily change the mapping relationship between the management device and the client group only by the control operation in the management server 100.

3 is a block diagram illustrating a specific configuration of the management device of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 3, the management device 200 includes a communication interface 210, a user interface 220, a storage 230, an installation 240, and a controller 250.

The communication interface 210 is formed to connect the management device 200 to the management server 100 and may be connected to the management server 10 through a local area network (LAN) and an internet network. The communication interface 210 is formed to connect to at least one image forming apparatus 10 and is connected to the image forming apparatus 10 through a local area network (LAN) and an internet network. It is also possible to connect via a USB (Universal Serial Bus) port.

The communication interface 210 transmits identification information for identifying the management device itself to the management server 100. In more detail, the communication interface 210 may represent itself as a name (or alias) of a management device, an IP address of the management device, a unique serial number of the management device (for example, MAC information), and the like. Information may be transmitted to the management server 100.

The communication interface 210 receives an activation command. Specifically, the communication interface unit 210 corresponds to the transmission of the identification information for identifying the management apparatus itself, the image forming apparatus (10-1, 10-2, ..., 10-n) connected from the management server 100 May receive an activation command (that is, an activation command of an agent function) to collect the information.

The communication interface 210 receives information of the image forming apparatus from the image forming apparatuses 10-1, 10-2, ..., 10-n connected thereto. The communication interface 210 transmits information of the image forming apparatuses 10-1, 10-2,..., 10-n connected to the management server 100. In detail, the communication interface unit 210 may request information from the management server 100, or, at a preset time, unique information (eg, an IP address of the image forming apparatus, driver information, Position information), state information of the image forming apparatus (for example, an on / off state of the image forming apparatus, presence or absence of an error in the image forming apparatus such as no jam or paper, and recording agent information of the image forming apparatus (for example, Recording agent type, recording agent amount, etc.), job information of the image forming apparatus (e.g., the number of prints of the image forming apparatus, job log, operation rate, etc.), and the like.

The communication interface 210 may request specific information from the management server 100, and receive corresponding information in response to the request. For example, when a user requests log information for a specific image forming apparatus, the communication interface 210 requests log information for a specific image forming apparatus from the management server 100 and sends corresponding information. It can be received from the management server 100.

The user interface 220 may include a plurality of function keys for the administrator to set or select various functions supported by the management device 200, and may display various information provided by the management device 200. The user interface 220 may be implemented as a device that simultaneously implements input and output, such as a touch pad, or may be implemented by combining an input device such as a mouse or a keyboard and a display device such as a CRT monitor, an LCD monitor, or an LED. . The administrator may input an agent start command for the management apparatus 200 to perform an agent function through a user interface window provided by the user interface 220.

The administrator may input a name (eg, alias) of the management device 200 through a user interface window provided by the user interface 220. In this case, the name of the input management device 200 may be stored in the storage 230.

The storage unit 230 stores identification information for identifying the management device. In detail, the storage unit 230 stores information such as a name of the management device, an IP address of the management device, and a unique serial number (eg, MAC information) of the management device input through the user interface unit 220. Can be.

The storage unit 230 may store information about the image forming apparatuses 10-1, 10-2,..., 10-n connected to the management apparatus 200. In detail, the storage unit 230 may include unique information of the image forming apparatus (for example, model name, IP address, driver information, and location information of the image forming apparatus) and state information of the image forming apparatus (for example, the image forming apparatus). Of the image forming apparatus such as the on / off state of the paper, the absence of jam or paper, the recording agent information of the image forming apparatus (for example, the type of the recording agent, the amount of the recording agent, etc.), the operation information of the image forming apparatus ( For example, the number of prints, the job log, the operation rate, etc. of the image forming apparatus may be stored. When the plurality of image forming apparatuses are stored in the management apparatus 200, the storage unit 230 may classify and store respective pieces of information of the plurality of image forming apparatuses.

Meanwhile, the storage unit 230 may be implemented as a storage medium and an external storage medium in the management device 200, for example, a removable disk including a USB memory, a storage medium connected to the management device, and a web server through a network. Can be.

The installation unit 240 installs a program in the management device 200 to allow the management device 200 to operate as an agent. In detail, when the above-described program is not installed in the management device 200, the installation unit 240 may install the agent program in the management device 200 in response to an agent starting command of the manager. Meanwhile, the agent start command of the manager may be an agent program installation command. Meanwhile, in the present embodiment, only the embodiment in which the agent program is installed in the management device 200 has been described, but in the embodiment, the control module (or control device) in which the agent program is implemented may be installed in the management device 200. Can be implemented.

The controller 250 may control each component included in the management device 200. In detail, when the controller 250 receives an agent start command from the manager through the user interface 220, the controller 250 may control the installation unit 240 to be installed in the management apparatus 200. When the agent program is installed in the management apparatus 200, the controller 250 controls the communication interface 210 to transmit identification information for identifying the management apparatus itself to the management server 100, and controls the management server ( When receiving the activation command from 100, the communication interface unit 210 may be controlled to transmit information about the connected image forming apparatus to the management server 100.

As described above, the management apparatus 200 according to the present exemplary embodiment may easily map the management apparatus and the client group through an operation of transmitting identification information identifying itself to the management server 100 without a separate agent key file. It becomes possible. In addition, even if the mapping relationship between the management device and the client group is changed in the management server 100, a separate operation is unnecessary for the management device 200.

4 to 6 are diagrams for describing a method of mapping a management device and a client group according to the present embodiment.

4 and 6, first, an administrator creates a plurality of client groups in the management server 100 (S610). The manager (or user) installs a program or a control module to operate as an agent in the management apparatus 200 (S620). The manager (or user) sets the name of the management apparatus 200 (S410 and S630). By this operation, the management device 200 operates as an agent (S640), and the management device 200 transmits identification information for identifying the management device itself to the management server 100 (S420 and S650).

The management server 200 stores the information received from the management device in the database (S430, S660), the management server 200 displays the unmapped management device to the manager (S440, S670), the manager is not mapped Unmanaged management devices can be mapped to specific client groups (S450, S680).

As described above, the mapping method according to the present embodiment enables the mapping between the management device and the client group using identification information for identifying the corresponding management device transmitted from the management device without creating a separate agent key file. do. In addition, the mapping method according to the present embodiment can easily change the mapping relationship between the management device and the client group only by the operation in the management server 100.

1 to 4, only the management apparatus is implemented as a print control terminal apparatus (or a host apparatus), but the management apparatus may be an image forming apparatus as shown in FIG. 5. In detail, the administrator may set a name of the image forming apparatus 200 ′. The image forming apparatus 200 ′ having a name set by such an operation may operate as an agent, and transmit the set name to the management server 100 as identification information for identifying the corresponding device.

7 to 9 illustrate examples of a user interface window that may be displayed on the display of FIG. 2.

Referring to FIG. 7, the user interface window 700 displays a mapping relationship between the management device and the client group. In detail, the user interface window 600 includes a first area 710 for displaying a management device mapped to a specific client group and a second area 750 for displaying an unmapped management device.

The first area 710 is an area for displaying a client group currently selected by an administrator and a management device mapped to the client group among a plurality of client groups managed by the management server.

The second area 750 is an area for displaying an unmapped management device among a plurality of management devices connected to the management server 100.

The administrator may identify the management device by using an alias (or name) and an IP address of the management device displayed in the second area 750, and map the identified management device to a specific client group. In detail, an operation of mapping an unmapped management device to a specific client group will be described below with reference to FIG. 8.

The administrator may select one management device among the management devices displayed in the second area 750, and in response to the selection, the display 120 may display a pop-up window 850 as shown in FIG. 8.

Referring to FIG. 8, the popup window 850 displays a plurality of client groups managed by the management server 100. The administrator may select a client group to which the corresponding management device is mapped through the displayed pop-up window 850 to map the management device to a specific client group.

Meanwhile, an administrator may change a connection relationship between a client group already mapped and a management device. Hereinafter, an operation of changing a connection relationship that is already mapped will be described with reference to FIG. 9.

Referring to FIG. 9, the administrator selects an area 901 to delete a mapping relationship of a management device that is mapped to a currently displayed client group. When this operation is performed, the management device mapped to the displayed client group is displayed in the second area 750. In addition, the administrator may select a client group to be mapped to the corresponding management device through the operation as described with reference to FIG. 8 to reset the mapping relationship.

10 is a flowchart illustrating a management method for a plurality of image forming apparatuses in a management server according to an exemplary embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 10, first, identification information for identifying a management apparatus is received from a remote management apparatus connected to at least one image forming apparatus (S1010). Specifically, the name (or alias) of the management device capable of identifying the management device from the management device 200 located at a remote location, the IP address of the management device, and the unique serial number of the management device (for example, , MAC information), and the like.

In operation S1020, the client device is mapped to one client group among the plurality of client groups based on the identification information for identifying the received management device. In detail, the mapping operation may be automatically performed or may be performed by the administrator's selection. First, a mapping operation performed automatically will be described by comparing identification information for identifying a corresponding device received from a management device with previously stored 'identification information for identifying a device' and / or client group information. The client group to which the management device is mapped may be selected, and the selected client group and the management device may be mapped.

In addition, when the mapping operation performed by the selection of the manager is described, when identification information for identifying the corresponding management device is received from the management device 200, the manager indicates that the unmapped management device exists, and the manager A client group to which the corresponding management device is mapped may be selected from, and the corresponding management device may be mapped to the selected client group.

Next, an activation command for collecting the information of the image forming apparatus connected to the management apparatus mapped to the client group is transmitted to the mapped management apparatus (S1030). By this operation, the mapping operation between the management device and the client group is completed.

In operation S1040 and S1050, the management apparatus requests and receives information on the image forming apparatus connected to the management apparatus. Specifically, unique information of the image forming apparatus connected to the management apparatus (for example, model name, IP address, driver information, location information) of the image forming apparatus, and state information of the image forming apparatus (for example, an image). The on / off state of the image forming apparatus, the presence or absence of an error in the image forming apparatus, the recording agent information (for example, the type of recording agent, the amount of the recording agent, etc.) of the image forming apparatus, the operation information of the image forming apparatus (for example, Job log, operation rate, etc. of the image forming apparatus) may be requested and received. That is, the management operation for the plurality of image forming apparatuses in the conventional MPS system is performed.

Then, the received information of the image forming apparatus is stored (S1060). In detail, the information on the image forming apparatus received from the management apparatus 200 may be classified and stored for each client group corresponding to the management apparatus that has transmitted the corresponding information.

Therefore, in the management method of the management server 100 according to the present embodiment, the management device 200 without the operation of generating a separate agent key file and installing the generated agent key file on the remote management device 200. And client groups can be easily mapped. In addition, the management method according to the present embodiment can easily change the mapping relationship between the management device and the client group only by the control operation in the management server 100. The management method of FIG. 10 may be executed on a management server having the configuration of FIG. 2 or may be executed on a management server having other configurations.

11 is a flowchart illustrating a management method for a plurality of image forming apparatuses in the management apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 11, first, an agent starting command for providing information of a plurality of image forming apparatuses to a management server is received (S1110). On the other hand, while receiving the agent start command, it is possible to receive the name of the management device from the administrator (or user). On the other hand, if the name of the management device is already input, this operation can be omitted.

When the agent function command is input, the identification information for identifying the management device is transmitted to the management server (S1120). Specifically, the management server 100 stores information such as a name (or alias) of a management device that can represent itself, an IP address of the management device, a unique serial number of the management device (for example, MAC information), and the like. Can be sent to.

 Next, an activation command is received from the management server (S1130). Through this activation command, the management device performs a function of an agent and transmits information of the image forming apparatus connected to the management device to the management server (S1140).

Accordingly, in the management method of the management device 200 according to the present embodiment, the management device and the client can be easily transmitted through an operation of transmitting identification information for identifying the self to the management server 100 without a separate agent key file. You can map groups. In addition, in the management method of the management device 200 according to the present embodiment, even if the mapping relationship between the management device and the client group is changed in the management server 100, a separate operation is not required for the management device 200. The management method of FIG. 11 may be executed on the management apparatus having the configuration of FIG. 3 or may be executed on the management apparatus having other configurations.

Meanwhile, the management method as illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 11 may be implemented by at least one execution program for executing the management method as described above, and such execution program may be stored in a computer-readable recording medium. .

Thus, each block of the present invention may be embodied as computer readable code on a computer readable recording medium. The computer readable recording medium may be a device capable of storing data that can be read by a computer system.

For example, a computer-readable recording medium may include ROMs, RAMs, CD-ROMs, magnetic tapes, floppy disks, optical disks, optical data storage devices, and televisions, including storage devices. It may be a video display device. The computer readable code may also be embodied as computer data signals on a carrier wave.

Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the present invention is not limited to the scope of the present invention as claimed in the claims. Anyone with a variety of modifications can be made, as well as such changes are within the scope of the claims.

100: management server 110: communication interface unit
120: display unit 130: input unit
140: storage unit 150: mapping unit
160: management unit 170: control unit
200: management device 210: communication interface unit
220: user interface unit 230: storage unit
240: installation unit 250: control unit

Claims (22)

A storage unit for storing information of the plurality of client groups;
A communication interface unit for receiving identification information for identifying the management apparatus from a remote management apparatus connected to at least one image forming apparatus;
A mapping unit configured to map at least one client group of the plurality of client groups and the management device based on the received identification information; And
And a control unit which transmits an activation command to the mapped management device to collect information in the image forming apparatus connected to the management device mapped to the client group. The method of claim 1,
Wherein,
And at least one of a name of the management device, an IP address of the management device, and a unique serial number of the management device. The method of claim 1,
A display unit to display a management device which is not mapped to the plurality of client groups; And
And an input unit configured to select at least one management device among the unmapped management devices and to select a client group to be mapped with the selected management device among a plurality of client groups.
The mapping unit, management server, characterized in that for mapping the selected management device to the selected client group. The method of claim 1,
And a management unit for requesting and receiving information on an image forming apparatus connected to the management apparatus to which the activation command is transmitted, from the management apparatus to which the activation command is transmitted. 5. The method of claim 4,
The information of the image forming apparatus,
And at least one of unique information, status information, and job information of the image forming apparatus. The method of claim 5,
The job information,
And at least one information of the number of prints, a job log, and an operation rate in the image forming apparatus. 5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein,
And classifying and storing the received information of the image forming apparatus for each corresponding client group. A management apparatus connectable with a plurality of image forming apparatuses and a remote management server,
A user interface unit for receiving an agent start command for providing information of the plurality of image forming apparatuses to the management server;
A communication interface unit for transmitting the identification information identifying the management device to the management server when the agent start command is input; And
And a controller configured to control the communication interface unit to transmit information about a connected image forming apparatus to the management server when an activation command is received from the management server. 9. The method of claim 8,
The user interface unit,
Receiving a name of the management device;
And the identification information includes a name of the input management device. 9. The method of claim 8,
Wherein,
And at least one of a name of the management device, an IP address of the management device, and a unique serial number of the management device. 9. The method of claim 8,
The management device,
And at least one of an image forming apparatus and a print control terminal apparatus connectable with the image forming apparatus. In the management method for a plurality of image forming apparatus in the management server,
Receiving identification information for identifying the management apparatus from a remote management apparatus connected to at least one image forming apparatus;
Mapping at least one client group of the plurality of client groups and the management device based on the received identification information; And
And transmitting an activation command to the mapped management device to collect information of an image forming device connected to the management device mapped to the client group. The method of claim 12,
Wherein,
And at least one of a name of the management device, an IP address of the management device, and a unique serial number of the management device. The method of claim 12,
Displaying a management device that is not mapped to the plurality of client groups;
Receiving at least one management device selected from the unmapped management devices; And
Receiving a selection of a client group to be mapped with the selected management device among a plurality of client groups;
The mapping step,
And mapping the selected management device to a selected client group. The method of claim 12,
And requesting and receiving information of the image forming apparatus connected to the management apparatus to which the activation command is transmitted, from the management apparatus to which the activation command is transmitted. 16. The method of claim 15,
The information of the image forming apparatus,
And at least one of unique information, status information, and job information of the image forming apparatus. 17. The method of claim 16,
The job information,
And at least one of information of the number of prints, a job log, and an operation rate in the image forming apparatus. 16. The method of claim 15,
And classifying and storing the received information of the image forming apparatus for each corresponding client group. A management method for a plurality of image forming apparatuses in a management apparatus,
Receiving an agent start command for providing information of the plurality of image forming apparatuses to the management server;
When receiving the agent function command, transmitting identification information for identifying the management device to the management server;
Receiving an activation command from the management server; And
Transmitting information of an image forming apparatus connected to the management apparatus to the management server. 20. The method of claim 19,
Receiving a name of the management device;
Wherein,
And a name of the input management device. 20. The method of claim 19,
Wherein,
And at least one of a name of the management device, an IP address of the management device, and a unique serial number of the management device. 20. The method of claim 19,
The management device,
And at least one of an image forming apparatus and a print control terminal apparatus connectable with the image forming apparatus.

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