TWI724700B - Out-of-band external control device, system and method therefore - Google Patents

Abstract

An out-of-band external control device, system and method therefore comprises of a first network port, a power input port, a power switch unit and a control unit. The first network port couples to an electric device and a remote server. The power input port takes the working power form the electric device. The power switch unit trigger the power pin of the electric device. The control unit connect to the first network port, the power input port and the power switch unit. When the control unit takes the enable request, the control unit send the boot signal to the power pin via the power switch unit. The control unit send regularly the detect command to the electric device via the first network port. When the electric device can’t response the detect command, the control unit require the enable request form the remote server.

Description

Out-of-band external control equipment, system and method

A device, system, and method for remotely controlling electronic equipment, particularly related to out-of-band external control equipment, systems, and methods.

Generally speaking, the current remote management of server systems and network equipment can be roughly divided into two control methods: In-Band and Out-of-Band (OOB). Although both control methods can be implemented through Ethernet, there are differences in transmission paths and monitoring objects between the two control methods. In-frequency control is mainly the remote server's monitoring of the target computer while it is running. When the target computer is shut down or down, the remote server cannot monitor the target computer. Out-of-band control means that the target computer can be in the Lights-out Management (LOM) state, and the remote server can still monitor the target computer. For example: control the target computer to restart or log records and other management operations.

The remote server and the target computer are connected through the Ethernet in the architecture of intra-frequency control, so the remote server can remotely monitor the target computer across the network. Generally speaking, the method of intra-frequency control is to install an agent on the target computer. When the target computer is alive, the agent can run correctly. But when the target computer is down, the agent will also be shut down.

Compared with the architecture of intra-frequency control, out-of-frequency control is to set up other monitoring equipment outside the target computer. Therefore, the target computer cannot run, but the external device can still perform monitoring processing. Since the external device needs an independent power supply to operate, an external transformer is required to make the external device take up other space. Moreover, the current out-of-band control can only provide a boot function when the target computer is shut down, and the external device cannot know whether the target computer is running. If an external device issues a boot request while the target computer is running, it will restart the target computer.

The invention provides an out-of-band external control device, which is used to independently monitor the operating state of the electronic device and realize the remote boot of the electronic device.

The out-of-band external control device of the present invention includes a first network interface, a power input interface, a power switch unit and a control unit. The first network interface is connected to the electronic device and the remote server via a network. The first network interface is used to transmit the enable request and detection command from the remote server, and send the detection command to the electronic device; power input The interface is connected to the power supply end of the electronic device, and the power input interface receives operating power; the power switch unit is connected to the switch pin of the electronic device, and the power switch unit is used to enable the switch pin; the control unit is electrically connected to the first network When the control unit receives the enable request, the control unit sends a start signal to the switch pin through the power switch unit; wherein, the control unit regularly drives the first network interface to send detection commands to the electronics For the device, when the electronic device does not respond to the detection command, the control unit requests the remote server to obtain the enable request.

The present invention also provides an out-of-band external control system, which includes a remote server, electronic equipment and external control equipment. The remote server network is connected to electronic equipment and external control equipment. The electronic device has a switch pin, a power supply end, a second network interface, and a processing unit; the processing unit is electrically connected to the switch pin, the power supply end, and the second network interface, and the switch pin receives a boot signal for The drive processing unit is enabled, the second network interface is connected to the remote server; the external control device has a first network interface, a power input interface, a power switch unit and a control unit. The first network interface is connected to the electronic device and the remote server via a network. The first network interface is used to transmit the enable request and detection command from the remote server, and send the detection command to the electronic device; power input The interface is connected to the power supply end of the electronic device, and the power input interface receives operating power; the power switch unit is connected to the switch pin of the electronic device, and the power switch unit is used to enable the switch pin; the control unit is electrically connected to the first network When the control unit receives the enable request, the control unit sends a start signal to the switch pin through the power switch unit; wherein, the control unit regularly drives the first network interface to send detection commands to the electronics For the device, when the electronic device does not respond to the detection command, the control unit requests the remote server to obtain the enable request.

The present invention further provides an out-of-band external control method, which includes: The control device is connected to the switch pin of the electronic device; the external control device obtains operating power from the power supply end of the electronic device; the external control device is connected to the remote server and the electronic device through the network; the external control device regularly sends detections to the electronic device The test command is used to confirm whether the electronic device returns a response; if the electronic device responds to the external control device, the external control device re-times and prepares to send the second detection command; if the electronic device does not have the same external control device, the external control device is remote The end server obtains the enable request; the external control device triggers the switch pin according to the enable request to turn on the electronic device.

The out-of-band external control device, system and method of the present invention can realize remote control of the boot and restart of the electronic device, and the electronic device can also be restarted in time when a crash occurs during operation. In addition, during the operation of the electronic device, the external control device can also observe the target unit. The external control device returns the acquired sensing information to the remote server for the remote server to collect the status of the electronic device.

With regard to the features and implementation of the present invention, the best embodiments are described in detail as follows in conjunction with the drawings.

100, 700‧‧‧Out-of-band external control system

110, 710‧‧‧External control equipment

111, 711‧‧‧First network interface

112, 713‧‧‧Power input interface

113, 714‧‧‧Power switch unit

114, 715‧‧‧sensing unit

115, 716‧‧‧Control unit

712‧‧‧First communication interface

120、720‧‧‧Electronic equipment

121, 721‧‧‧switch pin

122, 722‧‧‧Power supply end

123, 723‧‧‧Second network interface

124、725‧‧‧Target unit

125、726‧‧‧Storage unit

126, 727‧‧‧ processing unit

127, 728‧‧‧Agent Program

724‧‧‧Second communication interface

130、730‧‧‧Remote server

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the system architecture of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the operation flow of the present invention.

Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the pairing and registration of the external control device of the present invention.

Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the detection electronic device of the external control device of the present invention.

Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the enabling electronic device of the external control device of the present invention.

Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the transmission of the external control device and the sensing information of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of the system architecture of another embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of the enabling requirement judgment of another embodiment of the present invention.

Please refer to Figure 1, which is the architecture diagram of the out-of-band external control system of the present invention. In the present invention, the Out-of-Band control adopts the control processing that can remotely cross the network, and the standard Ethernet architecture is used for the cross network. The out-of-band external control system 100 of the present invention includes: an external control device 110, an electronic device 120, and a remote server 130. Remote server The server 130 is connected to the electronic device 120 and the external control device 110 via a network. In addition to being installed in the electronic device 120 in the form of an interface card, the external control device 110 can also be externally connected to the electronic device 120 as an independent device. In the present invention, the interface card is taken as an example, and it is not limited to this embodiment.

The external control device 110 includes a first network interface 111, a power input interface 112, a power switch unit 113, a sensing unit 114 and a control unit 115. For internal connections, the control unit 115 is electrically connected to the first network interface 111, the power input interface 112, the power switch unit 113, and the sensing unit 114. For external connections, the first network interface 111 is network connected to the electronic device 120 and the remote server 130. The aforementioned internal connection is a connection relationship between internal components of the external control device 110. The external connection refers to the connection relationship between the external control device 110 and other devices.

The electronic device 120 includes a switch pin 121, a power supply terminal 122, a second network interface 123, a target unit 124, a storage unit 125 and a processing unit 126. The processing unit 126 is electrically connected to the switch pin 121, the power supply terminal 122, the second network interface 123, the storage unit 125 and the target unit 124. The electronic device 120 referred to in the present invention can be, but is not limited to, a personal computer, a server, or a notebook computer, and can also be a computer with power supply after shutdown.

The power switch unit 113 is electrically connected to the switch pin 121. The switch pin 121 can connect the peripheral switch of the electronic device 120 and the power switch unit 113 of the external control device 110 at the same time. Here, the Power± pin header is used as an example of the switch pin 121. One side of the power switch unit 113 is provided with a slot where the switch pin 121 can be installed, and the other side can be connected to a peripheral switch. The external control device 110 can control the enabling of the switch pin 121 through the power switch unit 113, and at the same time, the electronic device 120 can also retain the use of the peripheral switch.

The power input interface 112 of the external control device 110 is electrically connected to the power supply terminal 122 of the electronic device 120. The type of the power input interface 112 corresponds to the interface of the electronic supply terminal. For example, the power supply terminal 122 may be, but not limited to, the power pins of Universal Serial Bus (USB), or the power pins of Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCI-E). Bit. If the PCI-E interface card is used as the implementation aspect of the external control device 110, the power input interface 112 can obtain the operating power of the external control device 110 through the power pins of the PCI-E slot. For advanced equipment According to the specifications of the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (Advanced Configuration and Power Interface), in the states S4 and S5, part of the power can still be provided to enable some components of the electronic device 120 to operate. Therefore, the power input interface 112 can obtain operating power through this mechanism.

The sensing unit 114 can be applied to detect temperature, humidity, or other observations of the surrounding environment of the electronic device 120. The sensing unit 114 is connected to the target unit 124, and the target unit 124 is determined according to the type of the sensing unit 114. For example, if the sensing unit 114 is used to detect temperature, the target unit 124 may be the processing unit 126 of the electronic device 120 or the power supply terminal 122 and other components. Here, the information obtained by the sensing unit 114 is defined as sensing information.

The storage unit 125 is used to store the operating system and the agent program 127 of the electronic device 120. The operating system provides related functions when the electronic device 120 is operating. In addition to receiving the detection command from the external control device 110, the agent program 127 also returns a response message to the external control device 110 according to the detection command. Generally speaking, the agent program 127 is also automatically started when the operating system is running. The remote server 130 is connected to the electronic device 120 and the external control device 110 via a network. The remote server 130 confirms to the external control device 110 whether the electronic device 120 is shut down or in operation.

To further illustrate the operation process of the present invention, please cooperate with Figure 2, which is a schematic diagram of the out-of-band external control process of the present invention. The out-of-band external control method of the present invention includes:

Step S210: Connect the external control device to the switch pin of the electronic device;

Step S220: The external control device obtains operating power from the power supply end of the electronic device;

Step S230: The external control device is connected to the remote server via a network to register the pairing of the external control device and the electronic device with the remote server;

Step S240: The external control device periodically sends a detection command to the electronic device to confirm whether the electronic device returns a response;

Step S250: If the electronic device responds to the external control device, the external control device re-times and prepares to send the second detection command;

Step S260: If the electronic device does not respond to the external control device, the external control device obtains the enable request from the remote server; and

Step S270: The external control device triggers the switch pin according to the enable request, so that the electronic device Turn on.

First, connect the power input interface 112 and the power switch unit 113 of the external control device 110 to the power supply terminal 122 and the switch pin 121, respectively. The external control device 110 and the electronic device 120 are respectively connected to the remote server 130 via a network. After completing the aforementioned connection and operation, the external control device 110 will register the device with the remote server 130 to bind the pairing relationship between the external control device 110 and the electronic device 120, as shown in FIG. 3.

The user registers the characteristic information of the electronic device 120 and the characteristic information of the external control device to the remote server 130 through the agent program 127, and binds them with the user's account. After the remote server 130 receives the characteristic information of the agent 127, the remote server 130 will bind the external control device 110 with the electronic device 120.

Then, the external control device 110 will periodically send a detection command to the electronic device 120 to confirm whether the electronic device 120 is in an operating state, please cooperate as shown in FIG. 4. Among them, the detection command can be transmitted through the Ethernet network. If the electronic device 120 is operating normally, the agent program 127 will return a response message to the external control device 110 after receiving the detection command. If the electronic device 120 is shut down or crashes, and the external control device 110 can no longer obtain a response message, the external control device 110 will report to the remote server 130. The remote server 130 will send an enable request to the external control device 110. After the external control device 110 receives the enable request, the control unit 115 generates a corresponding start signal. The control unit 115 triggers the switch pin 121 by the power switch unit 113 by the power-on signal, so as to drive the electronic device 120 to power on or restart, as shown in FIG. 5. After the electronic device 120 is turned on, the agent program 127 is activated to respond to the detection command.

During the operation of the electronic device 120, the external control device 110 will periodically detect the target unit 124 through the sensing unit 114 and obtain sensing information, please cooperate with the figure 6 shown. Taking the sensing of temperature and humidity as an illustration, the sensing unit 114 is assumed to be installed on the casing of the electronic device 120 for detecting the temperature of the casing during operation and the humidity of the surrounding environment. The sensing unit 114 obtains sensing information after a fixed interval of time, and transmits the sensing information to the remote server 130.

In addition to the external control system 100 other than the aforementioned frequency, the present invention further provides another implementation aspect. Please refer to FIG. 7. In this implementation aspect, the out-of-mid frequency external control 700 system includes: an external control device 710, an electronic device 720, and a remote server 730. Remote server The server 730 is connected to the external control device 710 and the electronic device 720 via a network. The external control device 710 has a first network interface 711, a first communication interface 712, a power input interface 713, a power switch unit 714, a sensing unit 715, and a control unit 716. The control unit 716 is electrically connected to the first network interface 711, the first communication interface 712, the power input interface 713, the power switch unit 714, and the sensing unit 715. The connection mode of each component of the external control device 710 is the same as the previous embodiment, and the description is not repeated here.

The electronic device 720 includes a switch pin 721, a power supply terminal 722, a second network interface 723, a second communication interface 724, a target unit 725, a storage unit 726, and a processing unit 727. The processing unit 727 is electrically connected to the switch pin 721, the power supply terminal 722, the second network interface 723, the second communication interface 724, the target unit 725 and the storage unit 726. The storage unit 726 stores the operating system and the agent program 728 of the electronic device 720. The connection mode of each component of the electronic device 720 is the same as that of the previous embodiment, and the description is not repeated here. The second communication interface 724 is electrically connected to the processing unit 727 and the first communication interface 712 respectively.

The types of the first communication interface 712 and the second communication interface 724 correspond to each other. The types of the first communication interface 712 and the second communication interface 724 can be, but are not limited to, serial port, parallel port, and universal port. Serial bus (Universal Serial Bus, USB). The first communication interface 712 and the second communication interface 724 are used to transmit sensing information or machine characteristic information. The feature information may be, but is not limited to, the BIOS (Basic Input/output System) version, firmware version, or system status of the motherboard of the electronic device 120.

During the operation of the electronic device 720, the external control device 710 will periodically detect the target unit 725 through the sensing unit 715 and obtain sensing information. The external control device 710 sends the sensing information to the electronic device 720 through the first communication interface 712. The agent program 728 receives the sensing information and sends the sensing information to the remote server 730. The agent 728 can send response messages and sensing information to the external control device 710 and the remote server 730 at the same time when receiving the detection request.

When the electronic device 720 crashes, the external control device 710 and the remote server 730 will not receive the relevant response from the electronic device 720. At the same time, the external control device 710 will obtain an enabling request from the remote server 730. After the remote server 730 receives the request from the external control device 710 and compares the electronic device 720 with no response, the remote server 730 will Send the enable request to the external control device 710, please refer to Figure 8. The remote server 730 sends an enable request to the external control device 710. After the external control device 710 receives the enable request, the control unit 716 generates a corresponding start signal. The control unit 716 triggers the switch pin 721 by the power-on signal through the power switch unit 714, thereby driving the electronic device 720 to turn on or restart.

The out-of-band external control device 110, system and method of the present invention can realize remote control of the boot and restart of the electronic device 120, and the electronic device 120 can also be restarted in time when the electronic device 120 crashes during operation. In addition, during the operation of the electronic device 120, the external control device 110 can also observe the target unit 124. The external control device 110 returns the acquired sensing information to the remote server 130 for the remote server 130 to collect the status of the electronic device 120.

Although the present invention is disclosed in the foregoing preferred embodiments as above, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Anyone familiar with similar art can make some changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention The scope of patent protection for inventions shall be determined by the scope of patent applications attached to this specification.

100: Out-of-band external control system

110: External control equipment

111: The first network interface

112: Power input interface

113: Power switch unit

114: sensing unit

115: control unit

120: electronic equipment

121: switch pin

122: power supply side

123: second network interface

124: target unit

125: storage unit

126: Processing Unit

127: Agent

130: remote server

Claims (10)

An out-of-band external control device is used to independently monitor the operating status of electronic equipment and realize remote booting of the electronic device. The out-of-band external control device includes: A first network interface, the network is connected to an electronic device and a remote server, the first network interface is used to transmit a consistent energy request and a detection command from the remote server, and the detection The command is sent to the electronic device; A power input interface connected to a power supply end of the electronic device, the power input interface receiving an operating power; A power switch unit connected to a switch pin of the electronic device, and the power switch unit is used to enable the switch pin; and A control unit is electrically connected to the first network interface, the power input interface, and the power switch unit. When the control unit receives the enable request, the control unit sends a power-on signal to the power switch unit through the power switch unit. Switch pin Wherein, the control unit periodically drives the first network interface to send the detection command to the electronic device, and when the electronic device does not respond to the detection command, the control unit requests the remote server to obtain the enable request. The out-of-band external control device according to claim 1, which further includes a sensing unit, the control unit is electrically connected to the sensing unit, and the sensing unit is used to detect a sensed information of the electronic device . The out-of-band external control device according to claim 2, wherein the control unit transmits the sensing information to the remote server. The out-of-band external control device according to claim 2, which further includes a first communication interface, the control unit is electrically connected to the first communication interface, and the first communication interface is connected to a second communication interface of the electronic device. A communication interface. The first communication interface is used to transmit the sensing information. The out-of-band external control device described in claim 4, wherein the first communication interface and the second communication interface are serial ports, parallel ports, and universal serial buses. Bus, USB). The out-of-band external control device described in claim 1, wherein the power input interface is a universal serial bus or a Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (Peripheral Component Interconnect Express). A remote out-of-band control system is applied to remote booting of electronic equipment. The remote out-of-band control system includes: A remote server, providing consistent performance requirements; An electronic device having a switch pin, a power supply terminal, a second network interface, and a processing unit, the processing unit is electrically connected to the switch pin, the power supply terminal and the second network Interface, the switch pin receives a power-on signal for driving the processing unit to enable, the second network interface is connected to the remote server; and An external control device having a first network interface, a power input interface, a power switch unit and a control unit, the control unit is electrically connected to the first network interface, the power input interface and the power supply Switch unit, the first network interface is connected to the electronic device and the remote server, the first network interface is used to transmit the enable request and a detection command, and the power input interface is coupled to the power supply end , Used to obtain an operating power, the power switch unit is connected to the switch pin, the power switch unit sends a start signal to the switch pin to drive the electronic device to turn on, the control unit drives the first network regularly The interface sends the detection command to the electronic device, and when the electronic device does not respond to the detection command, the control unit requests the remote server to send the enable request. The remote out-of-band control system according to claim 7, wherein the external control device further includes a sensing unit, the control unit is electrically connected to the sensing unit, and the sensing unit is used to detect the electronic device The external control device transmits the sensing information to the remote server. An out-of-band external control method is applied to remote booting of electronic equipment. The out-of-band external control method includes: Connect an external control device to a switch pin of an electronic device; The external control device obtains an operating power from a power supply end of the electronic device; The external control device is network connected to a remote server for registering the pairing of the external control device and the electronic device with the remote server; The external control device periodically sends a detection command to the electronic device to confirm whether the electronic device returns a response; If the electronic device responds to the external control device, the external control device re-times and prepares to send the next detection command; If the electronic device does not respond to the external control device, the external control device obtains a consistent performance request from the remote server; and The external control device triggers the switch pin according to the enable request, so that the electronic device is turned on. An external control method other than that described in claim 9, wherein the electronic device further includes the following steps during operation: Installing a sensing unit of the external control device on a target unit of the electronic device; Obtain a sensing information of the target unit, and return the sensing information to the external control device; and The external control device transmits the sensing information to the remote server.

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