JPH03158961A - Software maintenance management method for distributed processors - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a method for maintaining the software of distributed processors in a system in the latest state by transferring it from a center.

[Conventional technology]

M
It was carried out using media such as T. However, since the software for distributed processors is frequently updated through remote maintenance from the center and manual input from sales and branch offices, the contents of the media become outdated, and it is difficult to simply repair the software using the media. Then it will not be in a usable condition. Therefore, the center manually manages the latest software management information, extracts the differences from the media, and transfers the software load module corresponding to the differences. However, maintenance is difficult if done manually.
There was a second problem in that it took a long time to extract the difference from the medium.

Note that related to this method is ``Resource Management Method in Distributed Systems'' in the Proceedings of the 38th National Conference of the Information Processing Society of Japan.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a means for automatically updating the software to the latest software after the software is repaired using a medium when the software is repaired due to a failure of an external storage device or the like in a DP.

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to achieve the above object, a means for holding the latest management information of the software to be installed in the first processing device that holds the management information of the software installed in the first processing device, and a load module for the software. and the first processing device compares the software management information transferred from the first processing device with the latest management information it owns and selects the software load module corresponding to the difference software. This system employs a difference extraction means and a file transfer means.

[Effect]

For example, when rough 1 to wear is repaired by the first processing device using a medium, the rough 1 to wear management information held by the first processing device is transferred to the second processing device by means adopted in the first processing device. transferred to the device.

The software information transferred to the second processing device is
The difference extraction means of the second processing device compares the second processing device with the latest software management information of the first processing device and extracts the difference.

Furthermore, the first processing software is updated to the latest version using a file transfer means using a software load module corresponding to this difference.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, and 3.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the entire system. A first processing device 3, which is a small distributed processor, is installed in each branch.
A large second processing device 1 is installed in the center, and the center is connected to a wide area network (WAN) consisting of a packet switching network, etc.
Area Network) 2.

Next, the processing means will be explained using FIGS. 2 and 3. Second
The figure is an explanatory diagram of the processor J@, and FIG. 3 is a processing flowchart of FIG. 2. The premise is that the external storage device 11 of the first processing device 3 is broken, and the first processing device 3
Assume that the software was lost, so it was repaired using a magnetic tape medium after the external storage device was repaired. (30
0) Software load module storage area 1 in the external storage device 11 of the first processing device 3 by magnetic tape
2 is repaired, at the same time, the software management table 6
is updated to become the version of the software load module loaded into the external storage device 11. (3
01) At this time, the maintenance tool that performed the repair work inputs a command from the maintenance panel of the first processing device 3 (302), so that the contents of the software management table 6 are transferred to the second one using the file transfer means 8. The data is transferred to the processing device 1. (303) On the other hand, in the second processing device 1, the file transfer means 9 receives the rough 1 to wear management table 6 transferred from the first processing device 3, and passes them to the difference extraction means 10. (304) The difference extraction means 10 extracts the latest software version management table 7 that the first processing device 3 in the second processing device 1 should have and the software management table 6 transferred from the first processing device 3. compare. (305) In the example shown in FIG. 2, since the versions of program B are different, the difference exists in program B. Next, the difference extraction means 10 extracts the load module corresponding to the program B) difference from the software load module storage area 13 of the external storage device 4. (306)
Next, the file is transferred to the first processing device 3 using the file transfer means 9.

(307) The load module of program B transferred from the second processing device 1 is transferred to the file transfer means 8 of the first processing device 3.
is received (308) L and written to the software load module storage area 12 of the external storage device 11. (309) At the same time as this process, the version of program B in the software management table 6 of the first processing device 3 is updated to the latest state. (310) Through this series of processing, the software of the first processing device 3 is updated to the latest state.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, it is possible to automatically update the software of the first processing device 3 installed at each branch to the latest version. Furthermore, since human errors are eliminated, reliability is improved. Automation also has the effect of reducing time.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a system configuration diagram of an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a diagram showing the flow of processing in the system configuration shown in Figure 1, and Figure 3 is the processing flowchart of Figure 2. show. 1... Second processing device, 2... WAN, 3... First processing device, 4... External storage device, 6... Software j
・ware management table, 7...software]-ware version management table, 8, 9... file transfer means, 1
0... Difference extraction means, 11... External storage device, 12
．． 13...Software load module storage area.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a system where a first processing device installed at each branch and a second processing device installed at a center are connected via WAN, the software installed in the first processing device Means for holding management information and file transfer means are provided, and the second processing device
a means for holding the latest management information of the software to be installed in the first processing device; a means for holding the load module of the software; a means for holding the latest management information of the software transferred from the first processing device; providing a difference extraction means and a file transfer means for comparing the software with management information and sending the load module of the software corresponding to the difference software to the first processing device;
When the management information of the installed software is transferred from the first processing device, the second processing device compares it with the latest software management information of the first processing device, and detects any software that has differences. automatically by transferring the corresponding load module to the first processing device.
A software maintenance and management method for distributed processors characterized by updating software installed in processing units.