JP6311265B2 - Communication relay device, communication relay system, relay definition information update method, and update program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication relay device, a communication relay system, a relay definition information update method, and an update program, and in particular, a communication relay device, a communication relay system, and an update of relay definition information that relay communication between devices based on the relay definition information. The present invention relates to a method and an update program.

  The OpenFlow technology captures communication as an end-to-end flow, and performs path control, failure recovery, and the like on a per-flow basis (for example, paragraph 0002 of Patent Document 1). The OpenFlow Switch (OFS) functioning as a forwarding node includes a secure channel (Secure Channel) for communication with the OpenFlow Controller (OFC) that controls the OFS. The OFS operates according to a flow table instructed to be added or rewritten as appropriate from the OFC. In the flow table, for each flow, a set of a rule that collates with the packet header, an action (Action) that defines processing contents, and flow statistical information is defined. Here, OFS is an example of a communication relay device, and OFC is an example of a communication control device.

  In addition, OFC may be operated in a cluster configuration with a plurality of units in order to increase fault tolerance. In this case, one of the OFCs is an active system (ACT) and the other OFC is a standby system (SBY). When a failure occurs in the active system, the system is automatically switched to the standby system. In addition, not only at the time of a failure, but also for maintenance such as updating control software or the like, there are cases where the active and standby OFCs are switched at an arbitrary timing. Here, there is a rolling update technique as a software update method using an ACT-SBY type cluster without stopping the service. In the rolling update technology, some data is synchronized between the active and standby OFCs, and the standby system receives the same internal event as that of the active system. Then, update the standby software first, switch the cluster, and then update the standby software (original operating system) after switching, so that both software can be updated without stopping the service. Is what you do.

  Further, as a device management technology based on DMT (Device Management Tree), there is OMA-DM (Open Mobile Alliance-Device Management) (for example, paragraphs 0004 and 0005 of Patent Document 2).

  First, DMT is tree structure data used for device management. The name of each node can be expressed as a URI (Uniform Resource Identifier). Therefore, the device management server on the network and the device management application in the embedded device can read / write and issue an execution command to any node in the DMT by specifying the URI. It is also possible to dynamically add nodes to the DMT.

  OMA-DM is a standard for a remote device management protocol used in 3G mobile phones and WIMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access). The standardization organization is OMA (Open Mobile Alliance). OMA-DM manages devices in units of MO (Management Object) corresponding to DMT. Standard MOs provided by OMA-DM include FUMO (remote firmware update), SCOMO (remote SW update), Diamon (remote diagnosis), and LAWMO (remote security lock).

  MDA (registered trademark) (Model Drive Architecture) is a software development technique that provides guidelines for structural specifications expressed as models. When MDA is used, a machine language program can be automatically generated from a model described using a GUI (Graphical User Interface) development tool. Development tools using MDA include, for example, BridgePoint and Rhapsody, and are used for embedded software development. In addition, MDA has a method called Executable UML (Unified Modeling Language) that supports an action description language that partially incorporates the syntax of SQL.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-049774 JP 2012-063826 A

  Here, if the relay definition information, which is a definition for relaying communication in a communication relay apparatus such as OFS, is updated according to an existing protocol, there is a possibility that the influence on communication of normal flow control may increase. There is. First, in order to update the relay definition information of the communication relay device according to the existing protocol, it is necessary to transmit an update command (for example, flow_mod in the case of Openflow) to the communication relay device from a communication control device such as OFC. However, since the update command has a limited update unit for the relay definition information, it cannot be updated finely. Therefore, depending on the update contents, the amount of communication such as state matching processing between flow entries between the communication control device and the communication relay device can be enormous. Therefore, there is a possibility that the influence of normal flow control on communication becomes large.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve such problems, and a communication relay device, a communication relay system, and a relay definition for updating the relay definition information of a communication relay device while suppressing the influence on communication. An object is to provide an information update method and an update program.

The communication relay device according to the first aspect of the present invention includes:
A storage unit for storing a plurality of relay definition information, which is a definition related to relay of communication between devices;
An acquisition unit for acquiring update information for updating the relay definition information;
An update unit that executes an update process based on the update information at a predetermined timing according to an update instruction for updating a plurality of the relay definition information;
Is provided.

The communication relay system according to the second aspect of the present invention includes:
A communication relay device that holds a plurality of relay definition information that are definitions relating to relay of communication between devices, and relays communication between the devices based on the relay definition information;
A communication control device for controlling the communication relay device;
A management server connected to the communication relay device and the communication control device,
The communication control device or the management server transmits update information for updating the relay definition information to the communication relay device,
The communication relay device is:
Receiving the update information;
In response to an instruction to update a plurality of the relay definition information, an update process based on the update information is executed at a predetermined timing.

The update method of the relay definition information according to the third aspect of the present invention includes:
A method for updating a plurality of relay definition information, which is a definition related to relay of communication between devices,
A communication relay device holding the plurality of relay definition information,
Obtain update information for updating the relay definition information,
Update processing based on the update information is executed at a predetermined timing according to an update instruction for updating the plurality of relay definition information.

The update program according to the fourth aspect of the present invention is:
On the computer,
Processing for obtaining update information for updating relay definition information that is a definition related to relay of communication between devices;
An update process for updating based on the update information at a predetermined timing according to an update instruction for updating a plurality of the relay definition information;
Is executed.

The communication relay device according to the fifth aspect of the present invention is:
Controlled by a plurality of communication control devices configured redundantly by the active system and the standby system,
Holds multiple relay definition information, which is a definition for relaying communication between terminals,
During the switching between the active system and the standby system, based on update information for updating two or more of the plurality of relay definition information, update processing of the two or more relay definition information is started.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a communication relay device, a communication relay system, a relay definition information update method, and an update program for updating the relay definition information of the communication relay device while suppressing the influence on communication.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the communication relay apparatus concerning Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the update process of the relay definition information concerning Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the OpenFlow network system concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the outline | summary structure of the management server concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention, and OFS. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware constitutions of OFS concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram of the software structure which operate | moves on CPU in OFS concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a sequence diagram for demonstrating the flow of the distribution process of the update software concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a sequence diagram for demonstrating the flow of the flow table update process of OFS at the time of system switch of OFC concerning Embodiment 2 of this invention.

  Hereinafter, specific embodiments to which the present invention is applied will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted as necessary for the sake of clarity.

<Embodiment 1 of the Invention>
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the communication relay device 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The communication relay device 100 is a device that relays communication between the terminal 11 and the terminal 12. The terminals 11 and 12 are communication devices that transmit and receive communication packets and the like via the communication relay device 100.

  The communication relay device 100 includes a storage unit 110, an acquisition unit 120, and an update unit 130. The storage unit 110 is a storage device that stores the relay definition information 111a, 111b,..., And 111n and the update information 112. The relay definition information 111a to 111n is information indicating definitions regarding relay of communication between terminals. For example, a set of a rule that collates with a communication packet header, an action (Action) that defines processing contents, and flow statistical information is associated with identification information. The update information 112 is information including a definition of update contents for updating two or more of the relay definition information 111a to 111n (for example, the relay definition information 111a and 111b). For example, the identification information of the relay definition information to be updated, the value of the updated relay definition information, and the like. Furthermore, the update information 112 may include an update instruction for updating two or more of the relay definition information 111a to 111n.

  The acquisition unit 120 acquires the update information 112 from the outside. When the update information 112 does not include an update instruction, the acquisition unit 120 acquires an update instruction for updating a plurality of relay definition information separately from the update information 112. The update unit 130 executes an update process based on the update information 112 at a predetermined timing according to the update instruction.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a flow of relay definition information update processing according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. First, it is assumed that the relay definition information 111a to 111n is stored in the storage unit 110 of the communication relay device 100 in advance. The storage unit 110 only needs to store at least two pieces of relay definition information.

  The acquisition unit 120 of the communication relay device 100 acquires the update information 112 from the outside (S11). For example, it is assumed that the update information 112 includes update contents for the relay definition information 111a and 111b. Next, the update unit 130 of the communication relay device 100 determines whether or not it is a predetermined timing (S12). The predetermined timing may be, for example, the time set by the update instruction, or the timing when the update instruction is received or detected.

  If it is not the predetermined timing, step S12 is performed again after the predetermined time has elapsed. When it is determined as the predetermined timing, the updating unit 130 updates, for example, the relay definition information 111a and 111b based on the update information (S13).

  As described above, in the first embodiment of the present invention, the update information of a plurality of relay definition information is collectively acquired and the update processing is performed by one trigger (update timing), so that the communication traffic for the update can be reduced. Can be suppressed. That is, it is possible to avoid sequentially receiving individual update commands for each relay definition information from the outside to the communication relay device 100. Therefore, it is possible to update efficiently while suppressing the influence on communication between terminals.

  Note that the communication relay device 100 may perform communication relay between a plurality of other communication relay devices. Therefore, it can be said that the above-described relay definition information is information indicating a definition regarding relay of communication between apparatuses.

<Embodiment 2 of the Invention>
The second embodiment of the present invention is an application example of the first embodiment described above, and a case where a network system based on the OpenFlow technology is targeted will be described. However, the present invention is not limited to the OpenFlow technology. In the following, OFS (OpenFlow Switch) is used as an example of a communication relay device, and OFC (OpenFlow Controller) is used as an example of a communication control device that controls the communication relay device. Moreover, each flow entry in the flow table built in OFS is used as an example of relay definition information. However, examples of the communication relay device, the communication relay device, and the relay definition information are not limited to these.

  Here, when the OFC supports the rolling update function, it is necessary to ensure backward compatibility. For this reason, even if an insufficient point is found in the specifications of the previous version (protocol specifications, etc.), there is a problem that it cannot be changed in the new version.

  For example, when the cookie value is changed between the old specification OFC (old ACT) and the new specification OFC (new ACT), after switching the cluster, the OFC sends a flow mod message to each OFS for each flow entry. There is a need. Here, cookie is identification information for the OFS to identify each flow entry in the flow table. Therefore, updating the cookie by the OFC rolling update results in a change of the ID of the flow entry. Therefore, when using the flow mod message, the existing flow entry is deleted, and the changed cookie value is set to the ID. A new flow entry is added. Therefore, when a large number of flow entries are registered in the OFS, a large number of flow mods proportional to the number of flow entries are transmitted from the OFC. Therefore, there is a possibility that a congestion state of a secure channel (management channel) that is a communication connection between the OFC and the OFS occurs.

  Here, cookie is 64-bit information, and a free value can be set. For this reason, there is a case where the internal information used in the OFC is added in addition to the simple ID. As the internal information, for example, a flow entry type (Broadcast, IP multicast, unicast, etc.) can be considered. In addition, in the current OpenFlow specification, when the statistical information of a flow entry is acquired, a cookie mask can be specified in addition to the cookie value, and the acquired flow entry information can be filtered. (In other words, only information of a specific flow entry type can be acquired.)

  For this reason, the handling of internal information is changed with the upgrade of OFC, and as a result, the contents (matching rules, actions, etc.) of the flow entries are the same, but only the value of cookie is changed. Conceivable.

  Furthermore, depending on the content of the flow entry rewrite on the OFC side (cookie rewrite, etc.), as described above, the flow entry is temporarily deleted, so communication between terminals connected to the OFS may be interrupted. There is also sex.

  Therefore, in the embodiment of the present invention, rewriting processing of information such as a flow entry held in the OFS is performed not by the OFC but by the OFS during the OFC cluster switching. The following is mentioned as a part of the outline of the embodiment of the present invention. For example, OFS has a function of editing its own flow table by a trigger given from the outside. The OFS flow table is controlled by synchronizing the OFS flow table with the updated OFC control specification by giving an OFS trigger to start editing processing when the OFC software is updated. For this purpose, flow entry update software may be transmitted to the OFS in advance, and the flow entry may be updated while switching to a new ACT during the cluster failover of the OFS.

  It is also possible to update an existing flow entry already set in the OFS without using a flow setting request (flow mod message) from the OFC after the OFC is updated by rolling update. Thereby, the network load after cluster switching can be minimized.

  Further, in the case of rewriting a cookie value or the like, since only the difference is rewritten inside the OFS without deleting the flow entry once, there is an effect that no disconnection occurs in communication between terminals connected to the OFS. When rewriting a cookie using the existing OpenFlow protocol, the flow entry must be deleted once as described above.

  Further, the following improvement may be made from the first embodiment described above. For example, the update information 112 in FIG. 1 includes new identification information (updated cookie value) corresponding to relay definition information (flow entry), and the update unit performs identification processing in the relay definition information by update processing. Is preferably updated to new identification information included in the update information. As described above, when only the ID (cookie) of a flow entry is updated, conventionally, it is necessary to delete the flow entry itself and add a new one, and in this case, communication between existing terminals based on the flow entry is interrupted. It was. However, by updating only the ID of the flow entry, existing communication between terminals is not interrupted.

  Further, the acquisition unit acquires, as the update information, an update program in which an update process according to update contents of the plurality of relay definition information is implemented, and the update unit executes the update program at the predetermined timing By doing so, the update process may be performed. Thereby, a flexible (fine) update process that does not depend on an existing protocol can be realized. Further, since it can be realized only by transmitting one type of update program regardless of the number of flow entries, the traffic for updating can be suppressed.

  The communication relay device is controlled by a plurality of communication control devices (for example, OFC) configured redundantly by an active system (ACT) and a standby system (SBY), and the update unit includes the active system and the standby system It is desirable to start the updating process with the switching (for example, rolling update or simply cluster switching) as the predetermined timing. Thereby, synchronization with OFC can be performed earlier. In addition, even if the update process is not completed during system switching, if the remaining update process is performed in the existing synchronous process (for example, the state matching process between flow entries), all the existing synchronous processes can be used. In comparison, the communication load can be reduced.

  Further, the update unit detects the disconnection of a connection (for example, a secure channel) for control between the communication control device and the communication relay device as the predetermined timing. Good to start with. In this way, by detecting the OFC system switching by itself, the update can be started without an external instruction.

  Furthermore, the acquisition unit acquires the update process start request from the outside as the update instruction, and the update unit detects the update process when detecting that the connection is disconnected after the start request is acquired. Good to start with. Thereby, it is possible to prevent unnecessary update processing at the time of disconnection unrelated to system switching, and to appropriately control the update start timing.

  In addition, the acquisition unit acquires time information serving as a reference for the predetermined timing in the update information, and the update unit detects the acquired time information when detecting that the connection is disconnected. Whether or not the predetermined timing is reached is determined, and when it is determined that the predetermined timing is reached, the update process may be started. Thereby, it is possible to prevent unnecessary update processing and appropriately control the update start timing.

  Furthermore, it is preferable that the communication relay device acquires the update information before switching between the active system and the standby system. As a result, the load at the start of the update can be reduced, and the update process can be started quickly.

  The communication relay device according to the second embodiment can also be expressed as follows. That is, it is controlled by a plurality of communication control devices configured redundantly by an active system and a standby system, holds relay definition information that is a definition related to relay of communication between terminals, and is switched between the active system and the standby system. Then, based on the update information for updating the relay definition information, update processing of the relay definition information is started. In this way, at least the start of the update process is during system switching, so that synchronization with the OFC can be performed earlier. In addition, even if the update process is not completed during system switching, if the remaining update process is performed in the existing synchronous process (for example, the state matching process between flow entries), all the existing synchronous processes can be used. In comparison, the communication load can be reduced.

  Furthermore, when the second embodiment of the present invention is a communication relay system, it can be expressed as follows. That is, the communication relay system holds a plurality of relay definition information that is a definition related to relay of communication between devices, and relays communication between the devices based on the relay definition information, and the communication relay A communication control device for controlling a device; and the communication relay device and a management server connected to the communication control device, wherein the communication control device or the management server updates the relay definition information. Is transmitted to the communication relay device, and the communication relay device receives the update information and performs an update process based on the update information at a predetermined timing in response to an instruction to update the plurality of relay definition information. Run.

Subsequently, Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be specifically described below.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the OpenFlow network system 1 according to the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The OpenFlow network system 1 includes terminals 11 to 16, OFS 31 to 33, OFCs 21 and 22, a management server 40, and a development terminal 50. The OFCs 21 and 22, the OFS 31 to 33, and the management server 40 are connected on the management network. The development terminal 50 is connected to the management server 40. The connection between the development terminal 50 and the management server 40 may be added to the management network. The OFS 31 is connected to the terminals 11 to 13 and the OFS 32 on the OpenFlow network. The OFS 32 is connected to the OFS 31 and 33 on the OpenFlow network. The OFS 33 is connected to the OFS 32 and the terminals 14 to 16 on the OpenFlow network.

  The OFC 21 and OFC 22 are two communication control devices that are redundantly configured (cluster configuration) by an active system (ACT) and a standby system (SBY). In FIG. 3, the active system (ACT) is the OFC 22 and the standby system (SBY) is the OFC 21, but it goes without saying that the embodiment of the present invention is not limited to this. Moreover, three or more OFCs may be used. Each of the OFCs 21 and 22 can be realized by, for example, a UNIX (registered trademark) server. The OFCs 21 and 22 are assigned a common virtual IP address. Therefore, on the OFS 31 to 33 side, it is not necessary to be aware of which of the OFCs 21 or 22 is the active system (ACT) and the standby system (SBY).

  Here, the OFC 22 on the ACT side and the OFS 31 to 33 are connected by a secure channel. Further, the OFC 21 on the SBY side can acquire information such as the topology of the OFS 31 to 33 and flow table information, and events such as a port status change notification of each OFS from the OFC 22 on the ACT side. If the control software versions of the ACT-side OFC 22 and the SBY-side OFC 21 are equal, the data is completely synchronized.

  The management server 40 manages the OFCs 21 and 22 and the OFSs 31 to 33. The management server 40 can be realized by, for example, a UNIX server. The management server 40 has established a connection with each OFC and SSH (Secure Shell), and can switch the clusters of the OFCs 21 and 22 from the management server 40 by a command operating on a UNIX shell. The management server 40 is assumed to be an OMA-DM server in which a remote device management protocol such as OMA-DM is implemented. Then, the management server 40 transmits a cluster switching request to the target ACT-side OFC 22 at a predetermined time. In addition, the management server 40 transmits a software update request to the OFS 31 to 33 simultaneously with the transmission of the cluster switching request.

  The OFSs 31, 32, and 33 relay communication between the terminals 11 to 16 based on a flow table stored therein. The OFSs 31 to 33 are, for example, embedded devices in which embedded Linux (registered trademark) is mounted. Each of the OFSs 31 to 33 can communicate with the OFCs 21 and 22 and the management server 40 via the management network. It is assumed that the OFS 31-33 incorporates an OMA-DM client in which a device management protocol for an embedded device such as OMA-DM is mounted.

  Here, in the present embodiment, a TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) connection is established from the OFS 31 to 33 to the OFCs 21 and 22 and the management server 40. The connection timing of the TCP connection is determined when the management network is connected (for example, when the network connection associated with the activation or restart of OFS or the Ethernet cable for the management network is connected to the operating OFS), or within the OFS Examples include, but are not limited to, when setting information is updated. Here, between the OFS and the OFC is a secure channel connection, and between the OFS and the management server is a connection for a device management protocol.

  Moreover, OFS 31-33 shall hold | maintain the IP address of OFC which connects as internal setting information. Further, the OFSs 31 to 33 periodically monitor the presence or absence of an OFS connection having a registered IP address. When the OFSs 31 to 33 recognize that the target OFC is connected to the management network, the OFSs 31 to 33 perform secure channel connection processing on the OFC.

  Further, the OFSs 31 to 33 use the time between system switching of the OFCs 21 and 22 as the start timing of the flow table update process. That is, the OFSs 31 to 33 execute the update software distributed from the management server 40 at the timing of OFC system switching. However, simple processing such as deletion of all entries in the flow table can be triggered by a trigger from the management server 40. In this case, it is not necessary to use the update software distributed from the management server 40.

  The terminals 11 to 16 are communication devices equivalent to the terminals 11 and 12 in FIG. 1 described above. Therefore, the terminals 11 to 16 transmit and receive communication packets and the like via the OFSs 31 to 33.

  The development terminal 50 is a device that generates update software for OFS 31 to 33 when used by a development user or the like. The generated update software is distributed to the OFS 31 to 33 via the management server 40. Here, the update software according to the present embodiment realizes memory saving by performing rewrite processing at high speed in each OFS which is an embedded device. For example, the update software is realized by a machine language binary code. Alternatively, the update software may be in the following form. For example, the program may be a program executed in a common execution environment such as an intermediate language represented by Java (registered trademark), such as LLVM (Low Level Virtual Machine). Alternatively, a script language such as Lua or an interpreter language such as Python may be used.

  In the update software according to the present embodiment, the update target flow entry and the update contents are specified. Two or more designations can be made for the flow entry to be updated. As the update contents, the updated cookie, the above-described rule, action, or each value of the flow statistical information can be designated for each flow entry. Then, the update software includes a process of updating with the update content designated for the flow entry to be updated.

  The updated software may include execution start time information indicating the date and time at which execution is started. Alternatively, execution start time information may be included in the device management protocol. In that case, when the OFS 31 to 33 downloads the update software from the management server 40, the execution start time information may be acquired together.

  Alternatively, the development terminal 50 may generate only the update content data of each flow entry, not the update software. The update contents may include only the values of the flow entry to be replaced, the cookie to be replaced, the above-described rule, action, or flow statistical information. In that case, the management server 40 will distribute the update content to each OFS. From the above, it can be said that the update software or update content is an example of the update information of the first embodiment described above.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the management server 40 and OFS 31 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The management server 40 includes a configuration management function 401, an OFS control function 402, an OFS / update software management function 403, and an OMA-DM server 404. The configuration management function 401 manages configuration information of the OFSs 31 to 33 connected to the management network. The configuration management function 401 acquires the OFS information and registers it internally in response to the negotiation with each OFS via the device management protocol.

  The OFS and update software management function 403 transmits a trigger M1 for distribution of update software and start of update to the OFS 31-33. Note that the OFS and update software management function 403 may distribute update content data, which will be described later, instead of the update software. The OFS and update software management function 403 does not necessarily need to transmit an update start trigger when each of the OFSs 31 to 33 detects update timing. The OFS control function 402 performs cluster switching M2 for the OFCs 21 and 22 in response to a request from the OFS and update software management function 403.

  Further, it is desirable that the OFS and update software management function 403 distribute update software for rewriting a flow table or the like to the OFSs 31 to 33 in advance. Here, the OFS and update software management function 403 may distribute the update software in a time zone with less traffic such as midnight.

  The OFS and update software management function 403 can also distribute update software together with an update start trigger. Here, the OFC system switching time is assumed to be several tens of seconds. For this reason, when the update software is distributed together with the update start trigger, there is a possibility that the update process cannot be started during the system switching. Also, even if the update process can be started during system switching, if it cannot be completed, a large amount of packet-in and flow entry setting processes may be transmitted after system switching. Therefore, it is highly necessary to reduce the load on the management network as much as possible before and after system switching. Therefore, a method for distributing update software in advance is desirable.

  Note that, as described above, the OMA-DM server 404 has a server function in which OMA-DM, which is a device management protocol for embedded devices, is implemented.

  The OFS 31 includes a table editing function 311, an OFS update management function 312, and an OMA-DM client 313. In FIG. 4, since OFS 32 and 33 are equivalent to OFS 31, illustration and description are omitted. The table editing function 311 is means for editing (updating) internal table information (not shown) (flow table, group table, etc.). Here, the table editing function 311 executes the update software acquired from the management server 40, and rewrites a predetermined flow entry in the table by the process of the update software.

  Further, the table editing function 311 performs partial replacement of the specified flow entry based on the update content acquired from the management server 40. For example, when only cookie is specified in the update content, the table editing function 311 can update only cookie in the flow entry by executing the update software. Since the update program is created in machine language or the like, it is possible to directly access the OFS hardware, so that the cookie can be rewritten without deleting the flow entry. Therefore, it is not necessary to delete an existing flow entry or add a new flow entry, and communication between terminals being processed will not be interrupted if there is no change in rules or actions.

  Further, the table editing function 311 may delete all entries in each table by a trigger, or may delete an entry designated by the trigger or an entry that meets a condition.

  The OFS update management function 312 acquires update software distributed from the management server 40 and update information that is update contents. Further, the OFS update management function 312 receives an update start trigger from the management server 40. Here, examples of the trigger include an explicit instruction by a protocol, an implicit instruction by disconnecting a secure channel, an instruction of an update start time, a combination of two or more of these, and the like.

  First, as an example of a trigger, an explicit instruction by a protocol is different from an existing flow mod message, and it is not necessary to include a specific specification of a flow entry to be updated, and at least a start instruction is included. That's fine. This can be realized by newly defining a flow table update start message from the outside in the protocol. For example, the management server 40 may issue a rolling update instruction (cluster switching M2) to the OFCs 21 and 22, and may also issue an update start instruction to the OFS 31-33. Alternatively, update software or update content distribution may be included with the trigger.

  Next, as an example of a trigger, an implicit instruction by disconnecting a secure channel is usually triggered by disconnection of a secure channel established between OFC and OFS that can transmit and receive an OpenFlow message. That is, when OFC rolling update is performed, the OFC on the original ACT side (old ACT side) disconnects the secure channel with each OFS before system switching. Each OFS detects that the secure channel is disconnected. The detection of disconnection of the secure channel will be described later. However, disconnection of a secure channel only for one-way communication from OFS to OFC, that is, a read-only channel dedicated to OFS on the SBY side is not targeted. Note that the secure channel means a connection in the management network between the OFC and the OFS as described above. Therefore, even if the secure channel is disconnected, communication on the OpenFlow network side in FIG. 3 (those that hit a flow entry registered in the flow table on the OFS side) is not affected.

  Subsequently, as an example of the trigger, the update start time instruction is not to start the update at the timing when the OFS 31 to 33 receives the trigger, but when the received update start time is set inside and the time is reached. It starts updating. The update start time may be the execution start time information described above.

  Finally, as an example of a trigger, the above combination is, for example, a case where the logical product of two events of an acquisition event of update software or the like and a secure channel disconnection detection event of the old ACT OFC is true. Can be mentioned. Furthermore, when the time when the logical product of the two events becomes true is different from the update start time, the OFSs 31 to 33 may not start the update process. For example, when the OFC system switching is not successful, the secure channel may not be disconnected. In such a case, it is desirable not to start the OFS update process.

  The OFS 31 to 33 establishes a secure channel connection with the OFC of the new ACT after the switching after the flow table update process, that is, after the execution of the update software is completed. Thereafter, the OFSs 31 to 33 may delete the updated software.

  Here, if the update process of the flow table is not completed before switching to the new ACT, the execution of the update software is interrupted after switching to the new ACT, and an incomplete update is separately performed using the existing state matching method. It doesn't matter. That is, the OFC of the new ACT may sequentially read the information of the flow entry that has not been updated from the OFS and reset the difference using a flow mod message. Thus, the embodiment of the present invention can be said to be effective because the flow entry resetting process from the OFC is greatly reduced even in combination with the existing state matching method.

  As described above, the OMA-DM client 313 has a client function in which OMA-DM, which is a device management protocol for embedded devices, is implemented.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the OFS 31 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The OFS 31 includes an OpenFlow control IC 61, a NOR FLASH MEMORY 63, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 64, an Ethernet (registered trademark) driver IC 65, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 66, and an SDRAM (Synchronous DRAM) 67.

  The OpenFlow control IC 61 is incorporated in the OFS as dedicated hardware. The OpenFlow control IC 61 can perform communication between OpenFlow networks for which flow entry has been set at high speed without using a CPU. Here, the OpenFlow control IC 61 is configured to include an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) and a digital signal processor (DSP).

  The OpenFlow control IC 61 includes an Ethernet control unit 611 and an SRAM (Static Random Access Memory) 612. The Ethernet control unit 611 controls Ethernet communication between the OFS 32 and the terminals 11 and 12 via the ports 601 to 603. The SRAM 612 stores a flow table 613 and a group table 614. The flow table 613 includes a plurality of flow entries 615. Each flow entry 615 includes a cookie 616 and the like, rules, actions, flow statistical information, and the like (not shown). The group table 614 includes a plurality of group entries (not shown).

  The OpenFlow control IC 61, the NOR FLASH MEMORY 63, the CPU 64, and the Ethernet driver IC 65 are connected via an address and data bus 62. The NOR FLASH MEMORY 63 is positioned as a rewritable ROM (Read Only Memory). The NOR FLASH MEMORY 63 stores a boot loader image and the like. The Ethernet driver IC 65 communicates with the OFCs 21 and 22 and the management server 40 via the management network.

  The CPU 64 controls the OpenFlow control IC 61 by I / O register setting or DMA transfer. Further, the CPU 64 performs processing such as communication with the OFCs 21 and 22 using the OpenFlow protocol. Further, the CPU 64 can be realized as an embedded SoC (System on a Chip). The CPU 64 includes peripheral devices such as a clock controller (not shown) in which a PLL is built, a SATA I / F controller (not shown), and an SDRAM I / F controller (not shown). Therefore, the CPU 64 is connected to the HDD 66 via the SATA 68 and is connected to the SDRAM 67 via the SDRAM / IF 69. The HDD 66 stores an OS kernel image such as embedded Linux, update software, and update contents.

  Further, the CPU 64 performs a part of relay processing for communication between terminals such as assembly and decoding of the OpenFlow protocol. Further, the CPU 64 also performs processing for communication with the management server 40. The CPU 64 stores the update software acquired from the management server 40 in the HDD 66. Then, the CPU 64 determines whether or not it is a predetermined timing to start the update process, and reads and executes the update software from the HDD 66 when it is the predetermined timing. Thereby, the update process is started.

  FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram of a software configuration that operates on the CPU in the OFS according to the second embodiment of the present invention. An embedded Linux 72 is mounted as an OS of the OFS according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The OpenFlowSwitch control / management application 73 is a UNIX application that operates in the user space. The OpenFlowSwitch control / management application 73 performs control processing of the OpenFlow control IC 61, assembly and decoding processing of the OpenFlow protocol, communication processing with the OFC, and the like. The OpenFlow control IC driver 71 is a kernel object that operates in the kernel space, and performs register control for the OpenFlow control IC 61.

  The OFS update application 75 is a UNIX application that operates in the user space, in which the central processing according to the second embodiment of the present invention is implemented. The OFS update application 75 performs communication processing with the management server 40, management and control of downloaded update software, and the like. The device management library 76 is implemented with a device management protocol such as OMA-DM. The log filtering processing application 74 analyzes (filters) the log information based on the log filtering rule 77 and notifies the OFS update application 75 of the analysis result. That is, the log filtering processing application 74 detects a secure channel disconnection notification from the syslog or the like based on the log filtering rule 77 and notifies that the secure channel with the OFC has been disconnected. The log filtering processing application 74 eliminates the need to implement logic specialized for the OFS update application 75 on the OpenFlowSwitch control / management application 73 side.

  The flow table update application 78 is an application in which a function corresponding to the table editing function 311 in FIG. 4 is implemented. The DMT control library 791 is a shared library for controlling the DMT. The user created library 792 is a shared library in which various common processes are functionalized.

  Here, the OFS 31 to 33 receives the flow table update application 78 and the DMT control library 79 distributed from the management server 40, and stores them in a predetermined directory by the OFS update application 75. Further, the OFSs 31 to 33 can also receive kernel objects (not shown) distributed from the management server 40. When the OFS 31 to 33 receives new update software from the management server 40, the OFS 31 to 33 replaces the existing OFS update application 75 and the log filtering processing application 74 with the new update software.

  Next, an example of update software distribution processing and subsequent flow table update processing in the OFS will be described with reference to the sequence diagrams of FIGS. 7 and 8. Here, it is assumed that only the cookie value of the flow entry is updated in all of the OFC and OFS. For this reason, it is assumed that the target update software is software that directly changes the cookie field (cookie 616) of the flow table 613 existing in the OpenFlow control IC 61 of OFS. The update software is assumed to be binary data in machine language for high-speed rewriting processing and memory saving of OFS which is an embedded device. However, as described above, the update content is not limited to this.

  FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram for explaining the flow of the update software distribution process according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Here, it is assumed that a TCP connection between the management server 40 and the OFS 31 is established in advance. The timing for establishing the TCP connection is when connecting to the OFS management network. Then, it is assumed that OFS-specific information (such as an IP address) is registered in the management server 40 at the connection timing.

  First, the management server 40 transmits an update software distribution notification to the distribution target OFS (for example, OFS 31) (S101). Here, the update software delivery notification is, for example, an XML file in syncML format defined by OMA, but is not limited thereto. The update software delivery notification includes the URL where the update software is stored and the execution start time information on the OFS side of the update software.

  For example, the OFS 31 receives an update software distribution notification from the management server 40. Next, the OFS 31 transmits an update software download request to the management server 40 (S102). Specifically, the OFS 31 issues an update software acquisition request to the URL in which the update software included in the update software distribution notification is stored.

  Thereafter, the management server 40 transmits the update software to the OFS 31 in response to the download request from the OFS 31 (S103). That is, the OFS 31 acquires the update software from the management server 40 and stores it in the HDD 66. At the same time, the OFS 31 acquires the execution start time information and stores it in the HDD 66.

  FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram for explaining the flow of the OFS flow table update process during OFC system switching according to the second embodiment of the present invention. 8 is after distribution of the update software of FIG. 7, and it is assumed that the update software has already been stored in the OFS 31-33.

  First, the management server 40 transmits a cluster switching request command to the OFC 22 on the ACT side (active system) (S201). For example, the management server 40 performs remote connection with the OFC 22 and SSH, and issues a cluster switching request command on the UNX shell. Thereby, the request | requirement of cluster switching is realizable.

  Next, the OFC 22 on the ACT side disconnects the secure channel with each OFS (S202). Specifically, the OFC 22 disconnects the TCP connection with each of the OFSs 31 to 33.

  Subsequently, the ACT-side OFC 22 issues an ACT transition request (message) to the SBY-side OFC 21 (S203). Accordingly, the OFC 21 on the SBY side starts a transition to ACT. The OFC 22 on the ACT side performs OS restart processing (S2050). After the restart, the OFC 22 operates as SBY (standby system).

  Here, after disconnecting the secure channel in step S202, each OFS starts an OFS update process (S204). Specifically, each OFS first detects that the secure channel between itself and the OFC 22 is disconnected by the log filtering processing application 74. Then, the OFS update application 75 of each OFS confirms that it is within the already acquired execution start time information, and starts executing the update software.

  Each OFS performs a flow table update process (S2051, S2052, etc.). Here, when only the cookie value of each flow entry is set as update contents in the update software, each OFS directly rewrites only the cookie field of the corresponding flow entry. Alternatively, each OFS may newly add flow entry information in which only cookie is updated, and delete the old flow entry after the addition of the new flow entry. Even in this case, it is possible to avoid disconnection of the OpenFlow network due to the flow entry update process.

  After switching the cluster between ACT and SBY, OFS 21 on the new ACT side and OFC 22 on the new SBY side synchronize OFS topology information and flow entry information held in the OFC (S206). As a result, the OFC 21 on the new ACT side rewrites the cookie information of the flow entry with a new value.

  Thereafter, each OFS establishes a secure channel connection with the OFC 21 on the new ACT side (S207). Specifically, each OFS connects a TCP connection to the OFC 21 on the new ACT side.

  Then, the OFC 21 of the new ACT performs a flow entry state matching process with each OFS (S208). For the state matching process of the flow entry, a flow mod message or the like can be used. Therefore, even when the OFS-side flow table update process does not end before the start of the new ACT, the state matching of the flow table between OFC and OFS can be prevented by using the state matching process for the subsequent update process. . In other words, the same effect can be obtained by combining the update process by the update software executed alone by the OFS and the state matching process with the OFC. Even in this case, the amount of communication with the OFC is suppressed in the update processing by the update software, so the amount of communication in the management network is reduced compared to the case where all the update processing is performed by the state matching processing, and the terminal It is possible to suppress the influence on the relay of communication between.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment of the present invention, even when ACT and SBY have different flow entry specifications, transmission of a large amount of flow mod after cluster switching can be suppressed when performing rolling update. . The reason is that according to the second embodiment of the present invention, the flow table is rewritten autonomously on the OFS side, so communication with the OFC is minimized such as a trigger.

  In addition, hurdles and risks when changing the cookie value of the flow entry and the like due to the specification change become very low. This is because, according to the second embodiment of the present invention, the flow entry information is directly overwritten on the OFS without going through the OFC, so there is no time for the flow entry to become invalid.

<Other embodiments of the invention>
The above-described embodiment of the invention can be applied not only to rewriting a cookie of a flow entry but also to refactoring of a group ID of a group table (substituting only the group ID without changing the contents of the group entry).

  In the second embodiment described above, the case of the OFC rolling update has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the stop timing for updating one OFC may be set as a predetermined timing. Furthermore, although the case where OFC is duplexed was demonstrated, it is not limited to this. For example, when a single communication control apparatus is operated, update information in which the update contents of a plurality of relay definition information in the communication relay apparatus are combined into one is transmitted in accordance with the maintenance of the communication control apparatus. Thus, the update may be performed.

  Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention described above. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the present invention has been described as a hardware configuration, but the present invention is not limited to this. The present invention can also realize arbitrary processing by causing a CPU (Central Processing Unit) to execute a computer program. In this case, the computer program can be stored using various types of non-transitory computer readable media and supplied to the computer.

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

A part or all of the above embodiments can be described as in the following supplementary notes, but is not limited thereto.
(Appendix 1)
A storage unit for storing a plurality of relay definition information, which is a definition related to relay of communication between devices;
An acquisition unit for acquiring update information for updating the relay definition information;
An update unit that executes an update process based on the update information at a predetermined timing according to an update instruction for updating a plurality of the relay definition information;
A communication relay device comprising:
(Appendix 2)
The update information includes new identification information corresponding to the relay definition information,
The update unit
The communication relay device according to attachment 1, wherein the update information updates the identification information in the relay definition information to new identification information included in the update information.
(Appendix 3)
The acquisition unit acquires, as the update information, an update program in which an update process according to update contents of a plurality of relay definition information is implemented,
The communication relay device according to attachment 1 or 2, wherein the update unit performs the update process by executing the update program at the predetermined timing.
(Appendix 4)
The communication relay device is controlled by a plurality of communication control devices configured redundantly by an active system and a standby system,
4. The communication relay device according to claim 1, wherein the update unit starts the update process with the switching between the active system and the standby system as the predetermined timing. 5.
(Appendix 5)
The update unit
The communication relay device according to claim 4, wherein the update processing is started as the predetermined timing when it is detected that a connection for control between the communication control device and the communication relay device is disconnected.
(Appendix 6)
The acquisition unit
Obtaining the update processing start request from the outside as the update instruction,
The communication relay device according to claim 5, wherein the update unit starts the update process when it detects that the connection is disconnected after obtaining the start request.
(Appendix 7)
The acquisition unit acquires time information that is a reference of the predetermined timing in the update information,
When the update unit detects that the connection has been disconnected, the update unit determines whether the predetermined timing is based on the acquired time information, and determines that the predetermined timing is reached The communication relay device according to appendix 5 or 6, wherein the update process is started.
(Appendix 8)
The communication relay device is:
The communication relay device according to any one of appendices 4 to 7, wherein the update information is acquired before switching between the active system and the standby system.
(Appendix 9)
A communication relay device that holds a plurality of relay definition information that are definitions relating to relay of communication between devices, and relays communication between the devices based on the relay definition information;
A communication control device for controlling the communication relay device;
A management server connected to the communication relay device and the communication control device,
The communication control device or the management server transmits update information for updating the relay definition information to the communication relay device,
The communication relay device is:
Receiving the update information;
In response to an instruction to update a plurality of the relay definition information, an update process based on the update information is executed at a predetermined timing.
Communication relay system.
(Appendix 10)
A method for updating a plurality of relay definition information, which is a definition related to relay of communication between devices,
A communication relay device holding the plurality of relay definition information,
Obtain update information for updating the relay definition information,
A method for updating relay definition information, wherein update processing based on the update information is executed at a predetermined timing according to an update instruction for updating a plurality of the relay definition information.
(Appendix 11)
On the computer,
Processing for obtaining update information for updating relay definition information that is a definition related to relay of communication between devices;
An update process for updating based on the update information at a predetermined timing according to an update instruction for updating a plurality of the relay definition information;
Update program to execute.
(Appendix 12)
Controlled by a plurality of communication control devices configured redundantly by the active system and the standby system,
Holds multiple relay definition information, which is a definition for relaying communication between terminals,
A communication relay device that starts update processing of two or more relay definition information based on update information for updating two or more of the plurality of relay definition information during switching between the active system and the standby system .

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Communication relay apparatus 110 Memory | storage part 111a, 111b, ... 111n Relay definition information 112 Update information 120 Acquisition part 130 Update part 1 OpenFlow network system 11-16 Terminal 21, 22 OFC (Open Flow Controller)
31-33 OFS (Open Flow Switch)
40 Management Server 50 Development Terminal 401 Configuration Management Function 402 OFS Control Function 403 OFS and Update Software Management Function 404 OMA-DM Server 311 Table Editing Function 312 OFS Update Management Function 313 OMA-DM Client M1 Software Distribution, Update Start Trigger M2 Cluster Switch M3 secure channel disconnection 601-603 port 61 OpenFlow control IC
611 Ethernet control unit 612 SRAM
613 Flow table 614 Group table 615 Flow entry 616 cookie
62 Address and Data Bus 63 NOR FLASH MEMORY
64 CPU
65 Ethernet Driver IC
66 HDD
67 SDRAM
68 SATA
69 SDRAM / IF
71 OpenFlow control IC driver 72 Embedded Linux
73 OpenFlowSwitch control / management application 74 Log filtering processing application 75 OFS update application 76 Device management library 77 Log filtering rule 78 Flow table update application 791 DMT control library 792 User created library

Claims (10)

A communication relay device controlled by a plurality of redundantly configured communication control devices,
A storage unit for storing the relay definition information in a definition of a relay of the communication between the terminals,
An acquisition unit for acquiring update information for updating the relay definition information;
An update unit to update-out based on the previous Symbol update information before Symbol relay definition information,
Equipped with a,
The update unit as a trigger switch in the standby system and operating system of the plurality of communication control device, start the update process
Communication relay device. The update information includes new identification information corresponding to the relay definition information,
The communication relay device according to claim 1, wherein the update unit updates the identification information in the relay definition information to new identification information included in the update information by the update process. Wherein the acquisition unit acquires the update the update processing according to the update content of the relay definition information is implemented as the update information,
The communication relay device according to claim 1, wherein the update unit performs the update process by executing the update program according to the trigger . The update unit
Communication relay apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3 starting the update process as the trigger that the connection has been broken for the control between the communication controller and the communication relay apparatus. The acquisition unit
From outside Tokushi preparative start request of the updating process,
The communication relay device according to claim 4 , wherein the update unit starts the update process with the trigger that the connection is disconnected after the start request is acquired. It holds joint definition information in a definition of a relay of the communication between the terminals, and the communication relay device for relaying communications between the terminal based on the relay definition information,
And a plurality of communication control device for controlling the communication relay device,
The plurality of communication control devices are configured redundantly , and send update information for updating the relay definition information to the communication relay device, triggered by switching between an active system and a standby system ,
The communication relay device is:
To update the relay definition information-out based on the previous Symbol update information,
Communication relay system.   A management server connected to the communication relay device and the plurality of communication control devices,
  The management server uses the switching of the active system and the standby system of the plurality of communication control devices as a trigger to transmit update information for updating the relay definition information to the communication relay device,
  The communication relay device updates the relay definition information based on the update information;
  The communication relay system according to claim 6. A method of updating relay definition information in a definition of a relay of the communication between the terminals,
Operating system and is controlled in a plurality of communication control devices that are redundant by the standby system, a communication relay device for holding the RELAY definition information,
Method for updating relaying definition information for starting the updating process for updating the operating system and the standby system switchover notified based-out the relay definition information in the update information as a trigger for. Holds relay definition information, which is a definition related to relaying communication between terminals, and is controlled by a plurality of communication control devices configured redundantly by an active system and a standby system .
Processing for updating based-out the relay definition information to the notified update information switching of the standby system and the operating system as a trigger,
Update program to execute. Controlled by a plurality of communication control devices configured redundantly by the active system and the standby system,
Holds multiple relay definition information, which is a definition for relaying communication between terminals,
A communication relay device that starts update processing of two or more relay definition information based on update information for updating two or more of the plurality of relay definition information during switching between the active system and the standby system .

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