Abstract: The invention concerns a heterogeneous automation system (10) including a first physical network (15, 17, 20) in which all connected devices can communicate on the basis of a first communication protocol and at least one second physical network (52, 58, 59; 54, 56, 57, 60) which is connected to the first network (15, 17, 20) by way of a first control device (25, 30) functioning as a gateway, and in which all devices (54, 56, 57, 60) connected thereto can communicate on the basis of a second communication protocol, wherein the first and second networks and the first and second communication protocols are different. The object of the present invention is to provide a system and a connecting apparatus, by means of which communication is simplified, in particular upon start-up, configuration and maintenance of the system, in the entire automation system.

Abstract: A group of client calculators (18) communicates by determining whether a aster calculator (14) is a member of the group. If the master calculator (14) is present, the client calculators (18) determine whether the master calculator (14) has allowed communication between the client calculators (14). The client calculators may communicate if the master calculator (14) is not present or if the master calculator (14) is present and has allowed communications between other of the client calculators (18).

Abstract: A system for enabling access to non-HTML objects from a web browser. The system includes a database for storing non-HTML objects. A system user requests a non-HTML object from a database using a web browser. The web browser transmits the request to a server via a HTTP server and module. The server locates and retrieves the document requested. The module translates the document to a format supported by the web browser. The HTTP server communicates the translated object to the web browser over a network. The web browser then presents the translated object to the system user. The system also provides documents with a unique identifier. Once a unique identifier is assigned to a document, the system refers to the document by the unique identifier.

Abstract: A remote resource management system for maintaining resources shared in a distributed computing system, which downloads only such resources that are the most suitable for an application requested by a user. When a user selects an application at a terminal computer, an application server computer providing the selected application will determine the most suitable resources for the selected application by consulting a resource linkage manager disposed therein. The application server transfers information advising the suitable resources, together with a download agent, to the terminal computer. In the terminal computer, the download agent determines whether the resources should be newly downloaded or not, referring to local resource management information that describes what resources exist in the terminal computer. If downloading is necessary, the resource management system locates the necessary resource files by using a downloadable resource management directory in a resource server computer.

Abstract: A system for updating a memory storing configuration information of a network element includes a network element and a network manager coupled to the network element using a communication network. The network manager receives selected configuration information from the network element to update a selected part of the memory if a received state variable does not match a stored state variable.

Abstract: A recording device which improves a response time to write data by reporting to a host computer the completion of writing operation prior to the completion of writing redundancy data. Data writing command information from the host computer is stored in a command/status memory backed up by a power source in an array controller, and the completion of writing operation is reported to the host computer at the time of the completion of writing updated data prior to the completion of writing redundancy data. Redundancy data is written as a background process. If redundancy data could not be written due to any abnormality of the power source or the like, such redundancy data may be generated from the data in other disk units of the same redundancy group in accordance with writing command information stored in the command/status memory, thereby completing the writing of redundancy data.

Abstract: An automated method of maintaining replication topology information is presented that allows system maintenance to occur with a minimum of system administrator intervention. For a replicated and distributed database across a network of computers, the network is divided or partitioned into sites that are islands of good network connectivity wherein communication between the site computers occurs using high bandwidth, low-latency remote procedure calls (RPCs). Further, intersite connections allow communication between servers of different sites using a low bandwidth, high-latency store and forward messaging scheme. Knowledge consistency checkers running independently on each individual server in the entire network assures that the servers within a site are automatically connected in a full-mesh replication topology within a site and that the sites themselves are connected via a spanning tree of intersite links.

Abstract: A configurable network interface controller provides a multi-chip FIFO extension protocol. Utilizing this protocol, FIFOs that are physically separated (e.g., in separate chips) can be made to operate as though they are a single FIFO.