Abstract: A plurality of processes share a single set of non-resettable counters which are sampled periodically. Each process maintains a list of counter relationships unique to its own process and compares at each sample time the current sampled counter values with a selected function of previously received counter values for each relationship in its list and establishes a counter reset value which is a selected function of the current sampled value when the previously selected function is satisfied.

Abstract: Computer systems have the ability to monitor their components and operations, generate events which indicate the occurrence of a monitored condition (e.g. out of paper, Joe Smith just signed on, disk utilization nearing capacity, etc.), and process these events in some manner. The present invention provides significant enhancements to the latter capability.The events of an event stream or streams are "filtered" into categories or groups of events. Once categorized, the invention associates an action or actions with the categorized event. The associated action can be logging the event, routing the event to the electronic address of a user, or sending the event to an application program for further processing.

Abstract: The construction and display of operator messages representative of alert conditions in a network is described. Code points, which are strings of bits, are generated in response to an event in a device attached to the network. The code points are used to index predefined tables that contain relatively short units of text messages in operator selectable languages to be used in building an operator's information display. A product attached to a network, an alert sender, will generate a series of code points representative of desired display messages for an operator. The messages are indepedent of the specific alert sending product insofar as an alert receiver is concerned. The operator can also choose between detailed and general display messages. The code points are hierarchically arranged so that if the alert receiver does not have the most up to date set of messages, the alert receiver will display a more generic message which is still representative of the event.

Abstract: Alert records flowing in a communication and data processing network to host operator console stations consist of long, variable length information records. Method and apparatus are disclosed which reduce the variable length body of information to a standard 32-bit number which indexes the lengthy, variable length information. To the 32-bit number there is concatenated a product identification code which reduces the likelihood of inadvertent duplication of the 32-bit number by two different alert sending entities to an acceptable level. The IEEE standard 802 cyclic redundancy check algorithm, ordinarily employed for checking the integrity of data transmission in a communications system, is employed in a new way to reduce a long, variable length body of alert data information to the 32-bit number.