Abstract: A SAN activity scheduler provides an integrated view of various types of scheduled activities, provides a summary report of multiple scheduled activities, and provides a seamless interface to drill down into specific details of scheduled activities. The scheduler provides a layout view of the scheduled activities arranged according to activity type (tasks, data collection, or retention) or status (success or failure), a detailed layout of activities scheduled within a particular day or other time interval, and a drill down detail which provides activity specific reports such as logs and collection details about the scheduled activities. In this manner, the scheduler provides the SAN operator with an integrated, all-inclusive interface for directing scheduled activities, presents a unified cohesive interface for quickly assessing the current state of scheduled activities, and drilling down into details on an activity specific basis without leaving the integrated scheduler application.

Abstract: In a large storage area network (SAN), many administrative tasks perform various operations. Managing the tasks can be a formidable activity. A network management application, operable to identify and manipulate the tasks, organizes the tasks in a common graphical user interface (GUI) which allows task management from a single operator console. The task manager provides a GUI having display panes for managing the tasks. The task manager allows selection and invocation of tasks, in which the same task is identifiable by each of the plurality of attributes. The task manager displays the hierarchy of tasks in a task tree, including selectable task icons, in a task tree pane. The task icons are expandable into the corresponding subtasks and operations in a task list pane, and status details about the operations and task status are displayed in a context detail pane. An operator traverses the task tree to drill down into the operation and completion status of tasks in the task tree.

Abstract: An agent installer operates to install an agent on a plurality of host computer systems using a bulk automated installation process that identifies at least one agent to be installed on a plurality of host computer systems and performs prerequisite checking of each of the plurality of host computer systems to determine which host computer systems of the plurality of host computer system are capable of supporting operation of the at least one agent. For each host computer system of the plurality of host computer systems that is capable of supporting operation of the at least one agent, the agent installer performs an automated bulk agent installation operation to install the at least one agent on that host computer system.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for removing data from a cache are disclosed. The data may be one or more objects that are stored in a first cache. Each object stored in the first cache has an associated reference that is stored in a second cache. Each such reference has an associated timer. As a program accesses an object stored in the first cache, the timer associated with its reference is reset. A harvester process parses through the second cache over a period of time, locking a section of the second cache and determining if any timers associated with references therein have timed out. The harvester process removes any such timed-out timers from the second cache. A garbage collection process parses through the first cache, removing any objects therein that do not have an associated reference in the second cache.

Abstract: A user selects one or more storage area network resources for purposes of viewing respective configuration information. Based on a respective selection by the user, a management control system determines whether it maintains corresponding configuration information associated with the selected one or more resources. If so, the management control system generates a respective configuration view for the user to view respective configuration information associated with the selected one or more resources. If not, the management control system identifies a remote server that manages the selected one or more resources and communicates with the remote server to convey a configuration view generated by the remote server through the management control system to the user for viewing on a display screen. Thus, the management control system can either serve the requested configuration information to a client or act as a proxy for retrieving and serving the requested configuration information to the user.

Abstract: A display function associated with a storage area network manager process initiates display of a respective hierarchical tree including elements of a storage area network. The hierarchical tree can include parent nodes (representing resources associated with the storage area network) that can be selectively expanded by a user for purposes of viewing sub-information associated with a respective parent resource in the tree. When a user clicks or selects a specific entry in the tree to expand it, a query object triggered by the selection notifies a respective processing function of managed objects (e.g., specific objects in a database) that are related to the selected storage area network resources. The respective processing function utilizes attribute information depending on a type of managed object in a database for purposes of reducing an amount of object data that must be retrieved from the database and identifying pertinent sub-information to update the hierarchical tree.