Abstract:
Disclosed is a device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits that includes a Control and Management Module, a Network Interface Module and a Serial Interface Module. The Network Interface Module connects with an SFP interface of data transport network to supply power and achieve a network connection. The Serial Interface Module connects to a serial port of equipment to store the output logs into the device. Remote management equipment can access the inventive device via telnet or other means. The device can be conveniently carried and installed and can work automatically after power up, which avoids taking additional power from the equipment room and saves on installation space.

Description:
PRIORITY 
       [0001]    This application claims priority to Chinese Application No.: 201320350655.2 filed Jun. 17, 2013, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
       TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0002]    The present invention is related to the field of communications, and more specifically to a device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    In recent years, the demand for data services is increasing rapidly, whereas the annual growth of narrowband and/or conventional voice services has been little to none. New services such as 3rd Generation (3G) mobile services, Level 2/Level 3 Virtual Private Networks (L2/L3 VPN), and Internet Protocol TeleVision (IPTV) use packet-based data traffic and utilize the bulk of most carrier and service provider bandwidth. As the demand for data services rapidly grows, providers are facing the challenge of how to lower the cost of providing these services. Carriers and service providers are searching for new transport technology that will enable them to deliver services more profitably and efficiently in a highly competitive telecommunications market. 
         [0004]    Today, many carriers must operate and maintain multiple networks or different layers of the network. With data traffic consuming the majority of carrier bandwidth in the current Synchronous Digital Hierarchy/Synchronous Optical NETwork (SDH/SONET) infrastructure, it is critical for today&#39;s carriers and service providers to use a convergence transport technology. One of the main objectives of the next generation transport network is the ability to multiplex and aggregate multiple services over the same physical facility or infrastructure. This ability enables a provider to provision new services on the existing facility without upgrading the physical installation for every new service. One of the technologies used in modern Packet Transport Network (PTN) technology takes advantage of the cost-effectiveness and ease-of-use of Pseudo Wire (PW) over Transport MultiProtocol Label Switching/MultiProtocol Label Switching Transport Profile (T-MPLS/MPLS-TP) architecture RFC 3985, and adds carrier-class features such as traffic engineering, Quality of Service (QoS) and connection oriented provisioning. The introduction of T-MPLS/MPLS-TP Pseudo Wire (PW) based PTN to metro transport networks permits network operators to migrate all of their transport services to be carried over converged IP/T-MPLS/MPLS-TP core networks. This approach allows carriers and service providers to generate more revenue by rapidly introducing new, as well as existing services, while reducing operational and capital network costs. 
         [0005]    At present, the operation logs of existing equipment are stored in two ways. A first method is to store the logs on the Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) within the equipment. Generally though, the equipment has limited memory space and will lose the stored logs after power interruption. Another method is to print and store the logs by using an external Personal Computer (PC) terminal, which needs additional installation space and power supply. 
         [0006]    To manage network and data services better, both manufactures and telecommunications (“telecom”) operators are looking to use special external devices to store and maintain more logs for longer periods of time, while requiring the special external devices to have a low power consumption, a large memory and be easy to maintain. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    The present disclosure relates to resolve the technical problem related to the current testing requirements that are complicated and require a separate connection to the test equipment. The present disclosure relates to an external device for storing log files, retrieving the log files and testing the circuits. The present disclosure provides network connection diagnosis and daily management and maintenance for the equipment. 
         [0008]    The device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits is installed in a transceiver Small Form-factor Pluggable (SFP) interface of the data transport network product. One end of the device can connect to the SFP interface to be supplied power and connect to the network in order to remotely communicate with the management equipment. Another end of the device uses a Registered Jack (RJ)-45 connector to provide two Recommended Standard (RS) 232 serial interfaces, which connect with serial ports of the equipment. The output logs of the equipment can be stored in the device and remote management equipment can access the device via a TELephone NETwork (telnet), Internet, or other network interconnection scheme. 
         [0009]    The device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits is designed to remotely store and retrieve logs of the equipment and test the circuits. The device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits includes a Control and Management Module used to control the operation of the embedded operating system in the device, so that the module can store the logs from the output serial port of the equipment and establish the file system. The Control and Management Module supports a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) server function, ping function (as a client) and telnet sever function; other functions are contemplated. 
         [0010]    The device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits further includes a Network Interface Module having one end connected to the Control and Management Module, and another end connected to the transceiver SFP interface of the data transport network to supply power and achieve a network connection. 
         [0011]    The device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits further includes a Serial Interface Module to connect the Control and Management Module with a serial port of the equipment, and is used for receiving the logs from the output serial port of the equipment. 
         [0012]    The Control and Management Module also includes a storage unit, which is used for the real-time storing of the logs from the serial port of the equipment. 
         [0013]    The Control and Management Module, Network Interface Module and Serial Interface Module are encapsulated in a transceiver SFP electrical module. 
         [0014]    The Control and Management Module includes a micro Central Processing Unit (CPU) or processor to provide overall control for the device. The storage unit of the Control and Management Module includes a built-in memory card. The Control and Management Module includes a Media Access Control (MAC) unit. 
         [0015]    The Network Interface Module includes a first PHYsical layer interface device (PHY 1 ) and a second PHYsical layer interface device (PHY 2 ). One end of PHY 1  connects the MAC unit through a Reduced Media Independent Interface (RMII) and the other end connects to one end of the PHY 2  through a 100 BASE-TX interface. The other end of the PHY 2  is a Serial Gigabit Media Independent Interface (SGMII), used to connect with the transceiver SFP interfaces of the data transport network. 
         [0016]    The device includes a Power Module, which provides the power supply for the device through the SFP interface of the data transport network. 
         [0017]    In addition, the Serial Interface Module connects to a serial port of the equipment by using a cable. The device has a RJ-45 connector for cable connection, which provides two RS232 serial interfaces. 
         [0018]    The device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits is of similar size with a standard SFP electrical module, which is convenient to carry and install. When installed in the SFP interface of the data transport network product, the device can power up and work automatically, which avoids the need for taking additional power from the equipment room and saves on installation space. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0019]    The present disclosure will become more readily apparent from the specific description accompanied by the following drawings, in which: 
           [0020]      FIG. 1  is a diagram illustrating the structure of the device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits; 
           [0021]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits; 
           [0022]      FIG. 3  is a block diagram illustrating the device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits; 
           [0023]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits connected to equipment and the network; and 
           [0024]      FIG. 5  is a block diagram illustrating a connection test of the device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0025]    The present disclosure may be understood more readily by reference to the following detailed description of the disclosure taken in connection with the accompanying drawing figures, which form a part of this disclosure. It is to be understood that this disclosure is not limited to the specific devices, methods, conditions or parameters described and/or shown herein, and that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments by way of example only and is not intended to be limiting of the claimed disclosure. 
         [0026]    The device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits according to the present disclosure is shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . The device for storing and retrieving log files and testing circuits  100  includes a Control and Management Module  20 , a Network Interface Module  30  and a Serial Interface Module  10  (e.g. RS232 Interface Module). A first end  101  of the device  100  connects the transceiver SFP interface  111  (see  FIG. 4 ) of the data transport network  200  through Network Interface Module  30 . A second end  102  that includes a connector  103 , e.g. an RJ-45 connector, of the device  100  connects to one or more output serial ports  104   a / 104   b  of the equipment  210   a / 210   b  by using a cable  105 . The remote management equipment (not shown) can configure and manage device  100  via telnet, or other network connection, and can also remotely retrieve the logs stored in the device  100  through File Transfer Protocol (FTP), or other known file transfer methods. 
         [0027]    The Network Interface Module  30  connects the data transport network  200  such that the device  100  can connect with the transceiver SFP interface  111  of the data transport network  200  to provide power and achieve a network connection. 
         [0028]    The Serial Interface Module  10  connects with the serial port  104   a  or  104   b  of the equipment  210   a / 210   b  and is used for receiving the output logs of the equipment  210   a / 210   b.    
         [0029]    The Control and Management Module  20  includes a storage unit  40  (see  FIG. 3 ), which is used for real-time storing of the logs obtained through the serial port  111  of the equipment  210   a / 210   b.  The storage unit  40  can be any type of memory devices, e.g. flash memory. 
         [0030]    In a preferred embodiment of the device  100  the Control and Management Module  20 , Network Interface Module  30  and Serial Interface Module  10  are shown encapsulated in a transceiver SFP electrical module  100 , as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . 
         [0031]    The internal structure of the device  100  is shown in  FIG. 3  and includes Serial Interface Module U 1   10 , Control and Management Module U 3   20 , Network Interface Module U 4   30 , Memory Card U 2   40 , and Power Module U 5   50 . 
         [0032]    In this embodiment, the Serial Interface Module  10  provides two RS232 interfaces: RS232 1 and RS232 2,  10   a  and  10   b,  respectively. The Serial Interface Module U 1   10  connects the serial port  104  of the equipment  210   a / 210   b  by using the cable  105 . The first end  101  of the device  100  has an RJ-45 connector  103  to connect with RJ-45 end  106  of cable  105 . At the other end of the cable  105  are two RS232 interfaces  107   a / 107   b  to connect two serial interfaces  104  of the equipment  210   a / 210   b.  The Control and Management Module U 3   20  uses a micro Central Processing Unit (CPU) to control data storage from the serial port(s)  104   a / 104   b,  file system establishment, Ethernet communication, FTP server function, etc. The Serial Interface Module U 1   10  connects to the Control and Command Module U 3   20  through connection  34 . The Control and Management Module U 3   20  includes Media Access Control (MAC) unit  22  and storage unit  21 . The memory card U 2   40  uses an embedded Multi Media Card (eMMC) card through an MMC connection  23  in this embodiment, which is installed in the storage unit  21  of the Control and Management Module U 3   20  to store the logs from the serial port(s)  104   a / 104   b;  other configurations are contemplated. 
         [0033]    Network Interface Module U 4   30  includes a first PHYsical layer interface device (PHY 1 ) and a second PHYsical layer interface device (PHY 2 ). One end of PHY 1  connects to MAC unit  22  through a Reduced Media Independent Interface (RMII)  31  and the other end of PHY 1  connects to a first end of the PHY 2  through a 100 BASE-TX interface  32 . The other end of the PHY 2  is supplied with a Serial Gigabit Media Independent Interface (SGMII)  33  used to connect with the SFP interfaces  111  of the data transport network  200 . 
         [0034]    In this embodiment, the device  100  includes the Power Module U 5   50 . The Power Module U 5   50  can convert 3.3 V power supply from SFP interface  111  of the data transport network  200  into 1 V and 2.5 V in order to meet the power supply needs for PHY 1  and PHY 2  and the other components of device  100 . 
         [0035]    The Control and Management Module U 3   20  can include an internal memory and/or flash memory (not shown). The internal memory provides the device  100  with the required program and data space and the flash is used for storing program and static data. 
         [0036]    The peripheral interfaces at the ends  101 / 102  of the device  100  can be configured to support Ethernet port configuration, serial port configuration and/or eMMC card controller configuration to reduce the number of external devices. 
         [0037]    The application embodiment of the device  100  is shown in  FIG. 4 . The device  100  connects to an SFP interface  111  of the data transport network product  200  through the Network Interface Module  30 . The other end of the device  100  connects the serial port  104  of the equipment  210   a / 210   b  by using cable  105 . The device  100  will automatically record the output data from the serial port  104  and store in the eMMC card, which can be read and downloaded through FTP by the user for testing. 
         [0038]      FIG. 5  illustrates and example of the testing process according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. There are five data transport networks NE 1 , NE 2 , NE 3 , NE 4  and NE 5  that make up the network. NE 5  is the center Network Element (NE) and the other NEs are edge NEs. Five devices  100  (M 1 , M 2 , M 3 , M 4  and M 5 ) are installed respectively in unused SFP interfaces of the five NEs. By using a special cable, the RJ-45 interface of each device can be connected with serial ports  104   a / 104   b  (DB9, X2 and X3) of the equipment  210   a / 210   b.    
         [0039]    The devices M 1 -M 5  record the logs from the serial port of the equipment  210   a / 210   b  to store in respective eMMC cards automatically. The remote management equipment PC can retrieve the operation logs of the four NEs (NE 1 , NE 2 , NE 3  and NE 4 ) through the center NE NE 5 . 
         [0040]    The procedures using the device  100  to read the operation logs of the equipment  210   a / 210   b  will now be described. If a user needs to download the log files of NE 1  and the Internet protocol (IP) address of the device  100  installed in NE 1  (i.e. M 1 ) is for example set to 192.168.10.225, the following steps are performed. 
         [0041]    In step  1  a local directory is created on the remote PC for NE 1  to store corresponding log files: e.g. d:\NE 1 _log. In step  2  a command window is opened to enter an ftp command: e.g. ftp 192.168.10.225. In step  3 , a username and password can be required to be entered to access the device  100 : e.g. User &lt;192.168.10.225&gt;/Password: admin. In step  4  a command can be entered to show the folders of the device  100 : e.g. ftp&gt;Is. In turn, the folders are displayed (4 in this example): Directory_A_ 1 ; Directory_A_ 2 ; Directory_B_ 1 ; Directory_B_ 2 . In step  5  the required directory is specified as the current directory to retrieve the log files from \Directory_A_ 1 : e.g. ftp&gt;cd Directory_A_ 1 . In step  6 , the log file names in \Directory_A_ 1  can be displayed: e.g. ftp&gt;Is. In turn, all the log files in Directory_A_ 1  are displayed: e.g. LOG_ 1 .TXT; LOG_ 2 .TXT; LOG_ 3 .TXT; LOG_ 4 .TXT. In step  7  a specific directory can be specified as the local directory: e.g. ftp&gt;Icd d:\NE 1 _log. In step  8  log files from Directory_A_ 1  can be downloaded to the directory: d:\NE 1 _log: e.g. ftp&gt;mget *.TXT. 
         [0042]    The procedures using the device  100  to test the circuits of a data transport network  200  will now be described. In this example, it is presumed that the user has configured the circuit from NE 5 \Slot 5 \Port 3  to NE 1 \Slot 5 \Port 2 . In order to check whether the circuit configuration is successful, the traditional method is to test the configuration by connecting data communication test equipment (e.g. Smart BITS) to each port. In the present disclosure, device  100  is inserted into NE 1 \Slot 5 \Port 2  to test the configuration. If the IP address of the device  100  is 192.168.10.225, the following steps are performed. 
         [0043]    In step  11 , on the PC, select [Start&gt;run]. In step  12 , enter &lt;cmd&gt; and click &lt;OK&gt;. In step  13 , the command window is displayed. In step  14  “ping 192.168.10.225” in entered. In step  15  the Enter key is pressed to check whether the connection is successful. In step  16 , the following may be returned:
       C:\Users\hz05311&gt;ping 192.168.10.225   Pinging 192.168.10.225 with 32 bytes of data:   Reply from 192.168.10.225: bytes=32 time=1 ms TTL=255   Reply from 192.168.10.225: bytes=32 time=1 ms TTL=255   Reply from 192.168.10.225: bytes=32 time&lt;1 ms TTL=255   Reply from 192.168.10.225: bytes=32 time=8 ms TTL=255   Ping statistics for 192.168.10.225:
           Packets: Sent=4, Received=4, Lost=0 (0% loss),   
           Approximate round trip times in milliseconds:   Minimum=0 ms, Maximum=8 ms, Average=2 ms.       
 
         [0054]    If the test passes, the service configuration is successful. 
         [0055]    Where this application has listed the steps of a method or procedure in a specific order, it may be possible, or even expedient in certain circumstances, to change the order in which some steps are performed, and it is intended that the particular steps of the method or procedure claim set forth herebelow not be construed as being order-specific unless such order specificity is expressly stated in the claim. 
         [0056]    While the preferred embodiments of the devices and methods have been described in reference to the environment in which they were developed, they are merely illustrative of the principles of the inventions. Modification or combinations of the above-described assemblies, other embodiments, configurations, and methods for carrying out the invention, and variations of aspects of the invention that are obvious to those of skill in the art are intended to be within the scope of the claims.