Patent ID: 7707269

Claim:
In a client network device including a program routine execution layer and a command line interface (CLI)-based application program, the program routine execution layer being external to the CLI-based application program and adapted to provide an interface between the CLI-based application program and a remote network device, the program routine execution layer further adapted to: receive at least one predefined CLI-based command selected by the CLI-based application program, the predefined CLI-command defined externally to the CLI-based application program; transmit the received at least one predefined CLI-based command to the remote network device to obtain data corresponding to the remote network device; receive a CLI-based response from the remote network device wherein the CLI-based response includes the data corresponding to the remote network device; extract a subset of the received data from the CLI-based response based on predetermined instructions, wherein the extracted subset of data comprise at least one identifier data and at least one value data corresponding to the identifier data; reconfiguring the extracted subset of data into a predetermined format, wherein reconfiguring the extracted subset of data further comprises storing the extracted subset of data under predetermined keys and mapping the extracted subset of data wherein the mapping comprises at least one map entry for each identifier data and a value data corresponding to the identifier data and wherein the CLI-based application is adapted to query the reconfigured extracted subset of data to obtain the data corresponding to the remove network device; select the predefined CLI-based command from a plurality of CLI-based program commands defined externally to the CLI-based application program; and instruct the client network device to execute the selected CLI-based program command.