Hypervisors are a new technology in the industry that enable multiple Operating Systems to co-exist on a single client. The use of a hypervisor provides a novel approach to determining the operability of an Operating System. Each Operating System is a virtualized Operating System, with its own IP address. According to a preferred embodiment, the capability Operating System has an application that is a monitor program that runs and provides information that is sent to the maintenance Operating System. The monitor program sends a status packet at regular intervals, which contains system power state and is a confirmation that the system is not hung. If the maintenance Operating System does not receive a packet at a regular interval, or in response to a query, then the maintenance Operating System will be aware that the capability Operating System is hung and will take appropriate measures.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a Type 1 Hypervisor.
Claims
1. A system comprising:
a hypervisor that enables more than one operating system to run concurrently;a capability operating system primarily utilized for user interaction;a maintenance operating system;a monitor that sends out at least one packet from the capability operating system;an interceptor capable of rerouting the packet to the maintenance operating system; anda determiner that determines a course of action based upon information conveyed by the packet.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the packet is an Ethernet packet that holds status information.
3. The system of claim 2, wherein the packet is an encrypted packet that contains information about the capability operating system, wherein the information may comprise information related to power state, user activity, or applications running on the capability operating system.
4. The system of claim 3, wherein the packet is an Alert Specification Forum packet.
5. The system of claim 3, wherein the determiner signals the maintenance operating system that the capability operating system is hung when a packet has not been intercepted within a predetermined time threshold.
6. The system of claim 5, wherein the course of action comprises at least one packet being sent out by the maintenance operating system which results in rebooting of the capability operating system.
7. The system of claim 6, wherein the threshold can be time of day, specific time intervals such as seconds, minutes, or hours, or user-set thresholds.
8. The system of claim 1, wherein the hypervisor enables the capability operating system and the maintenance operating system to run concurrently.
9. The system of claim 8, wherein the hypervisor filters communication from each operating system.
10. A method comprising the steps of:
using a computer with a first capability operating system and a hypervisor;creating a maintenance operating system in the computer;sending out at least one packet from the capability operating system;intercepting the packet from the capability operating system and rerouting the packet to the maintenance operating system; anddetermining a course of action based upon information conveyed by the packet.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein the packet is an Ethernet packet that holds status information.
12. The system of claim 11, wherein the packet is an encrypted packet that contains information about the capability operating system, wherein the information may comprise information related to power state, user activity, and applications running on the capability operating system.
13. The method of claim 12, wherein the packet is an Alert Specification Forum packet.
14. The method of claim 12, wherein the determiner signals the maintenance operating system that the capability operating system is hung when a packet has not been intercepted within a predetermined time threshold.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein the course of action comprises at least one packet being sent out by the maintenance operating system which results in rebooting of the capability operating system.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein the threshold can be time of day, specific time intervals such as seconds, minutes, or hours, or user-set thresholds.
17. The method of claim 10, wherein the hypervisor enables the capability operating system and the maintenance operating system to run concurrently.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein the hypervisor filters communication from each operating system.
19. A program storage device readable by machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps, said method comprising the steps of:
using a computer with a first capability operating system and a hypervisor;creating a maintenance operating system in the computer from the hypervisor capable of having knowledge of the power state, user activity, and applications running on the capability operating system;sending out a packet from the capability operating system that is intercepted by the hypervisor;intercepting, in the hypervisor, the packet from the capability operating system and rerouting the packet to the maintenance operating system; anddetermining a course of action if the maintenance operating system has not received a packet in a predetermined time threshold.
Patent Application
20070234355
