Network diagram display system and network diagram display method

Abstract

A display system 1 displays a network diagram visualizing a user system (4) including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired communication or wireless communication, and a network device (20) communicably connected to the information transmission path. The display system 1 is configured to: select a network device (20) within a responsibility range and a network device (20) outside the responsibility range by using a predetermined responsibility range selection method and draw a diagram using an image indicating a connection configuration between the network devices and an image indicating the network devices (20); and clearly indicate a responsibility boundary point so as to distinguish the network device (20) within the responsibility range from the network device (20) outside the responsibility range. With this configuration, the display system 1 causes a display unit to display a network diagram of a user system (4).

Description

Network diagram display system and network diagram display method

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a system for displaying a network diagram and a method for displaying a network diagram.

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a system for generating and displaying a cloud configuration diagram. The cloud configuration visualization system of Patent Document 1 includes a cloud connection information receiving unit, a cloud configuration display processing unit, a cloud connection information DB, and a configuration information acquisition processing unit. This system acquires cloud connection information from the cloud connection information DB using the cloud ID of the cloud configuration display request command. Furthermore, this system identifies a cloud service providing system from which to acquire the cloud configuration information from the cloud connection information, and acquires the cloud configuration information from the identified cloud service providing system. The configuration display processing unit then generates and displays a cloud configuration diagram using component icons and connection information for each component based on the cloud configuration information.

[0003] International Publication No. 2016 / 103421

[0004] Conventional technologies, including the technology of Patent Document 1, have problems such as making it difficult for users to understand the connection configuration of devices in a network system, and making it difficult for users to understand the scope of responsibility within the network system.

[0005] One of the purposes of the present disclosure is to provide a technology that can visualize the configuration of a user's system in an easily recognizable manner and in a manner that clearly indicates the scope of responsibility.

[0006] A network diagram display method according to the present disclosure is a display method for displaying a network diagram that visualizes a user system including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired or wireless communication, and network devices communicatively connected to the information transmission path, comprising: a first step of installing specific software in any of the network devices included in the user system; after the first step, a second step of displaying the network diagram of the user system on a display unit by a display control unit, in a configuration in which a responsibility demarcation point is specified so that at least the network devices included in the user system on which the specific software is installed are considered to be devices within the responsibility range, and a diagram using an image indicating the information transmission path and icon images indicating the network devices is drawn, and in which the display state of the icon images of the network devices within the responsibility range is distinguished from the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the responsibility range; a step of detecting the network devices included in the user system; and a step of registering, in a registration unit, the network devices on which the specific software is installed, among the network devices detected in the network device detection step, as devices within the responsibility range. and when an external operation is performed to designate a network device that does not have the specific software installed among the network devices detected in the process of detecting the network devices as a network device within the range of responsibility, registering the network device designated by the external operation in the registration unit as a device within the range of responsibility, wherein in the second step, the network diagram of the user system is displayed on the display unit by the display control unit in a configuration that distinguishes between the display state of icon images of the network devices within the range of responsibility and the display state of icon images of the network devices outside the range of responsibility so that the network device registered in the registration unit as a device within the range of responsibility is designated as a device within the range of responsibility.

[0007] A network diagram display method that is one aspect of the present disclosure is a display method for displaying a network diagram that visualizes a user system that includes an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired communication or wireless communication, and network devices that are communicatively connected to the information transmission path, and includes: a first step of installing specific software in any of the network devices included in the user system; and a second step of, after the first step, causing a display control unit to display the network diagram of the user system on a display unit, in a configuration that indicates a demarcation point so that at least the network devices included in the user system on which the specific software is installed are considered to be devices within the scope of responsibility, and draws a diagram using an image indicating the information transmission path and icon images indicating the network devices, and in a configuration that distinguishes between the display state of the icon images of the network devices within the scope of responsibility and the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the scope of responsibility; and the second step includes a step of, when a change operation is performed after the network diagram has been generated to instruct a change to the arrangement of icon images in the network diagram, causing the display control unit to display a new network diagram corresponding to the change operation on the display unit.

[0008] A network diagram display system according to the present disclosure is a display system for displaying a network diagram visualizing a user system including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired or wireless communication, and network devices communicatively connected to the information transmission path, the display system comprising: a detection unit for detecting the network devices included in the user system; a display control unit for controlling the display of the network diagram of the user system on a display unit, the display control unit being configured to clearly indicate a responsibility demarcation point so that, of the network devices included in the user system, at least those network devices having specific software installed thereon are devices within a responsibility range, and to draw a diagram using an image showing the information transmission path and icon images showing the network devices, and to distinguish between a display state of the icon images of the network devices within the responsibility range and a display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the responsibility range; and a registration unit for registering, in a registration unit, the network devices having the specific software installed thereon, of the network devices detected in the process of detecting the network devices, as devices within the responsibility range. When an external operation is performed to designate a network device detected by the detection unit that does not have the specific software installed as a network device within its range of responsibility, the registration unit registers the network device designated by the external operation in the registration unit as a device within its range of responsibility, and the display control unit displays the network diagram of the user system on the display unit in a configuration that distinguishes between the display state of icon images of network devices within its range of responsibility and the display state of icon images of network devices outside its range of responsibility, so that the network device registered in the registration unit as a device within its range of responsibility is designated as a device within its range of responsibility.

[0009] A network diagram display system according to the present disclosure is a display system for displaying a network diagram that visualizes a user system including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired or wireless communication, and network devices communicatively connected to the information transmission path, the system being configured to clearly indicate a responsibility demarcation point so that at least those network devices included in the user system on which specific software is installed are devices within the responsibility range, and to draw a diagram using an image showing the information transmission path and icon images showing the network devices, and to distinguish between the display state of the icon images of the network devices within the responsibility range and the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the responsibility range, the system having a display control unit that controls the display of the network diagram of the user system on a display unit, the user system being provided with at least the display unit, an operation unit, and a transmission unit, the user system being capable of transmitting information to an external system provided outside the user system by the transmission unit, the external system being provided with an operation device, The display control unit includes a process for, when, after the network diagram is generated, a change operation is performed by the operation device of the external system to instruct a change in the arrangement of the icon images in the network diagram, causing the display unit to display a new network diagram in accordance with the change operation.

[0010] According to the technology disclosed herein, the configuration of a user's system can be visualized in an easy-to-understand manner and in a manner that clearly indicates the scope of responsibility.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a network diagram display system according to a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a user system used in the display system of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a user system used in the display system of FIG. 1, which is different from the user system shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram conceptually illustrating communication between a management system and a user system in the display system of FIG. 1. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram conceptually illustrating communication between an agent system and a user system in the display system of FIG. 1. FIG. 6 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating the user system shown in FIG. 3 in more detail. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a network diagram displayed on a display unit. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram conceptually illustrating an example of network devices identified in a user system and the specific contents of each network device. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram conceptually illustrating an example of registration information for each user system (each client) registered and stored in a corresponding system. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram conceptually illustrating an example of terminal registration information included in the registration information for one user system (client 1) among the registration information registered in the corresponding system. Fig. 11 is an explanatory diagram conceptually illustrating an example of updated terminal registration information when some network devices are changed to be within the scope of responsibility from the state registered with the terminal registration information as shown in Fig. 10. Fig. 12 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a network diagram showing a simplified configuration of the user system shown in Figs. 3 and 6 using icon images of network devices when the user system is identified as shown in Fig. 8. Fig. 13 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a network diagram showing network devices within the scope of responsibility and network devices outside the scope of responsibility in a manner that distinguishes between network devices within the scope of responsibility and network devices outside the scope of responsibility when the user system shown in Figs. 3 and 6 is identified as shown in Fig. 8 and then some network devices that do not have specific software are set as network devices within the scope of responsibility. Fig. 14 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a network diagram showing network devices within the scope of responsibility and network devices outside the scope of responsibility in a manner that distinguishes between network devices within the scope of responsibility and network devices outside the scope of responsibility in a manner that further distinguishes between network devices within the scope of responsibility and network devices outside the scope of responsibility when the user system shown in Figs. 3 and 6 is identified as shown in Fig. 8 and thenFIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a network diagram in which an icon image corresponding to a hub 42 has been added to the network diagram of FIG. 14 and the hub 42 has been designated as a network device outside the scope of responsibility. FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a network diagram in which the hub 42 has been changed to a network device within the scope of responsibility in the network diagram of FIG. 15. FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a network diagram in which the layout of some network devices has been further changed in the network diagram of FIG. 16. FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a network diagram in which an icon image corresponding to a hub 43 has been added to the network diagram of FIG. 17, the hub 43 has been designated as a network device within the scope of responsibility, and the layout of some network devices has been further changed. FIG. 19 is an explanatory diagram conceptually explaining an example of terminal registration information when displaying a network diagram such as FIG. 18. FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an input screen for entering information asset information associated with a network device. FIG. 21 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a screen when information is entered on the input screen of FIG. 20. Fig. 22 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a screen when an input is made to change some information on the screen such as Fig. 21. Fig. 23 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the display state when a specific network device is operating normally, the display state when a communication error occurs, and the display state when an abnormality other than a communication error occurs. Fig. 24 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the display of a network diagram when an abnormality has occurred in some network devices, when terminal registration information is registered so that a network diagram such as Fig. 18 can be displayed.

[0012] Each of the following [1] to

[14] is an example of a characteristic technique included in this disclosure.

[0013] [1] A display method for displaying a network diagram visualizing a user system including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired or wireless communication, and network devices communicatively connected to the information transmission path, comprising: a first step of installing specific software in any of the network devices included in the user system; after the first step, a second step of displaying the network diagram of the user system on a display unit by a display control unit, in a configuration in which a responsibility demarcation point is specified so that at least the network devices included in the user system, on which the specific software is installed, are considered to be devices within the responsibility range, and a diagram using an image indicating the information transmission path and icon images indicating the network devices is drawn, and in which the display state of the icon images of the network devices within the responsibility range is distinguished from the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the responsibility range; a step of detecting the network devices included in the user system; and a step of registering, in a registration unit, the network devices on which the specific software is installed, among the network devices detected in the network device detection step, as devices within the responsibility range. and when an external operation is performed to designate a network device that does not have the specific software installed among the network devices detected in the process of detecting the network devices as a network device within the range of responsibility, registering the network device designated by the external operation in the registration unit as a device within the range of responsibility, wherein in the second step, the network diagram display method causes the display control unit to display the network diagram of the user system on the display unit in a configuration that distinguishes between the display state of icon images of network devices within the range of responsibility and the display state of icon images of network devices outside the range of responsibility so that the network device registered in the registration unit as a device within the range of responsibility is designated as a device within the range of responsibility.

[0014] The display method described in [1] above is configured to display a network diagram using an image showing an information transmission path and icon images showing network devices, and to distinguish between the display state of icon images of network devices within the scope of responsibility and the display state of icon images of network devices outside the scope of responsibility. Therefore, this display method can visualize the configuration of the user's system in a visually easy-to-recognize manner and in a manner that clearly indicates the scope of responsibility. Furthermore, the display method described in [1] above can display and manage not only network devices with specific software installed, but also network devices without specific software installed as network devices within the scope of responsibility.

[0015] [2] A display method for displaying a network diagram that visualizes a user system that includes an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired communication or wireless communication, and network devices that are communicatively connected to the information transmission path, comprising: a first step of installing specific software in any of the network devices included in the user system; and a second step of, after the first step, causing a display control unit to display the network diagram of the user system on a display unit, in a configuration that indicates a demarcation point so that at least the network devices included in the user system that have the specific software installed are considered to be devices within their scope of responsibility, and draws a diagram using an image showing the information transmission path and icon images showing the network devices, and in a configuration that distinguishes between the display state of the icon images of the network devices within their scope of responsibility and the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside their scope of responsibility; wherein the second step includes, when a change operation is performed after the network diagram has been generated to change the arrangement of icon images in the network diagram, causing the display control unit to display a new network diagram in accordance with the change operation on the display unit.

[0016] The display method described in [2] above is configured to display a network diagram using an image showing an information transmission path and icon images showing network devices, and to distinguish between the display state of icon images of network devices within the scope of responsibility and the display state of icon images of network devices outside the scope of responsibility. Therefore, this display method can visualize the configuration of the user's system in a form that is easy to visually recognize and clearly indicates the scope of responsibility. Furthermore, the display method described in [2] above can change the configuration of the network diagram in response to a change operation and display it.

[0017] [3] In the second step, the network diagram is displayed on the display unit by the display control unit so that the network devices included in the area of ​​responsibility and the network devices not included in the area of ​​responsibility are displayed in different colors. This is a method for displaying a network diagram as described in [1].

[0018] The display method described above in [3] allows the network devices included in the scope of responsibility to be distinguished from those not included in the scope of responsibility by using different colors, making it easier for relevant parties viewing the display results to more quickly recognize the network devices included in the scope of responsibility, and making it easier to monitor and manage the network devices included in the scope of responsibility more efficiently.

[0019] [4] The method for displaying a network diagram according to any one of [1] to [3] further includes a third step of detecting by an abnormality detection unit whether at least one abnormality out of one or more predetermined abnormality types has occurred in any of the network devices included in the area of ​​responsibility, and in the second step, the display state of an icon image of the network device in which the abnormality detection unit has detected an abnormality in the third step is made different from the display state of an icon image of the network device in which the abnormality detection unit has not detected an abnormality in the third step, and the network diagram is displayed on the display unit.

[0020] The display method [4] above makes it possible to visualize the network diagram in a way that clearly indicates the scope of responsibility, and when a predetermined abnormality occurs, it is possible to distinguish and inform the network device in which the abnormality has occurred in the network diagram in which the scope of responsibility is clearly indicated.

[0021] [5] The method for displaying a network diagram described in [4], wherein in the second step, in the network devices within the range of responsibility, the display state of the icon image of the network device in which the abnormality detection unit detected an abnormality in the third step is made different from the display state of the icon image of the network device in which the abnormality detection unit did not detect an abnormality in the third step, and in the third step, the abnormality detection unit does not detect any of the abnormalities in the network devices outside the range of responsibility.

[0022] The display method [5] above can display abnormalities by focusing on network devices within the scope of responsibility, allowing for more thorough support within the scope of responsibility, and reducing the load on the entire system by preventing complex processing from being performed on network devices outside the scope of responsibility.

[0023] [6] At least the user system is provided with the display unit, operation unit, and transmission unit, and the user system is capable of transmitting information to an external system provided outside the user system by the transmission unit, and in the second step, the display control unit displays an operation target image for performing an operation requesting support together with the network diagram on the display unit of the user system, and further includes a sixth step of transmitting, by the transmission unit, request information conveying a request for support to the external system when a predetermined second operation is performed on the operation target image by the operation unit, and when the external system receives the request information from the user system, displaying reception information indicating receipt of the request information on a display device of the external system. A method for displaying a network diagram described in any one of [1] to [5].

[0024] The display method [6] above makes it possible to visualize the network diagram in a way that clearly shows the scope of responsibility, and a user who wants support after seeing the network diagram with the clearly shown scope of responsibility can send request information to an external system to convey a request for support by performing a specified operation on the image to be operated.

[0025] [7] A method for displaying a network diagram as described in [6], wherein multiple types of users are prepared, and when type identification information capable of identifying the type of user is input into the operation unit of the user system, if the user identified by the type identification information belongs to a first type, the transmitting unit disables the function of transmitting the request information, and if the user identified by the type identification information belongs to a second type, the transmitting unit enables the function of transmitting the request information.

[0026] The display method [7] above enables processing according to the type of user who inputs type-specific information into the operation unit, and can increase the benefits of users who belong to the second type by disabling the function of sending request information when the user belongs to the first type and enabling the function of sending request information when the user belongs to the second type.

[0027] In the display method of [7] above, for example, user information can be managed so that various information is associated with each user and registered, and among the multiple pieces of user information registered in this manner, users who are registered with associated account information can be classified as users belonging to a second type, and users who are not registered with associated account information can be classified as users belonging to a first type. In this case, it is possible to distinguish between users whose account information is registered and those whose account information is not registered as users who cannot send request information.

[0028] [8] A method for displaying a network diagram according to any one of [1] to [7], comprising: a fourth step in which an operation device is provided in the external system, and when an operation to associate an information asset related to a network device within the range of responsibility is performed by the operation device, the network device and the information asset are associated and registered, and the operation to associate the information asset with a network device outside the range of responsibility is disabled; and a fifth step in which, when a predetermined first operation is performed to select a network device with which the information asset within the range of responsibility is associated, the information asset of the selected network device is displayed on the display device while the network diagram of the user system is displayed on the display device by the second step.

[0029] The display method [8] above can associate and manage information assets related to network devices within the scope of responsibility, and when a specified operation to select the network device is performed, the information assets associated with the network device can be displayed and notified.

[0030] [9] A method for displaying a network diagram described in any one of [1] to [8], comprising: a fourth step in which an operation device is provided in an external system external to the user system, and when an operation to associate an information asset related to a network device within the range of responsibility is performed by the operation device, the network device and the information asset are associated and registered, and the operation to associate the information asset with a network device outside the range of responsibility is disabled; and a fifth step in which, when a predetermined first operation is performed to select a network device with which the information asset within the range of responsibility is associated, the information asset of the selected network device is displayed on the display unit while the network diagram of the user system is displayed on the display unit by the second step.

[0031] The display method [9] above can associate and manage information assets related to network devices within the scope of responsibility, and when a specified operation to select the network device is performed, the information assets associated with the network device can be displayed and notified.

[0032]

[10] At least the user system is provided with the display unit, operation unit, and transmission unit, and the user system is capable of transmitting information to an external system provided outside the user system via the transmission unit, and in the second step, the display control unit displays an operation target image for performing an operation requesting support together with the network diagram on the display unit of the user system, and further includes a sixth step of transmitting, via the transmission unit, request information conveying a request for support to the external system when a predetermined second operation is performed on the operation target image via the operation unit, and when the external system receives the request information from the user system, displaying reception information indicating receipt of the request information on a display device of the external system. A method for displaying a network diagram described in any one of [1] to [9].

[0033] The display method

[10] above makes it possible to visualize the network diagram in a way that clearly shows the scope of responsibility, and a user who wants support after seeing the network diagram with the clearly shown scope of responsibility can send request information to an external system to convey a request for support by performing a specified operation on the image to be operated.

[0034]

[11] The second step includes, when a change operation is performed after the network diagram has been generated to instruct a change in the arrangement of icon images in the network diagram, a step of causing the display control unit to display a new network diagram corresponding to the change operation on the display unit. A method for displaying a network diagram described in any one of [1] to

[10] .

[0035] In the display method described in

[11] above, the network diagram can be displayed with its configuration changed in accordance with the change operation.

[0036]

[12] A display system for displaying a network diagram visualizing a user system including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired or wireless communication, and network devices communicatively connected to the information transmission path, comprising: a detection unit for detecting the network devices included in the user system; a display control unit for controlling the display of the network diagram of the user system on a display unit, which is configured to clearly indicate a responsibility demarcation point so that, of the network devices included in the user system, at least those network devices on which specific software is installed are considered to be devices within a responsibility range, and to draw a diagram using an image showing the information transmission path and icon images showing the network devices, and which is configured to distinguish between the display state of the icon images of the network devices within the responsibility range and the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the responsibility range; and a registration unit for registering, in a registration unit, the network devices on which the specific software is installed, of the network devices detected in the process of detecting the network devices, as devices within the responsibility range. When an external operation is performed to designate a network device detected by the detection unit that does not have the specific software installed as a network device within its range of responsibility, the registration unit registers the network device designated by the external operation in the registration unit as a device within its range of responsibility, and the display control unit is configured to distinguish between the display state of icon images of network devices within its range of responsibility and the display state of icon images of network devices outside its range of responsibility so that the network device registered in the registration unit as a device within its range of responsibility is designated as a device within its range of responsibility, and the network diagram display system displays the network diagram of the user system on the display unit.

[0037] The display system described in

[12] above can visualize the configuration of the user's system in an easy-to-understand manner and in a manner that clearly indicates the scope of responsibility. Furthermore, the display system described in

[12] above can display and manage not only network devices with specific software installed, but also network devices without specific software installed as network devices within the scope of responsibility.

[0038]

[13] A display system for displaying a network diagram visualizing a user system including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired or wireless communication, and network devices communicatively connected to the information transmission path, the display system being configured to clearly indicate a responsibility demarcation point so that at least those network devices included in the user system on which specific software is installed are considered to be devices within a responsibility range, and to draw a diagram using an image showing the information transmission path and icon images showing the network devices, and to distinguish between the display state of the icon images of the network devices within the responsibility range and the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the responsibility range, and the display system has a display control unit that controls the display of the network diagram of the user system on a display unit, the user system being provided with at least the display unit, an operation unit, and a transmission unit, the user system being capable of transmitting information to an external system provided outside the user system by the transmission unit, the external system being provided with an operation device, The display control unit of the network diagram display system includes a process in which, after the network diagram is generated, when a change operation is performed by the operation device of the external system to change the arrangement of the icon images in the network diagram, the display control unit displays a new network diagram on the display unit in accordance with the change operation.

[0039] The display system described in

[13] above can visualize the configuration of the user's system in a way that is easy to understand and that clearly indicates the scope of responsibility. Furthermore, the display system described in

[13] above can change the configuration of the network diagram according to the change operation and display it.

[0040]

[14] A program for displaying a network diagram that visualizes a user system including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information via wired or wireless communication, and network devices that are communicatively connected to the information transmission path, wherein the program is configured to clearly indicate a responsibility boundary point so that at least those network devices of the user system that have specific software installed are devices within their responsibility range, draw a diagram using an image showing the information transmission path and icon images showing the network devices, and distinguish between the display state of the icon images of the network devices within their responsibility range and the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside their responsibility range, and have the user system or a display control unit external to the user system control the display of the network diagram of the user system.

[0041] The program

[14] above can visualize the configuration of the user's system in an easily recognizable manner and in a manner that clearly indicates the scope of responsibility.

[0042] <First Embodiment> The following description relates to the first embodiment. 1. Overview of the Display System Fig. 1 shows a network diagram display system 1 according to the first embodiment. This display system 1 is a system to which a network diagram display method is applied. The display system 1 is configured as a responsibility demarcation point specifying system that can specify responsibility demarcation points in each user system.

[0043] 1, the display system 1 is configured to include a user system 4, a management system 60, and an agent system 80. In the example of FIG. 1, the management system 60 is capable of communicating with each agent system 80. Also, in the example of FIG. 1, the management system 60 is capable of communicating with some of the user systems 4.

[0044] Fig. 2 shows an example of a user system 4. The user system 4 configured to be able to communicate with the management system 60 in Fig. 1 may be configured as shown in Fig. 2, and the user system 4 configured to be able to communicate with the agent system 80 may be configured as shown in Fig. 2.

[0045] 2 is configured as a network system in which multiple network devices are connected to each other so that they can communicate with each other. The user system 4 includes a transmission path 12, which is a path for transmitting information via wired or wireless communication, and a network device 20, which is a device connected to the transmission path 12 so that it can communicate with the transmission path 12. The transmission path 12 need only be configured as a path through which information can be transmitted, and may be configured as a communication cable such as a LAN cable, or as an area in which wireless communication is performed.

[0046] 2, the network devices 20 include a router 21A, a server 23A, hubs 22A and 24A, personal computers (hereinafter also referred to as PCs) 22B, 22C, 22D, 24C, 24D, and 24E, a multifunction peripheral 24B, an access point 24F, business phones 28A and 28B, a camera system 26A, tablet terminals (hereinafter also referred to as tablets) 29A and 29B, and a smartphone 29C. In the example of FIG. 2, the PCs 22B, 22C, 22D, 24C, 24D, and 24E are notebook computers, but some or all of them may be desktop PCs or other types of PCs.

[0047] In the example of FIG. 2 , transmission paths 31A, 32A, 32B, 34A, 34B, 36A, 38A, and the like are provided as the transmission path 12. The transmission paths 31A, 32A, 32B, 34A, 34B, 36A, and 38A are configured, for example, with cables and are configured as communication lines forming wired communication paths. The router 21A is communicatively connected to the Internet communication network 90. ​​The server 23A is connected to the router 21A via the transmission path 31A. The hub 22A is connected to the server 23A via the transmission path 32A. The personal computers 22B, 22C, and 22D are connected to the hub 22A via the transmission path 32B. The hub 24A is connected to the router 21A via the transmission path 34A. The personal computers 24C, 24D, and 24E, the multifunction peripheral 24B, and the access point 24F are connected to the hub 24A via the transmission path 34B. Tablets 29A, 29B and smartphone 29C are connected to access point 24F wirelessly. Business phones 28A, 28B are connected to router 21A via transmission path 38A. Camera system 26A is connected to router 21A via transmission path 36A. In user system 4 of FIG. 2 , each network device 20 is capable of communicating with any other network device 20 in the user system 4. Furthermore, at least some of the network devices 20 are capable of communicating with external systems (e.g., management system 60, agent system 80, etc.) via router 21A and Internet communication network 90.

[0048] Figure 3 shows an example of the user system 4 that has a different configuration from that shown in Figure 2. The user system 4 configured to be able to communicate with the management system 60 in Figure 1 may be configured as shown in Figure 3, and the user system 4 configured to be able to communicate with the agent system 80 may be configured as shown in Figure 3.

[0049] The user system 4 shown in Fig. 3 is configured as a network system in which a plurality of network devices 20 are connected to each other so that they can communicate with each other. The user system 4 includes a transmission path 12, which is a path for transmitting information by wired communication or wireless communication, and a network device 20, which is a device connected to the transmission path 12 so that it can communicate with the transmission path 12. In Fig. 3, the transmission path 12 only needs to be configured as a path through which information can be transmitted, and may be configured as a communication cable such as a LAN cable, or may be configured as an area in which wireless communication is performed.

[0050] In the example of Figure 3, the network devices 20 include a router 41, hubs 42 and 43, desktop personal computers (hereinafter also referred to as desktop PCs) 44, 45 and 47, a multifunction peripheral 46, and notebook personal computers (hereinafter also referred to as notebook computers) 48 and 49.

[0051] In the example of FIG. 3 , transmission paths 51, 52, 53, 55, 55, 56, 57, 58, etc. are provided as the transmission path 12. The transmission paths 51, 52, 53, 55, 55, 56, 57, 58 are configured, for example, with cables and are configured as communication lines forming wired communication paths. The router 41 is communicatively connected to the Internet communication network 90. ​​The desktop computers 44, 45 and the multifunction peripheral 46 are connected to the hub 42 via the transmission paths 53, 54, 55, respectively. The desktop computer 47 and the notebook computers 48, 49 are connected to the hub 43 via the transmission paths 56, 57, 58, respectively. For example, the desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and the notebook computers 48, 49 are capable of communicating with external systems (e.g., the management system 60 and the agent system 80) via the router 41 and the Internet communication network 90. For example, desktop computers 44, 45 and multifunction peripheral 46 are capable of communicating with each other via transmission path 12 and hub 42. Desktop computer 47 and notebook computers 48, 49 are also capable of communicating with each other via transmission path 12 and hub 43. Desktop computers 44, 45, 47, multifunction peripheral 46, and notebook computers 48, 49 may also be capable of communicating with each other via transmission path 12 and hubs 42, 43. Alternatively, desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and notebook computers 48, 49 may each be capable of communicating with management system 60 or agent system 80 via transmission path 12, hubs 42, 43, router 41, and Internet communication network 90.

[0052] 4 conceptually illustrates a configuration in which a management system 60 and a user system 4 are capable of communicating with each other. The management system 60 may be implemented with multiple computers or a single computer. The management system 60 may also include network devices other than computers. In the example of FIG. 4, the management system 60 includes a computer 61 that has a storage device 62, an operation device 63, a display device 64, a communication device 65, a control device 66, and the like, and that can perform various information processing and various control operations.

[0053] The example of Fig. 4 shows a state in which a desktop computer 44 (Fig. 3) provided in the user system 4 and a computer 61 in the management system 60 communicate via the Internet. The example of Fig. 4 shows a desktop computer 44 having a control device 44A, a storage device 44B, an operation device 44C, a display device 44D, a communication device 44E, etc. However, the desktop computer 44 may be replaced with any of desktop computers 45, 47, a multifunction peripheral 46, or notebook computers 48, 49, or may be replaced with other information terminals such as a tablet terminal or a smartphone.

[0054] FIG. 5 conceptually illustrates a configuration in which an agent system 80 and a user system 4 can communicate with each other. Specifically, the diagram illustrates communication between a desktop PC 44 ( FIG. 3 ) provided in the user system 4 and a computer 81 of the agent system 80 via the Internet. The agent system 80 may be implemented as a system including multiple computers or a single computer. The agent system 80 may also include network devices other than computers. In the example of FIG. 5 , the agent system 80 includes a computer 81 having a storage device 82, an operation device 83, a display device 84, a communication device 85, a control device 86, and the like, and capable of performing various information processing and various control operations. The example of FIG. 5 illustrates a desktop PC 44 having a control device 44A, a storage device 44B, an operation device 44C, a display device 44D, a communication device 44E, and the like. However, the desktop PC 44 may be replaced with any of desktop PCs 45 and 47, a multifunction peripheral 46, a notebook computer 48 and 49, or other information terminals such as a tablet terminal or a smartphone.

[0055] In the display system 1 of this embodiment, each user system 4 has one of the management system 60 and multiple agent systems 80 as its corresponding system. A corresponding system is, for example, composed of one or more devices located at a base with a different address from the user system 4 associated with it, and is capable of communicating with the associated user system 4. A user system 4 and the corresponding system associated with this user system 4 are capable of displaying a network diagram (described below) of the user system 4 in a common diagram. For example, a certain user system 4 is associated with the management system 60 as its corresponding system, and the user system 4 and the management system 60 are capable of displaying a network diagram of the user system 4 in a common diagram. Alternatively, another user system 4 is associated with a certain agent system 80 as its corresponding system, and the other user system 4 and the other agent system 80 are capable of displaying a network diagram of the other user system 4 in a common diagram.

[0056] 2. Visualization of Network Diagrams <Installation of Specific Software> As described above, the user system 4 is configured as a system including an information transmission path (transmission path 12), which is a path for transmitting information via wired or wireless communication, and network devices 20 communicatively connected to the information transmission path (transmission path 12). The display system 1 shown in FIG. 1 classifies, in each user system 4, whether the network devices 20 and the transmission path 12 belong to their respective responsibility areas using a predetermined method, and displays the network diagram so as to clearly indicate the responsibility areas in a manner that makes it possible to identify the responsibility demarcation points that define the boundaries of the responsibility areas. In this way, the display system 1 realizes a method for displaying a network diagram.

[0057] A typical example described below is an example of displaying the network diagram of the user system 4 in Fig. 3 using the above-mentioned display method. When displaying the network diagram of the user system 4 in Fig. 3, a first step is performed in which specific software is installed in one of the network devices 20 included in the user system 4. This first step causes the specific software to be stored in one of the network devices 20 of the user system 4.

[0058] <Outline of Network Diagram Display> In the example of Fig. 3, the above-mentioned "specific software" is installed on the desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and the notebook computer 48 (see also Fig. 6). The "specific software" stored in the desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and the notebook computer 48 in Fig. 3, or a predetermined program (e.g., the above-mentioned "specific software" or a program similar to the "specific software" or other dedicated program) stored in an external system (management system 60 or agent system 80) communicatively connected to the user system 4, can control the hardware to inspect and identify which network devices 20 in the user system 4 in Fig. 3 have the "specific software" installed on them.

[0059] For example, a predetermined program (e.g., the above-mentioned "specific software" or a program similar to the "specific software" or other dedicated program) stored in an external system (management system 60 or agent system 80) communicatively connected to user system 4 in Figure 3 cooperates with the control device of the external system to operate to communicate between the external system and desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and notebook computer 48 on which the "specific software" is installed, and to cause the external system to detect the presence of the "specific software" on desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and notebook computer 48. Therefore, if the external system is a corresponding system associated with user system 4 in Figure 3, it is possible to identify network devices 20 (desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and notebook computer 48) on which the "specific software" is installed in user system 4 in Figure 3.

[0060] 3, the "specific software" stored in any one of the desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and notebook computer 48 cooperates with the control device of that computer to operate to allow that computer to communicate with other computers and to identify the network device 20 (desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and notebook computer 48) in which the "specific software" is installed. For example, the "specific software" stored in desktop computer 44 controls the control device 44A and communication device 44E of desktop computer 44, causing these control device 44A and communication device 44E to communicate with each of desktop computers 45, 47 and notebook computer 48, and causing control device 44A to confirm that the "specific software" exists in each of desktop computers 45, 47 and notebook computer 48.

[0061] In this way, when the user system 4 and the corresponding system (management system 60 or agent system 80) associated with this user system 4 are configured to be able to communicate, it is possible to identify which network device 20 in the user system 4 has the ``specific software'' installed in it, both in the corresponding system and in the network device 20 (desktop PCs 44, 45, 47 and notebook PC 48) in which the ``specific software'' is installed in the user system 4.

[0062] The above-mentioned "specific software" is software having a program that, when the network device 20 in which the "specific software" is installed receives specified information from an external network device 20 (a device different from the network device 20 in which the "specific software" is installed), cooperates with the control device of the network device 20 in which the "specific software" is installed to cause the network device 20 in which the "specific software" is installed to perform an operation of transmitting predetermined identification information to the sender of the specified information. The identification information is identification information that identifies the specific software.

[0063] Furthermore, the above-mentioned "specific software" is software having a program that, when predetermined conditions are met, cooperates with the control device of the network device 20 in which the "specific software" is installed, and operates the network device 20 in which the "specific software" is installed so as to transmit the above-mentioned specified information to other network devices 20.

[0064] 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the user system 4 of FIG. 3 in more detail. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, if there are multiple network devices 20 equipped with the "specific software" and they are capable of communicating with each other, when a predetermined condition is met in one of the network devices 20, the "specific software" of the one network device 20 causes the one network device 20 to transmit specific information to the other network devices 20. In this case, when the network device 20 in which the "specific software" of the other network device 20 has been installed (the other network device 20) receives the specific information from the one network device 20, the "specific software" of the other network device 20 cooperates with the control device of the network device 20 in which the "specific software" has been installed to cause the network device 20 in which the "specific software" has been installed (the other network device 20) to transmit the identification information to the one network device 20 that sent the specific information. When the network device 20 in which it is installed (the network device 20) receives the identification information corresponding to the specified information from another network device 20, the "specific software" determines that the "specific software" exists in the other network device 20 that sent the identification information, and when the network device 20 does not receive the identification information corresponding to the specified information, the "specific software" determines that the "specific software" does not exist in the network device 20 that sent the specified information.

[0065] In the example of Figure 6, "specific software" is installed on desktop computer 44. The "specific software" of desktop computer 44 is stored in a storage device of desktop computer 44 (a storage device similar to storage device 44B in Figure 4 or 5), and causes a control device (a control device similar to control device 44A in Figure 4 or 5) and a communication device (a communication device similar to communication device 44E in Figure 4 or 5) of desktop computer 44 to transmit the above-mentioned specified information to desktop computer 45 or other network devices 20. In this case, for example, when desktop computer 45 receives the above-mentioned specified information from desktop computer 44, the "specific software" of desktop computer 45 causes the control device and communication device of desktop computer 45 to transmit the above-mentioned identification information to desktop computer 44, the sender of the above-mentioned specified information. When the "specific software" of desktop PC 44 receives the identification information corresponding to the predetermined information (predetermined information transmitted from desktop PC 44) from desktop PC 45 that is capable of communicating with desktop PC 44, it operates the control device of desktop PC 44 to determine that the "specific software" exists in desktop PC 45 that transmitted the identification information, and when it does not receive identification information corresponding to the predetermined information, it operates the control device of desktop PC 44 to determine that the "specific software" does not exist in desktop PC 45. Furthermore, the "specific software" of desktop PC 44 operates the control device and communication device of desktop PC 44 to transmit the predetermined information to multifunction peripheral 46, desktop PC 47, and notebook computers 48 and 49, respectively, and operates the control device of desktop PC 44 to determine whether the "specific software" exists in each of multifunction peripheral 46, desktop PC 47, and notebook computers 48 and 49 based on whether it has received identification information from each network device 20.In this way, the "specific software" of desktop PC 44 operates in cooperation with the control device and communication device of desktop PC 44, thereby making it possible to determine whether the "specific software" exists in network devices 20 other than the network device 20 on which desktop PC 44 is installed in the user system 4 of Figure 6. The same is true for each of desktop PCs 45, 47 and notebook PC 48 on which the "specific software" is installed; for example, the "specific software", control device, and communication device of desktop PC 45 work in cooperation to make it possible to determine whether the "specific software" exists in network devices 20 other than the network device 20 on which desktop PC 45 is installed in the user system 4 of Figure 6. Similarly, each of desktop PC 47 and notebook PC 48 can determine whether the "specific software" exists in network devices 20 other than itself.

[0066] The above example is one example of a method by which a network device 20 having "specific software" installed therein determines whether the "specific software" is installed in any other network device 20 in the user system 4, including itself, except for itself, but is not limited to this example. Any other method may be used as long as it allows the network device 20 having "specific software" installed therein to determine whether the "specific software" is installed in any other network device 20 in the user system 4, including itself, except for itself.

[0067] In the user system 4 of Figure 6, the desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and the notebook computer 48 on which "specific software" is installed can perform the second step of displaying a network diagram of the user system 4 to which they belong after the first step described above. For example, in the desktop computer 44 of Figure 6, the second step can be performed after the first step described above to display a network diagram of the user system 4 (Figure 6) to which the desktop computer 44 belongs. In addition, a corresponding system (management system 60 or agent system 80) communicatively associated with the user system 4 of Figure 6 can also perform the second step of displaying a network diagram after the first step described above.

[0068] 7, 12, and 13 show examples of the network diagram (the network diagram of the user system 4 in FIG. 6) generated and displayed in the second step. As shown in FIGS. 7, 12, and 13, in the second step, the network diagram is displayed in such a way that each network device 20 included in the user system 4 is displayed as an icon image corresponding to the type of each network device 20, and the information transmission path (communication path) of each network device 20 is displayed as a simple graphic (graphic such as a line). More specifically, in the second step, a responsibility demarcation point is specified so that at least the network devices 20 included in the user system 4, on which the "specific software" is installed, are designated as devices within the scope of responsibility, and a diagram is drawn using line images (images 12X, 12Y, and 12Z in FIG. 7) indicating the information transmission path (transmission path 12) and icon images (images 41Z, 42Z, 43Z, 44Z, 45Z, 46Z, 47Z, 48Z, and 49Y in FIG. 7) indicating the network devices 20, and the display control unit displays the network diagram of the user system 4 on the display unit in a manner that distinguishes between the display state of the icon images of the network devices 20 within the scope of responsibility and the display state of the icon images of the network devices 20 outside the scope of responsibility. Specifically, in the second step, the display control unit displays the network diagram on the display unit so that the icon images of the network devices 20 within the scope of responsibility and the icon images of the network devices 20 outside the scope of responsibility are displayed in different colors. 7, 12, and 13, the images of the network devices 20 and the transmission paths 12 displayed with thick lines are displayed in a first color (e.g., blue), and the images of the network devices 20 and the transmission paths 12 displayed with thin lines are displayed in a second color (e.g., gray). When displaying a network diagram in this manner, the image of the network diagram may be generated and displayed by the network device 20 in which the "specific software" is installed in the user system 4. In this case, the "specific software" cooperates with a control device of the network device 20 in which the "specific software" is installed, and causes the control device to generate an image of the network diagram and display it on a display device.In addition, the generation of an image of the network diagram of the user system 4 may be performed in a corresponding system (management system 60 or agent system 80) associated with the user system 4, in which case the above-mentioned specified program provided in the corresponding system cooperates with a control device of the corresponding system to operate the control device of the corresponding system to generate an image of the network diagram and display it on a display device (e.g., a display device of the corresponding system).

[0069] <Identifying Network Devices and Detailed Information> Specifically, the second step is performed as follows. For example, in a user system 4 such as that shown in Figure 6, the "specific software" installed on the desktop computer 44 can operate the control device 44A of the desktop computer 44 to generate a network diagram such as those shown in Figures 7, 11, and 12, and can operate the control device 44A to display this network diagram on the display device 44D. In such a case, the "control device 44A" or the "control device 44A and the specific software" corresponds to an example of the display control unit, and the display device 44D corresponds to an example of the display unit.

[0070] More specifically, in the user system 4 of FIG. 6 , the desktop PCs 44, 45, 47 and the notebook PCs 48, 49 have a known operating system (e.g., Windows®, Linux®, Mac OS®, etc.) stored and installed. Each of the desktop PCs 44, 45, 47 and the notebook PCs 48, 49 on which the operating system is installed can use known functions of the installed operating system to identify the connection status of each network device 20 communicatively connected to the user system 4, as well as detailed information about each network device (e.g., device name, display name, operating system, manufacturer name, IP address, MAC address, etc.). Identifying the connection status in this case may be identifying a list of some or all of the network devices 20 communicatively connected to the user system 4 (identifying the connection status without identifying the detailed connection configuration), or it may be identifying the connection status with the detailed connection configuration identified.

[0071] For example, desktop PC 44 on which the above operating system is installed can, by using the publicly known functions of the operating system installed thereon, identify detailed information about each of the router 41, hubs 42 and 43, desktop PCs 44, 45 and 47, notebook PCs 48 and 49, and multifunction printer 46 that are communicatively connected in the user system 4, and can further identify the connection status of each network device 20 in the user system 4. Similarly, desktop PC 45 on which the above operating system is installed can, by using the publicly known functions of the operating system installed thereon, identify detailed information about each of the router 41, hubs 42 and 43, desktop PCs 44, 45 and 47, notebook PCs 48 and 49, and multifunction printer 46 that are communicatively connected in the user system 4, and can further identify the connection status of each network device 20 in the user system 4.

[0072] 6, the "specific software" stored and installed in the desktop PCs 44, 45, 47 and the notebook PC 48 cooperates with the control device of the network device 20 in which it is installed, and obtains connection status information and detailed information of each network device 20 from the operating system of the network device 20 in which it is installed or from each network device 20 in the user system 4, and furthermore, by the method described above, can identify which network device 20 in the user system 4 contains the "specific software." For example, the "specific software" stored and installed in the desktop PC 44 cooperates with the control device 44A of the desktop PC 44 in which it is installed, and obtains connection status information and detailed information of each network device 20 from the operating system of the desktop PC 44 in which it is installed or from each network device 20 in the user system 4, and furthermore, by the method described above, can identify which network device 20 in the user system 4 contains the "specific software." Similarly, the "specific software" stored and installed in the desktop computer 45 works in cooperation with the control device of the desktop computer 45 in which it is installed, and obtains information on the connection status of each network device 20 and detailed information about each network device 20 from the operating system of the desktop computer 45 in which it is installed or from each network device 20 in the user system 4, and further identifies which network device 20 in the user system 4 the "specific software" resides in using the method described above.

[0073] For example, the "specific software" stored and installed in the desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and the notebook computer 48 cooperates with the control device of the network device 20 in which it is installed to identify the network devices 20 that are communicatively connected to each other in the user system 4, and to identify detailed information A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, and J of each of the network devices 20 that make up the user system 4, and further to identify which network devices 20 the "specific software" is located in. In this case, the "specific software" may specifically identify the connection configuration of each network device 20 in the user system 4 as shown in FIG. 6, or may identify a list of the network devices 20 included in the user system 4 as shown in FIG. 8 without identifying the specific connection configuration of the network devices 20. In either case, the "specific software" stored and installed in the desktop computers 44, 45, 47 and the notebook computer 48 identifies a list of some or all of the network devices 20 included in the user system 4 and detailed information about each network device 20, and thus identifies the network devices 20 in which the "specific software" is located. The detailed information A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, and J for each network device 20 includes the device name, display name, operating system, manufacturer name, IP address, MAC address, etc., and each detailed information may include all of these types of information, or may only include some of the information.

[0074] Let us assume that the "specific software" stored and installed on the desktop PC 44 cooperates with the control device 44A of the desktop PC 44 on which it is installed to identify a list of network devices 20 included in the user system 4 and detailed information A, B, C, D, E, F, and J for each network device 20, as shown in FIG. 8 . In this case, the user system 4 and / or the corresponding system (agent system 80 or management system 60) corresponding to the user system 4 can store and retain information on each identified network device 20 in a data structure such as that shown in FIG. 10 . The data structure shown in FIG. 10 includes information on each network device 20, such as "type information," "presence or absence of specific software," "information on whether the network device is registered within the scope of responsibility," and "detailed information." When storing data with the data structure shown in FIG. 10 , the data may be stored in a storage device of the network device 20 that includes the "specific software" in the user system 4, or in a storage device of the corresponding system (agent system 80 or management system 60) corresponding to the user system 4. In any case, it is sufficient that the data shown in FIG. 10 can be used in the user system 4 and a corresponding system corresponding to this user system 4.

[0075] <Registration of devices within the scope of responsibility> In this specification, a "device within the scope of responsibility" is a device that is registered as a device within the scope of responsibility in the display system 1. A "device outside the scope of responsibility" is a device that is not registered as a device within the scope of responsibility in the display system 1. Specifically, a network device 20 in which "specific software" exists is an example of a device that is registered as a "device within the scope of responsibility". Furthermore, in this embodiment, a network device 20 that has been operated to designate it as a "device within the scope of responsibility" is also registered as a "device within the scope of responsibility".

[0076] The representative example described below is an example in which the corresponding system associated with the user system 4 in Figures 3 and 6 is an agent system 80 as shown in Figure 5. As shown in Figure 9, multiple clients (user systems 4) are associated with the agent system 80, and various information related to each client is registered. In the following, a representative example is taken of the user system 4 in Figures 3 and 6 as the system corresponding to client 1 in Figure 9. In the agent system 80, registration information (terminal registration information, help information, network diagram information, etc.) for each associated user system 4 is stored in the storage device 82. In this representative example, the user system 4 in Figures 3 and 6 is treated as client 1 in the agent system 80, and registration information (terminal registration information, help information, network diagram information, etc.) for client 1 is stored in the storage device 82. Note that details of the registration information will be described later.

[0077] In a representative example, a user system 4 as shown in FIG. 6 is capable of communicating with an agent system 80 as shown in FIG. 5, and this agent system 80 is the corresponding system of the user system 4 in FIG. 6. The "corresponding system" of the user system 4 is a system that is capable of communicating with the user system 4, has registration information for the user system 4, and is capable of drawing a network diagram that is the same as the network diagram that the user system 4 is capable of drawing. In the example of FIG. 6, first, among the network devices 20 included in the user system 4, those that contain "specific software" are registered as "devices within the scope of responsibility," and data (terminal registration information) such as that shown in FIG. 10 is generated and stored. The data for constituting the terminal registration information such as that shown in FIG. 10 is generated by the "specific software" stored and installed in the desktop computers 44, 45, 47, and the notebook computer 48, in cooperation with the control devices of the network devices 20 in which it is installed, when all of the network devices 20 constituting the user system 4 are operating, and the "specific software" operates to transmit the generated data to the agent system 80. When the agent system 80 associated with the user system 4 acquires data for configuring the terminal registration information shown in Fig. 10 from any of the network devices 20 in which the "specific software" is installed, the agent system 80 stores this data in the storage device 82 and configures the terminal registration information shown in Fig. 10. Specifically, the predetermined program provided in the agent system 80 cooperates with the control device 86 of the agent system 80 to acquire data for configuring the terminal registration information shown in Fig. 10 from the user system 4, stores this data in the storage device 82, and configures the terminal registration information shown in Fig. 10. The terminal registration information in Fig. 10 is made part of the registration information of the client 1 shown in Fig. 9.

[0078] 10 is stored in the storage device 82 of the agent system 80, the user system 4 can also use part or all of this terminal registration information. For example, in a network device 20 in which "specific software" is installed, when the "specific software" cooperates with a control device to send a request to the agent system 80 to reference terminal registration information, a predetermined program in the agent system 80 may cooperate with the control device 86 to operate to send part or all of the terminal registration information (FIG. 10) stored in the storage device 82 to the requesting network device 20. In this way, part or all of the terminal registration information such as that in FIG. 10 can be shared between the agent system 80 and the network device 20 in which the "specific software" is installed.

[0079] Furthermore, the agent system 80, which is the corresponding system of the user system 4, can update the terminal registration information so that the network devices 20 included in the user system 4 that do not have the "specific software" are registered as "devices within the scope of responsibility." For example, when the terminal registration information shown in FIG. 10 is registered in the storage device 82 of the agent system 80, an operation is performed on the operation device 83 of the agent system 80 to register the "Registration within the scope of responsibility" in the terminal registration information of the multifunction peripheral 46 in FIG. 10 as a "device within the scope of responsibility." In this case, the above-mentioned predetermined program of the agent system 80 (corresponding system) cooperates with the control device 86 to perform an update operation so that new terminal registration information updated to include the multifunction peripheral 46 (device 4) in FIG. 10 as a "device within the scope of responsibility" is stored in the storage device 82. Alternatively, when terminal registration information such as that shown in Fig. 10 is registered in the storage device 82 of the agent system 80, an operation is performed on the operating device 83 of the agent system 80, and an operation is performed to change the "Registration within range of responsibility" in the terminal registration information for router 41 in the terminal registration information of Fig. 10 to "Device within range of responsibility." In this case, the predetermined program of the agent system 80 (corresponding system) cooperates with the control device 86 to perform an update operation to store new terminal registration information in the storage device 82 that has been updated to set router 41 (device 4) in Fig. 10 as a "device within range of responsibility." Note that Fig. 11 shows an example of new terminal registration information updated by such an update operation.

[0080] <Display of Network Diagram> For example, assume that terminal registration information such as that shown in Fig. 10 has been registered in the agent system 80. In this case, the "specific software" stored in one of the network devices 20 of the user system 4 communicatively associated with the agent system 80 starts display control in cooperation with the control device of the network device 20 in response to, for example, a predetermined operation being performed on the operation device of the network device 20, and causes each of the network devices 20 identified by the data structure such as that shown in Fig. 10 to be drawn so as to be connected to each other via a graphic indicating a communication path, as shown in Fig. 12, and displayed on the display device.

[0081] For example, in response to a predetermined operation being performed on the operating device 44C of the desktop computer 44, the "specific software" of the desktop computer 44 cooperates with the control device 44A of the desktop computer 44 to start display control, and causes the control device 44A to operate so as to draw each of the network devices 20 identified by the data structure shown in Fig. 10 so that they are connected to each other via a graphic indicating a communication path, as shown in Fig. 12, and display this on a display device (e.g., display device 84 of the desktop computer 44). The example of Fig. 12 is an example in which each of the network devices 20 registered as shown in Fig. 10 is displayed in parallel using images associated with each device. 12, icon images (device images) corresponding to the types of network devices 20 are provided. For example, icon image (device image) 41Y representing router 41 displays a pre-prepared image for the router. Icon images (device images) 44Y, 45Y, and 47Y representing desktop PCs 44, 45, and 47 display pre-prepared images for the desktop PCs. Icon image (device image) 46Y representing multifunction peripheral 46 displays a pre-prepared image for the multifunction peripheral. Icon images (device images) 48Y and 49Y representing laptops 48 and 49 display pre-prepared images for the laptops. Furthermore, when the "specific software" of desktop PC 44 performs the above-mentioned display control in cooperation with control device 44A, instead of or after displaying as in FIG. 12, "devices within the scope of responsibility" and "devices outside the scope of responsibility" are displayed in a distinguishing manner, as in FIG. 13.

[0082] In the example of FIG. 13 , the responsibility demarcation point is clearly indicated by displaying the icon images (device images) of network devices 20 that are "devices within the scope of responsibility" in a predetermined specific color. Note that in FIG. 13 , the specific color (first color) is indicated by a thick line, and the second color (different from the specific color) is indicated by a thinner line. In the example of FIG. 13 , icon images (device images) 41Y, 46Y, and 49Y are displayed in the second color, and icon images (device images) 44Z, 45Z, 47Z, and 48Z are displayed in the first color. In FIG. 13 , the specific color (first color) displayed in the thick line portion is, for example, blue, and icon images (device images) 44Z, 45Z, 47Z, and 48Z displayed in the thick line (blue) are icon images of network devices within the scope of responsibility. In this case, the second color represented by the thin line portion is a color (e.g., gray) other than the specific color (blue), and the icon images (device images) 41Y, 46Y, and 49Y represented by the thin line are icon images of network devices outside the scope of responsibility. Note that the first color may be a specific color other than blue (e.g., green, light blue, etc.), and the second color may be a color other than gray (e.g., black, brown, etc.).

[0083] Furthermore, if the update operation as described above is performed and the terminal registration information as shown in Figure 10 has been updated to the terminal registration information as shown in Figure 11 at the time the network diagram is displayed, the "specific software" stored in the network device 20 will start the above-mentioned display control in cooperation with the control device of the network device 20 in response to a predetermined operation being performed on the operation device of the network device 20, and will draw each of the network devices 20 identified by the data structure as shown in Figure 11 so that they are connected to each other via graphics indicating communication paths, as shown in Figure 14, and display this on a display device (e.g., display device 44D of the desktop computer 44) in cooperation with the control device 44A of the desktop computer 44 in response to a predetermined operation (an operation to instruct the display of the network diagram) being performed on the operation device 44C of the desktop computer 44, and will operate the control device 44A to draw each of the network devices 20 identified by the data structure as shown in Figure 11 so that they are connected to each other via graphics indicating communication paths, as shown in Figure 14, and display this on a display device (e.g., display device 44D of the desktop computer 44). In this case, too, the responsibility demarcation point is clearly indicated by displaying the icon images (device images) of network devices 20 that are "devices within the scope of responsibility" in a predetermined specific color, as shown in Figure 14. In Figure 14, icon images (device images) 41Z, 44Z, 45Z, 46Z, 47Z, and 48Z are represented by thick lines, and these icon images represented by thick lines are displayed in a first color (specific color) as icon images of network devices within the scope of responsibility. On the other hand, icon image (device image) 49Y is represented by thin lines, and these icon images represented by thin lines are displayed in a second color (a color other than the specific color) as icon images of network devices outside the scope of responsibility.

[0084] In the above example, the network diagram is generated and displayed on the desktop computer 44 in response to a predetermined operation being performed on the desktop computer 44, but the same operation can also be performed on other network devices 20 in which the "specific software" is installed. In either case, the "specific software" stored in one of the network devices 20 in the user system 4 works with the control device of that network device 20 to generate the network diagram, and can display the network diagram such as that shown in Figure 13 or 14 on the display device of that network device 20.

[0085] When "specific software" installed in network device 20 cooperates with a control device of network device 20 to generate a network diagram such as those shown in Figures 13, 14, and 18 (described later) and to operate the control device to display this network diagram on the display device, "the control device" or "the control device and the specific program" corresponds to an example of a display control unit, and the display device corresponds to an example of the display unit. For example, when "specific software" installed in desktop personal computer 44 cooperates with control device 44A to generate a network diagram such as those shown in Figures 13, 14, and 18 (described later) and to operate the control device 44A to display this network diagram on display device 44D, "control device 44A" or "control device 44A and the specific program" corresponds to an example of a display control unit, and display device 44D corresponds to an example of the display unit.

[0086] Furthermore, the generation and display of such a network diagram can also be performed in a corresponding system (representatively, agent system 80) associated with the user system 4. For example, the predetermined program of the agent system 80 cooperates with the control device 86 to start generating and displaying the network diagram in response to a predetermined operation on the operation device 83. If the registration shown in FIG. 10 has been performed at the time of the predetermined operation, the predetermined program of the agent system 80 can display a network diagram including icon images of each of the network devices 20 identified by the data structure shown in FIG. 10 in a manner that distinguishes between "devices within the scope of responsibility" and "devices outside the scope of responsibility," as shown in FIG. 13. Alternatively, if the registration shown in FIG. 11 has been performed at the time of the predetermined operation on the operation device 83, the predetermined program of the agent system 80 can display a network diagram including icon images of each of the network devices 20 identified by the data structure shown in FIG. 11 in a manner that distinguishes between "devices within the scope of responsibility" and "devices outside the scope of responsibility," as shown in FIG. 14. In this way, the network diagram displayed on the user system 4 and the network diagram displayed on the corresponding system (in a typical example, the agent system 80) corresponding to the user system 4 have the same content, so that both the user system 4 and the agent system 80 can understand the same network diagram.

[0087] When the above-mentioned specified program ("specific software" or software similar to "specific software") installed in the agent system 80 cooperates with the control device 86 to generate a network diagram such as that shown in Figures 13, 14, and Figure 18 described below and to operate the control device 86 to display this network diagram on the display device 84, the "control device 86" or "control device 86 and the above-mentioned specified program" corresponds to an example of a display control unit, and the display device 84 corresponds to an example of the above-mentioned display unit.

[0088] In a network device 20 in which "specific software" in the user system 4 is installed, or in an agent system 80 corresponding to the user system 4, when a network diagram of the user system 4 is displayed on these devices as described above, and a predetermined registration operation to register the network diagram is performed on an operating device included in the device, data for drawing the network diagram displayed at the time of the registration operation can be stored in a storage device (e.g., the storage device of the agent system 80) as part of the registration information of the user system 4 (specifically, the network diagram information of FIG. 9). Once the registration information including the data for displaying the network diagram of the user system 4 is registered in this manner in the storage device, when a network diagram is subsequently displayed on the user system 4 or the agent system 80, the "data for drawing the network diagram of the user system 4" included in the registration information can be obtained from the storage device (e.g., the storage device of the agent system 80), and the network diagram of the user system 4 can be displayed according to this data. For example, if data for drawing a network diagram such as that shown in FIG. 14 is stored in the storage device (e.g., the storage device of agent system 80) as data for drawing the network diagram of user system 4, when an instruction operation is performed in user system 4 or agent system 80 to display the network diagram of user system 4, the specific software or the specified program controls the control device of the equipment provided therein to control the acquisition of data for drawing the network diagram such as that shown in FIG. 14 from the storage device (e.g., the storage device of agent system 80), and can display the network diagram such as that shown in FIG. 14 on the display device of user system 4 or agent system 80 based on the data acquired through this control (data for drawing the network diagram such as that shown in FIG. 14).Alternatively, if data for drawing a network diagram such as that shown in Figure 18 is stored in the storage device (e.g., the storage device of agent system 80) as data for drawing the network diagram of user system 4, when an instruction operation is performed in user system 4 or agent system 80 to display the network diagram of user system 4, the specific software or the specified program controls the control device of the equipment provided therein to control the acquisition of data for drawing a network diagram such as that shown in Figure 18 from the storage device (e.g., the storage device of agent system 80), and based on the data acquired through this control, the network diagram such as that shown in Figure 18 can be displayed on the display device of user system 4 or agent system 80.

[0089] In a typical example, the corresponding system associated with the user system 4 is the agent system 80. However, even when the corresponding system associated with the user system 4 is the management system 60, the management system 60 can be operated in the same manner as the agent system 80 to display a network diagram of the user system 4. In this case, a predetermined program (e.g., "specific software" or software similar to "specific software") installed in the management system 60 can work in cooperation with the control device 66 to generate a network diagram such as that shown in FIGS. 13, 14, and FIG. 18 (described later) and display this network diagram on the display device 64. In this case, the "control device 66" or "the control device 66 and the predetermined program" corresponds to an example of the display control unit, and the display device 64 corresponds to an example of the display unit.

[0090] <Display Arrangement> Furthermore, in the display system 1, when a change operation to change the network diagram is performed externally, the display can be changed to a configuration corresponding to the change operation, instead of the display shown in Figure 13 or 14. Such a change operation can also be performed in the network device 20 in which "specific software" is installed in the user system 4, and can also be performed in the corresponding system of the user system 4 (in a representative example, the agent system 80). In the following description, in the "user system 4 and the corresponding system (agent system 80) associated with this user system 4" described as a representative example, the network device 20 in which "specific software" is installed and the agent system 80 in which the above-mentioned predetermined program is stored are also referred to as "displayable systems."

[0091] For example, if a specific software or program of the displayable system and a control device of the displayable system cause a network diagram such as that shown in Fig. 14 to be displayed on the display device of the displayable system in response to a specific operation being performed on the display device of the displayable system, then when a change operation is performed on the operation device of the displayable system, the specific software or program of the displayable system and the control device of the displayable system cooperate to change the content of the network diagram such as that shown in Fig. 14 to reflect the change operation, display it on the display device, and update the "data for drawing the network diagram" stored in the registration information of Fig. 9 to the new, changed "data for drawing the network diagram." The change operation includes, for example, an operation of switching the specific software or the specified program to a specific mode (e.g., administrator mode), an operation of issuing an instruction to change the content of the network diagram in the specific mode, and an operation of registering the network diagram with the changed content as a new network diagram.

[0092] The network diagram of FIG. 14 includes a first image 12A conceptually illustrating a communication path in the user system 4, and multiple second images 12B, 12C, 12D, 12E, 12F, 12G, and 12H conceptually illustrating paths branching from the communication path illustrated by the first image 12A. The first image 12A conceptually illustrates a communication area including wired (cable or other communication line) communication paths, wireless communication paths, and devices capable of wired or wireless communication. In the example of FIG. 14, the second images 12B, 12C, 12D, 12E, 12F, 12G, and 12H illustrate communication paths from each network device 20. The paths illustrated by these images may be wired communication paths or wireless communication paths, or may be a mixture of wired and wireless communication paths. The first image 12A conceptually illustrates the entire network of destinations connected to each network device 20.

[0093] 15 to 18 show examples of display results when the above-mentioned change operation is performed when a network diagram as shown in FIG. 14 is displayed in one of the displayable systems. For example, when the display state shown in FIG. 14 is displayed, if a change operation is performed by operating the operation device of the displayable system to add an icon image 42Y of the hub 42 to the position of the second image 12C, specific software or a predetermined program of the displayable system updates the terminal registration information of the user system 4 shown in FIG. 11 to add new information about the hub 42 (such as type, presence or absence of specific software, registration within the scope of responsibility, detailed information, etc.), and further performs an update operation in cooperation with the control device of the displayable system to generate a new network diagram in which the icon image 42Y of the hub 42 is added to the position of the second image 12C of the network diagram of FIG. 14. The updated network diagram is then displayed on the display device of the available system as shown in FIG. 15. Because the hub 42 does not have the specific software, at the time of FIG. 15, the hub 42 is registered as a "device outside the scope of responsibility," and the icon image 42Y is displayed in a second color.

[0094] 15, if the operation device of the displayable system is further operated to give an instruction to register hub 42 indicated by icon image 42Y as a "device within the scope of responsibility," then "Registration within scope of responsibility" is set to "Yes" in the information about hub 42 included in the terminal registration information, thereby setting hub 42 as a "device within the scope of responsibility." When such a setting is made, specific software or a predetermined program of the displayable system performs an update operation in cooperation with the control device of the displayable system to generate a new network diagram in which the icon image of hub 42 is displayed in icon image 42Z of a first color (specific color), and the updated network diagram is displayed on the display device of the displayable system as shown in FIG.

[0095] Furthermore, when the operation device of the displayable system is further operated while the network diagram is displayed as shown in Figure 16, and a change operation is performed to move and display icon images 45Z and 46Z after icon image 44Z, the specific software or predetermined program of the displayable system performs an update operation in cooperation with the control device of the displayable system to generate a new network diagram in accordance with the change operation, and displays the updated network diagram on the display device of the available system as shown in Figure 17. Furthermore, when the operation device of the displayable system is further operated while the network diagram as shown in Figure 17 is displayed, and a change operation is performed to add an icon image of hub 43 to the position of second image 12H and to set hub 43 as a "device within responsibility," and further a change operation is performed to position icon images 48Z and 49Z after icon image 47Z, the specific software or predetermined program of the displayable system performs an update operation in cooperation with the control device of the displayable system to generate a new network diagram in accordance with the change operation, and displays the updated network diagram on the display device of the available system as shown in Figure 18. When a network diagram such as that shown in Fig. 14 is changed to one such as that shown in Fig. 18 by a change operation, and further, an operation is performed using the operating device of the displayable system to register the changed network diagram as a "new network diagram of user system 4," specific software or a predetermined program of the displayable system updates and registers the network diagram information of user system 4 (client 1) included in the registration information such as that shown in Fig. 9 (specifically, "data for drawing the network diagram") to data for drawing the changed network diagram (data for drawing a network diagram such as that shown in Fig. 18). When the registration information (Fig. 9) of user system 4 (client 1) is updated so that a network diagram such as that shown in Fig. 18 can be displayed, the terminal registration information included in this registration information is updated from the content shown in Fig. 11 to the content shown in Fig. 19.

[0096] <Information Asset Management in Corresponding System> In this embodiment, information about each user system 4 is managed by a corresponding system (agent system 80 or management system 60) associated with that user system 4, and each of the agent system 80 and management system 60 registers information about the user system 4 it manages. For example, a management system 60 is associated with any user system 4 as a corresponding system, and various pieces of information about this user system 4 are registered and managed in the management system 60. When managed in this manner, data for drawing a network diagram of the user system 4 is also stored in the storage device 62 of the management system 60. Therefore, by referencing this data, the network diagram of this user system 4 can be displayed in that user system 4 and can also be displayed in the management system 60 associated with that user system 4. Alternatively, if various registration information for any user system 4 is registered and managed in an agent system 80, which is a corresponding system associated with the user system 4, data for drawing a network diagram for this user system 4 is also stored in the memory device 82 of the agent system 80, and by referring to this data, the network diagram for this user system 4 can be displayed in the user system 4 and can also be displayed in the agent system 80 associated with the user system 4.

[0097] In the display system 1, an operation unit (an operation unit such as a mouse, keyboard, or other input device) is provided in an external system (the management system 60 or the agent system 80) external to the user system 4. When an operation to associate an information asset related to a network device 20 within the responsibility range is performed using either operation unit, the network device 20 and the information asset can be associated and registered. Specifically, when registering information asset related to a network device 20 within the responsibility range of any user system 4, the registration can be performed in the corresponding system (the management system 60 or the agent system 80) that manages the information of this user system 4.

[0098] As a representative example, if the user system 4 in FIGS. 3 and 6 is the client 1 in FIG. 9, and the registration information of the user system 4 (client 1) is stored in an agent system 80, which is the corresponding system of the user system 4, as shown in FIG. 10, the agent system 80 corresponds to an example of an external system. The agent system 80 can then perform a process to register information assets related to network devices 20 within the scope of responsibility of the corresponding user system 4. In this example, when a corresponding operation (associating information assets related to a network device 20 with a network device 20 within the scope of responsibility) is performed by an operator or the like using an operation device 83 in the agent system 80 (external system) external to the user system, the predetermined program of the agent system 80 cooperates with the control device 86 to perform a fourth step to associate and register the network device 20 with the information asset. Meanwhile, in this fourth step, the operation to associate information assets is disabled for network devices 20 that are designated as "devices outside the scope of responsibility."

[0099] In this specification, an "information asset" is an asset that includes, for example, monetary information related to the network device 20 to be associated (e.g., monetary information for calculating the costs that will be incurred if the network device 20 continues to be used) and / or contract information related to the contract for the network device 20 (such as a lease contract or an installment sales contract), and is information that is treated as valuable property in the associated system. The contract information may be, for example, the retailer of the network device 20, the contract date if the network device 20 is subject to a lease contract or installment sales, the manufacturer of the network device 20, the product name of the network device 20, the model number of the network device 20, the distributor of the network device 20, the monthly fee if the network device 20 is subject to a lease contract or installment sales, the total number of payments if the network device 20 is subject to a lease contract or installment sales, the number of months elapsed since the start of the contract if the network device 20 is subject to a lease contract or installment sales, the remaining number of payments if the network device 20 is subject to a lease contract or installment sales, the remaining payment if the network device 20 is subject to a lease contract or installment sales, or other information. The amount information may be information such as the monthly fee and the remaining payment, or, if the network device 20 is a multifunction peripheral subject to a lease contract, the price per monochrome copy or color copy, the total price for monochrome copies and color copies, or the maintenance fee if a maintenance contract is concluded.

[0100] As a representative example, when managing information assets of the user system 4 in the agent system 80, the information assets can be registered by adding them to the detailed information of the terminal registration information as shown in Figures 10, 11, and 19. For example, when registering information assets of any of the network devices 20 in the user system 4 of Figure 6, by performing step 4 to add information correlating the network device 20 with the information assets of that network device 20 to the registration information of the user system 4 (client 1) (Figure 9), the agent system 80 can then manage the added information assets. Various specific methods for registering information assets can be adopted. For example, the predetermined program of the agent system 80 and the control device 86 may cooperate to operate so that, when a network diagram is displayed on the display device 84 of the agent system 80 by performing step 2 and an operation to select an icon image of one of the displayed network devices is performed by the operation device 83, a screen for inputting the information assets of the network device whose icon image is selected by the selection operation is displayed. When an operation to input information assets is performed using the operating device 83 operated by the worker on the screen displayed in this manner (a screen for inputting information assets), the above-mentioned specified program of the agent system 80 and the control device 86 work together to add the information input by the above-mentioned input operation to the registration information of the user system 4 (client 1) (specifically, detailed information about the network device included in the terminal registration information) as information assets of the network device identified by the icon image selected by the above-mentioned selection operation.

[0101] For example, when registering the information asset of the multifunction device 46 in the user system 4 of Fig. 6, the fourth step is performed to add information associating this multifunction device 46 with the information asset of the multifunction device 46 to the registration information (Fig. 9) of the user system 4 (client 1). Specifically, when a network diagram such as that of Fig. 18 is displayed on the display device 84 of the agent system 80 as a result of the second step, and an operation to select the icon image 46Z of the multifunction device 46 (for example, an operation to click on the icon image 46Z) is performed by the operation device 83 operated by the worker, the predetermined program of the agent system 80 and the control device 86 work together to display a screen for inputting the information asset of the multifunction device 46 indicated by the icon image 46Z selected by this selection operation. In this example, for example, when the above operation of selecting icon image 46Z is performed by operating device 83, an input screen such as that shown in Figure 20 can be displayed, and when information such as that shown in Figure 21 is input into such an input screen, the information input by the input operation of Figure 20 can be added as an information asset of the multifunction device 46 to the registration information of the user system 4 corresponding to the agent system 80 (specifically, detailed information C of the multifunction device 46 shown in Figure 19). In the example of FIG. 21 , the contract information (contract property information) for the multifunction device 46 includes information on the retailer of the multifunction device 46, information on the contract date in the lease contract or installment sales contract for the multifunction device 46, the manufacturer of the multifunction device 46, the product name of the multifunction device 46, the model number of the multifunction device 46, the distributor of the multifunction device 46, the monthly fee in the lease contract or installment sales contract for the multifunction device 46, the total number of payments in the lease contract or installment sales contract for the multifunction device 46, the number of months elapsed since the contract date in the lease contract or installment sales contract, the remaining number of payments in the lease contract or installment sales contract, the remaining payment amount in the lease contract or installment sales contract, and the like.Furthermore, the maintenance fee for the multifunction device 46 includes the monthly basic fee incurred every month under the maintenance contract for the multifunction device 46, the fee per monochrome copy (unit price) under the maintenance contract for the multifunction device 46, the number of monochrome copies made on the multifunction device 46 from a specified reference date (for example, the beginning of the month), the cost incurred for monochrome copies made on the multifunction device 46 from a specified reference date (for example, the beginning of the month) (monochrome amount), the fee per color copy (unit price) under the maintenance contract for the multifunction device 46, the number of color copies made on the multifunction device 46 from a specified reference date (for example, the beginning of the month), the cost incurred for color copies made on the multifunction device 46 from a specified reference date (for example, the beginning of the month) (color amount), and the cost incurred for copies made on the multifunction device 46 from a specified reference date (for example, the beginning of the month) (total counter amount). The input screen in Figure 20 has input areas for inputting this information (information assets), and the worker operates the operation device 83 to input letters and numbers into each input area as shown in Figure 21 and perform the specified registration operation, thereby registering each piece of information (information asset) in the detailed information C (Figure 19) of the multifunction device 46 as an information asset of the multifunction device 46.

[0102] In a representative example, when the second step is performed in the agent system 80 by the cooperation of the above-mentioned predetermined program and the control device 86 to display the network diagram of the user system 4 on the display device 84 (display unit) as shown in Figure 18, and when the network diagram of the user system 4 is displayed on the display device 64 (display unit) as shown in Figure 18, and an operation (a predetermined first operation) is performed by the operator using the operation device 83 to select an icon image of a network device to which an information asset is associated among the "network devices 20 within the responsibility range of the user system 4," a fifth step can be performed to display the information asset of the selected network device on the display device 84 (display unit). In this example, the above-mentioned selection operation (e.g., the operation to select the icon image 46Z of the multifunction device 46 in Figure 18) may be the "first operation," and in this case, the above-mentioned "screen for inputting information assets" may be the "screen displaying the information assets of the network devices." For example, if the information shown in Fig. 21 is entered and registered as the information asset of the multifunction peripheral 46, and an operator operates the operation device 83 to select the icon image 46Z of the multifunction peripheral 46 while the network diagram shown in Fig. 18 is displayed, a screen like that shown in Fig. 21 can be displayed. This screen is both a "screen for entering information assets" and a "screen displaying the information assets of the network devices" at the time of its display. If new information like that shown in Fig. 22 is entered into the screen like that shown in Fig. 21 by the operation device 83, the predetermined program of the agent system 80 and the control device 86 work together to update the registered information asset of the multifunction peripheral 46 so that the entered new information is registered as new information asset of the multifunction peripheral 46.Figure 22 shows an example in which, when the screen shown in Figure 21 is displayed, an operation is performed to change the per-page charge for monochrome copies (the unit price shown in the "Monochrome" item) from 1.5 (yen) shown in Figure 21 to 2.0 (yen). In this case, the cost of monochrome copies made from a predetermined reference date (e.g., the beginning of the month) in multifunction device 46 (the value in the "Monochrome amount" item) is automatically calculated to be 20,000 yen by the specified program and control device 86 based on the formula: per-page charge for monochrome copies (the value in the "Monochrome" item) x the number of monochrome copies made from the predetermined reference date (e.g., the beginning of the month) in multifunction device 46 (the value in the "Number of Monochrome Pages" item). In this way, the contents of the information asset are updated as new information is entered.

[0103] <Abnormality Display> Furthermore, in this display method, a third step can be performed in which the abnormality detection unit detects whether at least one of one or more predetermined abnormality types has occurred in any of the network devices 20 included in the scope of responsibility. In this embodiment, the "one or more predetermined abnormality types" are defined as "communication errors" and "abnormalities other than communication errors." Furthermore, the "abnormalities other than communication errors" are defined as a first abnormality in which the average CPU usage rate over 10 minutes is equal to or less than a first threshold, a second abnormality in which the memory usage rate is equal to or less than a second threshold, and a third abnormality in which the hard disk drive usage rate is equal to or less than a third threshold.

[0104] For example, the "specific software" installed in the network device 20 in the user system 4 causes the control device of the network device 20 in which it is installed to function as an abnormality detection unit, and checks whether the above-mentioned "communication error" or "abnormality other than a communication error" has occurred in the network device 20 in which it is installed or in an external network device 20. In this example, the "control device of the network device 20 in which the 'specific software' is installed," or "the control device and the 'specific software'" correspond to an example of an abnormality detection unit.

[0105] For example, the "specific software" installed in the desktop PC 44 in the user system 4 of Fig. 6 may operate the control device 44A of the desktop PC 44 to function as an abnormality detection unit, and cause the control device 44A to check whether a first abnormality has occurred in the desktop PC 44 (whether the average 10-minute CPU usage rate of the desktop PC 44 is equal to or less than a first threshold), whether a second abnormality has occurred (whether the memory usage rate of the desktop PC 44 is equal to or less than a second threshold), or whether a third abnormality has occurred (whether the hard disk drive usage rate of the desktop PC 44 is equal to or less than a third threshold). The "specific software" installed in the desktop PC 44 may also operate the control device 44A to check whether a communication error has occurred in the desktop PC 44 (e.g., an error that prevents the desktop PC 44 from communicating with the outside) or whether a communication error has occurred in a network device 20 other than the desktop PC 44 in the user system 4 of Fig. 6. This inspection in the third step (detection of anomalies by the anomaly detection unit) can be performed not only on the desktop PC 44, but also on other network devices 20 in the user system 4 in Figure 6 that have the "specific software" installed. In the third step, the anomaly detection unit does not detect "any anomalies" in network devices 20 that are not within the scope of responsibility. In the third step, the anomaly detection unit may not detect "any anomalies" in devices within the scope of responsibility that do not have the "specific software" installed, or the device in which the "specific software" is installed may detect "any anomalies."

[0106] Assuming that such a third step is performed, in the second step, the network diagram is displayed on the display unit in such a way that, among the network devices 20 within the range of responsibility, the display state of the icon images of the network devices 20 in which the abnormality detection unit detected an abnormality in the third step is different from the display state of the icon images of the network devices 20 in which the abnormality detection unit did not detect an abnormality in the third step. Specifically, as exemplified in Fig. 23 , the network diagram is displayed so that, among the network devices 20 within the range of responsibility, the network devices 20 in which no abnormality was detected by the abnormality detection unit are displayed in the specific color (e.g., blue, which is an example of the first color), the network devices 20 in which the abnormality detection unit detected the communication error are displayed in a third color (e.g., yellow) different from the specific color (first color) and the second color, and the network devices 20 in which the abnormality detection unit detected an abnormality other than a communication error are displayed in a fourth color (e.g., red) different from the first color, the second color, and the third color.

[0107] For example, when the above-mentioned inspection is performed in the user system 4 of Figure 6, and specific software or a predetermined program in the above-mentioned displayable system (agent system 80 or network device 20 with specific software installed) works in cooperation with the control device of the displayable system to display a network diagram such as that of Figure 18, if the abnormality detection unit does not detect the above-mentioned abnormality (the above-mentioned communication error, the above-mentioned first abnormality, the above-mentioned second abnormality, the above-mentioned third abnormality) in any of the network devices 20 within its range of responsibility, the network diagram is displayed on the display device of the displayable system so that the icon images of all of the network devices 20 within its range of responsibility are displayed in a specific color (first color), as shown in Figure 18. On the other hand, when the above-mentioned inspection is performed on the user system 4 of Figure 6, if the above-mentioned communication error is detected on desktop PC 44 and an abnormality other than the above-mentioned communication error (for example, any of the first abnormality, the second abnormality, or the third abnormality) is detected on desktop PC 47, and no other abnormalities (the above-mentioned communication error, the first abnormality, the second abnormality, or the third abnormality) are detected, then the specific software or predetermined program of the above-mentioned displayable system will cooperate with the control device of the displayable system to display a network diagram on the display device of the displayable system so that the icon image of desktop PC 44 is displayed as an icon image 44W of a third color corresponding to a communication error, and the icon image of desktop PC 47 is displayed as an icon image 47V of a fourth color corresponding to an abnormality other than a communication error, as shown in Figure 24.

[0108] <Help Operation> The user system 4 is provided with a display unit, an operation unit, and a transmission unit, and the user system 4 is capable of transmitting information to an external system provided outside the user system 4 via the transmission unit. Specifically, the display device of the network device 20 on which the above-mentioned specific software is installed corresponds to an example of the display unit, the operation device of the network device 20 corresponds to an example of the operation unit, and the communication device of the network device 20 corresponds to an example of the transmission unit. For example, the desktop PC 44 of the user system 4 is provided with a display unit 44D (display unit), an operation device 44C (operation unit), and a communication device 44E (transmission unit), and the user system 4 is capable of transmitting information via the communication device 44E (transmission unit) to an external system provided outside the user system 4 (e.g., the agent system 80, which is the corresponding system).

[0109] In such a configuration, in the second step described above, when a network diagram such as that shown in FIGS. 18 and 24 is displayed on the display device of the user system 4, an operation target image (e.g., a help button image) for performing an operation to request support may be displayed together with the network diagram. For example, in the representative example illustrated in FIGS. 18 and 24 , the specific software cooperates with the control device of the network device 20 in which the specific software is installed, and when a network diagram is displayed on the display device of the network device 20, the specific software controls display so that a help button image 70 is displayed as an operation target image on the screen (e.g., FIG. 18, 24, etc.) displaying the network diagram. In this case, when a predetermined operation (e.g., a selection operation such as clicking the help button image 70) is performed on the operation target image (help button image 70) by the operator using the operation device (operation unit) of the network device 20, a sixth step is performed in which the communication device (transmission unit) of the network device 20 transmits request information conveying a request for support to the agent system 80 (external system) associated with the user system 4 including the network device 20. In this example, when the external system (agent system 80) receives request information from the user system 4, reception information indicating the reception of the request information may be displayed on a display device of the external system.

[0110] For example, in the example of Fig. 24 , specific software of desktop PC 45, which is part of user system 4 of Fig. 6 , cooperates with the control device of desktop PC 45 to display a network diagram such as that of Fig. 24 on the display device of desktop PC 45, and performs display control to display a help button image 70 as an operation target image on the screen displaying the network diagram. In this example, when a network diagram such as that of Fig. 24 is displayed on the display device of desktop PC 45 and an operator operates the operation device (operation unit) of desktop PC 45 to perform a predetermined operation (e.g., a selection operation such as clicking on help button image 70) on the operation target image (help button image 70), the specific software and control device of desktop PC 45 perform a sixth step in which the communication device (transmitter) of desktop PC 45 transmits request information conveying a request for support to agent system 80 (external system) associated with user system 4 of Fig. 6 . In this example, when the external system (agent system 80) receives the request information from user system 4, reception information indicating the receipt of the request information may be displayed on the display device of the external system. By displaying in this manner, the administrator or the like who handles the agent system 80 can understand that request information has been received from the user system 4, i.e., that "a specified operation has been performed on the image to be operated in the user system 4 and support has been requested," and can begin providing support to the user system 4.

[0111] Furthermore, the display system 1 provides multiple types of users who handle specific software. When type identification information capable of identifying a user type is input to the operation unit of the user system 4, if the user identified by the type identification information belongs to a first type, the "function of the transmitter transmitting request information" in the user system 4 is disabled. If the user identified by the type identification information belongs to a second type, the "function of the transmitter transmitting request information" in the user system 4 is enabled. For example, user information can be managed so that various information is associated with each user and registered. Among the multiple pieces of user information registered in this manner, users who are registered with associated account information can be classified as users belonging to the second type, and users who are not registered with associated account information can be classified as users belonging to the first type. In this case, only users with registered account information can send request information, and users without registered account information cannot send request information.

[0112] 3. Example of Effects The above-mentioned display method is configured to draw a diagram using images showing information transmission paths and icon images showing network devices, and is capable of displaying a network diagram with a configuration that distinguishes between the display state of icon images of network devices within the scope of responsibility and the display state of icon images of network devices outside the scope of responsibility, thereby making it possible to visualize the configuration of the user's system in an easy-to-recognize manner and in a manner that clearly indicates the scope of responsibility.

[0113] When there are multiple responsibility areas in a network system, the above-described display method can make each responsibility area visually easy to understand by color coding.

[0114] The above-described display method makes it possible to visualize a network diagram in a way that clearly indicates the scope of responsibility, and when a predetermined abnormality occurs, it is possible to distinguish and indicate the network device in which the abnormality is occurring in the network diagram in which the scope of responsibility is clearly indicated.

[0115] The above-mentioned display method can display abnormalities only for network devices within the scope of responsibility, allowing for more thorough support within the scope of responsibility, and reducing the load on the entire system by preventing complex processing from being performed on network devices outside the scope of responsibility.

[0116] The above-mentioned display method can associate and manage information assets such as contract information with network devices within the scope of responsibility, and when a specified operation to select the network device is performed, the information assets (contract information, etc.) associated with the network device can be displayed and notified.

[0117] The above-mentioned display method makes it possible to visualize a network diagram in a way that clearly indicates the scope of responsibility, and a user who wants support after seeing a network diagram with a clearly defined scope of responsibility can send request information to an external system to convey a request for support by performing a specified operation on the image to be operated.

[0118] The above-described display method enables processing according to the type of user who inputs type-specific information into the operation unit, and can increase the benefits of users who belong to the second type by disabling the function to send request information when the user belongs to the first type and enabling the function to send request information when the user belongs to the second type.

[0119] <Other Embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and illustrated in the drawings. For example, any combination of features of the above-described or following embodiments is possible within a range that does not contradict. Furthermore, any feature of the above-described or following embodiments may be omitted unless explicitly stated as essential. Furthermore, the above-described embodiments may be modified as follows.

[0120] In the above-described embodiment, a network device on which "specific software" is installed is considered to be a network device within its scope of responsibility. However, as described above, even if "specific software" is not installed on a network device, if an operation is performed in a management system or agent system that can display a network diagram of a user system that has the network device to make the network device a device within its scope of responsibility, the network device may be registered as being within its scope of responsibility.

[0121] In the above-described embodiment, an example is employed in which network devices 20 within the scope of responsibility are displayed in a specific color (first color) and network devices 20 outside the scope of responsibility are displayed in a second color, thereby differentiating the display states. However, this example is not limiting. For example, the icon images of network devices 20 within the scope of responsibility and the icon images of network devices 20 outside the scope of responsibility may be displayed in the same color or different colors, and the line thickness of the icon image of the network device 20 within the scope of responsibility may be thicker than the line thickness of the icon image of the network device 20 outside the scope of responsibility. Alternatively, the icon images of network devices 20 within the scope of responsibility and the icon images of network devices 20 outside the scope of responsibility may be displayed in the same color or different colors, and the icon images of network devices 20 within the scope of responsibility may be displayed in a continuously lit state and the icon images of network devices 20 outside the scope of responsibility may be displayed in a flashing state.

[0122] In the display system 1 of the above embodiment, the types of users are divided into a first type and a second type, but they may be further divided into three or more types. Alternatively, the types of users may not be divided into separate types and may be one type.

[0123] In the above embodiment, an example of a network device 20 is shown, but the network device 20 may be any device capable of communication, and various devices such as a UTM (Unified Threat Management), an NVR (Network Video Recorder), and a DVR (Digital Video Recorder) are applicable.

[0124] In the above description, a representative example has been given in which information assets are managed by the agent system 80, but this example is not limiting. For example, when the information of the user system 4 in FIG. 6 is managed by the management system 60, when registering the information assets of the desktop PC 44 of the user system 4 in FIG. 6, a fourth step is performed in which the management system 60 registers the desktop PC 44 in association with the information assets of the desktop PC 44. Thereafter, the management system 60 can register and manage the information assets of the desktop PC 44. In this example, too, it is possible to prevent the operation of associating information assets with network devices outside the scope of responsibility. Furthermore, even in an example in which the information assets of the desktop computer 44 are registered in the management system 60 in this manner, if the second step is performed in the management system 60 to display the network diagram of the user system 4 in Figure 6 on the display device 64 (display unit), and when the network diagram of the user system 4 in Figure 6 (Figure 18) is displayed on the display device 64 (display unit) and an operation (predetermined first operation) is performed by the operation device 63 to select an icon image of the desktop computer 44 (an icon image of a network device to which information assets within the scope of responsibility are associated), then the fifth step can be performed to display the information assets of the selected network device (i.e., the desktop computer 44) (specifically, the information assets of the desktop computer 44 registered in the management system 60) on the display device 64 (display unit).

[0125] In the typical example described above, the first threshold, the second threshold, and the third threshold are each provided as fixed values ​​in the specific software or the specified program, but the first threshold, the second threshold, and the third threshold may be configurable.

[0126] In the representative example described above, information assets can be registered as shown in FIG. 21 , and these information assets change over time. The predetermined program of the response system (in the representative example, agent system 80) may cooperate with the control device of the response system to perform calculations or other operations to calculate the latest values ​​of each piece of information contained in the information assets periodically or whenever predetermined conditions are met. In this case, the predetermined program of the response system (in the representative example, agent system 80) may perform an alarm operation when a predetermined type of information contained in the information assets reaches a threshold value determined for that type. For example, the "Elapsed Months" displayed in FIG. 21 can be calculated by dividing D1 by 30.417, where D1 is the number of days from the contract date to "Today" (the day the display in FIG. 21 was made). Note that 30.417 in this case is the average number of days in a month in a year (≈365 / 12). The "Remaining Number of Payments" displayed in FIG. 21 can be calculated by subtracting the number of months elapsed from the total number of payments (total number of payments - elapsed months). Furthermore, the "remaining balance" displayed in FIG. 21 can be calculated by executing the above calculation, such as multiplying the lease fee (monthly fee) by the remaining number of times. The predetermined program of the agent system 80, in cooperation with the control device 86, executes the above calculations periodically or whenever a predetermined condition is met to calculate the latest elapsed months, remaining number of times, remaining amount, etc., and updates the information assets to the latest values ​​each time these values ​​are calculated. The predetermined program of the agent system 80, in cooperation with the control device 86, may perform a predetermined notification operation (e.g., displaying on the display device 84 that the remaining number of times has fallen below a predetermined threshold number, or notifying the user by voice or email) when the remaining number of times has fallen below a predetermined threshold amount. Furthermore, the predetermined program of the agent system 80 may perform a predetermined notification operation (e.g., displaying on the display device 84 that the remaining number of times has fallen below a predetermined threshold amount, or notifying the user by voice or email) when the remaining amount has fallen below a predetermined threshold amount.

[0127] It should be noted that the embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative in all respects and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed herein, but is intended to include all modifications within the scope indicated by the claims or the scope equivalent to the claims.

[0128] 1: Display system 4: User system 12: Transmission path 12A: First image 12B: Second image 12C: Second image 12D: Second image 12E: Second image 12F: Second image 12G: Second image 12H: Second image 12X: Image 12Y: Image 12Z: Image 20: Network device 21A: Router 22A: Hub 22B: Personal computer 22C: Personal computer 22D: Personal computer 23A: Server 24A: Hub 24B: Multifunction printer 24C: Personal computer 24D: Personal computer 24E: Personal computer 24F: Access point 26A: Camera system 28A: Business phone 28B: Business phone 29A: Tablet 29B: Tablet 29C: Smartphone 31A: Transmission path 32A: Transmission path 32B: Transmission path 34A: Transmission path 34B: Transmission path 36A: Transmission path 38A: Transmission path 41: Router 41Z: Image 42: Hub 42Y: Icon image 42Z: Icon image 43: Hub 43Z: Image 44: Desktop PC 44A: Control device 44B: Storage device 44C: Operation device 44D: Display device 44E: Communication device 44W: Icon image 44Z: Icon image 45: Desktop PC 45Z: Icon image 46: Multifunction device 46Z: Icon image 47: Desktop PC 47V: Icon image 47Z: Icon image 48: Notebook PC 48Z: Icon image 49: Notebook PC 49Z: Icon image 51: Transmission path 52: Transmission path 53: Transmission path 54: Transmission path 55: Transmission path 56: Transmission path 57: Transmission path 58: Transmission path 60: Management system 61: Computer 62: Storage device 63: Operation device 64: Display device 65: Communication device 66: Control device 70: Help button image 80: Agent system 81: Computer 82: Storage device 83: Operation device 84: Display device 85: Communication device 86: Control device 90: Internet communication network

Claims

1. A display method for displaying a network diagram visualizing a user system including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired or wireless communication, and network devices communicatively connected to the information transmission path, comprising: a first step of installing specific software in any of the network devices included in the user system; after the first step, a second step of displaying the network diagram of the user system on a display unit by a display control unit, in a configuration in which a responsibility demarcation point is clearly indicated so that at least the network devices included in the user system on which the specific software is installed are considered to be devices within the responsibility range, and a diagram using an image showing the information transmission path and icon images showing the network devices is drawn, and in which the display state of the icon images of the network devices within the responsibility range is distinguished from the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the responsibility range; a step of detecting the network devices included in the user system; and a step of registering in a registration unit, among the network devices detected in the network device detection step, those network devices on which the specific software is installed, as devices within the responsibility range. and when an external operation is performed to designate a network device that does not have the specific software installed among the network devices detected in the process of detecting the network devices as a network device within the range of responsibility, registering the network device designated by the external operation in the registration unit as a device within the range of responsibility, wherein in the second step, the network diagram display method causes the display control unit to display the network diagram of the user system on the display unit in a configuration that distinguishes between the display state of icon images of network devices within the range of responsibility and the display state of icon images of network devices outside the range of responsibility so that the network device registered in the registration unit as a device within the range of responsibility is designated as a device within the range of responsibility.

2. A display method for displaying a network diagram that visualizes a user system that includes an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired or wireless communication, and network devices that are communicatively connected to the information transmission path, comprising: a first step of installing specific software in any of the network devices included in the user system; and a second step of, after the first step, indicating a responsibility demarcation point so that at least the network devices included in the user system on which the specific software is installed are devices within the responsibility range, drawing a diagram using an image showing the information transmission path and icon images showing the network devices, and distinguishing between the display state of the icon images of the network devices within the responsibility range and the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the responsibility range, wherein the second step includes a step of, when a change operation is performed after the network diagram has been generated to change the arrangement of the icon images in the network diagram, causing the display control unit to display a new network diagram in accordance with the change operation on the display unit.

3. A method for displaying a network diagram as described in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein in the second step, the network diagram is displayed on the display unit by the display control unit so that the network devices included in the area of ​​responsibility and the network devices not included in the area of ​​responsibility are displayed in different colors.

4. A method for displaying a network diagram as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, further comprising a third step of detecting by an abnormality detection unit whether at least one of one or more predetermined abnormality types has occurred in any of the network devices included in the area of ​​responsibility, wherein in the second step, the display state of an icon image of the network device in which the abnormality detection unit has detected an abnormality in the third step is made different from the display state of an icon image of the network device in which the abnormality detection unit has not detected an abnormality in the third step, and the network diagram is displayed on the display unit by the display control unit.

5. A method for displaying a network diagram as described in claim 4, wherein in the second step, the display state of the icon image of the network device in which the abnormality detection unit detected an abnormality in the network device within the area of ​​responsibility in the third step is made different from the display state of the icon image of the network device in which the abnormality detection unit did not detect an abnormality in the third step, and in the third step, the abnormality detection unit does not detect any of the abnormalities in the network device outside the area of ​​responsibility.

6. The method for displaying a network diagram as claimed in claim 5, wherein at least the user system is provided with the display unit, operation unit, and transmission unit, and the user system is capable of transmitting information to an external system provided outside the user system by the transmission unit, and in the second step, at least when the abnormality detection unit detects an abnormality in the third step, the display control unit displays an operation target image for performing an operation requesting support together with the network diagram on the display unit of the user system, while changing the display state of an icon image of the network device in which the abnormality detection unit detected an abnormality in the third step from the display state of an icon image of the network device in which the abnormality detection unit did not detect an abnormality in the third step, and further includes a sixth step of, when a predetermined second operation is performed on the operation target image by the operation unit, transmitting request information conveying a request for support to the external system by the transmission unit, and when the external system receives the request information from the user system, displaying reception information indicating the receipt of the request information on a display device of the external system.

7. A method for displaying a network diagram as described in claim 6, wherein multiple types of users are provided, and when type identification information capable of identifying the type of user is input into the operation unit of the user system, if the user identified by the type identification information belongs to a first type, the transmitting unit disables the function of transmitting the request information, and if the user identified by the type identification information belongs to a second type, the transmitting unit enables the function of transmitting the request information.

8. A method for displaying a network diagram as set forth in claim 6, comprising: a fourth step in which an operating device is provided in the external system, and when an operation to associate an information asset related to a network device within the range of responsibility is performed by the operating device, the network device and the information asset are associated and registered, and the operation to associate the information asset with a network device outside the range of responsibility is disabled; and a fifth step in which, when a predetermined first operation is performed to select the network device with which the information asset within the range of responsibility is associated, while the network diagram of the user system is displayed on the display unit by the second step, the information asset of the selected network device is displayed on the display unit.

9. A method for displaying a network diagram as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, comprising: a fourth step in which an operation device is provided in an external system external to the user system, and when an operation to associate an information asset related to a network device within the range of responsibility is performed by the operation device, the network device and the information asset are associated and registered, and the operation to associate the information asset with a network device outside the range of responsibility is disabled; and a fifth step in which, when a predetermined first operation is performed to select a network device with which the information asset within the range of responsibility is associated, while the network diagram of the user system is displayed on the display unit by the second step, the information asset of the selected network device is displayed on the display unit.

10. A method for displaying a network diagram as described in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein at least the user system is provided with the display unit, operation unit, and transmission unit, and the user system is capable of transmitting information to an external system provided outside the user system by the transmission unit, and in the second step, the display control unit displays an operation target image for performing an operation requesting support together with the network diagram on the display unit of the user system, for example, by the display control unit, and further includes a sixth step of transmitting request information conveying a request for support to the external system by the transmission unit when a predetermined second operation is performed on the operation target image by the operation unit, and when the external system receives the request information from the user system, receiving information indicating the receipt of the request information is displayed on a display device of the external system.

11. A method for displaying a network diagram as described in claim 1, wherein the second step includes a step of, when a change operation is performed after the network diagram has been generated to instruct a change in the arrangement of icon images in the network diagram, causing the display control unit to display a new network diagram on the display unit in accordance with the change operation.

12. A display system that displays a network diagram visualizing a user system including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired or wireless communication, and network devices that are communicatively connected to the information transmission path, comprising: a detection unit that detects the network devices included in the user system; a display control unit that controls the display of the network diagram of the user system on the display unit, configured to clearly indicate a responsibility demarcation point so that, of the network devices included in the user system, at least those network devices on which specific software is installed are devices within the responsibility range, and to draw a diagram using an image showing the information transmission path and icon images showing the network devices, and configured to distinguish between the display state of the icon images of the network devices within the responsibility range and the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the responsibility range; and a registration unit that registers, in a registration unit, the network devices on which the specific software is installed, of the network devices detected in the process of detecting the network devices, as devices within the responsibility range. When an external operation is performed to designate a network device detected by the detection unit that does not have the specific software installed as a network device within its range of responsibility, the registration unit registers the network device designated by the external operation in the registration unit as a device within its range of responsibility, and the display control unit is configured to distinguish between the display state of icon images of network devices within its range of responsibility and the display state of icon images of network devices outside its range of responsibility so that the network device registered in the registration unit as a device within its range of responsibility is designated as a device within its range of responsibility, and the network diagram display system displays the network diagram of the user system on the display unit.

13. A display system for displaying a network diagram visualizing a user system including an information transmission path, which is a path for transmitting information by wired or wireless communication, and network devices communicatively connected to the information transmission path, wherein the system clearly indicates a responsibility demarcation point so that at least those network devices included in the user system on which specific software is installed are devices within the responsibility range, and draws a diagram using an image showing the information transmission path and icon images showing the network devices, and is configured to distinguish between the display state of the icon images of the network devices within the responsibility range and the display state of the icon images of the network devices outside the responsibility range, and has a display control unit that controls the display of the network diagram of the user system on a display unit, wherein at least the user system is provided with the display unit, an operation unit, and a transmission unit, and the user system is capable of transmitting information to an external system provided outside the user system by the transmission unit, and the external system is provided with an operation device, The display control unit of the network diagram display system includes a process in which, after the network diagram is generated, when a change operation is performed by the operation device of the external system to change the arrangement of the icon images in the network diagram, the display control unit displays a new network diagram on the display unit in accordance with the change operation.

Images