Network Device XML Script Translation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users face difficulties in constructing XML-based scripts for network devices due to the need for extensive knowledge of XML formatting constructs, which can be cumbersome and time-consuming, especially when compared to entering commands directly through a command line interface.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that allow users to submit commands with a special indicator to network devices, which then reformat the commands into XML-equivalent scripts, enabling users to easily obtain XML-formatted commands without executing them, and allowing these commands to be included in scripts for later execution by the network devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If users enter commands directly through command line interface, then command execution is simple and quick, but users cannot easily obtain XML-equivalent scripts without consulting large instructional documents
Solution Approach 1:
The network device acts as an intermediary between the user's command line interface input and the XML script output. When a user enters a command with a special indicator (e.g., '|display xml rpc'), the device intercepts this command, translates it into the corresponding XML format, and presents it back to the user. This eliminates the need for users to consult large instructional documents while maintaining the simplicity of command line interaction.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a copy of the command in XML format by translating the command line input into its XML equivalent. This copied XML version can then be directly used in automation scripts without requiring users to manually construct XML from scratch or reference extensive documentation.
2Manufacturing precision
If users construct XML-based scripts manually, then XML formatting can be precise, but the process is cumbersome and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The network device performs the XML formatting action in advance by automatically translating command line commands into properly formatted XML scripts. This preliminary translation ensures that the XML formatting is precise and correct, while simultaneously increasing productivity by eliminating the manual construction step that would otherwise be required.
3Ease of operation
If users submit commands for execution, then immediate results are obtained, but users cannot easily retrieve XML equivalents for script construction
Solution Approach 1:
The system provides feedback by taking the command line input and returning the corresponding XML format as output. When users submit commands with the special indicator, the device processes the command and feeds back the XML equivalent, making the XML information immediately available without requiring separate lookup operations.
Data Source
AI summary
In one example, a device includes a network interface configured to present a command interface to receive input comprising a command and an indicator, wherein the command conforms to an execution format and specifies one or more parameters to be applied during execution of the command, and wherein the indicator indicates, at least in part, that the command is not to be executed, and a control unit configured to reformat, based on the indicator, the command to conform to an extensible markup language (XML) format such that the reformatted command complies with a syntax supported by a script processing module of the network device and specifies the command and the one or more parameters in the XML format in a format that can be executed by the script processing module, and to output the reformatted command via the command interface. Thus, the device may provide XML formatted equivalents for commands.