JP6447307B2 - Management program, management apparatus, and management method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a management program, a management apparatus, and a management method.

  Various software such as operating software (OS) and application software is installed in the information processing apparatus. In system operation management, software included in a plurality of information processing apparatuses may be centrally managed by a management apparatus. The management device collects inventory information from the information processing device to be managed. The inventory information includes information such as software name information managed by the OS and a file name included in the corresponding information processing apparatus. The management device can manage software existing in each information processing device based on the inventory information.

  Unused software may be uninstalled from the information processing apparatus. For example, the contents of changes due to the installation of software from the state immediately after the OS installation (initial settings) are sequentially retained, and the changes are performed and the initial settings are used to perform the uninstallation without depending on the software installation order. A method has been proposed.

JP-A-9-146664

  Some OSs manage setting information of OSs and application software by management information generally called a registry. For example, the software adds the software information to the registry for operation. However, software information may remain in the registry after software is uninstalled. If there is an extra registry, other software operations may be hindered. For this reason, it is conceivable to regularly organize information registered in the registry.

  For example, it is conceivable to acquire a software list managed by the OS from the information processing apparatus and associate the software included in the software list with a registry. A registry that is not associated with any software is considered not to be used, and can be determined as a deletion candidate.

  However, there may be software that adds a registry but is not included in the software list. If a software registry that is not included in the software list is deleted, the operation of the software is affected. Therefore, there is a problem with a method for identifying a portion of the registry corresponding to software not included in the OS software list.

  In one aspect, an object of the present invention is to provide a management program, a management apparatus, and a management method for specifying an item group of OS management information corresponding to unregistered software.

  In one aspect, a management program is provided. The management program obtains OS management information, file information, and registered software information managed by the OS from a plurality of managed machines, respectively, and a plurality of management programs based on the registered software information and the OS management information. The first management information related to the software installed in each of the machines and the OS management information items used by the software is generated and used based on the first management information and the file information of a plurality of machines. The OS management information item group in which the software to be used is not specified and the corresponding file exists is the first group of OS management information items used by the first software not included in the registered software information. The process specified as the item group is executed.

  In one aspect, a management device is provided. This management apparatus includes a storage unit and a calculation unit. The storage unit stores OS management information, file information, and registered software information managed by the OS, acquired from a plurality of managed machines. Based on the registered software information and the OS management information, the arithmetic unit generates first management information related to the software installed in each of the plurality of machines and the item group of the OS management information used by the software. Based on the management information of 1 and the file information of a plurality of machines, the software to be used is not specified, and the OS management information item group in which the corresponding file exists is not included in the registered software information. It is specified as a first item group which is an item group of OS management information used by one software.

  In one aspect, a management method is provided. In this management method, the computer acquires OS management information, file information, and registered software information managed by the OS from a plurality of managed machines, and a plurality of computers are based on the registered software information and the OS management information. The first management information related to the software installed in each of the machines and the OS management information items used by the software is generated and used based on the first management information and the file information of a plurality of machines. The OS management information item group in which the software to be used is not specified and the corresponding file exists is the first group of OS management information items used by the first software not included in the registered software information. Specify as an item group.

  In one aspect, an OS management information item group corresponding to unregistered software can be specified.

It is a figure which shows the management apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the information processing system of 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the hardware example of a management server. It is a figure which shows the function example of a management server. It is a figure which shows the example of a registry. It is a figure which shows the example of polling. It is a figure which shows the example of a registry management table. It is a figure which shows the example of a software management table. It is a figure which shows the example of a folder management table. It is a figure which shows the example of a correspondence management table. It is a figure which shows the example of a collection time table. It is a flowchart which shows the example of data collection of a management server. It is a flowchart which shows the example of an update of a management table. It is a figure which shows the specific example of the information collected by polling. It is a figure which shows the specific example of matching with registration software and a registry. It is a figure which shows the specific example of matching with a folder group and a registry group. It is a figure which shows the example of the determination method of PC excluded from the object of matching. It is a figure which shows the determination process of an unnecessary registry. It is a figure which shows the example of common use of the registry by several software. It is a flowchart which shows the other determination processing of an unnecessary registry.

Hereinafter, the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.
[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a management apparatus according to the first embodiment. The management device 1 manages software included in the system. The system includes machines 2, 3, and 4. The management device 1 communicates with the machines 2, 3, and 4 via the network. The machines 2, 3, and 4 may be physical machines such as servers and clients, or virtual machines that operate on the physical machines. The management apparatus 1 collects inventory information from the machines 2, 3, and 4 and manages software included in the machines 2, 3, and 4.

  The management device 1 includes a storage unit 1a and a calculation unit 1b. The storage unit 1a may be a volatile storage device such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) or a non-volatile storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or a flash memory. The calculation unit 1b may include a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), and the like. The “processor” may include a set of multiple processors (multiprocessor).

  The storage unit 1a stores inventory information collected from the machines 2, 3, and 4. The inventory information includes registered software information, OS management information managed by the OS, and file information. The storage unit 1a stores registered software information (software may be abbreviated as software), OS management information, and file information in association with identification information of each of the machines 2, 3, and 4.

  Here, the registered software information is software list information corresponding to each of the machines 2, 3, and 4. The software list is a list of software names managed by the OS executed on the machines 2, 3, and 4. Even if software that is not managed by the OS is installed in the machines 2, 3, and 4, it is not included in the registered software information.

  For example, when software is installed, if the software registers its own software information in the software list information managed by the OS, the software is registered in the software list. On the other hand, when software is installed, the software is not registered in the software list unless the software registers the software information in the software list information managed by the OS.

  The OS management information includes information managed by the OS of each of the machines 2, 3, and 4. For example, the OS management information may be called registry information. The registry includes basic information related to the OS executed by each of the machines 2, 3, 4, application software setting information, and the like. The registry includes, for example, a key and a value. Registry information is a collection of registries. The key is information indicating the storage location of the value and has a tree structure. The value is a specific setting value for the key. A portion of the entire registry information may be referred to as a registry range. The OS management information is a set of a plurality of items of setting information such as a registry. For example, the specification of an OS management information item group shown below may be performed by specifying a range (for example, a registry range) of OS management information. For example, when an item falls under all of a specific tree, an item group may be specified by specifying a range of upper items in the tree instead of specifying all the items.

  The file information includes the file name of each of the machines 2, 3, and 4 and the path information indicating the folder in which the file is stored (may be called a directory). The file information includes a file name.

  The calculation unit 1b acquires OS management information, file information, and registered software information from the managed machines 2, 3, and 4, and stores them in the storage unit 1a. For example, the computing unit 1b acquires OS management information, file information, and registered software information from the machines 2, 3, and 4 at a certain timing.

  Based on the registered software information and the OS management information stored in the storage unit 1a, the calculation unit 1b specifies software installed on each of a plurality of machines and an item group used by the software.

  For example, the arithmetic unit 1b detects that the software A is newly installed in the machines 2 and 3 based on the registered software information collected from the machines 2, 3 and 4 at a certain timing. However, as described above, software that can be detected from the registered software information is software included in the OS software list information, and software that is not included in the OS software list information is not detected. For example, the calculation unit 1b does not detect software newly installed in the machine 4.

  The computing unit 1b detects that an item has been added to each of the machines 2, 3, and 4 based on the OS management information. The computing unit 1b compares the items added to the machines 2 and 3, and associates the overlapping portion (item group R1) with the software A. The item group R1 is a set of items having the same information (for example, registry keys and values) among items added to the machines 2 and 3. For example, normally, software adds information related to its own software (for example, setting information for operation) to the OS management information at the time of installation. Accordingly, when the addition of software A to a plurality of machines is detected by collecting information at a certain timing, and the addition of OS management information is detected on the same plurality of machines, the OS management information on the plurality of machines is detected. There is a high possibility that the overlapping portion corresponds to software A. Therefore, the item group R1 can be associated with the software A.

The computing unit 1b generates first management information related to the item group R1 of the OS management information used by the software A.
Then, the computing unit 1b detects an item group R2 in which the software to be used is not specified among the OS management information added to the machine 2. Further, the computing unit 1b also detects a group of items of OS management information for which the software to be used is not specified for the machine 4. The computing unit 1b does not detect the OS management information for which the software to be used is not specified for the machine 3.

  Based on the first management information and the file information of a plurality of machines, the calculation unit 1b registers an item group of OS management information in which the software to be used is not specified and the corresponding file exists. It is specified as a first item group which is an item group of OS management information used by the first software not included in the information.

  For example, the arithmetic unit 1b acquires an overlapping portion between the item group R2 in the machine 2 and the OS management information added in the machine 4. As an example, the calculation unit 1b acquires the item group R2 as an overlapping portion.

  The addition of the same item group R2 in the machines 2 and 4 suggests that some software not included in the registered software information is newly installed in the machines 2 and 4. Therefore, the computing unit 1b refers to the file information of the machines 2, 3, and 4 and acquires a folder group that is common only to the machines 2 and 4 among the added folder groups.

  For example, the computing unit 1b identifies folder groups F1 and F2 that do not overlap each other for the machine 2. The fact that the folder groups F1 and F2 do not overlap indicates that both folder groups do not include a folder designated by the same path. The computing unit 1b identifies the folder group F11 for the machine 3. The folder group F11 is a part of the folder group F1. The computing unit 1b identifies folder groups F12, F2, and F3 that do not overlap each other for the machine 4. The folder group F12 is a part of the folder group F11. Further, the folder group F3 does not overlap with the folder group F1. Therefore, the calculation unit 1b acquires the folder group F2 as a folder group that is common only to the machines 2 and 4. In this case, a file corresponding to the item group R2 (file stored in the folder group F2) exists.

  The calculation unit 1b identifies the folder group F2 as a folder group corresponding to the first software (that is, software not registered in the registered software information). Then, the calculation unit 1b associates the folder group F2 with the item group R2. Thereby, the first software is associated with the item group R2. That is, the calculation unit 1b specifies the item group R2 as a registry range used by the first software (unregistered software).

  For example, the calculation unit 1b may acquire the item group R3, which is a part of the added OS management information excluding the item group R2, from the machine 4. In this case, the calculation unit 1b uses the information acquired in the subsequent information collection for the item group R3 or the information collected from the other machines other than the machines 2, 3, and 4 May be associated.

  As a result, it is possible to specify an OS management information item group corresponding to unregistered software. Also, the item group can be excluded from the OS management information organizing target. For example, in the above example, if the item group R2 is targeted for arrangement and the item group R2 is deleted, the operation of unregistered software that is not included in the registered software information but uses the item group R2 is hindered. There is a fear. Therefore, the calculation unit 1b also associates an item group that is not associated with the software included in the registered software information with the unregistered software using the file information collected from the machines 2, 3, and 4. Thereby, the item group R2 used by unregistered software can be excluded from the objects to be organized.

  The computing unit 1b can also specify an unnecessary item group from information in which unregistered software is associated with an item group of OS management information. For example, assume that after associating the item group R2 and the folder group F2, the folder group F2 is deleted on the machine 2 and the item group R2 remains without being deleted. In this case, it can be determined that the software (unregistered software) that uses the item group R2 has been uninstalled from the machine 2. Accordingly, the calculation unit 1b determines the item group R2 as a deletion target. The calculation unit 1b can prevent the unnecessary item group of the OS management information from remaining in the machine 2 by deleting the item group R2. As a result, it is possible to suppress the influence of unnecessary items on the operation of other software.

  For example, since unnecessary items can be deleted, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of problems caused by unnecessary items remaining in the OS management information when reinstalling uninstalled software or installing other related software. It is done.

[Second Embodiment]
FIG. 2 illustrates an information processing system according to the second embodiment. The information processing system according to the second embodiment includes a management server 100 and PCs (Personal Computers) 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d. The management server 100 is connected to the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d via the network 10. The network 10 is, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network).

  The management server 100 is a server computer that manages the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d. The management server 100 periodically collects inventory information from the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d, and manages software installed in the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d.

  The PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d are client computers operated by the user. When receiving the inventory information collection request from the management server 100, the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d transmit the inventory information to the management server 100 in response to the request.

  Various software can be installed in the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d. Information such as various registries and files may be added to the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d. The management server 100 collects inventory information from the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d, thereby obtaining a list of software managed by the OS of the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d and information on the added registry and files. to manage.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a hardware example of the management server. The management server 100 includes a processor 101, a RAM 102, an HDD 103, an image signal processing unit 104, an input signal processing unit 105, a medium reader 106, and a communication interface 107. Each unit is connected to the bus of the management server 100.

  The processor 101 controls the entire management server 100. The processor 101 may be a multiprocessor including a plurality of processing elements. The processor 101 is, for example, a CPU, DSP, ASIC, or FPGA. The processor 101 may be a combination of two or more elements among a CPU, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA, and the like.

  The RAM 102 is a main storage device of the management server 100. The RAM 102 temporarily stores at least part of an OS program and application programs to be executed by the processor 101. The RAM 102 stores various data used for processing by the processor 101.

  The HDD 103 is an auxiliary storage device of the management server 100. The HDD 103 magnetically writes and reads data to and from the built-in magnetic disk. The HDD 103 stores an OS program, application programs, and various data. The management server 100 may include other types of auxiliary storage devices such as flash memory and SSD (Solid State Drive), or may include a plurality of auxiliary storage devices.

  The image signal processing unit 104 outputs an image to the display 11 connected to the management server 100 in accordance with an instruction from the processor 101. As the display 11, various displays such as a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) display, a liquid crystal display (LCD), and an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display can be used. The management server 100 may include the display 11 integrally.

  The input signal processing unit 105 acquires an input signal from the input device 12 connected to the management server 100 and outputs it to the processor 101. As the input device 12, various input devices such as a pointing device such as a mouse and a touch panel and a keyboard can be used. A plurality of types of input devices may be connected to the management server 100. The management server 100 may integrally include the input device 12.

  The medium reader 106 is a device that reads programs and data recorded on the recording medium 13. As the recording medium 13, for example, a magnetic disk such as a flexible disk (FD) or an HDD, an optical disk such as a CD (Compact Disc) or a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), or a magneto-optical disk (MO) is used. Can be used. Further, as the recording medium 13, for example, a non-volatile semiconductor memory such as a flash memory card can be used. For example, the medium reader 106 stores the program and data read from the recording medium 13 in the RAM 102 or the HDD 103 in accordance with an instruction from the processor 101.

  The communication interface 107 communicates with the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d via the network 10. The communication interface 107 may be a wired communication interface or a wireless communication interface.

The PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d can also be realized by the same hardware as the management server 100.
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of the management server. The management server 100 includes a storage unit 110, a collection unit 120, a difference extraction unit 130, an analysis unit 140, and an unnecessary registry determination unit 150. The storage unit 110 can be realized as a storage area secured in the RAM 102 or the HDD 103, for example. The collection unit 120, the difference extraction unit 130, the analysis unit 140, and the unnecessary registry determination unit 150 can be realized as a program module executed by the processor 101, for example.

  The storage unit 110 stores a registry management table, a software management table, a folder management table, a correspondence management table, and a collection time table. The registry management table is a table used for managing registry information collected from each PC. The software management table is a table used for managing a software list collected from each PC. The folder management table is a table used for managing folder information collected from each PC. The folder information can also be obtained from file information (including the file path) collected from each PC (that is, the folder information can be considered as an example of file information). The correspondence management table is a table used for managing the correspondence relationship between the software or folder of the PC and the registry. The collection time table is a table used for managing the time at which registry information, software list, and folder information are collected from each PC.

  Here, the registry information includes basic information related to the OS running on each PC, application software setting information, and the like. The software list is a list of registered software (sometimes referred to as registered software in the following description) managed by the OS of each PC. The software list does not include unregistered software (sometimes referred to as unregistered software in the following description) that is not managed by the OS.

  Whether or not certain software is registered in the software list of the OS depends on the operation at the time of installation of the software. For example, if the software installer registers the software name of its own software in the software list information managed by the OS, the software name is registered in the OS software list. On the other hand, if the software installer does not register the software name of its own software in the software list information managed by the OS, the software name is not registered in the OS software list.

  The storage unit 110 also stores schedule information for the collection unit 120 to collect registry information, software list, and folder information from each PC. For example, the collection schedule is determined in advance by schedule information such as once a day (for example, a certain time of the day).

  The collection unit 120 periodically collects registry information, software list, and folder information from each PC. The collection process may be referred to as polling. The collection unit 120 registers each collected information in the registry management table, software management table, and folder management table. Further, the collection unit 120 registers the time at which each piece of information is collected from each PC in the collection time table.

  The difference extraction unit 130 extracts a difference between the currently collected registry information, software list, and folder information and the previously collected registry information, software list, and folder information. Specifically, the difference extraction unit 130 increases the number of registries, registered software, and folders that are not included in the previously collected information but are included in the information collected this time. Extract as minutes.

  The analysis unit 140 associates the registry with the registered software, and updates the correspondence management table stored in the storage unit 110. Specifically, the analysis unit 140 identifies the registry corresponding to the registered software based on the increase in the registry information and the increase in the software list. The analysis unit 140 registers the correspondence relationship between the registered software and the registry in the correspondence management table.

  The analysis unit 140 identifies a registry group (uncorresponding registry group) that is common between PCs, out of registry information that is not associated with any registered software. Here, the registry group is an example of an item group of OS management information according to the first embodiment. Then, the analysis unit 140 associates the identified registry with unregistered software. First, the analysis unit 140 identifies a folder group corresponding to unregistered software based on the increase in the folder information of each PC.

  Specifically, the analysis unit 140 corresponds to a folder that is common only to PCs having registry information that is not associated with any registered software among the increments of folder information collected at a certain timing, to the unregistered software. Specify a folder group. A PC having registry information that is not associated with any registered software can be considered as a PC having unregistered software. The analysis unit 140 registers the correspondence relationship between the specified folder group and the unsupported registry group in the correspondence management table. Since the specified folder group corresponds to unregistered software, the unregistered software and the unsupported registry group are associated on the correspondence management table.

  The unnecessary registry determination unit 150 determines an unnecessary registry based on the correspondence management table stored in the storage unit 110. Specifically, the unnecessary registry determination unit 150 determines that software registered in the correspondence management table does not exist in the software list and does not have a corresponding folder in a certain PC, but the software in which only the registry remains (unregistered). (Sometimes referred to as detection software). Undetected software is software that has already been uninstalled, but only the corresponding registry remains due to omission of deletion or the like. If the registry remains, the operation of other software may be affected. Therefore, the unnecessary registry determination unit 150 instructs the PC on which the registry remains to instruct deletion of the unnecessary registry. The PC that has received the delete instruction deletes the specified unnecessary registry.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a registry. Registry 20 includes keys and values. The value includes a data name and data. The key is information that specifies a storage location of a value by a tree structure. The data name included in the value is the name of data registered in the registry (for example, “DM Group”). The data included in the value is a data setting value (for example, “5”, etc.). As a data setting value, a file name “C: \ Sw \ mpw.dm” may be set like a data name “DM FullPath Name”. Note that the file name is specified by a full path, and the portion “C: \ Sw \” (path portion) indicates a folder in which the file is stored.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of polling. FIG. 6 shows an example in which the collection unit 120 periodically collects the registry information 31 and the software list 32 from the PC 200. For example, the collection unit 120 collects the registry information 31 and the software list 32 from the PC 200 at a scheduled time T1, T2, T3 (polling). Although not shown, the collection unit 120 also collects folder information from the PC 200 at times T1, T2, and T3. The collected information varies depending on the polling time. This is because software is installed or uninstalled with respect to the PC 200 as time passes.

  For example, the registry information 31 collected at time T2 includes registries relating to software A, B, C, and D. The software list 32 collected at time T2 includes software A and B. Note that software D is unregistered software. For this reason, the software list 32 collected at time T2 does not include the software D. The software list 32 collected at time T2 does not include software C. This is because it is uninstalled at the time T2. The reason why the registry of software C is included in the registry information 31 collected at time T2 is that the registry of software C remains without being deleted when the software C is uninstalled.

  In FIG. 6, for convenience of explanation, the registry is labeled with a software name such as “registry for software A” for convenience. However, when the collection unit 120 collects the registry information 31 and the software list 32, the management server 100 does not grasp the correspondence between the software and the registry.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a registry management table. The registry management tables 111 and 111a are stored in the storage unit 110. The registry management table 111 is registry information collected this time (at the time of this polling). The registry management table 111a is registry information collected last time (at the time of the previous polling). The storage unit 110 stores at least the latest two registry information by the registry management tables 111 and 111a. In the following, information registered in the registry management table 111 is exemplified, but similar information is also registered in the registry management table 111a.

  The registry management table 111 includes machine ID (IDentifier) and registry items. PC identification information (machine ID) is registered in the machine ID item. In the registry item, information indicating a registry key and value is registered.

  For example, information that the machine ID is “PC1” and the registry is “RG11” is registered in the registry management table 111. This indicates that the registry “RG11” is included in the registry information collected this time from the PC 200 (machine ID “PC1”). A plurality of registries included in the registry information of the PC 200 are registered in the registry management table 111.

  Also, registry information collected from the PCs 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d is similarly registered in the registry management table 111. The machine ID “PC2” is the machine ID of the PC 200a. The machine ID “PC3” is the machine ID of the PC 200b. The machine ID “PC4” is the machine ID of the PC 200c. The machine ID “PC5” is the machine ID of the PC 200d.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a software management table. The software management tables 112 and 112a are stored in the storage unit 110. The software management table 112 is a list of software collected this time. The software management table 112a is a software list collected last time. The storage unit 110 stores at least the latest two software lists by the software management tables 112 and 112a. In the following, information registered in the software management table 112 is exemplified, but similar information is also registered in the software management table 112a.

  The software management table 112 includes items of machine ID and software name. The machine ID is registered in the machine ID item. The software name is registered in the software name item.

  For example, information that the machine ID is “PC1” and the software name is “SW11” is registered in the software management table 112. This indicates that the software list collected this time from the PC 200 (machine ID “PC1”) includes software with the software name “SW11”. A plurality of software included in the software list of the PC 200 is registered in the software management table 112. In the software management table 112, software lists collected from the PCs 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d are also registered.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a folder management table. The folder management tables 113 and 113a are stored in the storage unit 110. The folder management table 113 is folder information collected this time. The folder management table 113a is folder information collected last time. The storage unit 110 stores at least the latest two folder information by the folder management tables 113 and 113a. In the following, information registered in the folder management table 113 is exemplified, but similar information is also registered in the folder management table 113a.

  The folder management table 113 includes items of machine ID, folder name, and creation time. The machine ID is registered in the machine ID item. The folder name is registered in the folder name item. The folder name includes full path information. The time when the folder was created is registered in the creation time item.

  For example, information that the machine ID is “PC1”, the folder name is “FD11”, and the creation time is “Tc11” is registered in the folder management table 113. This indicates that the folder information collected this time from the PC 200 (machine ID “PC1”) includes a folder with the folder name “FD11”. In addition, the time when the folder with the folder name “FD11” is created in the PC 200 is “Tc11”. In the folder management table 113, a plurality of folders included in the folder information of the PC 200 are registered. In the folder management table 113, folder information collected from the PCs 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d is similarly registered.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the correspondence management table. The correspondence management table 114 is stored in the storage unit 110. The correspondence management table 114 includes items of registry, software name, and folder name.

  In the registry item, information indicating a registry key and value is registered. A plurality of registries (registries) can be registered in the registry item. The software name is registered in the software name item. The folder name is registered in the folder name item. A plurality of folder groups can be registered in the folder name item. However, information is registered in either of the software name and folder name items. For example, when the software name is registered, the folder name is “−” (hyphen) without setting. When the folder name is registered, the software name is “−” without setting.

  For example, information corresponding to the registry “RG11,...”, The software name “SW11”, and the folder name “−” is registered in the correspondence management table 114. This indicates that the registry group “RG11,...” Corresponds to the registered software having the software name “SW11”.

  In the correspondence management table 114, information that the registry is “RG12,...”, The software name is “−”, and the folder name is “FD11,. This indicates that the registry group “RG12,...” Corresponds to the folder group with the folder name “FD11,.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a collection time table. The collection time table 115 is stored in the storage unit 110. The collection time table 115 includes items of machine ID and collection time. The machine ID is registered in the machine ID item. The time of polling each PC is registered in the collection time item.

  For example, information that the machine ID is “PC1” and the collection time is “Tp1” is registered in the collection time table 115. This indicates that the PC 200 has been polled at time “Tp1”.

Next, a processing procedure executed by the management server 100 will be described.
FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an example of data collection by the management server. In the following, the process illustrated in FIG. 12 will be described in order of step number.

  (S11) When the scheduled time reaches the scheduled time, the collection unit 120 collects data from the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d (polling). The collected data includes registry information, software list, and folder information.

  (S12) The collection unit 120 registers the collected registry information in the registry management table 111 in association with the machine ID of the collection source PC. The collection unit 120 registers the collected software list in the software management table 112 in association with the machine ID of the collection source PC. The collection unit 120 registers the collected folder information in the folder management table 113 in association with the machine ID of the collection source PC. The collection unit 120 registers the polling time in the collection time table 115 in association with the machine ID of the PC to be polled.

  (S13) The difference extraction unit 130 extracts, for each machine ID, the difference between the current polling time and the previous polling time for the registry information, software list, and folder information. For example, the difference extraction unit 130 compares the registry management tables 111 and 111a and extracts a difference in registry information for each machine ID. The difference extraction unit 130 compares the software management tables 112 and 112a and extracts a difference in software name for each machine ID. The difference extraction unit 130 compares the folder management tables 113 and 113a and extracts the folder information difference for each machine ID. As a result, the difference extraction unit 130 acquires an increase in registry information, software list, and folder information from the previous polling time.

  (S14) The analysis unit 140 determines the correspondence between the registered software and the registry based on the increment of each information extracted in step S13. The analysis unit 140 also determines the correspondence between the registry that has not been associated with the registered software and the unregistered software. The analysis unit 140 updates the correspondence management table 114 with the determination result. Details will be described later.

  (S15) The collection unit 120 waits until the next polling time. For example, the polling cycle is about once a day (24-hour cycle). However, other periods such as a 12-hour period and a 48-hour period may be used. Then, the process proceeds to step S11.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of updating the correspondence management table. In the following, the process illustrated in FIG. 13 will be described in order of step number. The following procedure corresponds to step S14.
(S21) The analysis unit 140 reads information on the correspondence between the registry and the software or folder from the correspondence management table 114.

  (S22) The analysis unit 140 identifies software common to a plurality of PCs from the increase in the software list extracted in step S13. The analysis unit 140 can identify software common to a plurality of PCs by identifying software names included in the increase in the software list of the plurality of PCs.

  (S23) The analysis unit 140, for a plurality of PCs having the common software identified in step S22, from among the increments of registry information extracted in step S13, common portions of the registry (keys and values are common among the PCs). Registry group). The detection of the common part of the registry can be said to be a process of performing an AND operation on the registry information (a set of registries) of each PC having common software. At this time, for example, if registries with common keys and values fall under all of the specific trees, specify the higher-level keys of the tree to which those registries belong rather than specifying all of these registries. Thus, a common registry group may be specified. In this case, a range of a plurality of registries under the upper key can be specified by specifying the corresponding upper key. For example, when keys A1, A2, and A3 exist under the key A, the range of keys A1, A2, and A3 can be specified by specifying the key A.

  (S24) The analysis unit 140 determines the correspondence between the registered software and the registry. That is, the analysis unit 140 associates the registered software identified in step S22 with the registry group detected in step S23. Further, the analysis unit 140 reviews the registered relationship in the correspondence management table 114 based on the determination result of the correspondence relationship. For example, a part of the registry group that is already associated with the registered software may be found based on the result of the new association that it is associated with another registered software. In this case, the analysis unit 140 associates the part of the registered registry group with another registered software, and cancels the association between the part and the existing registered software.

  (S25) The analysis unit 140 detects a common part of the registry (common unsupported registry) between the PCs for the registry not corresponding to any software among the increments of registry information extracted in step S13. The unsupported registry detected here can be considered as a registry corresponding to unregistered software that is not registered in the software list of each PC.

  (S26) The analysis unit 140 refers to the machine ID and collection time of the collection time table 115 and the machine ID, folder name, and creation time of the folder management table 113, and identifies a folder during the installation of each PC. This is because an incomplete folder group (a group of folders in which only a part of the software is still created) is excluded from the correspondence determination process. Specifically, the analysis unit 140 identifies a folder created within a certain period before the current polling time as a software folder being installed. For example, the predetermined period is determined in advance according to the time required for software installation, such as a period from the time 30 minutes before the polling time to the polling time.

  (S27) The analysis unit 140 detects a folder group that is common only between PCs having a common unsupported registry among the increments of the folder information extracted in step S13. Detection of a common folder group can also be referred to as processing for performing an AND operation on folder information (a set of folders) of each PC having a common unsupported registry. However, if the creation time of the folder of interest in any PC is close to the polling time according to the specific result in step S26 (for example, within 30 minutes before the polling time as described above), the PC is excluded. A common folder group is detected between the PCs. It can also be said that the analysis unit 140 has selected a PC to be used for detecting a certain common folder group based on the result of step S26.

  (S28) The analysis unit 140 determines the correspondence between the folder group detected in step S27 and the unsupported registry. That is, the analysis unit 140 associates the folder group detected in step S27 with the common unsupported registry detected in step S25. Further, the analysis unit 140 reviews the registered relationship in the correspondence management table 114 based on the determination result of the correspondence relationship. For example, a part of the registry group associated with an existing folder group may be found to be associated with another folder group based on a new association result. In that case, the analysis unit 140 associates the part of the registered registry group with another folder group, and cancels the association between the part and the existing folder group.

(S29) The analysis unit 140 registers the correspondence determined in steps S24 and S28 in the correspondence management table 114.
Different versions of certain software may be installed on a plurality of PCs. Therefore, when identifying software that is common to a plurality of PCs in step S22, the analysis unit 140 may regard the software that differs only in the version number as the same software. Further, when text matching is performed on software names, they may be regarded as the same if the matching similarity is relatively high.

  As for the registry, the key name may differ depending on the PC even if the software is the same due to the setting at the time of installation. For this reason, even if the common part of the registry is acquired in steps S23 and S25, it can be considered that the key names are different and the lower data names are similar by matching the tree structure of the registry.

  Furthermore, in step S27, when detecting a common folder group, the absolute paths do not have to completely match (usually, the path specified as the installation destination is variable). For example, if the similarity of the folder internal structure (folder tree structure and file contents) is high, the folders may be regarded as folders corresponding to the same software. As described above, the analysis unit 140 allows fluctuations when matching software names, registries, and folders in consideration of the fact that they do not always match completely. In the example of the second embodiment, a common part is acquired between PCs for a folder. However, the analysis unit 140 acquires a common part between PCs for a file and associates it with unregistered software. May be. Also in this case, the analysis unit 140 may narrow down the files to be associated according to the creation time in the same manner as the folder (similar to step S26).

  Here, in step S24, the analysis unit 140 can further review the already registered correspondence between the registered software and the registry. For example, the analysis unit 140 compares the correspondence relationship already registered in the correspondence management table 114 with the determination result of the current correspondence relationship for a certain registered software. The correspondence relationship may be updated. More specifically, the analysis unit 140 may associate an overlapping portion between the registry group included in the current correspondence relationship and the registry group included in the existing correspondence relationship with the registered software. This is because the accuracy of association can be improved by narrowing down the registry group associated with the registered software.

  Similarly, in step S28, the analysis unit 140 can further review the registered correspondence between the folder group and the registry. For example, the analysis unit 140 compares the correspondence relationship already registered in the correspondence management table 114 and the determination result of the current correspondence relationship for a certain folder group. The correspondence relationship may be updated. More specifically, the analysis unit 140 may associate an overlapping portion between the registry group included in the current correspondence relationship and the registry group included in the existing correspondence relationship with the folder group. This is because the accuracy of association can be improved by narrowing down the registry group associated with the folder group.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of information collected by polling. FIG. 14 illustrates two polls for the PC 200 at times T11 and T12. As in FIG. 6, for convenience of explanation, “registry relating to software A” and the software name “software A” are labeled on the registry. At the time of collecting the registry information, the management server 100 does not know what software each registry corresponds to.

  The collection unit 120 acquires the registry information 33 and the software list 34 from the PC 200 by polling. The collection unit 120 also acquires folder information from the PC 200 by polling. The difference extraction unit 130 obtains registered software, a registry, and a folder added to the PC 200 between time T11 and time T12 by extracting a difference between information collected by polling at time T11 and time T12.

  The analysis unit 140 matches the registry keys and values acquired at times T11 and T12. As described with reference to FIG. 13, the matching considers the similarity of the key structure and the similarity of the lower data. Although not included in the registry information 33 acquired at time T11, the registry included in the registry information 33 acquired at time T12 is a registry added to the PC 200 between time T11 and time T12. In the example of FIG. 14, the registry of software A, B, C, D, and E does not exist in the registry information 33 of the PC 200 at time T11. On the other hand, at time T12, the registry of software A, B, C, D, and E exists in the registry information 33 of the PC 200. Therefore, the increment of the registry information at the time T12 is the registry information of the software A, B, C, D, E (however, the analysis unit 140 does not have the software A, B, C, D, E at this time). Does not know the relationship between and).

  The analysis unit 140 performs text matching on the software names in the software list 34 acquired at times T11 and T12. As described with reference to FIG. 13, version matching and text similarity are considered for matching. In the example of FIG. 14, the software names of the software A, B, and C do not exist in the software list 34 of the PC 200 at the time T11. On the other hand, at the time T12, software names A and B exist in the software list 34 of the PC 200. Therefore, the increment of the software list at the time T12 is the software names of the software A and B.

  The software C was installed on the PC 200 after the time T11. However, since the software C was uninstalled from the PC 200 before the time T12, the software C is not included in the software list 34 of the PC 200 collected at the time T12. Software D and E are unregistered software that is not included in the software list 34 of the PC 200 collected at time T12.

Similarly, the analysis unit 140 also acquires folder information added to the PC 200 between time T11 and time T12.
FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of association between registered software and a registry. FIG. 15 shows an example of an increase from the collection result at time T11 for the software list and registry information collected by the collection unit 120 from the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d at time T12. The row indicated by “detection software (increase)” indicates an increase in the software list collected from the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d. The row indicated by “registry information (increase)” indicates an increase in registry information collected from the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d.

  For example, the difference extraction unit 130 detects an increase in the software names of the software A and B for the PC 200. The difference extraction unit 130 detects an increase in the software names of the software A and X with respect to the PC 200a. The difference extraction unit 130 detects an increase in the software names of the software C and X with respect to the PC 200b. The difference extraction unit 130 detects an increase in the software name of the software C with respect to the PC 200c. The difference extraction unit 130 detects an increase in the software name of the software B with respect to the PC 200d. Software A, B, C, D, and X are all registered software registered in the software list.

  The analysis unit 140 identifies the PCs 200 and 200a that only the software A has in common from the increase in the software list of each PC. The analysis unit 140 detects a common registry group R11 from among the increments of registry information collected from the PCs 200 and 200a. The analysis unit 140 associates the software A with the registry group R11.

  The analysis unit 140 identifies the PCs 200 and 200d that only the software B has in common from the increase in the software list of each PC. The analysis unit 140 detects a common registry group R12, R14 from the increase in registry information collected from the PCs 200, 200d. The analysis unit 140 associates the software B with the registry groups R12 and R14 (however, as described later, the registry group R14 should actually be associated with the software C).

  The analysis unit 140 identifies the PCs 200b and 200c that only the software C has in common from the increase in the detection software. The analysis unit 140 detects a common registry group R14 from among the increments of registry information collected from the PCs 200b and 200c. The analysis unit 140 associates the software C with the registry group R14.

  The analysis unit 140 identifies the PCs 200a and 200b that only the software X has in common from the increase in the detection software. The analysis unit 140 detects a common registry R13 from among the increments of registry information collected from the PCs 200a and 200b. The analysis unit 140 associates the software X with the registry group R13.

  The analysis unit 140 reviews the correspondence relationship between the software and the registry associated so far. For example, when the registry group includes another registry group associated with other software, the correspondence is corrected with respect to the correspondence relationship between certain software and the registry group. More specifically, the registry group R14 is associated with the software C by analysis of the PCs 200b and 200c. Furthermore, the registry groups R12 and R14 are associated with the software B by analysis of the PCs 200 and 200d. That is, the registry groups R12 and R14 associated with the software B include the registry group R14 associated with the software C. Therefore, the analysis unit 140 corrects the correspondence relationship between the software B and the registry groups R12 and R14, and reassociates the software B with the registry group R12 (maintains the correspondence relationship between the software C and the registry group R14).

  In this way, a part of the increase in registry information in each PC is associated with software A, B, C, and X. At this time, the PC 200 includes an unsupported registry group RA that is not associated with any software among the increased registry information. The PC 200c includes an unsupported registry group RB that is not associated with any software among the increments of registry information. The PC 200d has an unsupported registry group RC that is not associated with any software among the increments of registry information. There is no unsupported registry group in the PCs 200a and 200b.

  FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of association between a folder group and a registry group. Here, the analysis unit 140 can detect the folder group corresponding to the software A, B, C, and X from the increase in the folder information in each PC, similarly to the registry information. Specifically, a common part between the PCs 200 and 200a is a folder group corresponding to the software A. Further, a portion common to the PCs 200 and 200d is a folder group corresponding to the software B. A portion common to the PCs 200b and 200c is a folder group corresponding to the software C. A portion common to the PCs 200a and 200b is a folder group corresponding to the software X.

  In FIG. 16, the “folder information (increase)” line illustrates the increase in the folder information in each PC, but the folder groups corresponding to the software A, B, C, and X are associated with each other. It is excluded (not included in the increase in folder information in FIG. 16). This is because these folder groups are registered software folder groups, and the registered software has already been associated with the registry groups by the processing of FIG. Note that the registered software information collected from each PC by the collection unit 120 may include information about the registered software and the installation folder of the registered software. In that case, the analysis unit 140 may detect a group of folders corresponding to the software A, B, C, X, for example, from the registered software information.

  Furthermore, the analysis unit 140 refers to the creation time of the folder management table 113 and the collection time of the collection time table 115, and the folder group within the predetermined period from the creation time to the collection time is also excluded from the association in each PC. (It is not included in the increment of folder information in FIG. 16).

  Accordingly, the folder included in the “folder information (increase)” shown in FIG. 16 is an installation folder of unregistered software or a folder unrelated to registered / unregistered software. As a folder unrelated to registered / unregistered software, for example, a folder arbitrarily created by the user or a folder created by a certain software in a path different from the installation folder of the own software.

  Specifically, the analysis unit 140 identifies the folder group F21 as an increase in the folder of the PC 200, excluding the above-described folders not subject to processing. The analysis unit 140 specifies that there is no folder increase in the PC 200a, except for the above-mentioned folders that are not processing targets. Similarly, the analysis unit 140 identifies the folder group F22 as an increase in the folder of the PC 200b. Similarly, the analysis unit 140 identifies the folder group F23 as an increase in the folder of the PC 200c. Similarly, the analysis unit 140 identifies the folder group F24 as an increase in the folder of the PC 200d.

  The analysis unit 140 detects, for the folder groups F21, F22, F23, and F24 of each of the PCs 200, 200b, 200c, and 200d, a portion P11 that is common to the folder group F22 of the PC 200b that does not have an unsupported registry group. The part P11 can be considered as a folder unrelated to the registered / unregistered software. This is because the folder group F22 does not correspond to registered software, and the PC 200b does not have an unsupported registry group (no unregistered software exists).

  The analysis unit 140 detects a common part P12 among the folder groups F21, F23, and F24 (excluding the part P11). The part P12 is a folder group common to the PCs 200, 200c, and 200d. Further, the common part P1 of the aforementioned unsupported registry groups RA, RB, RC is also a registry group common to the PCs 200, 200c, 200d. Therefore, the common part P12 of the folder groups F21, F23, and F24 can be considered as a folder group corresponding to the common part P1 of the unsupported registry groups RA, RB, and RC. Therefore, the analysis unit 140 associates the folder group corresponding to the common part P12 of the folder groups F21, F23, and F24 with the registry group corresponding to the common part P1 of the registry groups RA, RB, and RC. Usually, at the time of installation, software adds information for operating the software to the registry. Therefore, in this case, the folder group corresponding to the common part P12 is a folder (installation folder) created to store information on the unregistered software when the unregistered software (for example, software D in FIG. 14) is installed. You can think of it. For example, at this timing, the association of all folders included in the folder group F24 with unregistered software is completed.

  The analysis unit 140 detects a common part P13 among the folder groups F21 and F23 (excluding the parts P11 and P12). The part P13 is a folder group common to the PCs 200 and 200c. Further, the common portion P2 of the unsupported registry groups RA and RB is also a registry group common to the PCs 200 and 200c. Therefore, the common part P13 of the folder groups F21 and F23 can be considered as a folder group corresponding to the common part P2 of the unsupported registry groups RA and RB. Therefore, the analysis unit 140 associates the folder group corresponding to the common part P13 of the folder groups F21 and F23 with the registry group corresponding to the common part P2 of the registry groups RA and RB. As in the case of the part P12, the folder group corresponding to the common part P13 is an installation folder of unregistered software (unregistered software different from unregistered software corresponding to the part P12, for example, software E in FIG. 14). You can think of it. For example, at this timing, the association of all folders included in the folder group F21 with unregistered software is completed.

  In the PC 200c, there is a portion P3 that is not associated with any folder group in the unsupported registry group RB. In the PC 200c, there is a portion P14 that is not associated with any registry group in the folder group F23. The analysis unit 140 may associate the registry group corresponding to the part P3 and the folder group corresponding to the part P14. Alternatively, the analysis unit 140 may determine a folder group associated with the portion P3 in the registry group RB and a registry group associated with the portion P14 in the folder group F23 based on information collected by the subsequent polling.

  The analysis unit 140 registers the correspondence relationship between the registered software name thus determined and the registry group in the correspondence management table 114. The analysis unit 140 registers the correspondence relationship between the folder group and the registry group in the correspondence management table 114. Here, the folder group associated with the registry group is considered to be an installation folder of unregistered software. For this reason, the correspondence between the folder group and the registry group can be said to be the correspondence relation between the unregistered software and the registry group.

Further, the analysis unit 140 may determine a registry group to be excluded from association by the following method.
FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an example of a method for determining a PC to be excluded from association. The association between the registered software and the registry group by the analysis unit 140 is preferably performed on the registered software for which the installation process has been completed. When there is registered software that is being installed at the time of polling, there is a situation in which the software name of the registered software exists in the software list, but a registry group corresponding to the registered software is being created. If the association is performed in this case, the registered software and the incomplete registry group being created are associated with each other, and an appropriate correspondence relationship cannot be managed. Specifically, it is as follows.

  Assume that the management server 100 detects that software A has been added to the software list for the PCs 200 and 200a by polling at a certain timing. At this time, the software A is already installed in the PC 200, but the situation may occur in which the software A is being installed in the PC 200a. In this case, the registry information of the PC 200 includes the complete registry group R11 of the software A. On the other hand, the registry information of the PC 200a does not include the entire registry group R11 of the software A, but only includes a part R11a of the registry group R11. That is, the registry portion RX included in the registry group R11 of the PC 200 is missing from the registry information of the PC 200a. In such a situation, when the PC 200 and 200a identify the common part of the registry information and associate it with the software A, a part R11a lacking the registry part RX is associated with the software A in the registry group R11. .

  Therefore, the analysis unit 140 checks the creation time of the folder corresponding to the corresponding registered software, and if it substantially matches the polling time (for example, as described above, the time from the creation time to the polling time is within a predetermined period) It may be determined that the registered software is being installed, and may be excluded from the PCs from which the common part of the registry group is to be extracted. For example, as described with reference to FIG. 16, the analysis unit 140 can specify a folder group corresponding to the software A among the folder information.

  In addition to the PC 200a, the analysis unit 140 can specify a registry group corresponding to the software A by using a common part of the registry of the PC and the PC 200 if there is a PC in which the software A is added and installation is completed. . However, if there is no PC other than the PC 200a where the software A is added and the installation is completed, the software A cannot be associated with the registry this time. That is, even if the analysis unit 140 specifies software A as software common to a plurality of PCs in step S22 of FIG. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the registry group being created from being associated with the registered software.

  When the software A is excluded from the association target, the analysis unit 140 may associate the software A with the registry group according to the next polling result. If the creation of the registry group R11 is completed in the PC 200a at the next polling, the analysis unit 140 can appropriately associate the software A with the registry group R11. However, when the registry group corresponding to the software A is specified from the result of the next polling, the analysis unit 140 compares the registry information acquired by the next polling from the PCs 200 and 200a without taking the difference from the previous time, The common registry group R11 is specified. Then, the analysis unit 140 associates the common registry group R11 with the software A.

  In this way, the management server 100 can appropriately associate the registered software and unregistered software with the registry. According to the management server 100, not only registered software but also a registry used by unregistered software can be appropriately managed in association with the unregistered software. In the example of the correspondence management table 114, the installation folder of unregistered software is associated with the registry. On the other hand, the analysis unit 140 may determine the identification name of the unregistered software from the information of the installation folder and associate the identification name with the registry. For example, the analysis unit 140 may use a character string directly under a predetermined folder prepared by the OS for storing application software in the path of the installation folder as an identification name of unregistered software. Alternatively, an unregistered software identification name (for example, appZ) may be determined from a file name (for example, appZ.exe) of an executable file (for example, an exe format file) included in the installation folder. Then, the analysis unit 140 can associate the identification name of the unregistered software with the registry. Also in this case, the analysis unit 140 can manage information equivalent to the correspondence management table 114 by further storing and storing information in which the identification name of the unregistered software and the installation folder are associated with each other in the storage unit 110. .

  Then, the unnecessary registry determination unit 150 determines an unnecessary registry in the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d based on the correspondence management table 114 created by the analysis unit 140.

  FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating a process for determining an unnecessary registry. In the following, the process illustrated in FIG. 18 will be described in order of step number. For example, the management server 100 starts the following procedure after processing by the analysis unit 140 after polling.

(S31) The unnecessary registry determination unit 150 reads information on the correspondence between the registry and the software or folder from the correspondence management table 114.
(S32) The difference extraction unit 130 extracts the difference between the software list and folder information acquired in the previous polling and the software list and folder information acquired in the current polling, and detects the deleted software or folder. Specifically, for a certain PC, software that is included in the software list acquired by the previous polling but not included in the software list acquired by this polling has been deleted from the PC (undetected software). ). Further, for a certain PC, a folder that is included in the folder information acquired by the previous polling but not included in the folder information acquired by the current polling is a folder deleted from the PC. The difference extraction unit 130 notifies the unnecessary registry determination unit 150 of the extraction result.

  (S33) Based on the information read from the correspondence management table 114, the unnecessary registry determination unit 150 determines whether a registry corresponding to software or a folder deleted from any PC remains in the PC. If it remains, the process proceeds to step S34. If it does not remain, the process ends. For example, if a registry corresponding to software or a folder deleted from the PC 200 exists in the registry management table 111 in association with the machine ID of the PC 200, the registry remains in the PC 200.

  (S34) The unnecessary registry determination unit 150 determines that the remaining registry is an unnecessary registry for the corresponding PC. The unnecessary registry determination unit 150 instructs the PC to delete the unnecessary registry. As a result, the unnecessary registry is deleted from the PC.

  In this way, the management server 100 can determine the unnecessary registry in the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d. The management server 100 deletes unnecessary registries by the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d, thereby preventing the unnecessary registries from adversely affecting the operation of other software on the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d. .

  Further, even if the registry is not associated with the registered software, the registry associated with the unregistered software is not determined to be an unnecessary registry. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a registry used by unregistered software from being erroneously determined as an unnecessary registry and deleted.

  Furthermore, in steps S32 and S33, the unnecessary registry determination unit 150 may determine an unnecessary registry as follows. For example, for one set of software name and registry group registered in the correspondence management table 114, the corresponding registry group exists in the registry management table 111, but the corresponding software name does not exist in the software management table 112. Identify the PC. In this case, it can be determined that the software indicated by the corresponding software name has been uninstalled on the PC, but the registry has not been deleted during the uninstallation. The unnecessary registry determination unit 150 determines that the registry group corresponding to the software is an unnecessary registry. In this way, the unnecessary registry determination unit 150 can determine an unnecessary registry for each set of software names and registry groups registered in the correspondence management table 114 for each PC. Also, a registry corresponding to software (for example, software C) installed and uninstalled between the previous polling and the current polling can be determined as an unnecessary registry.

  Similarly, for example, for one set of a folder group and a registry group registered in the correspondence management table 114, the corresponding registry group exists in the registry management table 111, but the corresponding folder group exists in the folder management table 113. Identify a nonexistent PC. In this case, it can be determined that the unregistered software indicated by the corresponding folder group has been uninstalled on the PC, but the registry has failed to be deleted during the uninstallation. The unnecessary registry determination unit 150 determines that the registry group corresponding to the folder group is an unnecessary registry. In this way, the unnecessary registry determination unit 150 can determine an unnecessary registry for each set of folder groups and registry groups registered in the correspondence management table 114 for each PC. In addition, a registry corresponding to unregistered software installed and uninstalled between the previous polling and the current polling can be determined as an unnecessary registry.

  Here, in a certain PC, a certain registry part may be commonly used by a plurality of software. In this case, if a part of the plurality of software is uninstalled and the registry part is determined to be an unnecessary registry and deleted, other software may not operate. Specifically, it is as follows.

  FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating an example of common use of a registry by a plurality of software. For example, consider a case where software Y and Z are installed in the PC 200, software Y is installed in the PC 200a, and software Z is installed in the PC 200b. For example, software Y and Z are registered software.

  The management server 100 obtains a registry group corresponding to the software Y by obtaining a common part of the registry information between the PC 200a and another PC (not shown) in which the software Y is installed. The management server 100 obtains a registry group corresponding to the software Z by obtaining a common part of the registry information between the PC 200b and another PC (not shown) in which the software Z is installed. The registry group corresponding to the software Y and the registry group corresponding to the software Z have portions that are used in common.

  At this time, if only one of the software Y and the software Z is deleted from the PC 200 and the registry corresponding to the deleted software is deleted as an unnecessary registry, the remaining software sets the registry of the common part. It becomes unavailable. In this case, the operation of the remaining software is hindered. That is, in the PC 200, the part that is commonly used by the software Y and Z is a part that should not be an unnecessary registry even if either the software Y or the software Z is deleted. Therefore, the unnecessary registry determination unit 150 may determine the unnecessary registry as follows.

  FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing another determination process of the unnecessary registry. In the following, the process illustrated in FIG. 20 will be described in order of step number. The procedure of FIG. 20 differs from the procedure of FIG. 18 in that steps S33a, 33b, and 33c are executed instead of step S33. Therefore, in the following description, steps S33a, S33b, and S33c will be described, and description of other procedures will be omitted.

  (S33a) The unnecessary registry determination unit 150 determines whether or not the registry corresponding to the software or folder deleted from any PC remains on the PC based on the information read from the correspondence management table 114. The determination method is the same as in step S33. If so, the process proceeds to step S33b. If it does not remain, the process ends.

  (S33b) The unnecessary registry determination unit 150 refers to the correspondence management table 114, and among the registries determined to remain, other software that has not been uninstalled from the corresponding PC or other software that has not been deleted. It is determined whether there is a corresponding part in the folder. If there is, the process proceeds to step S33c. If not, the process proceeds to step S34.

  (S33c) The unnecessary registry determination unit 150 determines that the remaining registries other than those corresponding to other software or other folders that are not uninstalled are unnecessary. The unnecessary registry determination unit 150 instructs the corresponding PC to delete unnecessary portions. As a result, the unnecessary portion of the registry is deleted from the corresponding PC.

  As described above, when there is a registry commonly used by a plurality of software, the management server 100 can manage not to delete the registry as an unnecessary registry even if any of the plurality of software is deleted.

  Here, usually, at the time of software installation, the installer registers setting information for software operation in the registry. When uninstalling software, the uninstaller deletes the registry information registered during installation. However, unnecessary registries may remain due to omission of deletion. If the unnecessary registry remains, a malfunction may occur in the operation of the software when the software is subsequently installed (for example, when the software is reinstalled, a new version is installed, or a related software is newly installed). In addition, excessive accumulation of unnecessary registries leads to PC performance degradation (for example, storage capacity is wasted).

  The management server 100 can determine an unnecessary registry based on the correspondence management table 114 and delete it from each PC. As a result, the influence on the operation of other software can be suppressed. Also, by preventing unnecessary registries from accumulating excessively, PC performance degradation can be suppressed.

  Note that the management target machine of the management server 100 is not limited to a physical machine such as the PCs 200, 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d, but may be a virtual machine that operates on the physical machine.

  The information processing according to the first embodiment can be realized by causing the computing unit 1b to execute a program. The information processing according to the second embodiment can be realized by causing the processor 101 to execute a program. The program can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium 13.

  For example, the program can be distributed by distributing the recording medium 13 on which the program is recorded. Alternatively, the program may be stored in another computer and distributed via a network. For example, the computer stores (installs) a program recorded in the recording medium 13 or a program received from another computer in a storage device such as the RAM 102 or the HDD 103, and reads and executes the program from the storage device. Good.

Regarding the embodiments including the first and second embodiments, the following additional notes are disclosed.
(Supplementary note 1)
OS management information, file information, and registered software information managed by the OS are obtained from a plurality of managed machines,
Based on the registered software information and the OS management information, software installed on each of the plurality of machines, and first management information relating to an item group of the OS management information used by the software,
Based on the first management information and the file information of the plurality of machines, the OS management information item group in which the software to be used is not specified and the corresponding file exists is stored in the registration software. It is specified as a first item group that is an item group of OS management information used by the first software not included in the information.
Management program that executes processing.

  (Supplementary note 2) The management program according to supplementary note 1, wherein the first software and the first item group are associated with each other based on creation times of folders and files included in file information of the plurality of machines.

  (Additional remark 3) The machine used for the said correspondence is selected according to the comparison of the inquiry time to the plurality of machines of the OS management information, the file information, and the registered software information with the creation time of the folder The management program according to appendix 2.

  (Supplementary note 4) The management according to supplementary note 3, wherein a machine that is installing the first software at the inquiry time is identified by the comparison, and the association is performed using information acquired from a machine other than the machine. program.

  (Additional remark 5) The said 1st item group matched with any software is changed based on the 2nd item group matched with other software, Any one of Additional notes 1-4 Management program.

(Supplementary Note 6) The second item group is a part of the first item group,
6. The management program according to appendix 5, wherein an item group corresponding to any one of the software is changed to an item group excluding the second item group from the first item group.

  (Additional remark 7) The information of the correspondence of the some software containing the said 1st software, and a some item group is produced | generated, Based on the information of the said correspondence, the said OS management information which each of these machines has The management program according to any one of appendices 1 to 6, which determines whether or not an item group is to be deleted.

  (Supplementary Note 8) In any machine, if there is an item group included in the correspondence information, but there is no software corresponding to the item group, the item group exists in the machine. The management program according to appendix 7, wherein a part that is not associated with any other software is determined as a deletion target.

  (Supplementary note 9) Any one of Supplementary notes 1 to 8, which specifies, based on the registered software information, an item group common to two or more machines in which common software is installed as an item group used by the software. The management program described in.

  (Supplementary Note 10) The first item group is designated by specifying a range associated with a file that two or more machines have in common among the OS management information for which software to be used is not specified. The management program according to any one of appendices 1 to 9.

  (Supplementary note 11) The OS management information, the file information, and the difference between the previous acquisition amount and the current acquisition amount of the registered software information indicate the OS management information added between the previous acquisition time and the current acquisition time. Additional items 1 to 10, wherein an item group, a folder, and software are detected for each machine, and an item group of the OS management information used by the software added to each machine is specified from the added item group The management program according to any one of the above.

(Supplementary Note 12) A storage unit that stores OS management information, file information, and registered software information managed by the OS, acquired from a plurality of managed machines,
Generating, based on the registered software information and the OS management information, software installed on each of the plurality of machines, and first management information relating to an item group of the OS management information used by the software; Based on the first management information and the file information of the plurality of machines, the software to be used is not specified, and the item group of the OS management information in which the corresponding file exists is referred to as the registered software information. A computing unit that is identified as a first item group that is an item group of the OS management information used by the first software that is not included in
A management device.

(Supplementary note 13)
OS management information, file information, and registered software information managed by the OS are obtained from a plurality of managed machines,
Based on the registered software information and the OS management information, software installed on each of the plurality of machines, and first management information relating to an item group of the OS management information used by the software,
Based on the first management information and the file information of the plurality of machines, the OS management information item group in which the software to be used is not specified and the corresponding file exists is stored in the registration software. As a first item group that is an item group of the previous period OS management information used by the first software not included in the information,
Management method.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Management apparatus 1a Memory | storage part 1b Operation part 2,3,4 Machine

Claims (8)

On the computer,
OS management information, file information, and registered software information managed by the OS are obtained from a plurality of managed machines,
Based on the registered software information and the OS management information, software installed on each of the plurality of machines, and first management information relating to an item group of the OS management information used by the software,
Based on the first management information and the file information of the plurality of machines, the OS management information item group in which the software to be used is not specified and the corresponding file exists is stored in the registration software. It is specified as a first item group that is an item group of OS management information used by the first software not included in the information.
Management program that executes processing.   The management program according to claim 1, wherein the first software and the first item group are associated with each other based on a folder and a file creation time included in file information of the plurality of machines.   The machine used for the association is selected in accordance with a comparison between an inquiry time of the OS management information, the file information, and the registered software information to the plurality of machines and a creation time of the folder. The management program described.   The management program according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first item group associated with any software is changed based on a second item group associated with another software.   Generate correspondence information between a plurality of software including the first software and a plurality of items, and delete the items of the OS management information that each of the plurality of machines has based on the correspondence information The management program of any one of Claims 1 thru | or 4 which determines whether it becomes object. In the OS management information, each item belonging to the OS management information is managed in a tree structure,
Identification of the first item group is an item associated with a file shared by two or more machines in the OS management information for which software to be used is not specified based on the tree structure of the OS management information. The management program according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the management program is performed by specifying a group or an upper item to which the item group belongs . A storage unit for storing OS management information, file information, and registered software information managed by the OS, acquired from a plurality of managed machines;
Generating, based on the registered software information and the OS management information, software installed on each of the plurality of machines, and first management information relating to an item group of the OS management information used by the software; Based on the first management information and the file information of the plurality of machines, the software to be used is not specified, and the item group of the OS management information in which the corresponding file exists is referred to as the registered software information. A computing unit that is identified as a first item group that is an item group of the OS management information used by the first software that is not included in
A management device. Computer
OS management information, file information, and registered software information managed by the OS are obtained from a plurality of managed machines,
Based on the registered software information and the OS management information, software installed on each of the plurality of machines, and first management information relating to an item group of the OS management information used by the software,
Based on the first management information and the file information of the plurality of machines, the OS management information item group in which the software to be used is not specified and the corresponding file exists is stored in the registration software. Specifying the first item group which is the item group of the OS management information used by the first software not included in the information;
Management method.

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