Apparatus and method for providing topology information about a network

摘要

A method and apparatus for providing information about the logical and physical connections between devices on a network. The apparatus includes a storage access unit coupled to a storage device. The storage device stores a database of connectivity information. Various applications which display network information request the information from the storage access unit. The storage access unit supplies the information to the applications based on information contained in the connectivity database. The connectivity database is incrementally built and updated as information is acquired from devices on the network in response to requests for information not currently stored in the database.