Software instrumentation method and apparatus

Patent 6968540 Issued on November 22, 2005. Estimated Expiration Date:

June 12, 2021. Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.

Abstract Claims Description Full Text

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Inventors

Assignee

OPNET Technologies Inc.

Application

No. 09879838 filed on 06/12/2001

US Classes:

717/130, Including instrumentation and profiling717/116, Object oriented717/127, Monitoring program execution235/449, Magnetic340/506, Alarm system supervision365/200, Bad bit717/125, Having interactive or visual370/252, Determination of communication parameters717/128, Tracing714/38, Of computer software702/182, Performance or efficiency evaluation709/224, Computer network monitoring370/235, Flow control of data transmission through a network707/10, Distributed or remote access370/244, Of a switching system717/166, Using class loader702/185, Cause or fault identification706/52, Reasoning under uncertainty (e.g., fuzzy logic)706/25, Learning method714/47, Performance monitoring for fault avoidance370/469, Processing multiple layer protocols706/59, Creation or modification707/5, Query augmenting and refining (e.g., inexact access)706/26, Structure702/183, Diagnostic analysis702/186, Computer and peripheral benchmarking717/118, Bytecode (e.g., Java)345/440, Graph generating714/37, Analysis (e.g., of output, state, or design)379/134, At central station379/32.01, Monitoring717/115, Script717/137, Source-to-source programming language translation706/60, Expert system shell or tool706/48, Having specific pattern matching or control technique717/158, Including instrumentation and profiling382/181, PATTERN RECOGNITION702/58, For electrical fault detection702/189, Measured signal processing706/1, FUZZY LOGIC HARDWARE370/229, DATA FLOW CONGESTION PREVENTION OR CONTROL705/7, Operations research709/203, Client/server714/27, Particular access structure714/25, Fault locating (i.e., diagnosis or testing)600/300, DIAGNOSTIC TESTING705/2, Health care management (e.g., record management, ICDA billing)709/223COMPUTER NETWORK MANAGING

Examiners

Primary: Dam, Tuan Q.
Assistant: Rampuria, Satish S.

Attorney, Agent or Firm

Davis & Bujold, P.L.L.C.

Foreign Patent References

296 00 609 U 1 DE 03/01/1997
WO 96/12224 WO 04/01/1996

International Class

G06F009/44

Abstract

Methods and an apparatus for instrumenting object oriented software that do not require modification to existing source code or to executable files, nor do they require modification to any existing sequences of object resident instructions. Methods include the class interceptor, doppelganger and method hijacking software instrumentation techniques. The class interceptor technique intercepts and monitors the paths of execution associated with methods inherited by a target class. The class doppelganger technique intercepts and monitors the paths of execution entering a target class. The method hijacking technique creates and adds instrumented methods directly to a target class.

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