System and method for information handling system custom application ordering and installation

• US 20060288093A1
• Filed: 05/31/2005
• Published: 12/21/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Harding, Christopher, Fox, Stacey, Rones, Craig, Raley, Jefferson, Hanes, Kevin, Cox, Tim W.
• Application Number:
  US11/141,229
• Publication Number:
  US 20060288093A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/022 Multivendor or multi-standard integration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0816 the condition being an adaptation, e.g. in response to network events
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes

Abstract

Replacement of legacy information handling systems at a deployment site is automatically managed in cooperation with an information handling system manufacture site by coordinating the building of replacement information handling systems with appropriate configurations. An asset discovery tool interfaces with the legacy information handling systems through a deployment site network to discover the configurations of the legacy systems and communicates the legacy configurations to the manufacture site. An asset translation engine translates the legacy configurations to replacement configurations for building the replacement information handling systems. The ordering of replacement systems and the translation to the replacement configuration is managed by rules defined through an order tool of the deployment site and may include applications packaged at the deployment site and communicated to the manufacture site for installation on the replacement systems.

Claims

1. A system for managing replacement of legacy information handling systems interfaced with a network of a deployment site, the system comprising:

an asset discovery tool associated with the deployment site, the deployment site having plural networked legacy information handling systems, each legacy information handling system having a configuration, the asset discovery tool operable to automatically discover the configuration of the legacy information handling systems through the network to generate a discovered assets table;

an order tool associated with the deployment site and operable to communicate the discovered assets table to a manufacture site, the order tool further operable to order a replacement information handling system for one or more of the legacy information handling systems in the discovered assets table; and

an asset translation engine associated with the manufacture site, the asset translation engine operable to translate the configurations of the one or more legacy information handling systems into replacement configurations for building the replacement information handling systems.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the configurations comprise a list of applications loaded on each legacy information handling system.

3. The system of claim 2 further comprising:

an application package tool operable to package selected applications discovered by the asset discovery tool and to communicate the packaged applications to the manufacture site; and

an application distribution tool operable to receive the packaged applications and to distribute the packaged applications to replacement information handling systems having a configuration with the packaged applications.

4. The system of claim 3 further comprising:

a customer application database operable to store the packaged applications; and

a manufacture application database operable to store predetermined common applications.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the configurations comprise a list of hardware devices loaded on each legacy information handling system.

6. The system of claim 1 further comprising an asset analyzer associated with the manufacture site and operable to interface with the order tool, the asset analyzer further operable to analyze the discovered assets table to create a proposed order for replacement information handling systems for communication to the order tool.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the order tool is further operable to define parameters for the asset analyzer to apply for analyzing the discovered assets table.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the order tool is further operable to interface with the asset translation engine to define rules for the asset translation engine to translate legacy configurations into replacement configurations.

9. A method for managing replacement of legacy information handling systems interfaced with a network of a deployment site, the method comprising:

running an asset discovery tool at the deployment site to automatically discover the configuration of the legacy information handling systems through the network;

communicating the configurations of the legacy information handling systems to a manufacture site;

selecting one or more of the legacy information handling systems for replacement;

translating at the manufacture site the configuration of the selected legacy information handling system to a replacement configuration; and

building at the manufacture site the replacement information handling system with the replacement configuration.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein running an asset discovery tool further comprises discovering the hardware configuration of the legacy information handling systems.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein running an asset discovery tool further comprises discovering the software application configurations of the legacy information handling systems.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

packaging one or more applications at the deployment site;

communicating the packaged applications to the manufacture site;

determining that a legacy configuration includes a packaged application; and

installing the packaged application on a replacement information handling system.

13. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

analyzing the discovered configurations to prioritize ordering of replacement information handling systems according to one or more predetermined factors; and

presenting the prioritized ordering at the deployment site.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising:

setting the one or more predetermined factors from the deployment site.

15. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

setting at the deployment site one or more rules for translating legacy configurations to replacement configurations.