IDENTIFYING AND RESOLVING PROBLEMS IN WIRELESS DEVICE CONFIGURATIONS

• US 20080013463A1
• Filed: 07/11/2007
• Published: 01/17/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Viavi Solutions, Inc. (Lumentum Holdings Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Finisar Corporation (II-VI Incorporated)
• Inventors: Noble, Gayle, Meers, George, Teeple, William, Greel, Chip
• Granted Patent: US 8,213,333 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/254
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways

Abstract

Systems and methods for identifying and resolving problems in wireless device configurations in a wireless network. In one example embodiment, a method for resolving wireless device configuration problems includes various acts including identifying all wireless devices that are wired to a network, retrieving configuration information from each wireless device, retrieving wireless device incompatibility information and corresponding configuration solutions for each wireless device, attempting to contact each wireless device over one or more wireless communication channels in order to determine if one or more wireless capabilities of each wireless device are functioning properly, and determining that the incompatibility information of one of the wireless devices with a malfunctioning wireless capability conflicts with the configuration information of one or more of the wireless devices.

Claims

1. A method for resolving wireless device configuration problems, the method comprising the following acts:

identifying all wireless devices that are wired to a network;

retrieving configuration information from each wireless device;

retrieving wireless device incompatibility information and corresponding configuration solutions for each wireless device;

attempting to contact each wireless device over one or more wireless communication channels in order to determine if one or more wireless capabilities of each wireless device are functioning properly; and

determining that the incompatibility information of one of the wireless devices with a malfunctioning wireless capability conflicts with the configuration information of one or more of the wireless devices.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of identifying all wireless devices that are wired to a network comprises an act of identifying all wireless devices that are wired to a network by performing an IP search on the entire network including all subnets of the network.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein the IP search is performed using a Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP).

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of retrieving configuration information from each wireless device wired to the network comprises an act of retrieving at least one of the following from each wireless device wired to the network:

a name, a wired IP address, a manufacturer, a model, a revision, a driver, a driver revision, a HTTP to Wireless router IP address, a Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE), a Service Set Identifier (SSID), a Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP), or a Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU).

5. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the act of storing the retrieved configuration information.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the act of retrieving wireless device incompatibility information and corresponding configuration solutions comprises an act of retrieving wireless device incompatibility information and corresponding configuration solutions by connecting over the internet to the manufacturers'"'"' websites of each wireless device wired to the network.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the act of storing the retrieved wireless device incompatibility information and the corresponding configuration solutions.

8. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein the act of storing the retrieved wireless device incompatibility information and the corresponding configuration solutions further comprises the act of indexing the stored wireless device incompatibility information and the corresponding configuration solutions according to at least one of manufacturer, model, revision, driver, protocol, or patch.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising an act of automatically configuring one or more of the wireless devices according to the one or more configuration solutions corresponding to the incompatibility information of the wireless device with the malfunctioning wireless capability.

10. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein the act of automatically configuring one or more of the wireless devices according to the one or more configuration solutions corresponding to the incompatibility information of the wireless device with the malfunctioning wireless capability comprises automatically configuring the wireless device with the malfunctioning wireless capability according to the one or more configuration solutions corresponding to the incompatibility information of the wireless device with the malfunctioning wireless capability.

11. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein the act of automatically configuring one or more of the wireless devices according to the one or more configuration solutions corresponding to the incompatibility information of the wireless device with the malfunctioning wireless capability comprises automatically configuring a wireless device other than the wireless device with the malfunctioning wireless capability according to the one or more configuration solutions corresponding to the incompatibility information of the wireless device with the malfunctioning wireless capability.

12. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising an act of automatically informing a user of the one or more configuration solutions corresponding to the incompatibility information of the wireless device with the malfunctioning wireless capability.

13. The method as recited in claim 12, wherein the act of automatically informing a user comprises sending an email sent to the user or automatically sending a voice message to the user.

14. A method for resolving wireless device configuration problems, the method comprising the following acts:

identifying a target wireless network;

identifying a wireless device that is wirelessly connected to a servicing wireless network;

retrieving configuration information from the wireless device;

retrieving wireless device incompatibility information and corresponding configuration solutions for the wireless device and the target wireless network; and

determining that the incompatibility information of the wireless device conflicts with the configuration information of the wireless device.

15. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein the act of retrieving configuration information from the wireless device comprises an act of retrieving at least one of the following from the wireless device:

a name, a manufacturer, a model, a revision, a driver, a protocol, or a driver revision.

16. The method as recited in claim 14, further comprising the act of storing the retrieved configuration information.

17. The method as recited in claim 14, further comprising storing the wireless device incompatibility information and the corresponding configuration solutions.

18. The method as recited in claim 14, further comprising an act of automatically configuring the wireless device according to the configuration solutions corresponding to the incompatibility information of the wireless device.

19. The method as recited in claim 14, further comprising an act of automatically informing a user of the configuration solutions corresponding to the incompatibility information of the wireless device.

20. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein the act of automatically informing a user comprises sending an email sent to the user or automatically sending a voice message to the user.