Apparatus and method for secure configuration of shared medium devices

• US 20080052764A1
• Filed: 08/25/2006
• Published: 02/28/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Linksys Holdings Incorporated (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Harrington, Kendra S., McRae, Matthew, Huotari, Allen J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,908,643 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/3
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/282 based on user interaction within the home receiver circuitry for displaying additional information being controlled by a remote control apparatus H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/20 for managing network security; network security policies in general filtering policies H04L63/0227

Abstract

An UNENROLLED adapter responds to an enrollment activation signal by generating an enrollment supplicant signal. The enrollment supplicant signal is received by an ENROLLED adapter, an enrollment provider, which responds by formulating and transmitting an enrollment provider signal, including security management service information, to the UNENROLLED adapter. The UNENROLLED adapter changes a network adapter configuration responsive to the security management service information provided by the ENROLLED adapter, by which the network adapter is configured securely, and secure communications are effectuated. Enrolled adapter can solicit enrollment of an UNENROLLED adapter. The activation signal can be a physical or virtual activation sequence.

Claims

1. A network adapter, comprising:

an enrollment manager, configured to receive an activation command from an activation source and configured to emit an enrollment command in response thereto; and

an adapter controller connected to the enrollment manager to receive the enrollment command and configured to manage an enrollment signal in response thereto,

wherein the enrollment signal is one of an OUTBOUND enrollment signal or an INBOUND enrollment signal;

wherein each of the OUTBOUND enrollment signal and the INBOUND enrollment signal is one of an enrollment provider signal or an enrollment supplicant signal;

wherein the adapter controller transmits an OUTBOUND enrollment signal and receives an INBOUND enrollment signal;

wherein at least one of the enrollment manager and the adapter controller changes an network adapter configuration in accordance with an INBOUND enrollment signal; and

wherein the network adapter is effectuates secure communication across a shared medium network in response to the network adapter configuration.

2. The network adapter of claim 1, wherein the network adapter configuration is an UNENROLLED state, wherein the OUTBOUND enrollment signal is an enrollment supplicant signal, wherein the INBOUND enrollment signal is an enrollment provider signal comprising a security management service information, and wherein the network adapter configuration is changed to an ENROLLED in accordance with the security management service information.

3. The network adapter of claim 1, wherein the network adapter configuration is an ENROLLED state, wherein the activation command is the INBOUND enrollment signal, wherein the INBOUND enrollment signal is an enrollment supplicant signal, and wherein the OUTBOUND enrollment signal is an enrollment provider signal comprising a security management service information.

4. The network adapter of claim 1, wherein the activation command comprises a one-button security management service enrollment sequence.

5. A method of configuring a network adapter, comprising:

generating an enrollment supplicant signal in response to an activation command;

transmitting the enrollment supplicant signal to an enrollment provider;

receiving an enrollment provider signal from the enrollment provider, wherein the enrollment provider signal includes a security management service information;

configuring a network adapter in conformance with the security management service information, wherein the network adapter responds to configuring the network adapter by communicating securely across a shared medium.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving an enrollment supplicant signal;

formulating an enrollment provider signal to include the security management service information, responsive to the enrollment supplicant signal; and

transmitting the enrollment provider signal to effectuate configuring the network adapter, wherein the network adapter responds to configuring the network adapter by communicating securely across a shared medium.