INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS STORING DRIVER, CONTROL PROGRAM, AND MEDIUM STORING CONTROL PROGRAM

• US 20080201726A1
• Filed: 08/13/2007
• Published: 08/21/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/16/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Nagashima, Takeyuki
• Granted Patent: US 7,620,960 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 719/327
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4411 Configuring for operating with peripheral devices; Loading of device drivers

Abstract

A server apparatus manages a device driver for enabling any of a plurality of devices to which a plurality of client apparatuses are connected on a network. The server apparatus stores, for each client apparatus, a device driver that can be installed to the client apparatus in association with the client apparatus. In addition, the server apparatus creates a driver install task for installing any of the device drivers to any of the client apparatuses, and an agent install task for installing an agent that inquires any of the client apparatuses to install a device driver.

Claims

1. A server apparatus that manages a device driver for enabling any of a plurality of devices to which a plurality of client apparatuses are connected on a network, said server apparatus comprising:

a storage unit adapted for storing, for each client apparatus, a device driver that can be installed to the client apparatus in association with the client apparatus; and

a creating unit adapted for creating a driver install task for installing any of the device drivers stored in the storage unit to any of the client apparatuses, and an agent install task for installing an agent that inquires any of the client apparatuses to install a device driver.

2. The server apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a driver task executing unit adapted for executing the driver install task created by the creating means based on a schedule.

3. The server apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an agent install task executing unit adapted for executing the agent install task created by the creating means based on a schedule.

4. The server apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the creating unit creates the driver install task for each of client groups formed according to resource attributes of a plurality of client apparatuses.

5. The server apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the resource attribute can identify an operating system, a network, a domain or a work group.

6. The server apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the schedule can set a task execute schedule independent from the driver install task or the agent install task created by the creating unit.

7. A driver processing method carried out in a server apparatus that manages a device driver for enabling any of a plurality of devices to which a plurality of client apparatuses are connected on a network, the server apparatus including a storage unit for storing, for each client apparatus, a device driver that can be installed to the client apparatus in association with the client apparatus, said method comprising:

creating a driver install task for installing any of the device drivers to any of the client apparatuses, and an agent install task for installing an agent for inquiring any of the client apparatuses to install the device driver.

8. The driver processing method according to claim 7, further comprising executing the driver install task created in the creating step based on a schedule.

9. The driver processing method according to claim 7, further comprising executing the agent install task created in the creating step based on a schedule.

10. The driver processing method according to claim 7, wherein the creating step includes creating the driver install task for each of client groups formed according to resource attributes of a plurality of client apparatus.

11. The driver processing method according to claim 10, wherein the resource attribute can identify an operating system, a network, a domain or a work group.

12. The driver processing method according to claim 7, wherein the schedule can set a task execute schedule independent from the driver install task or the agent install task created in the creating step.

13. A computer readable storage medium that stores a program for causing a computer to execute the driver processing method according to claim 7.

14. A program stored in a computer readable medium for causing a computer to execute the driver processing method according to claim 7.