System and Method for Automated Deployment of an Information Handling System

• US 20090222483A1
• Filed: 02/29/2008
• Published: 09/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Dell Products BV (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Bomsta, Greg, Oates, Steve, Hanes, Kevin, Stonecipher, Kurt, Johnson, Jeremiah
• Granted Patent: US 7,987,211 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/60 Software deployment
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A system and method for automated deployment of an information handling system are disclosed. A method for managing the deployment of an information handling system may include executing a deployment application on an information handling system, the deployment application including one or more tasks associated with the deployment of the information handling system. The method may further include automatically determining for a particular task whether an execution time for the particular task is within a predetermined range of execution times. The method may further include automatically performing an error-handling task in response to determining that the execution time for the particular task is not within the predetermined range of execution times.

Claims

1. A method for automated deployment of an information handling system, comprising:

receiving at an information handling system identifying information from a source local to the information handling system, the identifying information identifying a particular one of a plurality of profiles;

automatically identifying the particular profile associated with the information handling system based on at least the identifying information received from the local source;

automatically accessing a database to;

access available profile information associated with the particular profile; and

identify unavailable supplemental profile information associated with the particular profile for deploying the information handling system;

automatically generating a customized user interface at the information handling system for inputting the supplemental profile information unavailable to the database, the customized user interface being customized based on at least the unavailable supplemental profile information;

receiving the supplemental profile information via the customized user interface; and

automatically deploying the information handling system based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the identifying information includes at least one of:

a name of a particular class of end users, a name of a particular end user, a username of the particular end user, an identification number of the particular end user, a serial number of the information handling system, and a service code of the information handling system.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the database is stored on a computer-readable medium local to the information handling system.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein automatically deploying the information handling system comprises deploying selected data from a deployment container stored on computer-readable media local to the information handling system, the selected data based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein deploying selected data from the deployment container comprises automatically installing and automatically configuring an operating system on the computer-readable media local to the information handling system based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

6. A method according to claim 4, wherein deploying selected data from the deployment container comprises automatically installing and automatically configuring at least one application program on the computer-readable media local to the information handling system based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

7. A method according to claim 4, wherein the deployment container comprises a Windows Imaging Format (WIM) file.

8. An information handling system, comprising:

a processor;

a memory communicatively coupled to the processor; and

local computer-readable media communicatively coupled to the processor, the computer-readable media having stored thereon;

a database; and

a program of instructions executable by the processor and operable to when executed;

receive identifying information from a source local to the information handling system, the identifying information identifying a particular one of a plurality of profiles;

automatically identify the particular profile associated with the information handling system based on at least the identifying information received from the local source;

automatically access the database to;

access available profile information associated with the particular profile; and

identify unavailable supplemental profile information associated with the particular profile for deploying the information handling system;

automatically generate a customized user interface for inputting the supplemental profile information unavailable to the database, the customized user interface being customized based on at least the unavailable supplemental profile information;

receive the supplemental profile information via the customized user interface; and

automatically deploy the information handling system based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

9. An information handling system according to claim 8, wherein the identifying information includes at least one of:

a name of a particular class of end users, a name of a particular end user, a username of the particular end user, an identification number of the particular end user, a serial number of the information handling system, and a service code of the information handling system.

10. An information handling system according to claim 8:

the computer-readable media further having stored thereon a deployment container;

the program of instructions further operable to automatically deploy selected data from the deployment container to the computer-readable media, the selected data based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

11. An information handling system according to claim 10, the program of instructions further operable to automatically install and automatically configure an operating system on the computer-readable media based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

12. An information handling system according to claim 10, the program of instructions further operable to automatically install and automatically configure at least one application program on the computer-readable media based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

13. An information handling system according to claim 10, wherein the deployment container comprises a Windows Imaging Format (WIM) file.

14. A method for automated deployment an information handling system, comprising:

storing a database on computer-readable media, the database including profile information associated with one or more profiles;

storing a program of instructions on computer-readable media, the program of instructions operable to, when executed on an information handling system;

receive identifying information from a source local to the information handling system, the identifying information identifying a particular one of a plurality of profiles;

automatically identify the particular profile associated with the information handling system based on at least the identifying information received from the local source;

automatically access the database to;

access available profile information associated with the particular profile; and

identify unavailable supplemental profile information associated with the particular profile for deploying the information handling system;

automatically generate a customized user interface for inputting the supplemental profile information unavailable to the database, the customized user interface being customized based on at least the unavailable supplemental profile information;

receive the supplemental profile information via the customized user interface; and

automatically deploy the information handling system based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

15. A method according to claim 14, wherein the identifying information includes at least one of:

a name of a particular class of end users, a name of a particular end user, a username of the particular end user, an identification number of the particular end user, a serial number of the information handling system, and a service code of the information handling system.

16. A method according to claim 14, further comprising storing at least one of the database and the program of instructions on computer-readable media local to the information handling system.

17. A method according to claim 14, further comprising:

storing a deployment container on computer-readable media local to the information handling system; and

wherein the program of instructions is further operable to automatically deploy selected data from the deployment container to computer-readable media local to the information handling system, the selected data based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

18. A method according to claim 17, the program of instructions further operable to automatically install and automatically configure an operating system on the computer-readable media based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

19. A method according to claim 17, the program of instructions further operable to automatically install and automatically configure at least one application program on the computer-readable media based on at least one of the identifying information, the profile information accessed from the database, and the supplemental profile information received via the customized user interface.

20. A method according to claim 17, wherein the deployment container comprises a Windows Imaging Format (WIM) file.