FIRMWARE UPGRADE FOR THIN CLIENTS USING ONE OR MORE SERVERS

• US 20090282128A1
• Filed: 05/18/2009
• Published: 11/12/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dell Marketing Corporation (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Wyse Technology Incorporated (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: LE, Bach H., Mason, Ryan, Lam, Mandy Sui Mei
• Granted Patent: US 9,075,680 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57

Abstract

A process and system for upgrading firmware in a thin client in a network environment. The process may proceed on an automated basis during boot-up by using one or more FTP addresses stored in the thin client. Multiple FTP servers may be accessed. The same firmware upgrades may be stored on more than one FTP server. Different firmware upgrades may instead or in addition be stored on different FTP servers.

Claims

1. A process for upgrading firmware in a thin client, comprising:

sending an FTP request for a firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade from the thin client to a first FTP server;

not receiving the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade in response at the thin client from the first FTP server;

sending an FTP request for the same firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade from the thin client to a second FTP server that is different from the first FTP server;

receiving the firmware upgrade in response at the thin client from the second FTP server; and

upgrading firmware in the thin client with the firmware upgrade.

2. The process of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving information about the firmware upgrade; and

determining whether the firmware upgrade is needed at the thin client.

3. The process of claim 1, wherein the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade is not received from the first FTP server because the first FTP server is busy performing other downloads or is not functioning.

4. A system for upgrading firmware in a thin client comprising:

storage media comprising instructions to be performed by a processing system in communication with a network interface, the instructions for performing the following;

sending a request for a firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade from the thin client to a first server;

determining whether the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade is received in response at the thin client from the first server;

if the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade is not received, sending a request for the same firmware upgrade or information about the same firmware upgrade from the thin client to a second server that is different from the first server;

receiving the firmware upgrade in response at the thin client from the second server; and

upgrading firmware in the thin client with the firmware upgrade;

the network interface; and

the processing system configured to communicate with the storage media and the network interface and to perform the instructions.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the instructions are further for:

receiving information about the firmware upgrade; and

determining whether the firmware upgrade is needed at the thin client,

wherein the system comprises the thin client.

6. Computer-readable storage media comprising instructions to be performed by a processing system in communication with a network interface, the instructions for performing the following:

sending a request for a firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade from the thin client to a first server;

determining whether the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade is received in response at the thin client from the first server;

if the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade is not received, sending a request for the same firmware upgrade or information about the same firmware upgrade from the thin client to a second server that is different from the first server;

receiving the firmware upgrade in response at the thin client from the second server; and

upgrading firmware in the thin client with the firmware upgrade.

7. The computer-readable storage media of claim 6, wherein the instructions are further for:

sending multiple requests for the same firmware upgrade from the thin client to the second server, each of the multiple requests for a portion of the firmware upgrade.

8. The computer-readable storage media of claim 6, wherein the request for information about the firmware upgrade comprises a request for a parameter file associated with the firmware upgrade.

9. The computer-readable storage media of claim 6, wherein the instructions are further for:

reading a first address, of the first server, stored at the thin client; and

reading a second address, of the second server, stored at the thin client,

wherein the sending a request for a firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade to the first server comprises sending a request for a firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade to the first server at the first address, and

wherein the sending a request for the same firmware upgrade or information about the same firmware upgrade to the second server comprises sending a request for the same firmware upgrade or information about the same firmware upgrade to the second server at the second address.

10. The computer-readable storage media of claim 6, wherein the request for the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade is an FTP request, the request for the same firmware upgrade or information about the same firmware upgrade is an FTP request, the first server is a first FTP server, and the second server is a second FTP server.

11. Computer-readable storage media comprising instructions to be performed by a processing system in communication with a network interface, the instructions for performing the following:

sending a request for a firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade from the thin client to a first server;

determining whether the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade is received in response at the thin client from the first server;

if the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade is not received, sending a request for the same firmware upgrade or information about the same firmware upgrade from the thin client to a second server that is different from the first server;

determining whether the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade is received in response at the thin client from the second server; and

determining whether firmware is upgraded at the thin client.

12. The computer-readable storage media of claim 11, wherein the instructions are further for:

receiving information about the firmware upgrade; and

determining whether the firmware upgrade is needed at the thin client.

13. The computer-readable storage media of claim 12, wherein the determining whether the firmware upgrade is needed comprises determining, based on the received information, whether the firmware upgrade is needed at the thin client.

14. The computer-readable storage media of claim 11, wherein the sending a request for the same firmware upgrade or information about the same firmware upgrade from the thin client to a second server comprises:

sending a request for information about the same firmware upgrade from the thin client to the second server; and

sending a request for the same firmware upgrade from the thin client to the second server.

15. The computer-readable storage media of claim 11, wherein the determining whether the firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade is received in response at the thin client from the second server comprises:

determining whether information about the firmware upgrade is received in response at the thin client from the second server; and

determining whether the firmware upgrade is received in response at the thin client from the second server.

16. The computer-readable storage media of claim 11, wherein the instructions are further for:

if the thin client stores addresses of a plurality of servers for upgrading firmware at the thin client, determining whether all of the addresses of the plurality of servers are checked for receiving a firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade.

17. The computer-readable storage media of claim 11, wherein the instructions are further for:

if information about the firmware upgrade is received from the second server, determining whether the firmware upgrade is needed at the thin client.

18. The computer-readable storage media of claim 11, wherein the instructions are further for:

sending a request for the firmware upgrade from the thin client to the second server; and

determining whether the firmware upgrade is received in response at the thin client from the second server.

19. The computer-readable storage media of claim 11, wherein the instructions are further for:

if firmware is upgraded at the thin client, re-booting the thin client, and

wherein the instructions are to be performed automatically by the processing system without operator intervention.

20. The computer-readable storage media of claim 11, wherein the instructions are further for:

reading a first address, of the first server, stored at the thin client; and

reading a second address, of the second server, stored at the thin client,

wherein the sending a request for a firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade to the first server comprises sending a request for a firmware upgrade or information about the firmware upgrade to the first server at the first address, and

wherein the sending a request for the same firmware upgrade or information about the same firmware upgrade to the second server comprises sending a request for the same firmware upgrade or information about the same firmware upgrade to the second server at the second address.