UNIFIED STORAGE FOR CONFIGURING MULTIPLE NETWORKING TECHNOLOGIES
First Claim
1. A method for use in a computer system comprising at least one computer, the at least one computer comprising a plurality of media managers that collectively enable the at least one computer to communicate using a plurality of network connection technologies, the method comprising acts of:
- (A) providing at least one management interface that enables an administrator to establish a plurality of sets of one or more network connection settings, each of the plurality of sets of network connection settings corresponding to one of the plurality of media managers and being used to configure the corresponding media manager to enable the at least one computer to communicate using a network connection technology enabled by the corresponding media manager;
(B) in response to input received from the administrator via the at least one management interface, creating a plurality of network connection profiles that each corresponds to one of the plurality of media managers; and
(C) providing the plurality of network connection profiles to the at least one computer in a same network configuration file.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A network and connection provisioning framework for configuring and provisioning multiple aspects of network connectivity (e.g., multiple networks, media types, and/or connections). The framework may comprise a unified configuration interface that enables an administrator to configure multiple different types of network connectivity. A single configuration file comprising settings for multiple aspects of network connectivity may be generated based on preferences entered by a system administrator, or by exporting current settings from a particular computing device. Global configuration policies or other configuration settings that span multiple types of network connectivity may be also created and stored in one or more configuration files. Stand-alone media managers and/or plug-in modules may implement one or more standardized application programming interface functions so that they may interoperate with the network and connection provisioning framework. The standardized API may be used to ensure that configuration information is handled and stored in a standardized manner by different media managers and/or plug-in modules.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method for use in a computer system comprising at least one computer, the at least one computer comprising a plurality of media managers that collectively enable the at least one computer to communicate using a plurality of network connection technologies, the method comprising acts of:
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(A) providing at least one management interface that enables an administrator to establish a plurality of sets of one or more network connection settings, each of the plurality of sets of network connection settings corresponding to one of the plurality of media managers and being used to configure the corresponding media manager to enable the at least one computer to communicate using a network connection technology enabled by the corresponding media manager; (B) in response to input received from the administrator via the at least one management interface, creating a plurality of network connection profiles that each corresponds to one of the plurality of media managers; and (C) providing the plurality of network connection profiles to the at least one computer in a same network configuration file. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A computer comprising:
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a first media manager that enables the at least one computer to communicate using a first network connection technology; a second media manager that enables the at least one computer to communicate using a second network connection technology that is different than the first network connection technology; and at least one processor programmed to; retrieve from a same network configuration file a first network connection profile that comprises a first set of one or more network connection settings for the first network connection technology and a second connection profile that comprises a second set of one or more network connection settings for the second network connection technology; use the first set of network connection settings to configure the first media manager to enable the computer to communicate using the first network connection technology according to the first set of network connection settings; and use the second set of network connection settings to configure the second media manager to enable the computer to communicate using the second network connection technology according to the second set of network connection settings. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15)
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16. At least one computer readable medium encoded with a plurality of instructions that, when executed, perform a method for use in a computer system comprising at least one computer, the at least one computer comprising a plurality of media managers that collectively enable the at least one computer to communicate using a plurality of network connection technologies, the method comprising acts of:
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(A) providing at least one management interface that enables an administrator to establish a plurality of sets of one or more network connection settings, each of the plurality of sets of network connections corresponding to one of the plurality of media managers and being used to configure the corresponding media manager to enable the at least one computer to communicate using the network connection technology enabled by the corresponding media manager, wherein; the at least one management interface comprises a common application user interface through which the administrator may establish the plurality of network connection settings; the common management interface is provided via a single application program comprising a framework and at least first and second plug-ins incorporated into the framework; the first plug-in is specially adapted to provide the single application program with functionality that enables the single application program to be used to establish a first set of network connection settings for a first media manager that enables the at least one computer to communicate using a first network connection technology; and the second plug-in is specially adapted to provide the single application program with functionality that enables the single application program to be used to establish a second set of network connection settings for a second media manager that enables the at least one computer to communicate using a second network connection technology; and (B) in response to input received from the administrator via the at least one management interface, creating a plurality of network connection profiles that each corresponds to one of the plurality of media managers; and (C) providing the plurality of network connection profiles to the at least one computer in a same network configuration file. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification