SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR UPDATING FIRMWARE OVER A NETWORK

• US 20110035741A1
• Filed: 08/10/2009
• Published: 02/10/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dish Network Technologies India Private Limited
• Original Assignee: Sling Media Pvt Ltd. (Dish Network Corporation)
• Inventors: Thiyagarajan, Venkatesan
• Granted Patent: US 8,966,101 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 717/170
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57

Abstract

Firmware is updated over a network by providing an update server having a number of stored firmware files and a list file, the list file including entries uniquely identifying the identity and location of each of the firmware files. One networked device (e.g., a media player device) determines the current firmware version of a second networked device (e.g., a placeshifting device) via communication over the network and queries the update server as to the most recent version of the firmware file associated with the second networked device. If the most recent version is newer than the current firmware version, the first networked device downloads the most recent version of the firmware file and then uploads it to the second networked device.

Claims

1. A method of updating firmware over a network, comprising:

determining, using a first device, the version of a firmware file stored in a second device via communication over the network;

querying a server as to the most recent version of a firmware file associated with the second device;

transmitting the most recent version of the firmware file to the first device if the most recent version is newer than the version of the firmware file stored in the second device; and

transmitting the most recent firmware file to the second device if the most recent version is newer than the version of the firmware filed stored in the second device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first networked device is a media player, and the second networked device is a placeshifting device, further wherein the media player is configured to display streamed media provided by the placeshifting device over the network.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the list file is an XML file.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the XML file includes a uniform resource locator pointing to the location of the firmware files on the server.

5. The method of claim 1, where the determining step is performed during startup of the first networked device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first networked device performs the querying step at predetermined times.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein the XML file includes at least a product ID associated with the second networked device and a date associated with the most recent version of the firmware file.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein, during startup of the first networked device, the list file is downloaded to the first networked device.

9. A networked firmware update server comprising:

an update server having a plurality of firmware files and a list file stored therein, wherein the list file includes entries uniquely identifying the identity and location of each of the plurality of firmware files; and

wherein the update server is configured to receive a query from a first networked device as to the most recent version of the firmware file associated with a second networked device and, if the most recent version is newer than the current firmware version, transmit the most recent version of the firmware file to the first networked device.

10. The server of claim 9, wherein the first networked device is a media player, and the second networked device is a placeshifting device.

11. The server of claim 9, wherein the list file is an XML file.

12. The server of claim 11, wherein the XML file includes a uniform resource locator pointing to the location of the firmware files on the server.

13. The server of claim 9, where the server receives the query from the first networked device during startup of the first networked device.

14. The server of claim 9, wherein the server receives the query at predetermined times.

15. The server of claim 11, wherein the XML file includes at least a product ID associated with the second networked device and a date associated with the most recent version of the firmware file.

16. The server of claim 9, wherein, during startup of the first networked device, the list file is downloaded to the first networked device.

17. A method of updating firmware on a media player configured to stream media from a placeshifting device over a network, the method comprising:

determining, using the media player, a current firmware version for a first firmware file resident on the placeshifting device;

querying, via the media player, whether a second firmware file having a more recent firmware version than the current firmware version exists on an update server communicatively coupled to the media player; and

receiving at the media player the second firmware file if the second firmware file exists.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the querying step includes inspecting an XML list file associated with a plurality of firmware files stored on the update server.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein inspecting the XML file includes inspecting at least a product ID associated with the second networked device and a date associated with the most recent version of the firmware file.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the determining step is performed during startup of the media player and at predetermined times thereafter.