SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR OPERATING NETWORKED COMPUTER SYSTEMS

• US 20110119358A1
• Filed: 10/13/2010
• Published: 05/19/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/1999
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Andrew J. Woodward
• Original Assignee: Andrew J. Woodward
• Inventors: Woodward, Andrew J.
• Application Number:
  US12/904,083
• Publication Number:
  US 20110119358A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/10 File systems; File servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0803 Configuration setting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0843 based on generic templates
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0869 Validating the configuration within one network element
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]

Abstract

In various embodiments of the invention, a server monitors a network for a startup message from a client computer as appropriate. The server may include a computer application that generates configuration instructions in response to commands from an administrator and/or information obtained from a client computer. The instructions may be in the form of scripts, data, objects, or the like. The instructions may be passed to the client computer, which may execute various administrative functions as directed. In exemplary embodiments, the instructions may command direct placement, verification and/or replacement of files, directory entries, BIOS attributes or other characteristics of the client computer.

Claims

1. A method executable by a server for managing a plurality of client computers over a network, wherein each of the computers is configured to execute a local operating system, the method comprising:

storing objects associated with each of the client computers in a directory services application at the server;

storing a plurality of configuration scripts comprising instructions to be executed by said client computers at the server;

receiving an input from an administrator at the server to select at least one of the configuration scripts to be executed by at least one of said client computers upon the occurrence of an event;

associating the selected at least one of the configuration scripts with the objects associated with said at least one of said client computers at the server; and

automatically providing said selected at least one of the configuration scripts from the server to said at least one of said client computers via said network in response to said occurrence of said event to thereby initiate the execution of the selected script on the at least one of said client computers prior to execution of the local operating system.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

providing a preboot attribute determination application from the server to at least one of the client computers to thereby determine a plurality of attributes of the client computer prior to said client computer loading said local operating system;

receiving said plurality of attributes from the client computer at the server computer; and

updating the object associated with the client computer with the received attributes.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein each of the objects associated with the client computers represents attributes of said client computers, and wherein at least some of said objects are associated with at least one of a plurality of template objects based upon the attributes.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein at least one of the template objects is associated with an event object corresponding to the event.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the event object is associated with at least one of a plurality of script objects associated with the at least one of the configuration scripts.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein each of said script objects comprises instructions to be executed upon occurrence of the event by each of a plurality of said client computers having objects that are associated with the template object that is associated with the event object.

7. The method of claim 3 wherein at least one of said template objects is associated with at least one workstation group object such that each of said plurality of client computers becomes associated with said at least one of said template objects via said at least one workstation group object.

8. The method of claim 3 wherein said at least one of said template objects is associated with at least one client computer object as a function of said attributes of said at least one client computer object.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein said attributes comprise at least one of the group consisting of:

hardware attributes, firmware attributes, desktop management interface (DMI) attributes, PCI attributes, SMBIOS attributes, system manufacturer, model, motherboard type, bus information, and an adapter orientation within a system bus of said client computer.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the event is a calendar based event.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the event is a sequential event.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein said configuration scripts are formatted in accordance with at least one of the group consisting of batch scripts, PERL scripts, and REXX scripts.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the event is a temporal event, and wherein the configuration script is automatically provided from the server to the client computer in response to the occurrence of the temporal event.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the configuration script comprises an instruction to wake the client computer from an inactive state upon receipt of the configuration script.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein said objects are directory services objects.

18. The system of claim 15 wherein said event is associated with said one of said client computers by a template object in said directory services application based upon at least some of the attributes.

16. A system for managing client computers over a network, the system comprising a processor and a storage device configured to store a plurality of computer-executable modules for execution by the processor, wherein the computer-executable modules comprise:

a directory services application configured to store objects associated with said client computers;

a plurality of configuration scripts comprising instructions to be executed by said client computers;

an interface configured to allow an administrator to select a configuration script to be executed by at least one of said client computers upon the occurrence of an event and to associate the selected configuration script with the objects in the directory services application that are associated with the at least one of the client computers; and

a server application configured to automatically provide said configuration script to said at least one client computer via said network in response to said occurrence of said event to thereby allow the client computer to execute the configuration script prior to booting a local operating system on the client computer.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein the server application is further configured to provide a preboot attribute determination application from the server to at least one of the client computers to thereby determine a plurality of attributes of the client computer prior to said client computer loading said local operating system, to receive said plurality of attributes from the client computer at the server computer, and to update the object associated with the client computer with the received attributes.

19. The system of claim 16 wherein at least two of said client computers are associated with each other in said directory services application by a group object.

20. A computer readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of data structures in a computer-readable format, said data structures comprising a plurality of a workstation objects, each of said workstation objects corresponding to one of a plurality of workstations,

wherein each of said plurality of workstation objects represents attributes of said one of said plurality of workstations, and wherein at least some of said workstation objects having at least some common attributes are associated with at least one of a plurality of template objects,

wherein each of said plurality of template objects is associated with one of a plurality of event objects representing an event,

wherein each of said plurality of event objects is associated with one of a plurality of script objects, and

wherein each of said script objects comprises instructions to be automatically executed upon occurrence of the event by each of said plurality of workstations that are associated with the template object as part of a pre-boot sequence prior to execution of a local operating system.