AUTOMATIC DEVICE CONFIGURATION

• US 20160072674A1
• Filed: 09/08/2014
• Published: 03/10/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Nolan, Keith, Kelly, Mark, Carr, Hugh
• Granted Patent: US 10,411,958 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/00 Error detection; Error correction; Monitoring error detection, correction or monitoring in information storage based on relative movement between record carrier and transducer G11B20/18; monitoring, i.e. supervising the progress of recording or reproducing G11B27/36; in static stores G11C29/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3006 where the computing system is distributed, e.g. networked systems, clusters, multiprocessor systems multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46; allocation of resources G06F9/50
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3433 for load management allocation of a server based on load conditions G06F9/505; load rebalancing G06F9/5083; redistributing the load in a network by a load balancer H04L67/1029
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3452 Performance evaluation by statistical analysis
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0813 characterised by the conditions triggering a change of settings
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0816 the condition being an adaptation, e.g. in response to network events
• 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 41/5025 by proactively reacting to service quality change, e.g. by reconfiguration after service quality degradation or upgrade
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0888 Throughput
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/00 Systems for electrical power generation, transmission, distribution or end-user application management characterised by the use of communication or information technologies, or communication or information technology specific aspects supporting them

Abstract

Various systems and methods for automatic device configuration are described herein. A system for automatic device configuration comprises a performance monitor module to monitor, at a computing device, performance of the computing device during a period while the computing device communicates on a network using a current network interface of the computing device, a policy enforcement module to compare the performance of the computing device during the period with a performance policy installed on the computing device, and determine that the performance violates a threshold, the threshold provided in the performance policy. The system also includes a network configuration module to reconfigure a network configuration in response to the determining that the performance violates the threshold by disabling the current network interface and enabling a replacement network interface from a plurality of network interfaces available on the computing device.

Claims

1. A system for automatic device configuration, the system comprising:

a performance monitor module to monitor, at a computing device, performance of the computing device during a period while the computing device communicates on a network using a current network interface of the computing device;

a policy enforcement module to;

compare the performance of the computing device during the period with a performance policy installed on the computing device; and

determine that the performance violates a threshold, the threshold provided in the performance policy; and

a network configuration module to;

reconfigure a network configuration in response to the determining that the performance violates the threshold by disabling the current network interface and enabling a replacement network interface from a plurality of network interfaces available on the computing device.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a network interface discovery module to discover the plurality of network interfaces available on the computing device.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the policy enforcement module is further configured to:

receive the performance policy from a remote device on the network.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the policy enforcement module is further configured to:

maintain an ordered list of the plurality of network interfaces.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein to reconfigure the network configuration, the network configuration module is configured to:

identify a position in the ordered list of the plurality of network interfaces;

traverse the ordered list of the plurality of network interfaces to identify the replacement network interface; and

select the replacement network interface.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the ordered list is sorted from most power dissipation to least power dissipation, and wherein to traverse the ordered list, the network configuration module is configured to:

identify the replacement network interface as being a network interface adjacent to the current network interface in the ordered list, the direction of adjacency determined by the performance policy.

7. The system of claim 4, wherein to maintain the ordered list of the plurality of network interfaces, the policy enforcement module is configured to:

analyze the performance policy to identify a primary directive; and

order the plurality of network interfaces based on the primary directive.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the primary directive comprises maximizing operational lifetime of the computing device, and wherein to order the plurality of network interfaces, the policy enforcement module orders the plurality of network interfaces from interfaces with a higher power dissipation requirement to interfaces with a lower power dissipation requirement.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the primary directive comprises maximizing network throughput, and wherein ordering the plurality of network interfaces comprises ordering the plurality of network interfaces from interfaces with a higher amount of potential data throughput to interfaces with a lower amount of potential data throughput.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the performance policy includes a secondary directive, and wherein to maintain the ordered list, the network configuration module is configured to order the plurality of network interfaces based on the primary and secondary directives.

11. The system of claim 4, wherein the ordered list of the plurality of network interfaces is stored in an interface database.

12. A method of automatic device configuration, the method comprising:

monitoring, at a computing device, performance of the computing device during a period while the computing device communicates on a network using a current network interface of the computing device;

comparing the performance of the computing device during the period with a performance policy installed on the computing device;

determining that the performance violates a threshold, the threshold provided in the performance policy; and

reconfiguring a network configuration in response to the determining that the performance violates the threshold, the reconfiguring performed by the computing device, and the reconfiguring the network configuration including disabling the current network interface and enabling a replacement network interface from a plurality of network interfaces available on the computing device.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

discovering the plurality of network interfaces available on the computing device.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

receiving the performance policy from a remote device on the network.

15. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

maintaining an ordered list of the plurality of network interfaces.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein reconfiguring the network configuration comprises:

identifying a position in the ordered list of the plurality of network interfaces;

traversing the ordered list of the plurality of network interfaces to identify the replacement network interface; and

selecting the replacement network interface.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the ordered list is sorted from most power dissipation to least power dissipation, and wherein traversing the ordered list comprises:

identifying the replacement network interface as being a network interface adjacent to the current network interface in the ordered list, the direction of adjacency determined by the performance policy.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein maintaining the ordered list comprises:

analyzing the performance policy to identify a primary directive; and

ordering the plurality of network interfaces based on the primary directive.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the primary directive comprises maximizing operational lifetime of the computing device, and wherein ordering the plurality of network interfaces comprises ordering the plurality of network interfaces from interfaces with a higher power dissipation requirement to interfaces with a lower power dissipation requirement.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the primary directive comprises maximizing network throughput, and wherein ordering the plurality of network interfaces comprises ordering the plurality of network interfaces from interfaces with a higher amount of potential data throughput to interfaces with a lower amount of potential data throughput.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the performance policy includes a secondary directive, and wherein maintaining the ordered list comprises ordering the plurality of network interfaces based on the primary and secondary directives.

22. The method of claim 15, wherein the ordered list of the plurality of network interfaces is stored in an interface database.

23. A machine-readable medium including instructions for automatic device configuration, which when executed by a machine, cause the machine to:

monitor, at a computing device, performance of the computing device during a period while the computing device communicates on a network using a current network interface of the computing device;

compare the performance of the computing device during the period with a performance policy installed on the computing device;

determine that the performance violates a threshold, the threshold provided in the performance policy; and

reconfigure a network configuration in response to the determining that the performance violates the threshold, the reconfiguring performed by the computing device, and the reconfiguring the network configuration including disabling the current network interface and enabling a replacement network interface from a plurality of network interfaces available on the computing device.