System for automatically configuring a network adapter without manual intervention by using a registry data structure maintained within a computer system memory

• US 6,003,097 A
• Filed: 04/09/1997
• Issued: 12/14/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Short, Robert T., Santerre, Pierre-Yves, Lipe, Ralph A., Voth, David W., Enstrom, Mark R., Lichtman, Moshe, Richman, Darryl Steven, Lennon, Thomas E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Luu, Le Hien
• Application Number:
  US08/838,875
• Time in Patent Office: 979 Days
• Field of Search: 380/23, 380/4, 710/8, 710/9, 710/11
• US Class Current: 710/8
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/102 where the programme performs an interfacing function, e.g. device driver G06F13/105 takes precedence; scheduling within device drivers G06F9/52; contention policies within device drivers G06F9/4881
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/177 Initialisation or configuration control processor initialisation G06F9/4405
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4411 Configuring for operating with peripheral devices; Loading of device drivers

Abstract

A system for configuring a network adapter of a computer without user intervention. Device information for the devices of the computer, including each network adapter, is collected to uniquely identify the devices and to describe the device characteristics associated with the operation of those devices with the computer. Computer resources, which support the functions of the devices within the computer, are allocated based upon this device information. This allocation process prevents a potential conflicting use of computer resources by the installed devices. A device driver, which enables communications between a corresponding device and the computer, is also identified and loaded for each of the devices in response to the allocation of computer resources. In response to loading the driver for each network adapter, each network configuration routine or layer for a particular interface of the corresponding network adapter is identified. In response to the identification of these layers, each identified layer for the particular interface is loaded. In turn, layers are identified and loaded for each of the remaining interfaces of the corresponding network adapter.

Claims

1. For a network adapter configured for operation with a computer running an operating system having a registry data structure maintained within system memory, said network adapter having assigned resources and a loaded device driver, a method for configuring a plurality of layers associated with said network adapter without manual intervention, said layers comprising at least one of protocols, redirectors and servers, each of said layers associated with one of a plurality of interfaces that support communications among the layers and between the network adapter and the layers, said method comprising the steps:

(a) selecting a particular one of said interfaces;

(b) identifying each layer associated with the particular one of said interfaces by searching a registry of said operating system to locate identifying information for the layers of said particular interface;

(c) loading each identified layer by searching said registry of said operating system to locate driver information defining a driver of each identified layer and driver configuration information defining driver configuration parameters for said driver of each identified layer, loading said driver for each identified layer, and configuring said driver of each identified layer based on the corresponding driver configuration parameters; and

(d) repeating steps (a)-(c) for each of the remaining ones of said layers connected to remaining ones of said interfaces.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said identifying step comprises searching said registry and locating a first entry having an interface identification code that identifies said particular interface, said first entry further having a layer identification code for each layer associated with said particular interface, said layer identification code uniquely defining the identity of a corresponding layer.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said identifying step further comprises storing each layer identification code within one of a plurality of hierarchically-arranged device nodes within system memory of said computer, said device nodes defining the present configuration of said network adapter.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein said step of loading each identified layer comprises:

(a) locating within said registry a second entry having one of said layer identification code for said identified layer, said second entry further having a driver identification code that uniquely defines a driver for said identified layer;

(b) locating within said registry a third entry having said driver identification code, said third entry containing said driver configuration parameters for said driver for said identified layer;

(c) loading said driver for said identified layer within system memory of said computer; and

(d) supplying said driver configuration parameters to said driver for said identified layer.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of identifying each layer is initiated in response to loading said device driver for said network adapter.

6. A system for automatically configuring each of a plurality of layers associated with a network adapter without manual intervention and without prior configuration information, said layers comprising at least one of protocols, redirectors, and servers, each of said layers associated with one of a plurality of interfaces, said network adapter configured for operation with a computer by having assigned resources comprising selected ones of memory addresses, direct memory access channels, interrupts, and input/output ports, and a loaded device driver, said system comprising:

identifying means for identifying a selected layer associated with a particular interface by searching a database of said computer, based on the identity of said particular interface, and locating a first entry having an identification code that identifies said particular interface

said identifying means further operative to use said layer identification code to locate within said database a second entry having said layer identification code and a driver identification code that uniquely defines a driver for said selected layer, and to use said driver identification code to locate within said database a third entry having said driver identification code and configuration parameters for said driver; and

a device loader for loading said driver for said selected layer within system memory of said computer and configuring said driver with said device configuration parameters.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein said identifying means identifies a first one of said layers associated with said particular interface in response to the loading of said device driver for said network adapter.

8. For a network adapter configured for operation with a computer, the network adapter having assigned resources and a loaded device driver, a computer-implemented method for configuring a plurality of layers associated with the network adapter without manual intervention, the layers comprising at least one of protocols, redirectors and servers, each of the layers associated with one of a plurality of interfaces that support communications among the layers and between the network adapter and the layers, the method comprising the steps:

(a) identifying each layer associated with a particular one of the interfaces by searching a database of the computer, based on the identity of the particular interface, to locate a first entry having an interface identification code that identifies the particular interface and a layer identification code for each layer associated with the particular interface, the layer identification code uniquely defining the identity of a corresponding layer;

(b) loading each identified layer associated with the particular interface by;

comparing entries in the database with the layer identification code to locate a second entry having the layer identification code, the second entry further comprising a driver identification code that uniquely defines a driver for the identified layer;

comparing entries in the database with the driver identification code to locate a third entry having the driver identification code, the third entry further comprising configuration parameters for the driver for the identified layer;

loading the driver for the identified layer within system memory of the computer;

supplying the configuration parameters to the driver for the identified layer; and

repeating steps (a)-(b) for each of the remaining ones of the layers connected to remaining ones of the interfaces.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, wherein the identifying step further comprises storing each layer identification code within one of a plurality of hierarchically-arranged device nodes within system memory of the computer, the device nodes defining the present configuration of the network adapter.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, wherein the first entry comprises identifying information for the layers for the particular interface, the second entry comprises information defining the driver for the identified layer, and the third entry comprises information defining configuration parameters for the driver of the identified layer.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, wherein the database comprises a registry data structure of an operating system for the computer, the registry maintained with system memory of the computer, and the first, second and third entries are maintained within the registry, the first and second entries stored within a hardware archive and the third entry stored within a software archive.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the first entry further comprises a plurality of data fields, including a device descriptor field, a class field, a driver field, and a bindings field,

the device descriptor field comprising a descriptive term for the particular interface,

the class field comprising an identifier defining the primary operating function of the particular interface,

the driver field comprising an identifier for a driver for the particular interface, and

the bindings field comprising each layer identification code for the layers that are bound to the particular interface.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the second entry further comprises a plurality of data fields, including a device descriptor field, a compatible device descriptor field, a class field, a driver field, and a bindings field,

the device descriptor field comprising a descriptive term for the identified layer,

the compatible device descriptor field comprising a descriptive term for a layer compatible with the identified layer,

the class field comprising an identifier defining the primary operating function of the identified layer,

the driver field comprising an identifier for a driver for the identified layer, and

the bindings field comprising identifiers for the remaining layers required to complete a network configuration.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, wherein the interface identification code comprises a combination of an interface name that uniquely identifies the particular interface and an instance number defining the instance of the particular interface.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein the interface name comprises a character string defined by a combination of an identity of the vendor for the particular interface and a model number for the particular interface.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, wherein the layer identification code comprises a combination of a layer name that uniquely identifies the identified layer and an instance number defining the instance of the identified layer.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, wherein the driver identification code comprises a combination of an driver name that uniquely identifies the driver for the identified layer and an instance number defining the instance of the driver.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, wherein the plurality of layers are configured in response to detecting installation of the network adapter for the computer.