Apparatus and method for managing configuration of computer systems on a computer network

• US 7,171,458 B2
• Filed: 06/12/2001
• Issued: 01/30/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Hintermeister, Gregory Richard, Brown, Kenneth Edgar, Murphy, Michael Bill
• Primary Examiner(s): Fleming; Fritz
• Assistant Examiner(s): PATEL, NIKETA I
• Application Number:
  US09/879,510
• Publication Number:
  US 20020188701A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,058 Days
• Field of Search: 709220-222, 709/244
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44505 Configuring for program initiating, e.g. using registry, configuration files

Abstract

A system configuration manager provides a graphical user interface that allows a system administrator to easily administer configuration settings for different computer systems and platforms on a computer network. The system configuration manager of the present invention allows identifying one system configuration or a settings profile as a “model system”. Once the model system is defined, other computer systems may be compared to the model system. Differences between the selected computer systems and the model system are then displayed, and the system configuration manager may be used to update the selected computer systems with configuration settings specified in the model system. Cross-platform support is provided by a configuration mapping mechanism that maps configuration information from one platform to corresponding configuration information for another platform. The configuration mapping mechanism effectively hides the differences between platforms by translating the configuration information from a selected platform to corresponding configuration information for the model system.

Claims

1. A networked computer system comprising:

(A) a server computer system that includes model configuration settings that specify desired operating system configuration settings for a plurality of computer operating systems;

(B) a plurality of endpoint computer systems coupled to the server computer system wherein the plurality of endpoint computer systems include a plurality of operating systems, each endpoint computer system including corresponding operating system configuration settings;

(C) a system administration workstation coupled to the server computer system, the system administration workstation including a graphical user interface for administration of the configuration settings of the plurality of endpoint computer systems, the graphical user interface including at least one display panel that allows a user to select the model configuration settings, that allows a user to select from the plurality of endpoint computer systems for comparison with the model configuration settings, that displays differences between the selected endpoint computer systems and the model configuration settings, that allows a user to select from the selected endpoint computer systems for updating, and that automatically updates the configuration settings of the endpoint computer systems selected for updating according to the model configuration settings.

2. The networked computer system of claim 1 wherein the server computer system further includes a configuration mapping mechanism that maps at least one configuration setting for at least one computer system to the model configuration settings.

3. The networked computer system of claim 2 wherein the configuration mapping mechanism maps at least one configuration setting in a first computer platform to at least one corresponding configuration setting in a second computer platform.

4. The networked computer system of claim 1 wherein the at least one configuration setting for each endpoint computer system comprises system settings and customization settings.

5. The networked computer system of claim 1 further comprising a computer program running on each computer system selected for updating, the computer program sending status of any requested update of configuration settings to the graphical user interface.

6. A networked computer system comprising:

(A) a server computer system that includes model configuration settings that specify desired operating system configuration settings for a computer system;

(B) a plurality of endpoint computer systems coupled to the server computer system wherein the computer systems represent multiple operating systems, each endpoint computer system including corresponding operating system configuration settings;

(C) a system administration workstation coupled to the server computer system, the system administration workstation including a graphical user interface for administration of the operating system configuration settings of the plurality of endpoint computer systems, the graphical user interface including at least one display panel that allows a user to select the model configuration settings, that allows a user to select from the plurality of endpoint computer systems for comparison with the model configuration settings, that displays differences between the selected endpoint computer systems and the model configuration settings.

7. The networked computer system of claim 6 wherein the server computer system further allows a user to select from the selected endpoint computer systems for updating, and that automatically updates the configuration settings of the endpoint computer systems selected for updating according to the model configuration settings.

8. The networked computer system of claim 6 wherein the server computer system further includes a configuration mapping mechanism that maps at least one configuration setting for at least one computer system to the model configuration settings.

9. The networked computer system of claim 6 wherein the configuration mapping mechanism maps at least one configuration setting in a first computer platform to at least one corresponding configuration setting in a second computer platform.

10. The networked computer system of claim 6 wherein the at least one configuration setting for each endpoint computer system comprises system settings and customization settings.

11. The networked computer system of claim 6 further comprising a computer program running on each computer system selected for updating, the computer program sending status of any requested update of configuration settings to the graphical user interface.