System and method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a dynamically generated boot file using a server

• US 7,293,078 B2
• Filed: 07/14/2003
• Issued: 11/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Time Warner Cable Inc. (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Inventors: Danforth, Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Barot; Bharat
• Application Number:
  US10/619,236
• Publication Number:
  US 20050038880A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,576 Days
• Field of Search: 709202-203, 709217-222, 713 1- 2, 713/100
• US Class Current: 709/222
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A system and method for provisioning provisionable network devices with a dynamically created boot file using a server. A dynamic configuration server (DCS) generates one or more boot file templates, each boot file template comprising attributes having a name and value. A boot file request comprising a boot file template identifier is received by the DNS from a provisionable network device. The DCS uses the boot file template identifier to select a boot file template for the provisionable network device and to assign attribute values to the attributes of the selected boot file template. The boot file is used to provision the provisionable network device.

Claims

1. A system for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file comprising:

a communication link; and

a dynamic configuration server (DCS) connected to the communication link, the DCS configured to;

generate a boot file template, wherein the boot file template is associated with a boot file template identifier and wherein the boot file template comprises an attribute associated with the provisionable network device;

receive a boot file request from the provisionable network device via the communication link, wherein the boot file request comprises the boot file template identifier and an attribute value associated with the attribute;

select the boot file template based on the boot file template identifier;

extract the attribute value from the boot file request;

create a boot file by assigning the attribute value in the boot file request to the attribute of the template; and

send the boot file via the communication link to the provisionable network device, wherein the provisionable network device is provisioned with the boot file.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the communication link is an IP network.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the DCS is a TFTP server.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the boot file template identifier is a boot file filename.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the DCS comprises a table of indexed hash values and wherein the DCS is further configured to:

compute a hash value of the boot file filename;

make a determination whether the computed hash value matches an indexed hash value on the indexed hash table; and

if the computed hash value matches an indexed hash value on the indexed hash table, then select the boot file template associated with the indexed hash value.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the DCS comprises a table of indexed hash values and wherein the DCS is further configured to:

compute a hash value of the boot file filename;

make a first determination whether the computed hash value matches one of the indexed hash values on the indexed hash table;

if the computed hash value does not match one of the indexed hash values on the indexed hash table, then make a second determination whether the boot file filename identifies the boot file template; and

if the boot file filename identifies the boot file template, then select the boot file template identified by the boot file filename, associate the computed hash value with the selected boot file template, and add the computed hash value to the indexed hash table.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the provisionable network device is a DOCSIS-compliant device.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the provisionable network device is a PacketCable compliant device.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the provisionable network device is a CableHome compliant device.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the provisionable network device is selected from the group consisting of a router, a modem, a computer, a switch, a printer and a server.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the provisionable network device is connected to a network and wherein the DCS is further configured to:

generate a first message integrity check (MIC) by computing a hash of the attributes and the attribute values of the boot file and a shared key; and

append the first MIC to the boot file, wherein the system further comprises a network registration server configured to;

receive the boot file from the provisionable network device;

generate a second MIC by computing a hash of the attributes and the attribute values as received by the registration server and the shared key;

make a determination if the first MIC and the second MIC are the same;

if the first MIC and the second MIC are the same, then register the provisionable network device with the network thereby allowing the provisionable network device to operate on the network.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the DCS is further configured to:

determine if the shared key has changed; and

if the shared key has changed, then communicate the shared key to the network registration server.

13. A method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file comprising:

generating boot file template, wherein the boot file template is associated with a boot file template identifier and wherein the boot file template comprises an attribute associated with the provisionable network device;

receiving a boot file request from the provisionable network device via a communication link, wherein the boot file request comprises the boot file template identifier and an attribute value associated with the attribute;

selecting the boot file template based on the boot file template identifier;

extracting the attribute value from the boot file request;

creating a boot file by assigning the attribute value in the boot file request to the attribute of the template;

sending the boot file to the provisionable network device via the communication link; and

provisioning the provisionable network device with the boot file.

14. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 13, wherein the communication link is an IP network.

15. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 13, wherein the DCS is a TFTP server.

16. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 13, wherein the boot file template identifier is a boot file filename.

17. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 16, wherein the DCS comprises a table of indexed hash values and wherein selecting the boot file template comprises:

computing a hash value of the boot file filename;

making a determination whether the computed hash value matches an indexed hash value on the indexed hash table; and

if the computed hash value matches an indexed hash value on the indexed hash table, then selecting the boot file template associated with the indexed hash value.

18. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 16, wherein the DCS comprises a table of indexed hash values and wherein selecting the boot template comprises:

computing a hash value of the boot file filename;

making a first determination whether the computed hash value matches one of the indexed hash values on the indexed hash table;

if the computed hash value does not match one of the indexed hash values on the indexed hash table, then making a second determination whether the boot file filename identifies the boot file template; and

if the boot file filename identifies the boot file template, then selecting the boot file template identified by the boot file filename, associating the computed hash value with the selected boot file template, and adding the computed hash value to the indexed hash table.

19. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 13, wherein the provisionable network device is a DOCSIS-compliant device.

20. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 13, wherein the provisionable network device is a PacketCable compliant device.

21. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 13, wherein the provisionable network device is a CableHome compliant device.

22. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 13, wherein the provisionable device is selected from the group consisting of a router, a modem, a computer, a switch, a printer, and a server.

23. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 13, wherein the provisionable network device is connected to a network and wherein the method further comprises:

generating a first message integrity cheek (MIC) by computing a hash of the attributes and the attribute values of the boot file and a shared key;

appending the first MIC to the boot file;

sending the boot file from the provisionable network device to a network registration server;

at the network registration server, generating a second MIC by computing a hash of the attributes and the attribute values as received by the registration server and the shared key;

making a determination if the first MIC and the second MIC are the same; and

if the first MIC and the second MIC are the same, then registering the provisionable network device with the network thereby allowing the provisionable network device to operate on the network.

24. The method for provisioning a provisionable network device with a boot file of claim 23, wherein the method further comprises:

at the DCS, determining if the shared key has changed; and

if the shared key has changed, then communicating the shared key to the registration server via the communications link.