Method and apparatus for discovery and installation of network devices through a network

• US 7,925,722 B1
• Filed: 08/01/2003
• Issued: 04/12/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/01/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vertiv IT Systems, Inc. (Vertiv Holdings Co.)
• Original Assignee: Avocent Corporation (Vertiv Holdings Co.)
• Inventors: Shelton, James, Reed, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Eng; David Y
• Application Number:
  US10/632,097
• Time in Patent Office: 2,811 Days
• Field of Search: 709/220, 709/223, 709/217, 709/230
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0809 Plug-and-play configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies

Abstract

A method and apparatus of discovering and installing managed appliances remotely using a protocol for communication on the network is described. The protocol permits a client workstation to issue a broadcast message on the network. The managed appliances will send a reply message to the workstation which includes their current IP configuration. If a managed appliance has not been properly configured, the workstation can remotely instruct the managed appliance to set its IP configuration as desired. In the event that the managed appliance is a KVM switch, the managed appliance can store information about the servers connected to it. This information can be requested by and reported to the workstation using the protocol.

Claims

1. A method of configuring a device across a network,

wherein the device is a managed appliance for operatively communicating keyboard data, cursor control data, and video data between a plurality of computers connected to the network and a workstation connected to the network,

the method comprising:

(a) the workstation broadcasting a User Datagram Protocol (UDP) discover request message across the network;

(b) in response to said UDP discover request message from the workstation, said device transmitting a UDP discover reply message, the discover reply message including at least a portion of an Internet Protocol (IP) configuration of the device, wherein the portion of the IP configuration includes a Media Access Control (MAC) address of the device, an IP address of the device, a subnet mask, and a gateway address of the device,

wherein, if the device has not already been assigned an IP address, then the IP address sent in the UDP discover reply message is a default IP address, and wherein,

if the device has not already been assigned a subnet mask, then the subnet mask sent in the UDP discover reply message is a default subnet mask, and wherein,

if the device has not already been assigned a gateway address, then the gateway address sent in the UDP discover reply message is a default gateway address;

(c) said workstation broadcasting a UDP test IP configuration message said UDP test IP configuration message including;

the MAC address of the device, an IP address, a subnet mask, and a gateway address; and

(d) upon receipt of said test IP configuration message,

(d1) said device sending a UDP test IP configuration reply message to the workstation, said test IP configuration reply message indicating a status, and

(d2) if said device does not already have an IP address, said device temporarily setting its IP configuration to configuration values sent in the UDP test IP configuration message from the workstation;

(e) upon receipt of the test IP configuration reply message from the device, the workstation sending a set IP configuration request message to the device, said set IP configuration request message including an IP address, a subnet mask, and a gateway address, and the MAC address of the device; and

(f) in response to said set IP configuration request message, said device

(f1) setting the IP configuration parameters in the device to correspond to the IP address, the subnet mask, and the gateway address sent with the instruction set IP configuration request message; and

(f2) sending a UDP set IP configuration reply message to the workstation indicating a status of the set IP configuration message.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the device is a managed appliance for operatively communicating keyboard data, cursor control data, and video data between the plurality of computers and the network.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the network is a wireless communication network.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the discover reply message also includes a model type of the device.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the IP address, the subnet mask, and the gateway address sent by the workstation in the test IP configuration message in (c) are the same as the IP address, the subnet mask, and the gateway address sent by the workstation in the set IP configuration request message in (e).

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the test IP configuration request message is sent from the workstation in (c) to test if the IP address and gateway address sent with the IP configuration message are valid for the device.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the status of the test IP configuration request message included in the test IP configuration reply message in (d1) comprises at least one status selected from:

(i) a first status indicating that that the IP address and gateway address contained in the test IP configuration request message are valid for the device and that no error occurred;

(ii) a second status indicating that that the device already has an IP address.

4. A method of configuring a device across a network, comprising:

(A) broadcasting a discover request message from a workstation on the network to a plurality of devices on the network, said discover request message using the User Datagram Protocol (UDP);

(B) in response to receipt of said discover request message from said workstation, a particular device of said plurality of devices;

(b1) looking up values of object identifiers (OIDs) associated with said device in order to determine a configuration of the particular device, and

(b2) transmitting a discover reply message from the particular device to the workstation, the discover reply message containing at least a portion of the configuration of the particular device, wherein the portion of the configuration includes an Internet Protocol (IP) address of the particular device and a Media Access Control (MAC) address of the particular device;

(C) in response to receipt of said discover reply message from said device, said workstation broadcasting a test IP configuration request message, said test IP configuration request message including a MAC address of the particular device;

(D) upon receipt of said test IP configuration request message, said particular device transmitting a test IP configuration reply message to the workstation, the test IP configuration reply message indicating a status result of the test IP configuration request message;

(E) upon receipt of the test IP configuration reply message from the particular device, the workstation transmitting a set IP configuration request message to the particular device to attempt to cause the particular device to set at least one portion of the IP configuration or the particular device to correspond to the IP configuration that was sent with the test IP configuration request message in step (C); and

(F) in response to receipt of the set IP configuration request message from the workstation, the particular device;

(f1) attempting to set its IP configuration to correspond to the IP configuration sent by the workstation; and

(f2) transmitting a set IP configuration reply message from the particular device to the workstation, the set IP configuration reply message indicating a status of actions taken in response to receipt of the set IP configuration request message by the particular device.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

transmitting from the device information corresponding to at least one of a plurality of computers communicatively coupled to the device.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the network is a wireless communication network.

11. The method of claim 4 wherein the portion of the IP configuration in the discover reply message sent in step (b2) also includes a subnet mask, and a gateway address of the particular device.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the portion of the IP configuration in the discover reply message sent in step (b2) also includes a model type of the particular device.

13. The method of claim 4 wherein the test IP configuration request message broadcast by the workstation in step (C) includes an IP address.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the test IP configuration request message broadcast by the workstation in step (C) further includes a gateway address.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein the test IP configuration request message broadcast by the workstation in step (C) further includes a subnet mask.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the status included in the test IP configuration reply message in step (D) comprises a status selected from:

(i) a first status indicating that that the IP address and gateway address contained in the test IP configuration request message are valid for the particular device and that no error occurred;

(ii) a second status indicating that that the particular device already has an IP address.

17. The method of claim 4 wherein the IP address, the subnet mask, and the gateway address sent by the workstation in the set IP configuration request message in (E) were also sent in the test IP configuration request message in (C).

18. The method of claim 4 wherein the particular device is a managed appliance for operatively communicating keyboard data, cursor control data, and video data between a plurality of computers connected to the network and at least one workstation connected to the network.