Remotely accessing a computing device in a low-power state

• US 7,974,661 B1
• Filed: 07/06/2010
• Issued: 07/05/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/14/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: American Megatrends International, LLC
• Original Assignee: American Megatrends Incorporated
• Inventors: Righi, Stefano
• Primary Examiner(s): Le; Lana N
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hsieh; Ping Y
• Application Number:
  US12/830,882
• Time in Patent Office: 364 Days
• Field of Search: 713/320, 713/324, 455/418, 455/419, 455/557, 455/566, 455/574, 455/41.1
• US Class Current: 455/574
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3209 Monitoring remote activity, e.g. over telephone lines or network connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Aspects provide a computer-readable medium for accessing computer applications and application data on a computer operating in a low-power state utilizing a wireless device and providing the requested information in a usable format over a short-range communications link. According to one aspect, a computer-readable medium causes a computer to receive a request for data over a short-range wireless link. If the computer is in a standby state, a low-power state is initiated, a software component is executed to receive the request, retrieve the data, format the data for display on the wireless device, and send the data to the wireless device. If the computer is in a hibernation mode, a pre-boot application is executed to retrieve, format, and send the stored data to the wireless device or to initiate a low-power or power-on state and forward the request to a software component for retrieving the requested data.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for remotely accessing a computing device operating in a low-power state, the method comprising:

receiving at the computing device a request for application data located on the computing device, the request being received from a wireless device communicating with the computing device via a short-range wireless communications link;

executing a pre-boot application within a Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) of the computing device without causing the computing device to exit the hibernation state, if the computing device is in a hibernation state, the pre-boot application being configured to receive the request from the wireless device while the computing device is in the hibernation state, retrieve the data from a location accessible to the pre-boot application while the computer is operating in the pre-boot environment, format the data for display on the wireless device, and send the data to the wireless device; and

executing a software component configured to communicate with an application, an application data storage device, and a second interface for communicating with a wireless device, if the computing device is in a standby state.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the computing device comprises a laptop computer.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the short-range communications link comprises a BLUETOOTH communications link.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

initiating an operating system boot sequence in response to receiving the request for data; and

sending the request to the software component.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the application data comprises data relating to at least one of electronic mail, contact information, or calendar information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the request comprises a request for a specified portion of a file, and wherein the software component is further configured to extract the requested portion from the file, format the extracted portion for display on the wireless device, and send the extracted portion to the wireless device via the second interface.

2. The method of 1, wherein the short-range communications link is established between the computing device and the wireless device by:

receiving at the computing device a low power, short-range radio signal comprising an identification of the wireless device;

authenticating the signal at the computing device as being from an allowed wireless device; and

transmitting a response signal identifying the computing device.

8. A computing device comprising a memory for storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the computing device, cause the computing device to:

receive a request for application data located on the computing device, the request being received from a wireless device communicating with the computing device over a short-range wireless communications link;

determine whether the computing device is in a hibernation state or in a standby state;

if the computing device is in the hibernation state, execute a pre-boot application within a Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) of the computing device without causing the computing device to exit the hibernation state, wherein the pre-boot application is configured to receive the request at a second interface for the requested application data and to retrieve the requested data through a first interface, retrieve the requested application data via the first interface, format the application data for display on the wireless device, and send the data to the wireless device via the second interface; and

if the computing device is in a standby state, initiate a low-power state, execute a software component configured to provide a first interface for communicating with an application and an application data storage device, and a second interface for communicating with the wireless device.

9. The computing device of claim 8, wherein execution of the instructions further cause the computing device to export the application data to a repository that is accessible to the pre-boot application while the computing device is in the hibernation state according to user-defined parameters such that the requested application data is retrieved from the repository.

10. The computing device of claim 9, wherein the user-defined parameters comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the computing device, cause the computing device to export a specified portion of a file to the repository according to a selected time interval.

11. The computing device of claim 8, wherein retrieving the requested data comprises sending the request to a software component, wherein the software component is configured to

receive the request for data stored by the application at a second software component interface for communicating with the wireless device,

translate the request to a format necessary to retrieve the requested data through a first software component interface,

retrieve the data through the first software component interface for communicating with an application and application data storage device,

format the data for display on the wireless device, and

send the data to the wireless device through the second software component interface.

12. The computing device of claim 11, wherein the request from the wireless device for the application data located on the computing device comprises a request for a specified portion of a file, and wherein retrieving the data through the first software component interface for communicating with the application and application data storage device comprises extracting the requested portion from the file through the first software component interface.

13. The computing device of claim 8, wherein causing the computing device to format the application data for display on the wireless device comprises causing the computing device to

extract only a requested portion of data from an application data file, and

configure the data for display according to display characteristics of the wireless device.

14. A computer-implemented method for remotely accessing a computing device operating in a low-power state, the method comprising:

establishing a communications link between the computing device and a wireless device;

receiving at the computing device a request for application data located on the computing device, the request being received from the wireless device and comprising a request for application data associated with the computing device;

determining whether the computing device is in a standby state or a hibernation state;

if the computing device is in the standby state, initiating a low-power state and executing a software component configured to provide a first interface for communicating with an application and application data storage device, and a second interface for communicating with the wireless device, wherein the software component is configured to send the application data to the wireless device through the second interface; and

if the computing device is in the hibernation state, executing a pre-boot application within a Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) of the computing device without causing the computing device to exit the hibernation state, the pre-boot application configured to provide the application data to the wireless device without causing the computing device to exit the hibernation state.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising exporting a specified portion of the application data file to a repository according to a selected time interval.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the application data sent to the wireless device from the software component is formatted for display at the wireless device according to an available bandwidth of the communications link between the computing device and the wireless device.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the application data sent to the wireless device is formatted for display on the wireless device according to a form factor of a display of the wireless device.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein a portion of the application data is selected by the user of the wireless device such that only user-specified data selections are pulled from the computing device to the wireless device.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the communications link comprises the Internet.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the wireless device is configured to format the application data for display.