Workstation virus lockdown in a distributed environment

• US 8,010,687 B2
• Filed: 05/19/2010
• Issued: 08/30/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Micro Focus Software, Inc. (Open Text Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Novell Incorporated (Open Text Corporation)
• Inventors: Beus, David, Haeger, Edward S., Cox, Richard H., Anderson, Brad R., Buckley, Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): Higa; Brendan
• Application Number:
  US12/783,400
• Publication Number:
  US 20100250759A1
• Time in Patent Office: 468 Days
• Field of Search: 709217-229, 726 1- 6, 726 22- 27
• US Class Current: 709/229
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/56 Computer malware detection or handling, e.g. anti-virus arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/575 Secure boot
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1441 Countermeasures against malicious traffic countermeasures against attacks on cryptographic mechanisms H04L9/002

Abstract

Systems and methods for insuring that a client computer has up-to-date virus protection are provided, and include initiating a boot sequence pursuant to a boot image on a client computer for accessing a network, accessing a remote management server according to a preliminary instruction from the boot image, determining whether the client includes a latest virus file and forwarding the latest virus file if the client does not include the latest virus file.

Claims

1. A method for workstation virus lockdown in a distributed environment, comprising:

receiving, at a server, a request to access a network from a client computer prior to a process for booting a disk image on the client computer, wherein the request received from the client computer identifies a current virus file locally stored on the client computer;

forwarding, from the server, a latest virus file resident on the server to the client computer in response determining that the current virus file locally stored on the does not correspond to the latest virus file resident on the server;

determining, at the server, whether the client computer has performed a local virus scan with the latest virus file, wherein the server determines whether the client computer has performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file during the process for booting the disk image on the client computer; and

providing the client computer access to the network in response to determining that the client computer has performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the client computer access to the network further includes:

notifying a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server that the client computer has performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file; and

forwarding an address on the network from the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server to the client computer, wherein the client computer accesses the network from the forwarded address.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising denying the client computer access to the network in response to determining that the client computer has not performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising forwarding an alternate boot image from the server to the client computer in response to determining that the client computer has not performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the alternate boot image comprises a partial boot image having one or more boot instructions that load browser software enabling the client computer to download the latest virus file resident on the server.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the client computer repeats the process for booting the disk image on the client computer in response downloading the latest virus file resident on the server with the browser software loaded by the one or more boot instructions in the partial boot image.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

notifying a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server to grant the client computer a restricted sub-net address on the network in response to determining that the client computer has not performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file; and

forwarding the restricted sub-net address from the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server to the client computer, wherein the restricted sub-net address grants the client computer limited access to the network.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the limited access to the network enables the client computer to download the latest virus file.

9. A system for workstation virus lockdown in a distributed environment, comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium containing a latest virus file; and

a server communicatively coupled to the computer-readable storage medium, wherein the server is configured to;

receive a request to access a network from a client computer prior to a process for booting a disk image on the client computer, wherein the request received from the client computer identifies a current virus file locally stored on the client computer;

forward the latest virus file stored in the computer-readable storage medium to the client computer in response determining that the current virus file locally stored on the does not correspond to the latest virus file;

determine whether the client computer has performed a local virus scan with the latest virus file, wherein the server determines whether the client computer has performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file during the process for booting the disk image on the client computer; and

provide the client computer access to the network in response to determining that the client computer has performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein to provide the client computer access to the network, the server is further configured to:

notify a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server that the client computer has performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file; and

forward an address on the network from the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server to the client computer, wherein the client computer accesses the network from the forwarded address.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the server is further configured to deny the client computer access to the network in response to determining that the client computer has not performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the server is further configured to forward an alternate boot image to the client computer in response to determining that the client computer has not performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the alternate boot image comprises a partial boot image having one or more boot instructions that load browser software enabling the client computer to download the latest virus file.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the client computer repeats the process for booting the disk image on the client computer in response downloading the latest virus file with the browser software loaded by the one or more boot instructions in the partial boot image.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein the server is further configured to:

notify a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server to grant the client computer a restricted sub-net address on the network in response to determining that the client computer has not performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file; and

forward the restricted sub-net address from the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol server to the client computer, wherein the restricted sub-net address grants the client computer limited access to the network.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the limited access to the network enables the client computer to download the latest virus file.

17. A method for workstation virus lockdown in a distributed environment, comprising:

communicating, from a client computer, a request to access a network to a server prior to a process for booting a disk image on the client computer, wherein the request communicated from the client computer identifies a current virus file locally stored on the client computer;

receiving, from the server, a latest virus file resident on the server at the client computer, wherein the server forwards the latest virus file to the client computer in response determining that the current virus file locally stored on the does not correspond to the latest virus file resident on the server;

performing, at the client computer, a local virus scan with the latest virus file received from the server; and

executing the process for booting the disk image on the client computer, wherein the server grants the client computer access to the network during the process for booting the disk image on the client computer in response to determining that the client computer has performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the server denies the client computer access to the network in response to determining that the client computer has not performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the server forwards an alternate boot image to the client computer in response to determining that the client computer has not performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the server forwards a restricted sub-net address on the network to the client computer in response to determining that the client computer has not performed the local virus scan with the latest virus file, and wherein the restricted sub-net address grants the client computer limited access to the network.