Automatic configuration

• US 8,094,680 B1
• Filed: 09/23/2008
• Issued: 01/10/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arlington Technologies, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Inventors: Zilbershtein, Itai Ephraim, Ben Chetrit, Ronen
• Primary Examiner(s): Wilson, Robert W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kamara, Mohamed
• Application Number:
  US12/235,915
• Time in Patent Office: 1,204 Days
• Field of Search: 370/352, 707/620, 380/255, 717/173, 717/174
• US Class Current: 370/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/082 the condition being updates or upgrades of network functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0853 by actively collecting configuration information or by backing up configuration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/05 related to OAM&P
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42314 in private branch exchanges
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13106 Microprocessor, CPU
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13109 Initializing, personal profile
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/13166 Fault prevention
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2213/1322 PBX
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 3/62 for connecting to private branch exchanges

Abstract

A method of generating an intermediate format for configuration values of telephony devices. The method includes collecting lists of configuration fields from a plurality of administrable devices; and generating a configuration file format, which includes more configuration fields than supported by any one of the administrable devices, based on the collected lists.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, from a first telephony device and by a processor, a first telephony configuration file, the first telephony configuration file comprising a plurality of first configuration fields having respective first parameter values and having a first configuration file format;

converting, by the processor, the first telephony configuration file into an intermediary configuration file comprising intermediary configuration fields corresponding to the plurality of first configuration fields, a first set of intermediary configuration fields having parameter values derived from the first parameter values;

converting, by the processor, the intermediary configuration file into a second telephony configuration file comprising a plurality of second telephony configuration fields having respective second parameter values derived from the parameter values of the intermediary configuration fields, wherein the second telephony configuration file corresponds to a second telephony device different from the first telephony device, wherein the intermediary configuration file format is not supported by the first and second telephony devices, wherein the second telephony configuration file is supported by the second telephony device but not the first telephony device, and wherein the second telephony device is to replace the first telephony device.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein generating the intermediary configuration file includes generating a file format not supported by any telephony device.

3. The method according to claim 1, comprising evaluating a complexity of telephony devices based on a comparison of their configuration fields to the intermediary configuration file format.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first and second telephony devices comprise phones.

5. The method according to claim 4, comprising transferring configuration settings of a third telephony device to a second telephony device, by converting third configuration values of the third telephony device into the intermediary telephony configuration file format and the second telephony configuration file.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein the intermediary telephony configuration file format includes more configuration fields than both the first and second telephony devices have together.

7. The method according to claim 4, wherein the intermediary telephony configuration file format includes configuration fields relating to a plurality of different communication protocol layers.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the intermediary configuration file format includes a plurality of configuration fields belonging to a user profile category and at least one of the following categories:

routing,

physical layout, and

automatic call handling.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the intermediary configuration file format includes a plurality of configuration fields belonging to a user profile category and an automatic call handling group.

10. A non-transitory computer readable medium executable by a processor, the computer readable medium including instructions, the instructions comprising:

instructions to receive, from a first telephony device, a first telephony configuration file, the first telephony configuration file comprising a plurality of first configuration fields having respective first parameter values and having a first configuration file format;

instructions to convert the first telephony configuration file into an intermediary configuration file comprising intermediary configuration fields corresponding to the plurality of first configuration fields, a first set of intermediary configuration fields having parameter values derived from the first parameter values;

instructions to convert the intermediary configuration file into a second telephony configuration file comprising a plurality of second telephony configuration fields having respective second parameter values derived from the parameter values of the intermediary configuration fields, wherein the second telephony configuration file corresponds to a second telephony device different from the first telephony device, wherein the intermediary configuration file format is not supported by the first and second telephony devices, wherein the second telephony configuration file is supported by the second telephony device but not the first telephony device, and wherein the second telephony device is to replace the first telephony device.

11. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 10, wherein converting the first parameter values into intermediary parameter values comprises dumping as a sequence of values of configuration fields, without statements in a high level computer language or a human language, linking between the configuration fields.

12. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 10, wherein converting the first parameter values comprises dumping values organized in a plurality of tables, each table including one or more records.

13. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 10, wherein the first telephony device comprises a private branch exchange.

14. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 10, wherein the intermediary configuration file includes more configuration fields than both the first and second telephony devices have together.

15. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 10, wherein the intermediary configuration file includes a plurality of configuration fields belonging to each of the following categories:

user profile, routing, physical layout, and automatic call handling.

16. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 10, comprising providing an indication of configuration fields included in the intermediary configuration file not supported by the first telephony device or by the second telephony device.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 10, wherein providing an indication of configuration fields included in the intermediary configuration file not supported by the second telephony device comprises providing an indication of configuration fields supported by at least a predetermined percentage of examined devices but not supported by the second telephony device.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 10, comprising providing a list of configuration fields for which the conversion into the intermediary configuration file was not successful.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium according to claim 18, comprising changing a design of the first telephony device or the second telephony device responsive to the list of configuration fields.

20. A configuration aiding apparatus, comprising:

an interface;

a processor in communication with the interface, the processor configured to;

receive, from a first telephony device, a first telephony configuration file, the first telephony configuration file comprising a plurality of first configuration fields having respective first parameter values and having a first configuration file format;

convert the first telephony configuration file into an intermediary configuration file comprising intermediary configuration fields corresponding to the plurality of first configuration fields, a first set of intermediary configuration fields having parameter values derived from the first parameter values;

convert the intermediary configuration file into a second telephony configuration file comprising a plurality of second telephony configuration fields having respective second parameter values derived from the parameter values of the intermediary configuration fields, wherein the second telephony configuration file corresponds to a second telephony device different from the first telephony device, wherein the intermediary configuration file format is not supported by the first and second telephony devices, wherein the second telephony configuration file is supported by the second telephony device but not the first telephony device, and wherein the second telephony device is to replace the first telephony device.