System and method for providing support services using administrative rights on a client computer

• US 8,131,830 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2004
• Issued: 03/06/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Gill, Rajpal S., Tripp, Thomas M., Barkley, James L., Srininvasan, Karamadai
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu, Kim
• Assistant Examiner(s): Truvan, Leynna
• Application Number:
  US10/828,078
• Publication Number:
  US 20050234824A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,878 Days
• Field of Search: 713/150, 713/155, 713182-186, 713188-189, 726 1- 8, 726 17- 19, 726/12, 726 26- 31, 709/203, 709/229, 709223-225
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/105 Multiple levels of security
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416

Abstract

A method is provided for enabling a support program to provide services using imported administrative rights on a client computer for a user without administrative rights. The method includes the operation of creating a global administrative account on a domain server for a computer network. In addition, the support program can be activated on the client computer. A further operation is creating a process with administrative rights from the support program using the global administrator account on the domain server. The support services enabled with administrative rights can then to be provided for the client computer using the process created with administrative rights.

Claims

1. A method for enabling a support program to provide services using administrative rights on a client computer for a user without administrative rights, comprising the steps of:

creating a global administrative account on a domain server for a computer network, wherein the administrative rights of the client computer are managed by the global administrative account;

activating the support program on the client computer;

storing global administrative account access information in a encrypted file;

enabling the support program to download and decrypt the encrypted file;

creating a process with administrative rights via the support program using the global administrator account on the domain server, wherein the process allows a user of the client computer without administrative rights to perform trouble shooting and problem resolution on the client computer;

enabling support services with administrative rights for the user of the client computer without administrative rights using the process, wherein the support services are used by the user of the client computer without administrative rights to perform trouble shooting and problem resolution on the client computer; and

removing the process with administrative rights for the user without administrative rights from the client computer where administrative services were provided once the trouble shooting and problem resolution is complete.

2. A method for as in claim 1, further comprising the step of downloading the process with administrative rights from the Internet to provide the support services.

3. A method as in claim 1, further comprising the step of storing global administrative account authentication information in an encrypted account information.

4. A method as in claim 3, further comprising the step of storing the encrypted account information file as a strongly encrypted file on a server.

5. A method as in claim 3, further comprising the step of storing the encrypted account information file on a Hyper-Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) enabled server.

6. A method as in claim 3, further comprising the step of enabling the support program to download and decrypt the encrypted account information file containing the global administrative account authentication information.

7. A method as in claim 1, further comprising the step of removing the process with the administrative rights from the client computer where the support services were provided.

8. A method as in claim 7, further comprising the step of removing all administrative rights on the client computer.

9. A method as in claim 1, further comprising the step of removing the support program, process, and additional support software.

10. A method as in claim 1, further comprising the step of providing web enabled support services through the support program.

11. A method as in claim 10, wherein the step of providing web enabled support services further comprises the step of providing a user interface to the end-user to execute hardware diagnostics.

12. A method as in claim 10, wherein the step of providing web enabled support services further comprises the step of allowing web enabled support services to be launched from pre-defined sites.

13. A method as in claim 10, wherein the step of providing web enabled support services further comprises the step of allowing web enabled support services to be launched from a trusted internet site.

14. A method as in claim 10, further comprising the step of supplying web enabled support services to execute that are selected from the group consisting of advanced information recovery services, hardware diagnostics, data harvesting, application installation, driver updates and pre-scripted solutions.

15. A method as in claim 1, further comprising the step of hosting the encrypted account information file on a local computer network that is protected from public computer networks.

16. A method as in claim 1, further comprising the step of enabling the support program to be downloaded from a trusted internet site.

17. A method for enabling a support program to provide support services using imported administrative rights on a client computer without administrative rights being granted to an end user on the client computer, comprising the steps of:

creating a global administrative account on a domain server in communication with a computer network, wherein the administrative rights of the client computer are managed by the global administrative account;

activating the support program on the client computer where the end user does not have administrative rights, wherein activating the support program includes activating a support program to perform trouble shooting and problem resolution on the client computer;

storing global administrative account access information in a strongly encrypted file;

enabling the support program to download and decrypt the strongly encrypted file;

creating a process with administrative rights via the support program using the global administrator account that exists on the domain server, wherein the process allows the end user without administrative rights to perform trouble shooting and problem resolution on the client computer;

enabling administrative support services with administrative rights for the end user without administrative rights from the process, wherein administrative support services are provided to the end user without administrative rights to perform troubleshooting and problem resolution on the client computer through the Internet; and

removing the process with administrative rights for the end user without administrative rights from the client computer where administrative services were provided once the trouble shooting and problem resolution is complete.

18. A method as in claim 17, further comprising the step of allowing an entity which controls the local network to determine a level of administrative rights granted using the global administrative account.

19. A method as in claim 17, further comprising the step of providing web enabled support services through the support program.

20. A method as in claim 17, further comprising the step of decrypting authentication information for the global administrative account from the strongly encrypted file to enable the process created by the support program to obtain administrative rights.

21. A method as in claim 17, further comprising the step of storing the strongly encrypted file on a Hyper-Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) enabled server located on a local network.

22. A system for enabling a support program to provide services that use administrative rights on a client computer without administrative rights being granted to an end user of the client computer on a local computer network, comprising:

a domain server in communication with the local computer network;

a global administrative account, including global administrative account access information in a strongly encrypted file, configured to reside on the domain server;

a support program stored on the client computer configured to direct administrative services on the client computer to perform trouble shooting and problem resolution on the client computer, the support program being installed on the client computer from the Internet, the support program enabled to download and decrypt the strongly encrypted file;

an administrative process created by the support program using the global administrative account, wherein the administrative process is configured to provide web enabled support services using administrative rights obtained from the global administrative account to allow an end user, without administrative rights, to perform trouble shooting and problem resolution on the client computer; and

wherein the system is configured to remove the process with administrative rights for the end user without administrative rights from the client computer where administrative services were provided once the trouble shooting and problem resolution is complete.

23. A system as in claim 22, further comprising an encrypted account information file containing global administrative account authentication information.

24. A system as in claim 22, wherein the encrypted account information file resides within a localized computer network.

25. A system as in claim 22, wherein the support program is configured to download and decrypt the encrypted account information file containing the global administrative account information in order to login to the global administrative account.

26. A system as in claim 22, wherein the support program is configured to remove the administrative rights from the client computer where web enabled support services were provided.

27. A system as in claim 22, wherein the administrative process can install an ActiveX component from the Internet.

28. A system as in claim 22, wherein the administrative process is a web browser.

29. A system for enabling a support program to provide services that use administrative rights on a client computer without administrative rights being granted to an end user of the client computer on a local computer network, comprising:

a domain server means for communicating with the local computer network;

a global administrative account means, including global administrative account access information in a strongly encrypted file, for providing administrative rights and configured to reside on the domain server;

a support program means for directing administrative services on the client computer to perform trouble shooting and problem resolution on the client computer, the support program means being installed on the client computer from the Internet, the support program means enabled to download and decrypt the strongly encrypted file;

an administrative process means created by the support program using the global administrative account, wherein the administrative process is configured for providing web enabled support services using administrative rights obtained from the global administrative account means to allow an end user, without administrative rights, to perform trouble shooting and problem resolution on the client computer; and

wherein the system is configured to remove the process with administrative rights for the end user without administrative rights from the client computer where administrative services were provided once the trouble shooting and problem resolution is complete.

30. An article of manufacture, comprising:

a non-transitory computer usable medium having computer readable program code embodied therein for enabling a support program to provide services using administrative rights on a client computer for a user without administrative rights, the computer readable program code in the article of manufacture comprising;

computer readable program code for creating a global administrative account on a domain server for a computer network, wherein the administrative rights of the client computer are managed by the global administrative account;

computer readable program code for activating the support program on the client computer, wherein activating the support program includes activating a support program to perform trouble shooting and problem resolution on the client computer;

computer readable program code for storing global administrative account access information in a strongly encrypted file;

computer readable program code for enabling the support program to download and decrypt the strongly encrypted file;

computer readable program code for creating a process with administrative rights via the support program using the global administrator account on the domain server, wherein the process allows the user without administrative rights to perform trouble shooting and problem resolution on the client computer;

computer readable program code for enabling support services with administrative rights from the process for the user without administrative rights to perform troubleshooting and problem resolution on the client computer, wherein the support services are provided to the client computer; and

computer readable program code for removing the process with administrative rights for the user without administrative rights from the client computer where administrative services were provided once the trouble shooting and problem resolution is complete.