License management solution for central-management products

• US 8,898,085 B1
• Filed: 01/30/2009
• Issued: 11/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2009
• 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: Kopren, Toran K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Huang, Tsan-Yu J
• Application Number:
  US12/362,723
• Time in Patent Office: 2,125 Days
• Field of Search: 705/59, 705/63, 726/26
• US Class Current: 705/59
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/00 Security arrangements for protecting computers, components thereof, programs or data against unauthorised activity
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/105 Arrangements for software license management or administration, e.g. for managing licenses at corporate level
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06315 Needs-based resource requirements planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols

Abstract

A license manager running on a central-management server receives a license request for licensing a managed node as a client of a central-management product running on a central-management server. The license manager proposes a solution involving applying respective licenses for plural distinct central-management products. In response to a unified command, implementing said solution.

Claims

1. A license-management method comprising:

running a license manager on hardware of a central-management server;

submitting to said license manager a license request for licensing a managed node as a client of a central-management product on said central-management server;

proposing by said license manager a solution involving applying respective licenses for plural distinct central-management products; and

in response to an acceptance of said proposal, applying said licenses.

2. A license-management method as recited in claim 1 wherein said implementing involves communications between said central-management server and said managed node over a network.

3. A license-management method as recited in claim 1 wherein:

said request specifies a requested managed node, and

said solution involves applying a license to another managed node.

4. A license-management method as recited in claim 3 wherein said solution does not involve applying a license to said requested managed node.

5. A license-management method as recited in claim 1 wherein:

said request specifies a requested central-management product running on said central-management server; and

said solution involves licensing another central-management product running on said central management server.

6. A license-management system comprising non-transitory tangible computer-readable storage media encoded with a license manager program containing instructions executable by a processor of a central management server, said program being configured to, when executed by said processor, perform the acts of:

responding to a request to apply a central-management product to a first managed node by generating a solution involving applying respective licenses for plural distinct license management products to managed nodes managed by said central-management server; and

responding to an acceptance of said solution by applying said licenses.

7. A license-management system as recited in claim 6 further comprising said central-management server.

8. A license-management system as recited in claim 6 wherein said request specifies said first managed node and said solution involves applying a license to a second managed node.

9. A license-management system as recited in claim 8 wherein said solution does not involve applying a license to said first managed node.

10. A license-management system as recited in claim 6 wherein said request specifies a requested system management product running on said central-management server and said solution involves licensing another central-management product running on said central management server.

11. A license-management system as recited in claim 6 wherein said applying includes applying a first license and a second license, said first license being for a first product and based on a first compute unit, said second license being for a second product and based on a second compute unit different from said first compute unit.