Systems, methods, and computer readable media for managing a hosts file

• US 9,557,931 B1
• Filed: 07/27/2015
• Issued: 01/31/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: United Services Automobile Association
• Original Assignee: United Services Automobile Association
• Inventors: Landivar, Luis F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Kevin
• Application Number:
  US14/810,196
• Time in Patent Office: 554 Days
• Field of Search: 715740-748, 715763-765, 715851-855
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/00 Interconnection of, or transfer of information or other signals between, memories, input/output devices or central processing units interface circuits for specific input/output devices G06F3/00 ; multiprogram control therefor G06F9/46; multiprocessor systems G06F15/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/00 Digital computers in general details G06F1/00 – G06F13/00; Data processing equipment in general
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/182 Distributed file systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2365 Ensuring data consistency and integrity
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0643 Management of files
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 using domain name system [DNS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5007 Internet protocol [IP] addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols

Abstract

A hosts file manager is provided that displays a user interface with a list of selectable server groups. The list may comprise, for example, identifications server groups. Each server group corresponds to an IP address, and the hosts file manager has access to such IP address data. A user selection of a first server group may be made and received via said user interface. A computer'"'"'s hosts file may then be modified to correlate a hostname with an IP address of the selected server group.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving, by a computer, an instruction to update a hosts file according to a new IP address and a hostname correlating to the new IP address, wherein the hosts file comprises machine-readable data correlating one or more IP addresses with one or more hostnames;

upon receiving the instruction to update the hosts file;

retrieving, by the computer, the hosts file from a host file manager datastore, the host file manager datastore comprising non-transitory machine-readable storage media configured to store one or more host files;

inserting, by the computer, the new IP address into the hosts file, thereby generating a modified hosts file that correlates the hostname with the new IP address; and

transmitting, by the computer, the modified hosts file to one or more client computers of a computing network, the computing network comprising the computer and the one or more client computers.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising transmitting, by the computer, an instruction to a client computer to update according to the modified hosts file a client hosts file stored on the client computer.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising storing, by the computer, the modified hosts file into the host file manager datastore.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the hosts file manager datastore is further configured to store a machine-readable list of one or more server groups,

wherein a server group in the list of server groups is associated with at least one IP address from the one or more IP addresses in the hosts file or the modified hosts file.

5. The method according to claim 4, generating, by the computer, a user interface displaying the list of server groups, and configured to receive one or more inputted instructions selecting the server group to be associated with the new IP address,

wherein the at least one IP address in the modified hosts file includes the new IP address.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising, upon receiving an inputted instruction selecting a new server group to be the server group:

inserting, by the computer, the new server group into the list of server groups, the new server group being associated with the new IP address in the list of server groups, wherein the new server group correlates to the new IP address in the modified hosts file.

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein the user interface is further configured to receive the instruction to update the hosts file according to the new IP address correlating to the hostname.

8. The method according to claim 4, wherein each respective server group supply services for the hostname correlated to the at least IP address associated with the respective server group.

9. A computing system comprising:

a hosts file manager datastore hosted on one or more computing devices comprising non-transitory machine-readable storage media configured to store one or more hosts files, a hosts file comprising machine-readable data correlating one or more IP addresses with one or more hostnames;

a hosts file manager server from the one or more computing devices, the hosts file manager server comprising a processor configured to receive a new IP address and a hostname, insert the new IP address into the hosts file thereby generating a modified hosts file that correlates the hostname with the new IP address, and transmit the modified hosts file to one or more client computers coupled to the hosts file manager server via a computing network.

10. The system according to claim 9, wherein the hosts file manager further is configured to store the modified hosts file into the hosts file manager datastore.

11. The system according to claim 9, wherein the computing network comprises the one or more computing devices hosting the hosts file manager datastore, the hosts file manager server, and the one or more client computers.

12. The system according to claim 9, wherein the hosts file manager datastore is further configured to store a machine-readable list of one or more server groups,

wherein a server group in the list of server groups is associated with at least one IP address from the one or more IP address in the hosts file or the modified hosts file.

13. The system according to claim 12, wherein the hosts file manager server is further configured to generate a user interface displaying the list of server groups at a client computer,

wherein the user interface is configured to receive, from the client computer, a selection of the server group to be associated with the new IP address, and

wherein the at least one IP address in the modified hosts file includes the new IP address.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein the hosts file manager server is further configured to insert a new server group into the list of server groups, upon receiving a selection indicating that the new server group is the server group associated with the new IP address.

15. The system according to claim 13, wherein the modified hosts file correlates the hostname to the new IP address that is associated with the server group indicated by the selection.

16. The system according to claim 13, wherein the user interface is further configured to receive an instruction to update the hosts file, the instruction indicating the new IP address and the hostname, and

wherein the hosts file manager server is further configured to generate the modified hosts file upon receiving the instruction indicating the new IP address and the hostname.

17. The system according to claim 13, wherein each respective server group comprises one or more servers configured to execute one or more software modules supplying a computing service to the computing network.

18. The system according to claim 17, wherein the service of each respective server group is associated with a respective hostname that is correlated to the at least IP address associated with the respective server group.

19. The system according to claim 9, wherein a client computer executes a software module associated with the hostname, and wherein the software module is configured to communicate with a server group having the new IP address according to a client hosts file.

20. The system according to claim 19, wherein the client computer identifies the new IP addresses for the server group based upon the hostname of the server group, as indicated by the client hosts file, and

wherein the client computer updates the client hosts file in accordance with the modified hosts file.