Application assisted software update for connected devices without a display

• US 9,690,565 B2
• Filed: 12/19/2013
• Issued: 06/27/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Wang, Huiyu, Kolanowski, Stephen J., Desai, Snehal, Bankos, Jr., Jerome A., Larocca, Frank D., Zhu, Lily, Chylinski, Kathleen J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bullock, Jr., Lewis A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Huynh, Tina
• Application Number:
  US14/135,031
• Publication Number:
  US 20150178061A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,286 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57

Abstract

An exemplary system and method avoids unannounced software updates for a connected device by acquiring installation consent from the user for each software update to the connected device. Consent is acquired by leveraging an extended interface application described below, to facilitate notifications from the connected device to the user and receive user inputs indicating consent in response to the notifications.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a first device without a display and having a first processor that provides operations including;

sending a software package request notification from the first device without the display, to a second device with the display,

receiving a response indication from the second device with the display, the response providing;

a software package,

a severity indication of the software package associated with at least one of a mandatory severity and an optional severity, and

an installation consent of a user for at least one of an automatic installation and a defer installation,

determining, before an installation of a software package on the first device without the display, whether installation consent of a user has been provided for the at least one of the automatic installation and the defer installation based on the response from the second device with the display and the identified at least one of the mandatory severity and the optional severity, thereby avoiding an unannounced software update,

in response to the identified mandatory severity and the installation consent being automatic installation, proceeding with the installation of the software package on the first device without the display, or

in response to the identified optional severity or the installation consent being deferred install,

pausing for a first predetermined time period when the response indication from the second device with the display indicates selection of a defer option,

sending a deferral notification to the second device with the display after the first predetermined time period,

automatically proceeding with the installation of the software package on the first device without the display if the deferral notification is not responded to in a specified time period of the deferral notification, or deferring installation if the deferral notification is responded to the specified period of the deferral notification and indicates a second predetermined time period,

sending a subsequent software package indication to the second device with the display after the second predetermined time period,

receiving a second response from the second device with the display, and

proceeding with installation of the software package on the first device without the display when the second response indication is determined to indicate acceptance of the software package; and

the second device with the display that provides operations including;

receiving the software package indication from the first device without the display,

generating the software package including the severity indication and the installation consent,

receiving an input responsive to the at least one of the deferral and second notifications,

generating the response based on the input indicating at least one of the automatic installation and the deferred installation of the software package, and

sending the response from the second device with the display to the first device without the display.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprises:

a third device configured to utilize a web portal to;

access the at least one of the deferral and subsequent deferral notification of the second device and

supply the input to the second device, and

wherein the first device is a connected device without the display,

wherein the second device is a computing device, and

wherein the second application is an extended interface application that generates the at least one of the deferral and subsequent deferral notifications.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the software package request notification from the first device without the display instructs the second device with the display to generate at least one of the deferral and subsequent deferral notifications to include accept and defer options but not a reject option when the software package request notification identifies that the software package is of the mandatory severity.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the deferral and subsequent deferral notifications further include a reject option when the software package request notification identifies that the software package is of the optional severity.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations of the first device further comprise:

proceeding with the installation of the software package on the first device without the display when the response from the second device with the display is determined to indicate selection of an accept option.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the second device is a computing device that stores an extended interface application that generates at least one of the deferral and subsequent deferral notifications;

and

wherein the first device is a connected device without the display.

7. A method, comprising:

sending a software package request notification from a first device without a display and having a processor to a second device with the display;

sending by the second device to the first device a response, the response providing;

a software package,

a severity indication of the software package associated with at least one of a mandatory severity and an optional severity, and

an installation consent of a user for at least one of an automatic installation and a defer installation,

determining, before an installation of a software package on the first device without the display, whether installation consent of the user has been provided for the at least one of the automatic installation and the defer installation based on the response from the second device with the display and the identified at least one of the mandatory severity and the optional severity, thereby avoiding an unannounced software update;

in response to the identified mandatory severity and the installation consent being automatic installation, proceeding with installation of the software package on the first device without the display, or

in response to the identified optional severity or the installation consent being deferred install,

pausing for a first predetermined time period when the response from the second device with the display indicates selection of a defer option,

sending a deferral notification to the second device with the display after the first predetermined time period,

automatically proceeding with the installation of the software package on the first device without the display if the deferral notification is not responded to in a specified time period of the deferral notification, or deferring installation if the deferral notification is responded to in the specified period of the deferral notification and indicates a second predetermined time period,

sending a subsequent deferral notification to the second device with the display after the second predetermined time period,

receiving a second response from the second device with the display, and

proceeding with installation of the software package on the first device without the display when the second response is determined to indicate acceptance of the software package.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprises:

proceeding with the installation of the software package on the first device without the display when the response from the second device with the display is determined to indicate selection of an accept option included in at least one of the deferral and subsequent deferral notifications.

9. A computing device including a first device without a display and having a processor that provides operations comprising:

sending a software package request notification from the first device without the display and having the processor,

receiving a response from a second device with the display, the response providing;

a software package,

a severity indication of the software package associated with at least one of a mandatory severity and an optional severity, and

an installation consent of a user for at least one of an automatic installation and a defer installation,

determining, before an installation of a software package on the first device without the display, whether installation consent of the user has been provided for the at least one of the automatic installation and the defer installation based on the response from the second device with the display and the identified at least one of the mandatory severity and the optional severity, thereby avoiding an unannounced software update;

in response to the identified mandatory severity and the installation consent being automatic installation, proceeding with installation of the software package on the first device without the display;

or

in response to the identified optional severity or the installation consent being deferred install,

pausing for a first predetermined time period when the response from the second device with the display indicates selection of a defer option,

sending a deferral notification to the second device with the display after the first predetermined time period,

automatically proceeding with the installation of the software package on the first device without the display if the deferral notification is not responded to in a specified time period of the deferral notification, or deferring installation if the deferral notification is responded to in the specified period of the deferral notification and indicates a second predetermined time period,

sending a subsequent deferral notification to the second device with the display after the second predetermined time period,

receiving a second response from the second device with the display, and

proceeding with installation of the software package on the first device without the display when the second response is determined to indicate acceptance of the software package.

10. The computing device of claim 9, the operations further comprising:

instructing the second device with the display to generate accept and defer options but not a reject option when the software package request notification identifies that the software package is of the mandatory severity.

11. The computing device of claim 9, wherein at least one of the deferral and subsequent deferral notifications further includes a reject option when the software package request notification identifies that the software package is of the optional severity.

12. The computing device of claim 9, the operations further comprising:

proceeding with the installation of the software package on the first device without the display when the response from the second device with the display is determined to indicate selection of an accept option.

13. The computing device of claim 9, wherein the second device is a second computing device that stores an extended interface application that generates at least one of the deferral and subsequent deferral notifications;

and

wherein the first device is a connected device without the display.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable medium tangibly embodying computer executable instructions that are executable to provide operations comprising:

send a software package request notification from a first device without a display and having a processor,

receive a response from a second device with the display, the response providing;

a software package,

a severity indication of the software package associated with at least one of a mandatory severity and an optional severity, and

an installation consent of a user for at least one of an automatic installation and a defer installation,

determine, before an installation of a software package on the first device without the display, whether installation consent of the user has been provided for the at least one of the automatic installation and the defer installation based on the response from the second device with the display and the identified at least one of the mandatory severity and the optional severity, thereby avoiding an unannounced software update;

in response to the identified mandatory severity and the installation consent being automatic installation, proceeding with installation of the software package on the first device without the display;

or

in response to the identified optional severity or the installation consent being deferred install,

pause for a first predetermined time period when the response from the second device with the display indicates selection of a defer option,

send a deferral notification to the second device with the display after the first predetermined time period,

automatically proceed with the installation of the software package on the first device without the display if the deferral notification is not responded to in a specified time period of the deferral notification, or deferring installation if the deferral notification is responded to in the specified period of the deferral notification and indicates a second predetermined time period,

send a subsequent deferral notification to the second device with the display after the second predetermined time period,

receive a second response from the second device with the display, and

proceed with installation of the software package on the first device without the display when the second response is determined to indicate acceptance of the software package.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, further comprising:

instruct the second device with the display to generate at least one of the deferral notification and subsequent deferral notifications to include accept and defer options but not a reject option when the software package request notification identifies that the software package is of the mandatory severity.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the deferral notification further includes a reject option when the software package request notification identifies that the software package is of the optional severity.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, further comprising:

proceed with the installation of the software package on the first device without the display when the response from the second device with the display is determined to indicate selection of an accept option.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable method of claim 14, wherein the second device is a computing device that stores an extended interface application that generates at least one of the deferral notification and subsequent deferral notifications;

and

wherein the first device is a connected device without the display.