Remote management of devices

• US 10,855,734 B2
• Filed: 06/27/2012
• Issued: 12/01/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: InterDigital Patent Holdings, Inc. (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: InterDigital Patent Holdings, Inc. (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Inventors: Van De Poel, Dirk
• Primary Examiner(s): Dinh, Khanh Q
• Application Number:
  US14/129,469
• Publication Number:
  US 20140129613A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,079 Days
• Field of Search: 709227, 709228, 709232, 709224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/103 in the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1053 IP private branch exchange [PBX] functionality entities or arrangements circuit switched PBXs H04M3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network

Abstract

The invention relates to the field of remote management of devices, and devices for implementing the method. In particular the invention relates to a lifeline connection for remote manageable devices, which lifeline connection can be used to re-establish a communication that has been lost between a remote configuration management server and a remote manageable device.

Claims

1. A method of communication between a configuration server device, CS, and a customer premises equipment device, CPE, said method comprising, at the configuration server device:

if the configuration server device determined that a remote management connection with said customer premises equipment device is lost, because said configuration server device cannot trigger said customer premises equipment device to request said configuration server device to establish a remote management session with said customer premises equipment device;

transmission, by said configuration server device, to the customer premises equipment device, of a rescue message and a rescue command, the rescue message comprising information enabling said customer premises equipment device to execute the rescue command, the rescue command enabling the customer premises equipment device to transmit, to the configuration server device, a request to establish said remote management session with said customer premises equipment device;

reception, by said configuration server device and from the customer premises equipment device, of said request to establish said remote management session with said customer premises equipment device.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said rescue message is transmitted to a predetermined port number of said customer premises equipment device on which said customer premises equipment device listens for rescue messages.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information comprises an address of the configuration server device.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information comprises connection request credentials.

5. A method of communication between a customer premises equipment device, CPE, and a configuration server device, CS, wherein said method comprises, at the customer premises equipment device:

if it is determined that a remote management connection with said customer premises equipment device is lost, because said customer premises equipment device is not triggered by said configuration server device to request said configuration server device to establish a remote management session with said customer premises equipment device;

reception, by said customer premises equipment device from the configuration server device, of a rescue message and a rescue command, the rescue message comprising information enabling said customer premises equipment device to execute the rescue command, the rescue command enabling the customer premises equipment device to transmit, to the configuration server device, a request to establish said remote management session with said customer premises equipment device;

transmission, by said customer premises equipment device to the configuration server device, of said request to establish said remote management session with said customer premises equipment device.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the rescue message is received on a predetermined port number on which said customer premises equipment device listens for rescue messages.

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein the information comprises an address of the configuration server device.

8. The method according to claim 5, wherein the information comprises connection request credentials.

9. The method according to claim 5, wherein the information comprises an address of the configuration server device.

10. The method according to claim 5, wherein the information comprises connection request credentials.

11. A customer premises equipment device, CPE, configured to be interconnected with a configuration server device, CS, wherein said customer premises equipment device comprises at least one processor, and a memory configured to:

receive, if it is determined that a remote management connection with said customer premises equipment device is lost, because said customer premises equipment device is not triggered by said configuration server device to request said configuration server device to establish a remote management session with said customer premises equipment device, from the configuration server device, a rescue message and a rescue command, the rescue message comprising information enabling said customer premises equipment device to execute the rescue command, the rescue command enabling the customer premises equipment device to transmit, to the configuration server device, a request to establish said remote management session with said customer premises equipment device; and

transmit, to the configuration server device, said request to establish said remote management session with said customer premises equipment device.

12. The device according to claim 11, wherein said at least one processor is further configured to listen for rescue messages received on a predetermined port number.