Configurable device replacement

• US 20040215854A1
• Filed: 04/25/2003
• Published: 10/28/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/2003
• 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: Evans, Gary D., Kasperson, David L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,296,406 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 710/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0816 the condition being an adaptation, e.g. in response to network events
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0863 by rolling back to previous configuration versions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0866 Checking the configuration

Abstract

A configurable device may be disclosed herein that is capable of multiple configurations depending on its location within a support structure. Some embodiments comprise a system that includes a configurable device located within a support structure and logic that is adapted to determine the location of the configurable device within the support structure and to inform the configurable device of its location. The configurable device may compare its location as informed by the logic to a previous location value stored in the configurable device. The configurable device may load a first configuration if the locations match or load a second configuration if the locations do not match.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a configurable device located within a support structure; and

logic adapted to determine the location of the configurable device within the support structure and to inform the configurable device of its location;

wherein the configurable device compares its location as informed by said logic to a previous location value stored in the configurable device and loads a first configuration if the locations match or loads a second configuration if the locations do not match.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the configurable device comprises a switch.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the second configuration comprises a reduced functionality mode in which the configurable device is not permitted to operate fully.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the first configuration permits more functionality than the second configuration.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the first configuration comprises a fully operational configuration and the second configuration comprises a safe mode configuration which causes the switch to operate with less functionality than the fully operational configuration.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the safe mode configuration permits only one communication link to another component to be active from the configurable device.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein such other component is adapted to provide a new configuration to the configurable device.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the configurable device requests an IP address from a remote server and, once provided the requested IP address, the configurable device requests a new configuration from a server associated with the IP address.

9. A system, comprising:

a switch located within a support structure and having memory into which configurations can be stored;

a plurality of computers coupled to said switch and providing data to each other via the switch;

an enclosure manager coupled to said switch and adapted to determine the location of the switch within the support structure and to inform the switch of the switch'"'"'s location within the support structure;

wherein the switch compares its location as informed by the enclosure manager to a previous location value stored in the switch and loads an operational configuration if the locations match or loads a safe mode configuration if the configurations do not match;

the operational configuration permitting the switch to be operational and the safe mode configuration permitting the switch to be less operational than the operational configuration.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein, after loading the safe mode configuration, a remote device provides a new configuration to the switch.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein the new configuration overwrites the switch'"'"'s operational configuration and the switch operates in accordance with the newly loaded operational configuration provided by the remote device.

12. The system of claim 10 wherein the switch includes memory in which firmware is stored and the remote device provides new executable firmware that is loaded into the switch in addition to the new configuration.

13. The system of claim 9 wherein the switch has a plurality of ports and, in accordance with the safe mode configuration, only a single port on the switch is enabled and all other ports are disabled.

14. A switch, comprising:

control logic;

a first memory location in which a first configuration is stored;

a second memory location in which a second configuration is stored;

a third memory location in which a previous location value is stored; and

said first through third memory locations are accessible by said control logic;

wherein said control logic receives a present location value from an external device that indicates the present location of the switch within a support structure and the control logic loads the first or second configuration depending on whether the present location value matches the previous location value.

15. The switch of claim 14 wherein the first configuration comprises a fully operational configuration and the second configuration comprises a safe mode configuration.

16. The switch of claim 15 wherein the control logic loads the fully operational configuration if the present location and previous location values match or loads the safe mode configuration if the present location and previous location values do not match.

17. The switch of claim 15 wherein, when the safe mode configuration is loaded, the control logic causes a message to be sent to a remote device to initiate a process whereby new configuration information is downloaded to the switch.

18. A switch, comprising:

a first memory location in which a first configuration is stored;

a second memory location in which a second configuration is stored;

a third memory location in which a previous location value is stored;

said first through third memory locations are accessible by said control logic; and

a means for receiving a present location value from an external device that indicates the present location of the switch within a support structure and for loading the first or second configuration depending on whether the present location value matches the previous location value.

19. The switch of claim 18 wherein the first configuration comprises a fully operational configuration and the second configuration comprises a safe mode configuration.

20. The switch of claim 19 including a means for loading the fully operational configuration if the present location and previous location values match or for loading the safe mode configuration if the present location and previous location values do not match.

21. A method associated with a configurable device, comprising:

determining a location of the configurable device within a support structure; and

loading an operational configuration if the configurable device is in the same location as the configurable device was previously located;

or

loading a safe mode configuration if the configurable device has been moved from its previous location.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein the safe mode configuration causes the configurable device to have less functionality than the operational configuration.

23. The method of claim 21 wherein, if the safe mode configuration is loaded, the method further comprises downloading a new configuration into the configurable device from a remote device.