Device and method for booting an operation system for a computer from a passive directly attached network device

• US 7,664,836 B2
• Filed: 02/17/2005
• Issued: 02/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/17/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SynKloud Technologies, LLC (SY Ventures)
• Original Assignee: Zhe Khi Pak
• Inventors: Kim, Han-Gyoo
• Primary Examiner(s): Lazaro, David
• Application Number:
  US11/061,760
• Publication Number:
  US 20050193189A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,825 Days
• Field of Search: 709/220, 709222-224, 709/226, 709201-202, 713 1- 2
• US Class Current: 709/222
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4416 Network booting; Remote initial program loading [RIPL]

Abstract

System, device, method, computer, computer program and computer program product for computer booting devices not coupled to an internal local bus of the computer to be booted. Boot device may be network-attached device directly coupled to computer over network and not through another computer or server process. Method for redirecting booting process to look away from storage devices coupled to internal computer bus, and to look for external devices on network. Method of booting computer with operating system from storage device including executing a boot block loader program in the processor and memory of computer to be booted that before loading an operating system, loads device driver for accessing storage device; loading the operating system from storage device that is not directly coupled to internal local bus of computer using the device driver, to processor accessible memory; and booting computer from loaded operating system. Computer program and computer program product.

Claims

1. A method of booting a computer with an operating system from a directly attached network storage device, the method comprising:

executing a monitor program in a processor and memory of the computer to be booted that;

(i) reads a boot block loader program from a locally accessible storage device and writes the boot loader program to a first location in a processor accessible memory of the computer; and

(ii) transfers control from the monitor program to the boot block loader program; and

executing the boot block loader program in the processor and memory of the computer to be booted that;

(iii) loads a boot driver program code that includes a network interface driver program code for accessing the directly attached network storage device on which the operating system is stored over a network;

(iv) finds the operating system to be booted in the directly attached network storage device;

(v) loads the operating system from the directly attached network storage device over the network using the network interface driver to a second location in a processor accessible memory of the computer; and

(vi) transfers control from the boot block loader program to the operating system in memory,

wherein the directly attached network storage device is not attached to the network through a network server computer having a processor, operating system, and server process executing therein.

2. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, further comprising operating the computer under control of the operating system after the operating system is loaded from the directly attached network storage device.

3. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the boot loader program comprising a plurality of computer program code instructions.

4. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the memory of the computer to be booted comprises the main system random access memory of the computer to be booted.

5. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the operating system to be booted comprises a plurality of boot code blocks.

6. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the operating system to be booted is identified to be at a predetermined specified location of the network.

7. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the operating system to be booted is identified at a location by actively searching available network devices.

8. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the operating system to be booted is identified at a location by passively listening to the network for available network devices storing operating systems for use in booting the computer.

9. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the directly attached network storage device is not attached to an internal bus within the housing of the computer.

10. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the directly attached network storage device comprises a NETDISK hard disk drive type directly attached network storage device.

11. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the monitor program includes program instruction and data means for checking the authenticity of a user accessing the directly attached network storage device over the network.

12. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the monitoring program further includes program instruction and data means to allow only authenticated users to obtain an access to a specified directly attached network storage device over the network.

13. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the method further comprises loading at least one of an application program, at least one user data, a user suite of application programs and data, a user customized suite of application programs.

14. A method of booting a computer as in claim 13, wherein the application program(s) and/or user data are loaded with the operating system.

15. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the computer is a diskless computer not having a hard disk drive or other non-volatile mass storage device capable of non-volatile storage of the operating system to be loaded and booted.

16. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the computer includes an internal storage device but the internal storage device does not contain the operating system software from which the computer boots to an operational state.

17. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the computer includes an internal storage device containing an operating system software from which the computer could boot to an operational state, but the monitor program is adapted so as to preferentially boot from the directly attached network storage device over the network.

18. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the memory storing the monitor program is a read-only memory (ROM) within the housing of the computer or a local memory physically coupled to an input/output port or a bus of the computer.

19. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the directly attached network storage device is physically collocated with the computer to be booted and both the computer to be booted and the directly attached network storage device are connected to the same network.

20. A method of booting a computer as in claim 19, wherein the network is selected from the set of networks consisting of the Internet, an intranet, a home network, a wired network, a wireless network, a local area network, a wide area network, a cable network, and any combination of two or more of these networks.

21. A method of booting a computer as in claim 19, wherein the storage device on which the system boot loader is stored is selected from the set of devices consisting of a CD, a flash memory stick, a flash memory, a compact flash card memory, a USB memory, a floppy diskette, or any other memory or storage device locally accessible to the computer to be booted.

22. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein storage device may be provided by a device selected from the group of devices consisting of a CD, a DVD, a semiconductor memory, memory card, a compact flash memory, a memory stick, an optical storage device, a floppy diskette, a mobile telephone having a memory, a USB memory device, a personal data assistant (PDA), an MP3 audio player, an Apple Computer iPOD™

, a digital or electronic camera, any device having a memory storage for storing a component of an operating system software code, and any combination of two or more of these.

23. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the boot driver comprises is a network device driver software that:

(i) sends data accessing commands and/or files or data to the networked device, and/or (ii) receives data accessing commands and/or files or data from the networked device.

24. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the monitor program reads and loads the boot loader program stored on other than the directly attached network storage device and then loads the operating system from the directly attached network storage device.

25. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the monitor program includes program instruction and data means that permits the monitor program to access the directly attached network storage device;

and, the monitor program reads and loads the boot loader program stored on a directly attached network storage device and then loads the operating system from the directly attached network storage device.

26. A method of booting a computer as in claim 25, wherein the monitor program includes program instruction and data means that permits the monitor program to access the directly attached network storage device.

27. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the network includes a plurality of directly attached network storage devices coupled to the network and certain of coupled directly attached network storage devices are hidden by a security procedure to a particular user or set of users so that the user or set of users cannot select or boot from the hidden devices.

28. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the method further includes an access control procedure in which particular access may be granted or denied based on access privileges and security authentication procedures incorporated into or interfaced with monitor program, the boot loader program, or a combination of the monitor program and the boot loader program.

29. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein a plurality of computers may concurrently access and boot from a single directly attached network storage device.

30. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the directly attached network storage device is a NAD.

31. A method of booting a computer as in claim 1, wherein the monitor program is initially stored in a read-only memory (ROM) of the computer to be booted.

32. A method of booting a computer with an operating system from a directly attached network storage device, the method comprising:

executing a boot block loader program in a processor and memory of the computer to be booted that before loading an operating system, loads a device driver for accessing the directly attached network storage device on which an operating system for the computer is stored;

loading the operating system from the directly attached network storage device that is not directly coupled to an internal local bus of the computer using the device driver, to processor accessible memory; and

booting the computer from the loaded operating system;

wherein the device driver includes a network interface driver program code for accessing the directly attached network storage device on which the operating system is stored over a network and further wherein the directly attached network storage device is not attached to the network through a network server computer having a processor, operating system, and server process executing therein.

33. A method of booting a computer as in claim 32, further comprising reading the boot loader program from a locally accessible storage device and loading the boot loader program to a processor accessible memory of the computer.

34. A method of booting a computer as in claim 32, wherein the storage device that is not directly coupled to an internal local bus of the computer may be any single or plurality of storage devices capable of storing the operating system in any form or format.

35. A computer program product for use in conjunction with a computer system, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium and a computer program mechanism embedded therein, the computer program mechanism, comprising:

a program module that directs the computer, to boot a computer with an operating system from a directly attached network storage device, the program module including instructions for;

executing a monitor program in a processor and memory of the computer to be booted that;

(i) reads a boot block loader program from a locally accessible storage device and writes the boot loader program to a first location in a processor accessible memory of the computer; and

(ii) transfers control from the monitor program to the boot block loader program; and

executing the boot block loader program in the processor and memory of the computer to be booted that;

(iii) loads a boot driver program code that includes a network interface driver program code for accessing the directly attached network storage device on which the operating system is stored over a network;

(iv) finds the operating system to be booted in the directly attached network storage device;

(v) loads the operating system from the directly attached network storage device over the network using the network interface driver to a second location in the processor accessible memory of the computer; and

(vi) transfers control from the boot block loader program to the operating system in memory,

wherein the directly attached network storage device is not attached to the network through a network server computer having a processor, operating system, and server process executing therein.

36. A computer comprising:

a processor and a random access memory coupled to the processor; and

a non-volatile storage device storing at least one program, the at least one program controlling operation of a boot loader and boot device driver so that the computer can;

(a) send commands and/or data through a network controller to a directly attached network boot device that stores additional boot or operating system code, and (b) receive additional boot code or commands and/or data from the boot device over a network;

wherein the boot device driver includes a network interface driver program code for accessing the directly attached network boot device on which the operating system is stored over the network and further wherein the directly attached network boot device is not attached to the network through a network server computer having a processor, operating system, and server process executing therein.

37. A computer as in claim 36, wherein the boot device comprises a network-attached device.

38. A computer as in claim 36, wherein the computer does not include a non-volatile storage device larger than 4 gigabytes.