Method and system for provisioning portable desktops

• US 8,601,532 B2
• Filed: 09/30/2009
• Issued: 12/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kingston Digital, Inc. (Kingston Technology Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Imation Corporation (Glassbridge Enterprises, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hamid, Laurence
• Primary Examiner(s): Mehedi, Morshed
• Application Number:
  US12/571,320
• Publication Number:
  US 20110078787A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,525 Days
• Field of Search: 726 18- 19, 726/1
• US Class Current: 726/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6218 to a system of files or objects, e.g. local or distributed file system or database
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2141 Access rights, e.g. capability lists, access control lists, access tables, access matrices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2149 Restricted operating environment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3231 Biological data, e.g. fingerprint, voice or retina network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using biometrical features in a packet data network H04L63/0861

Abstract

A method is disclosed for provisioning of a peripheral portable desktop device. The peripheral portable desktop device is coupled with a workstation. A data file relating to an image for being stored within the peripheral portable desktop device is provided. The image includes secured data that is other than accessible absent user authorization data of a virtual user. Within the peripheral portable desktop device is stored data reflective of the image. A first user is then authorized to the peripheral portable desktop device by providing first user authorization data. For the first user is created a user account secured based on the first user authorization data. The account of the virtual user is accessed via the user account and the user account is configured to access the account of the virtual user upon access to the user account.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

providing an image including secured data for being stored within a plurality of peripheral portable desktop devices, wherein the secured data is other than accessible absent user authorization data of a virtual user;

storing in parallel within each of the plurality of peripheral memory storage devices data reflective of the image, wherein the secured data is stored within a virtual user account of the virtual user;

authorizing a first user account on the peripheral memory storage device based on first user authorization data;

storing the user authorization data of the virtual user in the first user account, such that the first user account is configured to access the virtual user account; and

changing the user authorization data of the virtual user from a pre-provisioning value to a changed value, such that the secured data within the virtual user account is secured based on the changed value and the virtual user account is no longer accessible via the pre-provisioning value.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein the peripheral memory storage devices each comprise a universal serial bus port.

3. The method according to claim 1 wherein the peripheral memory storage devices each comprise a housing.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein each of the peripheral memory storage devices comprises a processor for preventing access to the secured data stored therein absent the user authorization data of the virtual user.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the image comprises portable desktop data relating to the virtual user account, the virtual user account protected by at least one of a password and biometric information.

6. The method according to claim 5 wherein the at least one of a password and biometric information comprises a same password for each of the peripheral memory storage devices.

7. The method according to claim 5 wherein the at least one of a password and biometric information comprises biometric information of an administrator.

8. The method according to claim 5 wherein the at least one of a password and biometric information comprises at least one password and wherein the password of each of the peripheral memory storage devices is different.

9. The method according to claim 8 wherein each password is deterministic based on a hardware identifier of each peripheral memory storage device.

10. The method according to claim 1 wherein the image comprises data relating to a plurality of virtual user accounts associated with different authentication data.

11. A peripheral memory storage device comprising:

a housing;

a port for coupling with a host computer; and

a data storage medium having portable desktop data stored therein comprising secured data stored within a virtual user account of a virtual user, the secured data other than accessible absent user authorization data of the virtual user, the user authorization data of the virtual user for use in provisioning of the peripheral memory storage device,

wherein the portable desktop is executable only once provisioned to a first user other than the virtual user, the first user having a first user account authorized based on first user authorization data;

wherein the user authorization data of the virtual user is stored in the first user account, such that the first user account is configured to access the secured data in the virtual user account; and

wherein the user authorization data of the virtual user is changed from a pre-provisioning value to a changed value, such that the secured data in the virtual user account is secured based on the changed value and the virtual user account is no longer accessible via the pre-provisioning value.

12. The peripheral memory storage device according to claim 11 wherein the port comprises a universal serial bus port.

13. The peripheral memory storage device according to claim 11 comprising a processor for communicating with a host computer system coupled to the port and for securing the portable desktop data absent the user authorization data of the virtual user.

14. The peripheral memory storage device according to claim 13 comprising a user authentication data input port for receiving the first user authorization data of the first user independent of the host computer system coupled to the port.

15. A method comprising:

receiving a peripheral memory storage device, the peripheral memory storage device having data stored therein including secured data within a virtual user account that is other than accessible absent user authorization data of a virtual user;

authorizing a first user to the peripheral memory storage device based on first user authorization data;

modifying the virtual user account by changing the user authorization data of the virtual user from a pre-provisioning value to a chanted value, such that the secured data within the virtual user account is secured based on the changed value of the user authorization data of the virtual user, and such that the virtual user account is no longer accessible via the pre-provisioning value; and

storing the user authorization data of the virtual user in the first user account, such that the first account is configured to access the secured data in the virtual user account.

16. A method comprising:

receiving a peripheral memory storage device, the peripheral memory storage device having data stored therein including secured data in a virtual user account of a virtual user, such that the secured data is other than accessible absent user authorization data of the virtual user;

authorizing a first user to the peripheral memory storage device by providing first user authorization data;

creating a first user account for the first user, the first user account secured based on the first user authorization data;

configuring the first user account to access the virtual user account of the virtual user upon access to the first user account by storing the user authorization data of the virtual user in the first user account; and

changing the user authorization data of the virtual user from a pre-provisioning value to a changed value, such that the secured data within the virtual user account is secured based on the changed value and the virtual user account is no longer accessible via the pre-provisioning value.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein changing the user authorization data of the virtual user comprises changing the pre-provisioning value to second user authorization data comprising the changed value.

18. The method according to claim 17 wherein changing the user authorization data of the virtual user comprises generating one of a random and a pseudorandom password to use as the second user authorization data.

19. The method according to claim 17 comprising storing the second user authorization data within an administrator section of the peripheral memory storage device.

20. The method according to claim 17 comprising providing the second user authorization data for storage outside the peripheral memory storage device.

21. The method according to claim 16 wherein the first user authorization data comprises fingerprint data.

22. The method according to claim 16 comprising authenticating an administrator to the peripheral memory storage device for accessing the virtual user account.

23. The method according to claim 16 comprising retrieving from the peripheral memory storage device an identifier value and deterministically based on the identifier value determining the user authorization data of the virtual user for accessing the virtual user account.

24. The method according to claim 16 comprising:

authorizing a second user to the peripheral memory storage device by providing second user authorization data;

creating a second user account for the second user, the second user account secured based on the second user authorization data; and

,

configuring the second user account to access the virtual user account of the virtual user upon access to the second user account.

25. A peripheral memory storage device comprising:

non-volatile memory for storing portable desktop data reflective of an operating system image including secured data stored within a virtual user account of a virtual user, such that the secured data is other than accessible absent user authorization data of the virtual user; and

a processor for;

authorizing a first user to the peripheral memory storage device by providing first user authorization data;

creating a first user account for the first user, the first user account secured based on the first user authorization data;

configuring the first user account to access the secured data stored within the virtual user account of the virtual user upon access to the first user account, wherein the user authorization data of the virtual user is stored in the first user account;

changing the user authorization data of the virtual user from a pre-provisioning value to a changed value, such that the secured data within the virtual user account is secured based on the changed value and the virtual user account is no longer accessible via the pre-provisioning value; and

accessing the secured data within the virtual user account of the virtual user via the first user account using the changed value of the user authorization data of the virtual user.

26. The peripheral memory storage device according to claim 25, wherein the processor is configured for changing the user authorization data of the virtual user from the pre-provisioning value to a changed value comprising one of a random password and a pseudorandom password.

27. The peripheral memory storage device according to claim 25, wherein the processor is configured for changing the user authorization data of the virtual user from the pre-provisioning value to a changed value comprising an encoded version of a hardware identifier of the peripheral memory storage device.