US 2003/0149866 A1 · Data processing system and method

Abstract

The present invention relates to a data processing system and method for a client machine. Current working practices mean that an employee no longer has a permanent desk or fixed place of work. The PC that they may typically use to perform their role within an organisation may not be exclusively assigned to them. Clearly, this practice presents the difficulty of providing access to working files and data while the employee roams throughout the organisation. Therefore, the present invention provides a data processing method for a system in which the system context required for power management is saved to a network drive rather than to a local HDD. By storing the system context remotely, the employee can roam freely throughout the organisation and restore their system context at any machine at which they log-on. Furthermore, the present invention can be used to provide power management functions to thin client machines, which are typically used within such a roaming environment. The thin client machines do not have a locally accessible HDD that is typically required for power management.

Claims14

Dependent claims

A data processing method for a system comprising a processor, an input device, volatile memory and a communication device to allow access to a remotely accessible non-volatile storage medium;

the system being operable in a plurality of states each having an associated level of power consumption;
the method comprising the steps of outputting user identification data and corresponding data representing a system context, for storage on the remotely accessible non-volatile storage medium, to allow a transition to a first state of the plurality of states from a second state;
placing the system in the second state, receiving the user identification data from the input device;
retrieving, from the remotely accessible storage medium, the corresponding data representing the system context corresponding to the received user identification data;
and restoring the system context using the retrieved data.

2 more elements

A data processing system comprising a processor, an input device, volatile memory and a communication device to allow access to a remotely accessible non-volatile storage medium;

the system being operable in a plurality of states, each having an associated level of power consumption;
the system further comprising a power management system for outputting user identification data and corresponding data representing a system context, for storage on the remotely accessible non-volatile storage medium, to allow a transition to a first state of the plurality of states from a second state and means to place the system in the second state;
the power management system having means to receive user identification data from the input device and means to retrieve, from the remotely accessible storage medium, the corresponding data representing the system context corresponding to the received user identification data;
and means to restore the system context using the retrieved data.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Data processing system and method

Life of this patent

Data processing system and method

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims14