US 7,761,503 B2Granted

Peer distribution point feature for system management server

AssigneeMicrosoft Corporation

InventorsGaurav R Dhawan, David C James, Nirupama Chandrasekaran, Rajagopalan Badri Narayanan, Ingo R. A. G. Bringemeier, John L Ellis, Michael Healy, Khuzaima Iqbal

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Abstract

A client in a plurality of clients with a same network address or similar common identifier is designated a Peer Distribution Point (PDP) agent for distributing a software application divided into several packages to the plurality of clients. The plurality of clients are part of a client-server hierarchical system comprising a Central SMS site server and several Distributing servers. The Central SMS site server generates policies for the packages that are pushed to a Distribution server assigned to the plurality of clients from where the PDP agent pulls the policies. The Central SMS site server generates the packages that are pushed to the Distributing server after the PDP agent pulls the policies. The packages are pulled by the PDP agent from the Distributing server. The other clients pull the packages from the PDP agent as and when needed.

Claims16

Dependent claims

A client-server system to distribute software application packages to a plurality of network connected clients with a same network address, comprising:

a resource server for pushing policies associated with the software application packages to at least one distributing server;
at least one distributing server for receiving the policies associated with the software application packages from the resource server;
and
a plurality of clients for pulling said policies associated with the software application packages from the at least one distributing server, wherein one of the plurality of network connected clients is designated as a distribution point (PDP agent), wherein:
(a) the resource server pushes the software application packages associated with policies pushed to the at least one distributing server in response to one of the plurality of network connected clients pulling the policies associated with the software application packages such that the software application packages are not pushed to the at least one distributing server until one of the plurality of network connected clients pulls the policies, wherein the at least one distributing server maintains at least one mapping table that maps the software application packages to the PDP agent and the PDP agent to the resource server;
(b) the PDP agent pulls the software application packages from the distributing server;
and
(c) the plurality of network connected clients pull the software application packages from the PDP agent.

5 more elements

A method of distributing software application packages from a resource server to a plurality of network connected clients having a same network address, comprising:

pushing by the resource server policies associated with the software application packages to a distributing server;
pulling by clients included in the plurality of network connected clients from the distributing server the policies associated with the software application packages, wherein one of the plurality of network connected clients is designated as a distribution point (PDP agent);
pushing by the resource server a software application package to the distributing server in response to a client included in the plurality of network connected clients pulling the policies associated with the software application packages such that the software application packages are not pushed to the distributing server until one of the plurality of network connected clients pulls the policies, wherein the distributing server maintains at least one mapping table that maps the software application packages to the PDP agent and the PDP agent to the resource server;
pulling by the PDP agent the software application packages from the distributing server;
and
pulling by other clients included in the plurality of network connected clients the software application packages from the PDP agent.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 11/326,773Filed 6 Jan 2006
Published: US 2007/0162541 A112 Jul 2007
Granted: 20 Jul 2010
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification10 codes

H04L 41/0806
Configuration setting: for initial configuration or provisioning, e.g. plug-and-play
H04L 67/34
Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications: involving the movement of software or configuration parameters
H04W 4/06
Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor: selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia…
H04L 67/1089
Using cross-functional networking aspects: hierarchical topologies