Updating information in network devices

Abstract

A method for obtaining information includes retrieving in a network device a listing of available information update packages and automatically updating the network device based on the listing. Transferring information update packages can include determining whether a network device is using a computer network connection and transferring portions of the package to the network device only while the network device is not using the network connection.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A method comprising: 
 retrieving in a network device a listing containing information about available information update packages; and    automatically updating the network device based on the listing.    
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein information update packages can contain software, data or document files.  
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1  wherein automatically updating the listing includes retrieving specified update packages based on the listing.  
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the listing associates update packages with network devices to which they apply.  
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  wherein updating the network device includes: 
 removing old versions of information; and  
 installing new versions of information.  
 
     
     
         6 . A method comprising: 
 determining whether a network device is using a computer network connection; and    transferring portions of a package to the network device in a manner based on the determined usage of the network connection by the network device.    
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6  including adjusting the sizes of different portions of the package to be downloaded based on the determined usage of the network connection by the network device.  
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7  wherein if the network connection is determined to be in use, the portion size is reset to an original state.  
     
     
         9 . A computer system comprising: 
 a computer network;    a network device coupled to the network;    a file server coupled to the network and containing information update packages;    a managing server coupled to the network and containing a listing about information update packages located on the file servers; and    wherein the network device is configured to obtain the listing and automatically update the network device based on the listing.    
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9  wherein the information in the listing includes the locations of servers on which the packages are stored.  
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 9  wherein the listing associates update packages with network devices and groups of network devices to which they apply.  
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 9  wherein the downloader is configured to obtain the packages by transferring the packages in portions.  
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 12  wherein the downloader increases the size of the packages when the network device is not using its connection to the network.  
     
     
         14 . An article comprising a computer-readable medium that stores computer-executable instruction for causing a computer system to: 
 obtain a listing containing information about available information update packages from a managing server; and    automatically update the network device based on the listing.    
     
     
         15 . The article of  claim 14  wherein the listing contains information about where the available packages can be obtained by the network device.  
     
     
         16 . The article of  claim 14  wherein the listing specifies specific packages corresponding to particular network devices.  
     
     
         17 . The article of  claim 14  wherein updating the network device includes: 
 removing old versions of information; and  
 installing new versions of information.  
 
     
     
         18 . The article of  claim 17  wherein the new information update packages are obtained over the network by: 
 checking if the network device is using a computer network connection; and  
 retrieving portions of the package to the network device only while the device is not using the network connection.  
 
     
     
         19 . The article of  claim 18  wherein before portions of the packages are downloaded the size of the portion is increased.  
     
     
         20 . The article of  claim 19  wherein if the network is found busy the portion size is reset to its original state.  
     
     
         21 . A device comprising: 
 a downloader component in a network device configured to retrieve a listing stored on a managing server containing information about information update packages located on file servers, obtain those packages over a computer network connection, and install them on the network device.    
     
     
         22 . The device of  claim 21  wherein the downloader comprises a software component stored in the network device's memory.  
     
     
         23 . The device of  claim 21  wherein the downloader comprises a hardware component of the network device.  
     
     
         24 . The device of  claim 21  wherein the listing contains information about where available packages can be obtained by the downloader component.  
     
     
         25 . The device of  claim 21  wherein the listing specifies specific packages corresponding to particular network devices.  
     
     
         26 . The device of  claim 21  wherein the downloader obtains the packages by transferring them in portions over the computer network connection.  
     
     
         27 . The device of  claim 21  wherein the downloader increases the size of the packages when the network device is not using its computer network connection.  
     
     
         28 . The device of  claim 21  wherein the computer network connection is a connection to the Internet.  
     
     
         29  The device of  claim 21  where the listing contains information encoded using eXtensible Markup Language (XML).  
     
     
         30 . The device of  claim 21  wherein the downloader transfers the packages over the computer network connection using the HyperText Transfer Protocal (HTTP) GET command.