Dell Products Inc.

Dell & Products L.p.

Bassem El-Azzami

Abeye Teshome

Adolfo Sandor Montero

Rajaravi Chandra Kollarapu

Vinodkumar Vasudev Ottar

Richard Martin Tonry

Mohit Arora

Luis Antonio Valencia Reyes

Amy Christine Nelson

Gokul Thiruchengode Vajravel

Srikanth Kondapi

Richard M Tonry

Methods and systems for managing a data processing system are disclosed. To manage the data processing system, a management controller of the data processing system may obtain location data for the data processing system via an out-of-band communication channel. The location data for the data processing system may include different types of location data obtained via different location generation sources. The management controller may identify whether the different types of location data are consistently reporting location status of the data processing system. If the location data is determined to be consistent, then the management controller may provide a location report based on the location data using the out-of-band communication channel to a server to update a location status of the data processing system.

Obtaining location data for data processing systems using out-of-band components

Methods and systems for updating a data processing system are disclosed. To update the data processing system, an out of band communication channel may be used by a management controller of the data processing system to: obtain a command, and based on the command, obtain an update package from a remote entity for updating the data processing system. The management controller may store the update package in a partition using local side band communication channels. After the update package is stored, the management controller may initiate a restart of the data processing system. During the restart, if the update package is determined to be in the partition, a startup management entity may use the update package to update operation of a component to obtain an updated component. After completion of the restart, the updated component may be used to provide desired computer implemented services.

Managing out of band software updates

Methods and systems for managing policies for data processing systems are disclosed. A management controller for the data processing system may utilize an out of band communication channel to obtain a set of policies for the data processing system from a remote management system. The management controller may monitor a state of the data processing system and may identify when a condition is met for any policy of the set of the policies. If the condition is met, the management controller may select one or more actions based on the state and the policy for which the condition was met. The management controller may perform the one or more actions to update operation of the data processing system to obtain an updated data processing system.

Policy management for data processing systems using a management controller

Methods and systems for registering a management controller of a data processing system with a server and an orchestrator are disclosed. To do so, a key pair may be generated by the management controller and a private key of the key pair may be kept secret by the management controller. Previously established trust between a trusted platform module of the data processing system and a manufacturer of the data processing system may be leveraged to register the management controller with the server. Hardware resources of the data processing system may register a public key of the key pair with the server and may request registration of the management controller with the orchestrator. The management controller may obtain a challenge from an internet of things hub associated with the orchestrator and may respond to the challenge, via an out of band communication channel, to complete the registration of the management controller.

Managing data processing systems in a distributed environment using a management controller

Methods and systems for managing a data processing system are disclosed. To manage the data processing system, a management controller may be included in the data processing system. The management controller may perform managerial functions for the data processing system regardless of whether in band components are compromised, depowered, and/or otherwise non-functional. In addition, to communicate with remote entities, the management controller may utilize a network module of the data processing system. The network module may direct network traffic between in band and out of band communication channels and may operate independently from hardware resources of the data processing system.

Managing operation of a data processing system using a management controller and a network module

Methods and systems for managing data processing systems are disclosed. To manage a data processing of the data processing systems, the data processing system may be placed in a first operating state. To do so, first log in credentials may be obtained from a first user and may be used to obtain a first user persona from a server. The first user persona may be obtained via an out of band communication channel and may include a first set of configurations for the data processing system. The first set of the configurations may indicate preferences for operation of the data processing system associated with the first user. At least a portion of the first set of the configurations may be implemented by hardware resources of the data processing system and, therefore, computer-implemented services may be more likely to be provided as desired by the first user.

Managing user personas using a management controller

Methods and systems for managing operations of a data processing system are disclosed. To manage operations of the data processing system, a management controller of the data processing system may obtain data to be provided to a remote device. The management controller may obtain a characteristic of the data. Based on at least the characteristic and a rule set for determining transmission paths for data, a determination may be made regarding a transmission path for the data. In a first instance of the determination in which the transmission path includes a broker, the data may be provided to the broker via an out-of-band communication channel using a broker communication protocol. In a second instance of the determination in which the transmission path does not include the broker, the data may be provided to the remote device via an out-of-band communication channel using a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP).

Selecting a communication method using a management controller of a data processing system

Methods and systems for managing a data processing system are disclosed. The data processing system may provide computer-implemented services and may include in-band hardware resources that operate as specified by operation data of the data processing system while providing the services. However, if the operation data becomes unavailable to the data processing system, then the data processing system may be unable to provide the desired services. Therefore, to increase the likelihood of providing the desired services, the operation data may be managed using distributed backup and recovery processes. To decrease security risk associated with operation data backup and recovery, the distributed processes may be performed using out-of-band components of the data processing system, bypassing in-band hardware components that may be more vulnerable to being compromised (e.g., by a malicious party). The out-of-band management of the operation data may reduce the likelihood of interruptions in providing the desired services.

Data recovery using out-of-band communications

Methods and systems for managing operations of a data processing system are disclosed. To manage operations of the data processing system, a management controller of the data processing system may obtain diagnostic data from hardware resources of the data processing system. The management controller may provide the diagnostic data to a device operation manager. The management controller may obtain a response from the device operation manager indicating a level of anomalousness of the diagnostic data with respect to a baseline for the data processing system. In a first instance of the obtaining where the level of anomalousness meets criteria, the management controller may obtain an action set for updating the operation of the data processing system. The management controller may perform the action set to update an existing operating state of the data processing system to reduce a likelihood that a hardware resource becomes impaired.

Device health management using a management controller of a data processing system

Methods and systems for managing a data processing system for shared wireless connection operation are disclosed. The method may include establishing wireless connection profiles for use in wireless communications by hardware resources of the data processing system. The wireless connection profiles may be securely synchronized with a cache hosted by a management controller of the data processing system. To do so, wireless connection profiles may be securely transmitted by an operating system agent to the management controller using a key pair controlled by the management controller. The wireless connection profiles may also be securely synchronized with a second data processing system to utilize a shared wireless connection profile with the first data processing system in operation.

Managing operation of a data processing system for shared wireless connection

Methods and systems for managing data processing systems are disclosed. The data processing systems may be managed by verifying the integrity of the data processing systems. The integrity may be verified as a prerequisite to use of the data processing systems. The integrity may be verified, at least in part, by verifying that the hardware component loadout of a data processing system is as expected. If the actual hardware component loadout diverges from an expected hardware component loadout, then remedial activity may be performed to address the differences between the actual and expected hardware component loadout.

Out of band component validation

Methods and systems for registering a management controller of a data processing system with a server are disclosed. To register a management controller, an identifier for the management controller may be cryptographically signed using a private key of a public private key pair kept secret by a trusted platform module (TPM). The signed identifier may be provided to the server and the sever may utilize a public key of the public private key pair to verify the signed identifier was signed by a trusted entity. If the signed identifier is verified by the server, the server may register the management controller as associated with the data processing system and as a trusted entity to manage operation of hardware resources of the data processing system. The management controller may subsequently utilize an out of band communication channel to interact with the server to manage the operation of the data processing system.

Management controller registration using a trusted platform module

Methods and systems for managing a data processing system based on location data are disclosed. A management controller of the data processing system may provide the location data via an out-of-band communication channel to a geolocation management server tasked with mapping a location of the data processing system over time. The data processing system may identify an occurrence of an event based on the location data (e.g., a change in location of the data processing system), prompting the data processing system to perform an action set to update operation of the data processing system (e.g., to conform to location-based policies). Based on its updated operation, the data processing system may provide computer-implemented services that are more likely to be in compliance with local policies.

Managing data processing systems based on location using out-of-band communications

Methods and systems for authenticating a user device to an application device are disclosed. The user device may request access to a (computer-implemented) service provided by the application device. Access to the service may include access to sensitive data; therefore, to prevent unauthorized access to the sensitive data, the user device may be authenticated to the application device before the service is provided. To do so, the application device may perform a first factor authentication using in-band hardware resources of the user device; however, the in-band hardware resources may be vulnerable to attacks by malicious parties. Thus, in addition, a second factor authentication of the user device may be performed out-of-band (e.g., using a management controller of the user device) in order to bypass potentially compromised in-band hardware resources. The additional out-of-band authentication may reduce the likelihood of the malicious parties gaining access to the sensitive data via spoofing attacks.

Device authentication using out-of-band communications

Methods and systems for managing data stored by a data processing system are disclosed. A management controller of the data processing system may identify an occurrence of a backup event for the data, the occurrence indicating that a portion of the data is to be backed up to a remote storage system. In response to the occurrence, the management controller may initiate a backup process to obtain a backup data package for the data processing system. The management controller may provide the backup data package to the remote storage system via an out-of-band communication channel in order to facilitate completion of the backup process. By doing so, the data may be placed in a restorable state, enabling the data processing system to continue providing computer-implemented services.

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Austin, TX, United States of America

Bassem El-Azzami