Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Leszek Mazur

Kevin T Damour

Lingan Satkunanathan

Adam C DePue

Sean Daniel

Neil Scott Fishman

Dean P Paron

Sean D Daniel

Jianhui Xie

Michael Todd Kramer

Cesare John Saretto

Scott Manchester

Theodore H Roberts, Iii

Eric Benjamin Watson

Murali Krishna Sangubhatla

Murali Vajjiravel

Huseyin Gokmen Gok

Dan E Walther

Alireza Farhangi

Ying Qiu

Anthony Y Kueh

Described is a technology by which machines of a (typically small) network have associated public key-based certificates for use in authentication with a server and validation of other machines in the network. This provides an inexpensive and straightforward mechanism to control, manage and maintain client machines, as well as to allow valid client machines to securely communicate with one another and recognize machines that are not valid on the network. Certificates are maintained on the server and checked for validity as needed.

Client-client-server authentication

An authentication mechanism in a local area network may use a cloud authentication mechanism to allow or deny authentication requests. A user may gain access within a local area network by entering a cloud identification and password, which may be verified by a cloud authentication mechanism. If the authentication is successful from the cloud authentication mechanism, the user identification and password are stored locally for subsequent authentication requests. In some embodiments, the cloud password may be periodically flushed so that subsequent requests may be passed to the cloud authentication mechanism. The authentication mechanism may be used in both domain and workgroup local area networks, and may operate in parallel with other users who may have local area network or client credentials which may not be authenticated from the cloud.

Authenticating using cloud authentication

A client process may identify a local DNS server and may change a DHCP-supplied DNS setting to the local DNS server when the local DNS server is present. The client process may periodically monitor the local DNS server and, if the local DNS server is not present, the client process may revert the DNS setting to the originally supplied DHCP DNS setting. The client process may actively monitor the local DNS server by initiating communication with the local DNS server, or may passively monitor by listening for activity by the local DNS server.

Automated DNS configuration with local DNS server

A computerized method for identifying, ranking, and auditing configurable providers is described. The method receives and stores information about plural providers including provider name, provider icon, provider contact information, landing URL, configurables offered, geographical locations, and descriptions of configurables. The method receives a request from a computer that includes a geographic location. The method searches the stored information about providers in order to identify a list of provider servers that auto-configure configurables in the geographic location. The method sends information and the list of provider servers to the computer, and the sent information includes provider names, provider rank, provider landing URL, and descriptions of configurables. The method receives auditing information from the computer including a provider server selected from the list, a transaction for a selected configurable, and an indication that the selected configurable is operational. The method ranks provider servers based upon ranking factors including audit information received from plural computers.

System and method to identify, rank, and audit network provided configurables

Systems and methodologies that facilitate hosting of a domain name and access of users to the Internet, by using a well defined protocol to interact with a plurality of Dynamic Domain Name Service (DDNS) providers, via employing; a purchasing component and a status verifying component. Once a user has selected a domain name, the purchasing component can automatically query the provider(s) for terms of the service plan to host such domain name associated with dynamic IP addresses. The status verifying component can verify the IP address of the end user machine and supply it to the DDNS, to manage in-bound traffic to the user's domain name.

Message based network configuration of dynamic domain name services

A computer communicates with a referral server according to a web service definition to select and audit performance of an internet service. The computer sends and receives messages requesting internet services available in a geographic region and the message includes an identifier where the computer is located. Other received messages indicating available services including, top-level-domains, currency, and languages available in the geographic region. For example, for domain name services, messages include top-level domains, and for other services, messages include currency, languages, etc. Messages include a list of providers available in the geographic region, and for each provider in the list, a provider name, a description of provider services, or a provider URL. The computer sends other messages that audited selected provider performance including, a provider selected to provide an internet service, an indication of successful transaction, an indication of successful configuration, or an indication of failure.

Message based network transmission for selection and auditing of internet services

Described is a technology by which network server software has an interface into which a plurality of software router providers, that have methods to configure routers, may be plugged in. The network server software communicates with each provider to determine each of the provider's capabilities with respect to configuring a connected network router. A router provider is chosen based on that provider's capabilities in order to configure the router. In one example implementation, a router configuration component of the network software passes an IP address of the router to each provider and receives a score in return that indicates that provider's capabilities with respect to configuring the connected router. The provider with the best score is chosen for use in configuring the router. The score is built from weighted values, with more weight given to the capabilities deemed more valuable to users who need to configure routers.

Programmatically choosing a router configuration provider

A computer performs a method of communicating with a referral server to identify configurables available to the computer based on the computer's location and at least one other factor. The computer receives a list of provider servers selected by the referral server for referring to the computer because the provider servers on the list auto-configure configurables in the computer's location and according to the at least one other factor. The method communicates with a provider server selected from the list to purchase a selected configurable and to auto-configure the computer's computing environment to operate the selected configurable. The method communicates with the referral server to provide a metric about the provider server's performance during purchase and auto-configure.

Automated acquisition and configuration of goods and services via a network

Systems and methodologies that facilitate purchase and/or transfer of a domain name and access of users to the internet by using a well defined protocol to interact with a plurality of domain name registrars via employing a purchasing component and a mapping component. Once a user has identified a domain name, the purchasing component can automatically query the provider(s) for terms of the service plan to obtain such domain name. The mapping component can then point to a DNS provider designated to host such domain name, to manage in-bound traffic. The subject invention can also be implemented in web services based hosted solutions directory, for example by designation of a trusted on-line registry that registers a plurality of service providers to supply services to clients, with a secure communication between the clients and the trusted on-line registry for selection of a service provider.

Message based network configuration of domain name purchase

Described is a technology by which a server automatically configures itself for adding to an existing network. Upon connection to the network, the server obtains settings including existing subnet and gateway IP addresses from a DHCP assigned IP configuration (e.g., a router). The server uses the settings to automatically configure itself to dynamically provide addresses similar to the previous scope to clients. In one implementation, the server software sets its network card to a static IP address state while the server is configured, and thereafter sets the network card to a dynamic state. The router is disabled during server configuration, and re-enabled thereafter, whereby the server DHCP service instead of the router DHCP service assigns the addresses. The server may also attempt to automatically connect to the Internet.

Automatic configuration of client and server networking

Automated redundant configuration of a computer service can be accomplished in a variety of ways. An installation answer can be received and used to automatically determine configuration settings for a computer service to operate redundantly across multiple computer servers. The configuration settings can then be used to configure the multiple computer servers. A user can be asked an installation question, and based on the answer different configuration settings can be determined for configuring a first and second server of a plurality of computer servers. The first and second server can be configured with the corresponding configuration settings. In addition, an installation knowledge base can be consulted, based on an installation answer, when automatically determining configuration settings.

Multi-server automated redundant service configuration

Systems and methods for archiving real-time data are provided. Real-time data transport files can be transferred from a data store to an output data store for play back on digital devices, such as digital VCR and digital display devices. A synchronizer component facilitates the generation of real-time timestamps from a plurality of reference timestamps for recording the real-time data transport files onto the output data store via a digital recording device.

System and method for real-time data archival

A providing computer system may receive a request, via a stateless protocol, to access a resource. An access control application may refer to administrative rules to set validation information associated with the request. Validation information may be in the form of electronic text that is stored in a location such as a cookie or state-table. Validation information may indicate the state of a session associated with a resource, such as whether a session is in a logged-in or logged-out state. When a request is received, validation information and authentication information may be utilized together to determine if access to a resource should be granted. When access to a resource is granted or denied, validation information may be updated to indicate that the state of the session has changed.

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Bellevue, WA, United States of America

Leszek Mazur