Dell USA L P

Dell Products Inc.

Roger W Wong

Richard D Amberg

Michael Lynch

Michael A Brundridge

William Paul Hyden

Joe Bryan

Robert King

Subha Rojan Ram

Subhashini Rajan

David Alan Butts

An apparatus for use in the manufacture of a computer system comprises a step table and a component table. The step table contains substantially all software installation and/or testing steps for all components of all computer systems being manufactured at a given site. The component table contains substantially all components that are included within all computer systems being manufactured at the site. The apparatus also includes a step dependency table and a step parameter table. The step dependency table identifies steps in the step table which are incompatible with the presence in the computer system of a component other than that corresponding to the step. The step parameter table identifies steps in the step table which require a parameter.

Apparatus for use in the manufacture of a computer system

A test device for a computer system includes a burn rack having a plurality of workcells. A simple network management protocol switch device is provided adjacent the burn rack. The switch device includes a plurality of ports. A plurality of cables are provided such that a respective cable interconnects a respective port of the switch device and a respective workcell. A monitor is provided adjacent the burn rack and is connected to a port of the switch device. At least one of the workcells has a computer mounted therein provided with a unique Mac Address and connected to the respective cable at the respective workcell. The monitor is connected to a burn rack database.

Automatic location determination of devices under test

A method and system for automated distribution of software are provided. The method comprises maintaining a database of configuration information. The configuration information includes version information of loaded software stored on a remote server. The configuration information further includes version information of available software operable to be loaded upon the remote server. A request is received from a user to load the available software on the remote server. The version information of the available software is compared with the version information of the loaded software. The available software is copied to the remote server.

Method and system for automated distribution of software

A dynamic listener server architecture in which a DUT broadcasts a network package onto a LAN and each of a set of listener servers connected to the LAN responds to the DUT broadcast with an individual packet containing its network address. The DUT receives these packets and uses the first one it receives as the primary listener server until a subsequent broadcast by the DUT when either the DUT is rebooted and assumes itself in an unknown LAN or when the connection to the selected listener server fails and it is now looking for another listener server on the same LAN. The network address of the selected listener server is cached by the DUT and used in repeated sessions.

Dynamic burn rack monitor listener server

A method of installing software on and/or testing software for build-to-order computer system includes reading a plurality of component descriptors from a computer readable file. Each component descriptor describes a respective component of the computer system. A plurality of steps are retrieved from a database, each step being associated with a respective sequence number. The plurality of steps are sequenced in a predetermined order according to the sequence numbers to provide a step sequence. The step sequence includes commands for installing and/or testing software upon the computer system. For each step read from the database, it is determined if that step is incompatible with the presence in the computer system of a component other than that corresponding to the component descriptor associated with the step. If so, the step is discarded or not according to data associated with that step in the database. Also, for each step read from the database it is determined if that step requires a parameter, and if so the parameter is calculated according to data associated with that step in the database.

Method of installing software on and/or testing a computer system

A test device for a computer system includes a burn rack including a plurality of workcells. A simple network management protocol enabled network device is provided adjacent the burn rack. The network device includes a plurality of ports. Cables provide an interconnection between a respective port and a respective workcell. A monitor is connected to a port of the network device and is also connected to a burn rack database. A display on a screen of the monitor provides a visual occupancy representation of each workcell.

Troubleshooting computer systems during manufacturing using state and attribute information

A method of installing software on and/or testing a computer system includes providing a step sequence having a plurality of software installation and/or testing steps to be executed in an order determined by the step sequence, and reading and executing consecutive steps from the step sequence. The method further includes updating, in respect of each step which is executed, a file with data relating to the current status of the installation and/or testing, and, prior to the execution of each step, determining from the file if that step is properly the next consecutive step in the step sequence.

A method of installing software on and/or testing a computer system includes reading a plurality of component descriptors from a computer readable file, each component descriptor describing a respective component of the computer system, reading a plurality of steps from a database, each step being associated with a component descriptor and including a respective sequence number, and sequencing the plurality of steps in a predetermined order according to the sequence numbers to provide a step sequence including commands for installing software on and/or testing the computer system. The method further includes determining for each step read from the database, from data associated with that step in the database, if that step is incompatible with the presence in the computer system of a component other than that corresponding to the component descriptor associated with the step, and if so, discarding or not discarding the step according to further data associated with that step in the database. It can also be determined if that step requires a parameter, and if so, calculating such parameter according to further data associated with that step in the database.

A method for installing and/or testing software for a build-to-order computer system includes reading a plurality of component descriptors from a computer readable file. At least one component descriptor describes a respective component of the computer system. A plurality of steps are retrieved from a database, at least one step being associated with a respective component descriptor. A step also includes a respective sequence number. The plurality of steps are sequenced in a predetermined order according to the sequence numbers to provide a step sequence. The step sequence includes commands for installing and/or testing software upon the computer system.

Software installation and testing for a build-to order computer system

A method for installing and/or testing software for a build-to-order computer system having a plurality of components includes a plurality of elements. The computer system has an associated step sequence. The step sequence includes a plurality of steps where each step includes at least one command and a step is associated with a respective component descriptor. A component descriptor corresponds to a respective component of the computer system. The method includes accessing a command within the step sequence; creating a file including a start of execution indication; executing the command; deleting the file including the start of execution indication when the command completes execution; and repeating the accessing, creating, executing and deleting for the plurality of steps.

Software installation and testing for a build-to-order computer system

An apparatus for installing software onto a computer system includes a step table and a component table. The step table contains a set of software installation steps shared among different components of substantially all computer systems being manufactured. The component table contains a set of substantially all possible components that are included within computer systems being manufactured. The computer system corresponds to a family of computer systems and the apparatus further includes a family relation table, a family relation table and a family component relation table. The family relation table identifies the relationship between a set of software installation steps and each family of computer system being manufactured. The family component relation table identifies the relationship between the family of computer systems and the set of components. The family step relation table identifies the relation between a component and a set of software installation steps appropriate for the corresponding component.

Growing community of inventors

Austin, TX, United States of America

Roger W Wong