Manufacturer Boot Environment Persistent Device Provisioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mechanisms for maintaining provisioning and enrollment of enterprise devices are disrupted by events such as operating system repair, reinstallation, or hardware changes, leading to inefficiencies and loss of device protection.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a persistent device provisioning mechanism that utilizes a manufacturer boot environment to ensure continuous management service enrollment, even after disruptive events, by using a management service that communicates with client devices to reinstall and configure management components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional provisioning mechanisms are used, then initial device enrollment is achieved, but provisioning is lost after operating system repair, reinstallation, or hardware changes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by embedding provisioning information in the firmware during manufacturing, before the device is deployed. This firmware-resident provisioning information serves as a pre-prepared backup that automatically activates when the operating system is reinstalled or hardware changes occur, eliminating the need for time-consuming re-enrollment procedures.
2Reliability
If system administrators manually reinstall management components, then device provisioning can be restored, but productivity is reduced due to time consumption and administrative dependency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by enabling the device to automatically restore its own provisioning status without administrator intervention. When disruptive events occur, the device autonomously detects the loss of provisioning information, retrieves backup data from firmware, and re-establishes enrollment with the management service, thereby maintaining continuous operational availability.
Solution Approach 2:
The provisioning information is preliminarily stored in firmware during manufacturing, creating a self-contained backup mechanism that enables automatic restoration without requiring administrator action or external intervention, thus preserving productivity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If device provisioning is lost after hardware changes, then hardware adaptability is improved, but device protection is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent stores provisioning information in firmware during the manufacturing process, creating a persistent backup that survives hardware changes. When hardware is replaced or modified, the device automatically retrieves the provisioning information from firmware and restores enrollment, ensuring continuous device protection while accommodating hardware adaptability.
4Reliability
If management components are reinstalled after crashes or failures, then system reliability is restored, but the process is time-consuming and may not always be feasible
Solution Approach 1:
The device automatically detects when management components are lost due to crashes or failures and autonomously restores provisioning by retrieving backup information from firmware and re-enrolling with the management service, eliminating the need for complex administrator-led reinstallation processes.
Solution Approach 2:
Provisioning information is preliminarily embedded in firmware during manufacturing, creating a ready-made backup that simplifies restoration to a single automatic process rather than requiring complex manual reinstallation procedures.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are various examples for device provisioning using a manufacturer boot environment. A management agent can be executed from a manufacturer's boot environment and can install a management application that is executable in the main operating system to provision a client device for management. The management agent can then set a provisioning status BIOS variable to indicate that the client device is provisioned. The client device can then be booted to the main operating system and the management application can be executed.