Remotely Configurable Routers with Failover and Centralized Management
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional routers in end-user LANs cannot be remotely configured or monitored in a secure and centralized manner, leading to challenges in diagnosing and resolving Internet connectivity issues, which can compromise business continuity and data backup/restore operations.
Innovation Solution
Development of remotely configurable web-enabled routers with failover features, allowing secure, centralized administration through Device Management Servers (DMS) via web portals, enabling remote configuration, monitoring, and failover processes to ensure uninterrupted connectivity and data operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional routers are deployed in end-user LANs, then basic routing functionality is provided, but secure remote configuration and centralized monitoring cannot be achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces Device Management Servers (DMS) as intermediaries between administrators and routers. The DMS provides a web portal interface that enables secure remote configuration and monitoring of routers without requiring direct access to router administrative interfaces, thus solving the contradiction between ease of remote operation and connectivity reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system segments the routing functionality from the management functionality. The router focuses on packet forwarding while the DMS handles configuration, monitoring, and diagnostics. This segmentation allows the router to maintain reliable connectivity for data traffic while the DMS provides secure remote management capabilities through web protocols.
2Device complexity
If conventional routers are deployed in end-user LANs, then basic routing functionality is provided, but centralized monitoring and diagnosis of Internet connectivity issues cannot be achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where routers periodically report status information to the DMS, and the DMS provides diagnostic feedback about connectivity issues. The web portal displays real-time or near-real-time status of routers and network connectivity, enabling centralized monitoring and rapid diagnosis of issues without requiring on-site technical personnel.
3Ease of operation
If remote web-based administration is implemented, then secure centralized configuration is enabled, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The Device Management Server provides multiple functions through a single web portal interface: configuration management, status monitoring, diagnostic information display, and firmware update capabilities. This universal interface consolidates what would otherwise require multiple separate management systems, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining ease of web-based administration.
Data Source
AI summary
Web-enabled routers are remotely and securely administered in a centralized fashion. A server for configuring a remotely configurable router on a computer network includes a memory to store a plurality of router configuration profiles that include a first router configuration profile associated with the remotely configurable router at a first instant in time. A server may also include a network interface to receive a request to reconfigure the remotely configurable router via the computer network. A server may also include a processor, operably coupled to the network interface and to the memory, that receives instructions to provide a second router configuration profile to the remotely configurable router for installation on the remotely configured router. The processor may also provide the first router configuration profile to the remotely configurable router in response to an indication that the second router configuration profile was not successfully installed on the remotely configurable router.