Tailored Software Update Recommendations for Network Elements

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

The manual process of determining software updates for network elements, such as firewalls, is laborious and time-consuming, and can lead to operational overhead, disruption of functionality, and exposure to new vulnerabilities.

Innovation Solution

An automated service that analyzes the impact of new software updates on network elements by evaluating published documentation and issue data, and provides tailored recommendations based on the customer's specific configuration and usage.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If manual analysis of software updates is performed, then customization and understanding of update impact is improved, but labor time and operational overhead increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveunderstanding of update impactVSAvoidlabor time

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces an automated analysis service as an intermediary between the software update and the customer. This service analyzes update documentation, correlates issues with configurable settings, and generates tailored recommendations, thereby providing precise update impact assessment without requiring manual customer analysis

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The system enables self-service by automatically performing the analysis that would otherwise require manual customer effort. The service autonomously processes update documentation, extracts relevant information, correlates it with customer-specific configurations, and generates recommendations without human intervention in the analysis process

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

2Productivity

If software updates are applied without analysis, then productivity is improved, but exposure to vulnerabilities and operational disruptions increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveupdate deployment speedVSAvoidoperational stability

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by performing comprehensive analysis of software updates before they are deployed to production. The system pre-identifies potential issues, correlates them with customer configurations, and generates recommendations that guide safe update deployment, thereby maintaining both speed and reliability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system applies preliminary anti-action by proactively identifying and flagging potential vulnerabilities and operational disruptions before update deployment. By anticipating problems in advance and providing tailored recommendations, the system prevents harmful effects before they can manifest in the live environment

Inventive Principle:

Principle #9Preliminary anti-action

3Reliability

If comprehensive update analysis is performed, then update safety is improved, but device complexity and processing requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveupdate safetyVSAvoidanalysis system complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies segmentation by dividing the update analysis process into distinct modular components: documentation processing, issue extraction, configuration data parsing, correlation analysis, and recommendation generation. This modular architecture manages complexity by organizing the analysis system into independent, manageable segments that can be processed separately

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

4Ease of operation

If generic update recommendations are provided, then ease of operation is improved, but applicability to specific customer configurations decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improverecommendation delivery simplicityVSAvoidconfiguration-specific relevance

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies local quality by customizing update recommendations according to each customer's specific network element configurations and usage patterns. Rather than providing uniform generic advice, the system analyzes individual customer configurations and tailors recommendations to local conditions, thereby achieving both ease of operation and high adaptability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS20250028516A1Tailored recommendation of software updates to network elements

Publication Date: 2025.01.23 PALO ALTO NETWORKS INC

AI summary

A service analyzes impact of new software updates for various network elements and performs tailored recommendation of software updates to a customer having a network element(s) deployed. The service analyzes impact of a software update based on evaluation of documentation published for the update and data of issues that are at least potentially associated with the software update (e.g., software bugs, vulnerabilities, etc.) to obtain software update metadata and data indicating changes in functionality and/or potential issues affecting the software. The service parses configuration data for the network element(s) based on the update impact data/metadata to extract a subset that is relevant to available software updates. The service evaluates the update impact data/metadata and the extracted configuration data based on heuristics to determine which of the software updates to recommend for each network element and recommends those that suit the use of the network element based on its current configuration while introducing minimal issues.