Patent ID: 11971765
Assignee: HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT LP
Field: Digital communication (Electrical engineering)
Classification: CPC G  H  Y | IPC G  H

Claim 0:
1. A method comprising:
receiving, at a Power Sourcing Equipment (PSE) via a computer network, an electronic communication including a policy that specifies a set of rules for determining priority levels for Powered Devices (PDs) connected to the PSE, wherein the electronic communication does not specify individual priority levels for the PDs and the PSE uses the set of rules to assign the priority levels to the PDs and each of the rules is applicable to a class of PDs defined by the rule and is not specific to an individual PD, the priority levels being classifications assigned to the PDs by the PSE and used by the PSE in prioritizing power distribution over Ethernet for the computer network;
detecting, at the PSE, that a first PD is connected via a first Ethernet cable to a first port located on the PSE;
receiving, at the PSE, first identification information from the first PD;
assigning, at the PSE, a first priority level to the first PD by electronically comparing the first identification information to the set of rules;
determining, based on the first priority level and a present level of available power for a portion of the computer network that includes the PSE, that power can presently be supplied to the first PD via the first port without violating the policy; and
in response to the determining, supplying power from the PSE to the first PD via the first port and the first Ethernet cable.