Patent ID: 8230049
Filing Date: 2012-07-24
Classification: G06F,H04L,H04N

Abstract:
1. An information processing apparatus which is connected to one of a plurality of sub-areas in a network environment including a plurality of management servers, each of the plurality of management servers having an IP address for anycast and managing a device in a respective sub-area of the plurality of sub-areas, the information processing apparatus comprising: an anycast unit adapted to perform anycast using an IP address for anycast included in server information managed by said information processing apparatus, in the connected sub-area; a first request unit adapted to transmit a request, to a responding management server of the plurality of management servers which has responded to the performed anycast, for network management information managed by the responding management server; a judgment unit adapted to judge, by analyzing the network management information acquired as a response to the request, whether or not a device driver for the device managed by the responding management server in the connected sub-area has been installed in said information processing apparatus; a second request unit adapted to transmit a request, to the responding management server, for default device driver candidates corresponding to the information processing apparatus, in a case where said judgment unit judges that the device driver has been installed in said information processing apparatus and a plurality of device drivers including the device driver have been installed in said information processing apparatus; an acquirement unit adapted to acquire, in a case where the judgment unit judges that the device driver has not been installed in said information processing apparatus, an installer for installing the device driver from the responding management server; a controlling unit adapted to control to execute the installer acquired by the acquirement unit; and a selection unit adapted to select one device driver, which has been installed in said information processing apparatus or which is installed by the installer, as a default device driver corresponding to said information processing apparatus, wherein (i) in a case where the judgment unit judges that the device driver has been installed in said information processing apparatus and one device driver which is the device driver itself has been installed in said information processing apparatus, the selection unit is adapted to select the one device driver as the default device driver without installing another device driver in said information processing apparatus, (ii) in a case where the judgment unit judges that the device driver has been installed in said information processing apparatus and the plurality of device drivers have been installed in said information processing apparatus, the selection unit is adapted to select one device driver among the default device driver candidates, and (iii) in a case where the judgment unit judges that the device driver has not been installed in said information processing apparatus, the selection unit is adapted to select one device driver installed by the installer as the default device driver of said information processing apparatus, wherein the responding management server is adapted to manage a plurality of different devices in the connected sub-area, each of the plurality of different devices having its own IP address, and the responding management server is a separate device from the plurality of different devices, and wherein the device driver installed on the information processing apparatus by the installer is a device driver of one of the plurality of different devices, and wherein each of said units is implemented at least by a CPU.