Patent ID: 8384925
Filing Date: 2013-02-26
Classification: H04L,H04N

Abstract:
1. A method for maintaining imaging device (IDev) accounting data in the event of a primary accounting server (PAS) failure, said method comprising: a) determining whether said PAS is active, wherein said PAS is a computing device maintaining a financial accounting record of jobs performed by users of said IDev with user accounts and said IDev is connected to said PAS with a communication network; b) sending first IDev activity data to said PAS when said PAS is active, wherein said first IDev activity data comprises a financial accounting record of jobs performed by users of said IDev with user accounts during an active period when said PAS is active; c) accessing a list comprising at least one lightweight accounting backup server (LABS) from an accounting-controlled Imaging Device (IDev) when said primary accounting server is not active, wherein said LABS is a computing device maintaining a temporary IDev activity log (TIAL) comprising an accounting record of jobs performed by users of said IDev with user accounts when said PAS is inactive and wherein said IDev is connected to said LABS with a communication network; d) determining whether a first LABS on said list is active; e) sending second IDev activity data from said (IDev) to said first LABS on said list when said first LABS is active, wherein said first LABS uses said second IDev activity data to update and maintain said TIAL; f) determining whether another LABS on said list is active when said first LABS is not active; and g) sending said second activity data to said another LABS when said another LABS is active and said first LABS is not active, wherein said another LABS uses said second IDev activity data to update and maintain said TIAL.