Abstract:
Automated booting of a client for a subscriber is provided for clients that are for use in interactive user sessions that involve multimedia. A subscribe message is sent from the client to a proxy server. The proxy server authenticates the subscribe message, and sends the subscribe message to the configuration server. A notify message is sent to the client from the configuration server. The notify message is sent through the proxy server, and contains a location of a profile for the client. The profile is downloaded to the client. This arrangement allows the persistence of profiles in a centralized place.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 60/707,639, filed Aug. 12, 2005. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to hardware and software based customer premise equipment (CPE) for use in interactive user sessions that involve multimedia. The invention further relates to an automated boot process, and to provisioning and activation technologies for these hardware and software clients. 
     2. Background Art 
     Session initiation protocol (SIP) is an existing request/response protocol for initiating, modifying, and terminating interactive user sessions that involve multimedia. SIP-based clients include both hardware and software based customer premise equipment (CPE). Generally, SIP provides signaling and session setup for Internet protocol (IP) communications involving multimedia. 
     Traditional provisioning approaches used with SIP clients utilize a pull model for provisioning, in which the client checks for configuration changes periodically or requires to be rebooted to get configuration updates. As a result, updates to the SIP clients are traditionally not real-time updates. In addition, by design, SIP is a peer-to-peer protocol. As a result, traditional SIP applications are not configured to maintain persistence of data in a centralized place to enable the subscriber to have a consistent experience across a variety of platforms and hardware solutions. Also, the traditional back-office system does not support clients behind in-home NAT devices or nomadic clients. 
     For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a method and system for booting, provisioning, and activating hardware and software clients that address some of the shortcomings in existing approaches. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the invention to provide an improved method and system for booting, provisioning, and activating hardware and software clients. 
     Some embodiments of the invention involve SIP clients; however, it is to be appreciated that various aspects of the invention may be used with other hardware and software clients used in interactive user sessions using other protocols. 
     In one embodiment, the invention provides an automated method for booting up SIP-based clients, including both hardware and software based customer premise equipment (CPE). A top-down push mechanism is used for provisioning the user, service, and device information for a subscriber. Boot up configuration information is stored in the network, and supports stationary as well as nomadic SIP-based clients. In preferred embodiments, network address translation (NAT) traversal allows the booting up of SIP-based clients behind NAT devices. 
     By using the top-down push mechanism, in some embodiments it may be possible to propagate updates from the billing system, provisioning system, self-care portal, etc., to SIP-based clients in real-time if the client is online. In the event that the client is not online, the updates could be provided at the next log in or boot up of the client. 
     In some embodiments, configuration parameters (for example, user preferences, etc.) from the soft client or hard client may be uploaded to the provisioning system. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  illustrates the system architecture for implementing the invention in the preferred embodiment; 
         FIGS. 2-7  illustrate various provisioning flows in the preferred embodiment; 
         FIG. 8  illustrates the provisioning login flow for a soft client device logging in for the first time in the preferred embodiment; 
         FIG. 9  illustrates the provisioning login flow for a soft client device on subsequent logins, and the hard client device login flow; 
         FIG. 10  illustrates the updating of client preferences from the soft client or hard client through a local administration graphical user interface (GUI); and 
         FIG. 11  illustrates the updating of client preferences using a portal)). 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       FIG. 1  provides a high-level view of the functionality that various systems perform in the preferred embodiment. 
     1. Billing Systems ( 10 ) 
     Billing systems  10  perform the following functions:
         Order Entry: Customer Account Executive (CAE)  12 , or Customer Service Representative (CSR), will be able to create new orders in the billing systems  10 . Self-provisioning by the customer using a Portal is another mechanism to create new orders.   Monthly bill generation: Billing systems  10  interact with the Mediation Server (MS)  14  to generate monthly bills for each subscriber. The monthly bill (one per multiple service subscriptions) has monthly recurring charges (service charges, call features, rental charges, etc.), Call detail records (date, time, place, telephone number (TN), type of rate, number of minutes, and amount of charge), non-recurring charges, regulatory recovery fees (911, Universal connectivity, LNP fee, etc.), surcharge (subscriber line), taxes (federal, state and local).   Billing inquiry support: CAE  12  has access to call detail information sent from the MS  14  to handle disputes and to apply credit for calls.   Rate Code Management: Service package and rate code information is available for use to the CAE  12  and the order entry Portal. Based on the rate code, individual calls will be rated by time of day, local/long distance/international, etc.   Workforce Management functionalities: Technician scheduling, setting up customer appointments based on real-time technician availability information and work assignment are some of the capabilities that billing systems  10  provide.   CPE inventory management: The Billing systems  10  provide inventory management and equipment tracking for hard clients (HC)  18 .
 
2. Mediation Server (MS) ( 14 )
       

     The service architecture includes the SIP Infrastructure  20 , Policy Server (PS)  22  and Session Border Controller (SBC) which generate RADIUS accounting events, and not full Call Detail Records (CDRs). These events are generated for each SIP message transaction (e.g., INVITE, BYE) and for each (originating and terminating) call leg during a call. The RADIUS server  24  collects these accounting events and sends them to MS  14  using flat files for call metering and rating as per service package information. 
     MS  14  performs RADIUS event correlation using subscriber account information provided by billing systems  10  to derive CDRs and call dispositions. MS  14  then forwards the CDRs to billing systems  10 . MS  14  supports billing inquiries from Portal to display call logs in near real-time. 
     3. RADIUS Server ( 24 ) 
     Radius server  24  collects all event messages [startup/shutdown/connect/disconnect/failed requests/missed/forwarded/Voicemail/QoS on-off, etc.] sent by the SIP Infrastructure  20 , PS  22  and SBC to create flat file/s to be sent to the MS  14  for further processing. 
     4. Provisioning Engine (PE) ( 30 ) 
     PE  30  receives service requests (add/delete/modify) from billing systems  10  to perform subscriber and service provisioning using Work Breakdown Engine (WBE)  32  to drive the workflow. PE  30  interfaces with Messaging Platform (MP)  34 , Configuration Server (CS)  36 , SIP Infrastructure  20 , PS  22 , Provisioning Group (PG)  38  to keep these systems in sync with the Data Store (DS)  40  (source of truth). 
     PE  30  receives password update requests from Subscriber Service Management Layer (SSML)  50  and ensures that the SIP Infrastructure  20  is updated with this data. 
     PE  30  receives client preferences and address book changes from SSML  50  (changes made from the Portal) and sends an update trigger to Configuration Server  36 . 
     PE  30  receives call feature detail changes from the Portal and writes the information to SIP Infrastructure  20 . 
     PE  30  receives call feature details queries from the Portal. The PE will process requests using SIP Infrastructure adapters to send back the details to the Portal. 
     5. Work Breakdown Engine (WBE) ( 32 ) 
     PE  30  will communicate with the WBE  32  to get work order breakdown for service requests (add/delete/modify). WBE  32  will maintain the timing and order of provisioning operations. 
     All work order breakdown service requests from WBE  32  are transactional in nature, following a particular sequence. Status of orders will be updated in the Order Status Repository (OSR)  52 . On failures, these provisioning transactions originated from WBE  32  will not be rolled back to preserve the state for further analysis during order fall out handling. The service fulfillment agent will handle fall out orders and correct the trouble to complete and close the order. 
     WBE  32  interacts with TPP (voice third party provisioning) systems for LIDB, LNP, CNAM, and DA/DL services. 
     6. Order Status Repository (OSR) ( 52 ) 
     OSR  52  maintains the status of various legs of the transactions that are broken down by the WBE  32 . Manual intervention will be required to fix the errors that arise out of automated provisioning. 
     7. Configuration Server ( 36 ) 
     The Configuration Server  36  provides the following functions:
         Support Subscribe-Notify SIP based event mechanism.   Support XCAP to manage configuration data, e.g., user, service and device profiles.   Will provide all user, service and device profile data from the data store  40  as source of truth.   For performance reasons, configuration server  36  may cache user, service and device profiles. The caching option will be configurable.   Push configuration updates (i.e. user, service and device profile parameter changes) from Billing system  10 , Portal to the SIP-based clients (hard clients  18 , soft clients  60 ) in real-time.   Upload user profile changes from the SIP-based clients (hard clients  18 , soft clients  60 ) to data store  40  via SSML services  50  in real-time.
 
8. SIP Infrastructure ( 20 )
       

     The SIP Infrastructure  20  provides the following functionality:
         User authentication and authorization (to gain access to SIP-based network services).   End-point registration (maintains mapping a particular SIP address and/or E.164 # to the IP address of a user agent (UA)).   Message routing (including simple network-based features like call forwarding, etc.).   Enhanced feature support (e.g., multi-point conferencing with centralized media mixing).   Inter-domain routing of SIP session requests.   Providing network-based features associated with routing between multiple domains (e.g., least-cost routing).   ENUM integration for number management and routing.   Support for subscriptions and notifications.
 
9. Policy Server (PS) ( 22 )
       

     The Policy Server  22  enforces MSO-defined authorization and resource-management procedures. PS  22  applies rules against received Policy Requests. Requests that pass are proxied to the cable modem termination system (CMTS)  62  for admission control. PS  22  can push policy decisions to a CMTS  62  and respond to queries from the CMTS  62  for policy decisions. 
     10. Messaging Platform (MP) ( 34 ) 
     The messaging platform  34  provides the subscriber with voice mail, and video mail services. MP  34  will also provide notifications for messages and portal based access for message retrieval and preference settings. 
     11. Provisioning Group (PG) ( 38 ) 
     PG systems  38  are used to provision multiple technologies and devices including Cable Modems, digital set-top boxes and PacketCable eMTAs. The device will be added to a database (registration) and receive a proper configuration file (activation). 
     PG systems  38  also include a DHCP server to dynamically allocate IP addresses and a DNS server that is used to map between domain names and IP addresses. 
     12. Tools Database (TDB) ( 64 ) 
     TDB  64  is a central database of record for network element data. TDB  64  will be populated with subscriber and service data (e-mail, call features, etc.) written by PE  30 . TDB  64  will also house billing data (rate codes, account number, customer ID, market ID, region ID, domain ID, etc.) TDB  64  has also near real-time feed from PG  38  for IP-address assignments to CM, and CPEs. TDB  64  maps a subscriber to a CMTS  62 . 
     TDB  64  will be accessed by various OSS tools  65  and PS  22 . 
     13. Subscriber Service Management Layer (SSMC) ( 50 ) 
     SSML  50  provides component services to do subscriber options, preferences and account management. Portal based service applications access these services to provide subscriber self-care account management services. 
     SSML  50  maintains data integrity and consistency in the DS  40  for updates from multiple sources (Portal, Configuration Server, etc.). SSML  50  provides a layer of abstraction around the data in the DS  40 . 
     SSML  50  will be accessed by Configuration Server  36  to provide user/service/device profile information to the clients. SSML  50  will retrieve the data from the DS  40  to provide the information. 
     14. Data Store (DS) ( 40 ) 
     The DS  40  is used for product management, subscriber and device identity management, application/service configuration/authorization/activation and topology/infrastructure information. The DS  40  is the source of truth and the Configuration Server  36  and other downstream network elements need to be in sync with DS  40 . 
     The DS  40  is used to hold the online service state of the subscriber. A subscriber&#39;s service is disconnected by request or by enabling business rules that determine the state of the subscriber over time (e.g., abandonment of the account or services for specified period of time will result in automated termination). The online state of the subscriber with respect to the provisioned devices and services will be written to the DS  40  by PE  30 . Certain applications and aspects of these services such as Parental Controls and Presence-based service management will write/update the DS  40  independently of the PE  30 . 
     On a much larger scale, the provisioning of subscriber, device, and service information through PE  30  into the DS  40  allows for the scale, flexibility, and redundancy to provide the subscriber a richer and cohesive environment. On an even grander scale, allowing third-party services to authenticate against the DS  40  allows subscribers to access to their services even off the service provider&#39;s footprint. 
     DS  40  supports the User—Service management paradigm as well as providing Service Access, Business Management, and Operational (Support System) Management. 
     15. STUN and TURN ( 80 ) 
     The STUN and TURN  80  are used by clients as follows: 
     The STUN (Simple Traversal of User Datagram Protocol (UDP) Through Network Address Translators (NATs)) is used by a client behind NAT to find out its public address, the type of NAT it is behind and the Internet side port associated by the NAT with a particular local port. 
     The TURN (Traversal Using Relay NAT) is used by clients behind a symmetric NAT or firewall to receive incoming data over TCP or UDP connections. 
       FIGS. 2-7  provide details of various flows [add/delete/modify service requests] for the automated boot-process for SIP-based clients in the preferred embodiment. In each figure, the follows are sequentially numbered to facilitate an understanding of the illustrated process. Further, labels for the flows are provided immediately below each flow diagram for clarity, and indicate the activity for the flows. 
       FIG. 2  provides details of the add service request for a soft client (SC) subscriber:
         When the subscriber calls the Customer Account Executive (CAE)  12  to add service, serviceability check is performed, a telephone number is allocated, and an order is entered and after Third Party Validation (TPV) is done the order is sent down to the Provisioning Engine (PE)  30 . (Flow  1 - 6 .) A serviceability database for checking the serviceability of an account/customer is indicated at  13 .   The PE  30  gets the breakdown of the order from the Work Breakdown Engine (WBE)  32 . (Flows  7 - 8 .)   Based on the WBE  32 , various downstream systems—Messaging Platform (MP)  34 , Policy Server (PS)  22 , SIP Infrastructure  20 , Tools Database (TDB)  64 , Data Store (DS)  40 , and Configuration Server (CS)  36 —are updated with subscriber and service data. (Flows  9 - 19 .)   PE  30  sends the overall order status of the transaction to the billing system  10 . (Flow  20 .)   Billing system  10  sends the subscriber data to Mediation Service (MS)  14  in real-time. This step is necessary to trigger MS  14  to start tracking the telephone call usage (type as local/long-distance/international, toll/non-toll, minutes etc.) for the subscriber. Subscriber data including primary account customer ID/Account ID, Telephone Number, Service Package information/Service Code/Rate Code, Monthly billing cycle, and Account scams are sent. (Flow  21 .)   PE  30  will then update the provisioning tasks status in Order Status Repository (OSR)  52  and inform WBE  32  that the activation was successful. (Flow  22 .)   Billing system  10  sends the status of the Order Entry to CAE  12 . The CAE  12  provides download information [URL] to the customer. (Flow  23 .)   WBE  32  will perform third party provisioning. Directory Assistance (DA)/Directory Listing (DL) will be updated with the customer listing information. Calling Name (CNAM) database will be updated with caller ID and calling name information. Automatic Location Identification (ALI) database will be updated with subscriber address information for E911. (Flow  24 .)       

       FIG. 3  provides details of the delete service request for a soft client (SC) subscriber:
         When the subscriber calls the Customer Account Executive (CAE)  12  to delete service, an order is entered and sent down to the PE  30 . (Flows  1 - 2 .)   The PE  30  gets the breakdown of the order from the WBE  32 . (Flows  3 - 4 .)   Based on the WBE  32 , various downstream systems—MP  34 , PS  22 , SIP Infrastructure  20 , TDB  64 , DS  40 , and CS  36 —are asked to delete subscriber and service data. (Flows  5 - 15 .)   PE  30  sends the overall status of the transaction to the billing system  10 . (Flow  16 .)   The telephone number will be returned to the TN database  16 . (Flow  17 .)   The status of the operation to add the telephone number to the TN database  16  is returned to the Billing system  10 . (Flow  18 .)   Billing system  10  sends notification to MS  14  in real-time that the subscriber was deleted. (Flow  19 .)   Upon reporting status of delete operation to billing system (Flow  16 ), PE  30  will then update the OSR data  52  with delete order status and inform WBE  32  that the deactivation is complete. (Flow  20 .)   Upon completion of Flow  19 , Billing system  10  sends the status of the delete service to CAE  12 . (Flow  21 .)   After receiving deactivation complete message from PE  30  (Flow  20 ), WBE  32  will perform third party provisioning to clear the account information. (Flow  22 .)       

       FIG. 4  provides details of the modify service request for a soft client (SC) subscriber:
         When the subscriber calls the Customer Account Executive (CAE)  12  to modify service, an order is entered and sent down to the PE  30 . (Flows  1 - 2 .)   The PE  30  gets the breakdown of the order from the WBE  32 . (Flows  3 - 4 .)   Based on the WBE  32 , various downstream systems—MP  34 , PS  22 , SIP Infrastructure  20 , TDB  64 , DS  40 , and CS  36 —are asked to modify subscriber and service data. (Flows  5 - 19 .)   CS  36  notifies soft client (SC)  60  of change. (Flows  10 - 14 .)   PE  30  sends the overall status of the transaction to the billing system  10 . (Flow  20 .)   Billing system  10  sends the status of the Order Entry to CAE  12 . (Flow  21 .)       

       FIG. 5  provides details of the add service request for a hard client (HC) subscriber:
         When the subscriber calls the Customer Account Executive (CAE)  12  to add service, serviceability check is performed, a telephone number is allocated, an order is entered and after Third Party Validation (TPV) is done the order is sent down to the Provisioning Engine (PE)  30 . (Flows  1 - 6 .)   The PE  30  gets the breakdown of the order from the Work Breakdown Engine (WBE)  32 . (Flows  7 - 8 .)   Based on the WBE  32 , various downstream systems—Messaging Platform (MP)  34 , Policy Server (PS)  22 , SIP Infrastructure  20 , Tools Database (TDB)  64 , Data Store (DS)  40 , and Configuration Server (CS)  36 —are updated with subscriber and service data. (Flows  9 - 19 .)   The order is not yet complete. The Billing System  10  is informed of the status of the provisioning request. (Flow  20 .)   The Billing System  10  updates CAE with order entry status. (Flow  21 .)   Technician calls IVR (from the subscriber site on the day of install) and enters MAC address. Technician also specifies whether HC  18  is behind NAT  70  or not. (Flow  22 .)   WBE  32  sends update to PE  30  via Order Status Repository (OSR)  52  that the equipment information MAC address was checked in for specific subscriber and order (indirectly identifying TN). (Flow  23 .)   PE  30  updates PG  38  to register HC  18  MAC address and allow additional IP address allocation if HC  18  is not behind NAT  70 . (Flow  24 .)     30  PE  30  updates DS  40  subscriber-device association information. (Flow  25 .)   PE  30  updates SIP-infrastructure  20  with TN &amp; MAC address for authentication purpose. (Flow  26 .)   PE  30  writes back equipment information to billing system  10  for the given subscriber. (Flow  27 .)   Technician does wiring and connection, confirms service is up and running, and then calls billing system dispatch and checks-in work order. If any of the previous steps failed, OSR  52  will have the status. The technician will have to call service delivery or fulfillment agent to resolve the issue. The service delivery or fulfillment agent will look at OSR  52  and will rectify the problem. (Flow  28 .)   Billing system  10  sends order check-in to PE  30  and updates Mediation Server  14  with subscriber data. (Flows  29 - 30 .)   PE  30  will then update the OSR data with order status and inform WBE  32  that the activation was successful. (Flow  31 .)   WBE  32  will perform third party provisioning. Line Information Database (LIDB) will be updated. Directory Assistance (DA)/Directory Listing (DL) will be updated with the customer listing information. Calling Name (CNAM) database will be updated with caller ID and calling name information. Automatic Location Identification (ALI) database will be updated with subscriber address information for E911. (Flow  32 .)       

       FIG. 6  provides details of the delete service request for a hard client (HC)  18  subscriber:
         When the subscriber calls the Customer Account Executive (CAE)  12  to delete service, an order is entered and sent down to the PE  30 . (Flows  1 - 2 .)   The PE  30  gets the breakdown of the order from the WBE  32 . (Flows  3 - 4 .)   Based on the WBE  32 , various downstream systems—MP  34 , PS  22 , SIP Infrastructure  20 , TDB  64 , DS  40 , and CS  36 —are asked to delete subscriber and service data. (Flows  5 - 15 .)   If HC  18  is not behind NAT  70 , PE  30  updates PG  38  to un-register HC MAC and reduce the number of IP addresses that can be allocated to CPEs, by 1. PE  30  will refer to DS  40  to figure out whether HC  18  is behind NAT  70  or not as this information is gathered thru IVR during equipment activation. If HC  18  was behind NAT  70 , no change is required to the PG  38  for IP address allocation. (Flow  16 .)   PE  30  sends the status of the transaction to the billing system  10 . (Flow  17 .)   The telephone number will be returned to the TN database  16 . (Flows  18 )   The status of the operation to add the telephone number to the TN database  16  is returned to the Billing System  10 . (Flow  19 .)   The Billing system  10  returns the status of the delete service to the CAE to  12 . (Flow  20 .)   PE  30  will then update the OSR data  52  to inform WBE  32  that the deactivation is complete. (Flow  21 .)   WBE  32  will perform third party provisioning to disable account. LIDB will be updated. DA/DL will be updated with the customer listing information. CNAM database will be updated with caller ID and calling name information. Automatic Location Identification (ALI) database will be updated with subscriber address information for E911. (Flow  22 .) p 1  Billing system  10  will trigger an equipment pick-up event to the dispatch. (Flow  23 .)   Equipment will be returned by the customer at a drop-off location or picked up on a truck-roll. (Flow  24 .)   Billing system  10  sends notification to MS  14  in real-time that the subscriber was deleted. Only after the equipment has been picked up, MS  14  will be notified to generate the final bill since the equipment could be rented/leased. (Flow  25 .)       

       FIG. 7  provides details of the modify service request for a hard client (HC)  18  subscriber:
         When the subscriber calls the Customer Account Executive (CAE)  12  to modify service, an order is entered and sent down to the PE  30 . (Flows  1 - 2 .)   The PE  30  gets the breakdown of the order from the WBE  32 . (Flows  3 - 4 .)   Based on the WBE  32 , various downstream systems—MP  34 , PS  22 , SIP Infrastructure  20 , TDB  64 , DS  40 , and CS  36 —are asked to modify subscriber and service data. (Flows  5 - 19 .)   CS  36  notifies HC  18  of change. (Flows  10 - 14 .)   PE  30  sends the status of the transaction to the billing system  10 . (Flow  20 .)   Billing system  10  sends the status of the modify order to CAE  12 . (Flow  21 .)   If there is no truck-roll, the order is checked in. If there is truck-roll, the technician will perform the modifications and check in. (Flows  22 - 28 .)   PE  30  is informed that the order is complete. (Flow  29 .)   Billing system sends notification to MS  14  to start billing. (Flow  30 .)   If truck-rolled, PE  30  notifies WBE  32  of order check-in to close order. WBE will perform third party provisioning to update the account, if required. (Flow  31 .)       

       FIG. 8  provides detailed flows for the automatic boot process for SIP-based Soft Clients (SC)  60  logging in for the first time in the preferred embodiment. The details of the automatic boot process for SIP-based SCs  60  are given below:
         The PC  72  interacts with the DHCP server, (may be part of the Provisioning Group (PG)  38  or local NAT device) to get an IP address, default gateway address and DNS server information.   The subscriber goes to the download portal (DP)  74  to download the SC  60 . (Flow  1 .)   The DP  74  issues a LDAP query to the DS  40  to retrieve password information. (Flow  2 .)   DP  74  validates the password and allows the download of the SC  60  to the PC  72 . (Flow  3 .)   Once the download is complete, the installation of the SC  60  will take place automatically. The domain name, backup fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of STUN server and SIP server are pushed down as part of the installation. (Flows  4 - 5 .)   The SC  60  will send a DNS SRV query to get the service records for discovering the local SIP service. The DNS SRV resolution process involves a request/response transaction in which the client provides the specially formed FQDN derived from service name, domain name and client&#39;s preferred transport (e.g., sip._tcp.exampledomain.com). The DNS infrastructure responds with a SRV record corresponding with the service addressing attributes. Should the DNS SRV fail, the backup FQDN will be used to avoid service disruption. (Flow  6 .)   The DNS server will return list of SRV records having FQDN of available SIP Proxies (part of the SIP Infrastructure) along with the port number of the target host where the service may be found. (Flow  7 .)   SC  60  will select a SRV record for SIP service based on priority and weight (this provides combination of load balancing and backup service). Then the client sends a query to the DNS to resolve the FQDN of the SIP Proxy from the selected SRV record. (Flow  8 .)   The DNS server will return the IP address for the SIP Proxy. (Flow  9 .)   The SC  60  will send a DNS SRV query to get service records for discovering the local STUN service.   After getting the list of SRV records for STUN service, the SC  60  will select a SRV record based on priority and weight. Then, the SC  60  will send a query to the DNS server to resolve STUN server FQDN from selected SRV record to get the IP address of the STUN server  80 . Should the DNS SRV fail, the backup FQDN will be used to avoid service disruption.   SC  60  will interact with the STUN server  80  to determine whether it is behind a NAT device or not. In the process, SC  60  will also identify its public address, the type of NAT it is behind and the Internet side port associated by the NAT with a particular local port. The SC will be using this information to make SIP proxies aware about it. This will allow SIP proxies to interact with NATed SC  60     SC  60  will send a Subscribe message with NAT traversal information, i.e., public IP address and Internet side port in top most Via header as “received” and “rport” parameters to the SIP proxy to retrieve the user, service and device profiles. The SIP Infrastructure  20  challenges the Subscribe request if it does not have enough authentication information. The SC  60  will resend Subscribe request with authentication information (username and password) to SIP infrastructure. Upon successful authentication, SIP infrastructure routes the Subscribe message to the Configuration server  36 . (Flow  10 .)   The Configuration Server  36  creates subscription based on the subscriber ID and client ID in the “Subscribe” message and notifies the SC  60  of the location of the user, service and device profiles. Address book location will also be notified as part of service profile. CS  36  uses the SIP proxy to route the information back to the SC  60  using Notify message. (Flow  11 .)   SC  60  sends XCAP request to the Configuration Server  36  requesting the user, service and device profiles. This time, the SIP Proxy is by-passed and the SC connects directly to the Configuration server  36 . (Flow  12 .)   Configuration Server  36  gets the user, service and device profile data from the DS  40  if it does not exist in its local cache and sends the data to the SC  60 . (Flow  13 .)   The address book related transaction is optional as same service could be accessed using other mechanisms, e.g., XMPP protocol. The SC has the option to leverage XCAP capabilities for accessing and managing address book. This is shown here as separate queries as it is optional and also to enable the shared address book data to reside on a location other than the Configuration server  36 . The SC  60  will send XCAP request to CS  36  requesting for address-book. (Flow  14 .)   Configuration Server  36  gets the address book data from the DS  40  and sends it to the SC  60 . The address book data should not be cached in the Configuration Server  36 . (Flow  15 .)   The SC  60  will register with the SIP Proxy which is a front element of SIP infrastructure  20 . The SIP Proxy will validate the credentials of the SC  60  if the domain of the SC  60  is correct. Otherwise, it will redirect the SC  60  to the correct domain. (Flow  16 .)   The SIP Proxy on successful registration will send an OK, indicating that the registration was successful. (Flow  17 .)   The SC  60  is now ready for communication and the subscriber can initiate or receive request for conversations to/from other subscribers.       

       FIG. 9  provides detailed flows for the automatic boot process for SIP-based SCs  60  logging in for the 2nd time onwards and for hard clients (HC)  18  in the preferred embodiment. The details of the automatic boot process for SIP-based SC/HCs  60 ,  18  are given below:
         If the HC  18  is behind a NAT  70 , it will get an IP address from the NAT device. Otherwise, it will go to the DHCP Server (part of the PG  38 ) to get an IP address.   SC/HC  60 ,  18  on a login will send DNS SVR request to DNS server (part of the PG  38 ). (Flow  1 .)   DNS provides list of SRV records to the SC/HC  60 ,  18  which will select a SRV record to get the SIP-proxy FQDN and Port information for SIP service. If DNS SRV fails backup FQDN should be used. (Flow  2 .)   The SC/HC  60 ,  18  will interact with the DNS to resolve the IP address of the selected SIP Proxy FQDN. (Flows  3 - 4 .)   The SC/HC  60 ,  18  will send a DNS SRV query to get service records for discovering the STUN service.   After getting the list of SRV records for STUN service, the SC/HC  60 ,  18  will select a SRV record based on priority and weight. Then, the SC/HC  60 ,  18  will send a query to the DNS server to resolve STUN server FQDN from selected SRV record to get the IP address. If the DNS SRV fails, the backup STUN FQDN will be used to avoid service disruption.   SC/HC  60 ,  18  will interact with the STUN server  80  to determine whether it is behind a NAT device  70  or not. In the process, SC/HC  60 ,  18  will identify its public address, the type of NAT it is behind and the Internet side port associated by the NAT with a particular local port. The SC/HC  60 ,  18  will be using this information to make SIP proxies aware about it. This will allow SIP proxies to interact with NATed SC/HC  60 ,  18     SC/HC  60 ,  18  will send a Subscribe message to the SIP Proxy for user, service, device profiles. (Flow  5 .)   SIP Proxy will authenticate the request and send the request to the Configuration server  36 .   Configuration server  36  will send a Notify message to the SC/HC  60 , 18  through the SIP Proxy containing the location of the user, service and device profiles. The device profile will have software/firmware upgrade information (e.g., new version, filename/package-name, location, upgrade-type mandatory or optional, etc.) for SC/HC  60 ,  18 . The configuration server is capable of sending Notifications in real-time or on schedule as long as SC/HC  60 ,  18  are subscribed with Configuration server and whenever new version software/firmware available and related information is added to DS  40 , usually done by operations as manual procedures. (Flow  6 .)   The SC/HC  60 ,  18  will directly send XCAP request to the Configuration server  36  to get the user, service, and device profile updates. If there is new version available in DS  40 , then configuration server will return device profile that is suggesting SC/HC  60 ,  18  to do software/firmware upgrade. The SC/HC  60 ,  18  must upgrade if device profile specifies upgrade is mandatory. Otherwise, subscriber is at will. For upgrade, SC/HC  60 ,  18  will directly download software/firmware from the location specified in device profile. After the download, SC/HC  60 ,  18  must backup the old image. Then SC/HC must install and use new software/firmware automatically and re-get user, service, and device profiles from Config Server by sending XCAP request with latest make-model-version information. (Flow  7 .)
 
The URL format for XCAP request should be formed as follows:
       

     
       
         
               
             
               
               
               
               
             
               
               
               
               
             
               
               
             
               
               
             
               
               
             
               
               
             
               
               
             
               
               
             
               
               
             
               
               
             
           
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                 &lt;XCAP-root&gt; &lt;Document-selector&gt;[&lt;Node-selector&gt;] 
               
               
                 Where 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 XCAP root 
                 = 
                 https://&lt;config_server_fqdn&gt;/xcap 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 Document 
                 selector 
                 = 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 &lt;application_id&gt;/&lt;user_id&gt;/&lt;device_id&gt;/&lt;doc_id&gt; 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 &lt;application_id&gt; = /vcom/2_0/configuration 
               
               
                   
                 &lt;user_id&gt; = /users/username used for authentication 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 for Softclient, it is Comcast.net username 
               
               
                   
                 for Video Phone(VP), it is serial number/MAC of 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 VP 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 &lt;device_id&gt; = /&lt;vendor&gt;/&lt;model&gt;/&lt;version&gt; 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 for Softclient, Eyeball/SC/2_0 
               
               
                   
                 for Video phone, Innimedia/VP/2_0 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 &lt;doc_id&gt; = /all.xml 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 Node selector = will be based on XML schema of full configuration 
               
               
                   
                 containing user, service and device profile data. 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
         
         
           
             Configuration server  36  will send the data for the user, service and device profile [deltas over previously sent data]. If the data is in the local cache, Configuration Server  36  will send it to the SC/HC  60 ,  18  directly. Otherwise, it will retrieve the data from SSML/DS  50 ,  40  and then send the data to the SC/HC  60 ,  18 . (Flow  8 .) 
             SC/HC  60 ,  18  may optionally sends XCAP requests to get address book data. Config Server  36  retrieves address book data from the DS  40  and sends back data as XCAP response to the SC/HC  60 ,  18 . Note: The address book service could be hosted on Configuration Server  36  or as separate XCAP server. (Flows  9 - 10 .) 
             SC/HC  60 ,  18  is then ready to register with the SIP Proxy. (Flow  11 .) 
             SIP Proxy authenticates the data using information from the local data store and sends back a status of the registration. (Flow  12 .) 
           
         
       
    
       FIG. 10  provides detailed information about updates from SC/HC  60 ,  18  to client preferences (part of user profile) and/or address book changes made from the SC/HC&#39;s  60 ,  18  local Graphical User Interface (GUI):
         When the subscriber wants to make changes to the client preferences (part of user profile) and/or the address book, the local administration GUI will be brought up. The subscriber will modify the preferences and/or address book in the GUI. The changes done to the preferences and/or address book are sent to the Configuration Server  36 . The entire transaction will be a synchronous transaction and will be complete when the Configuration Server  36  returns the status of the update to the SC/HC  60 ,  18 . (Flow  1 .)   The Configuration Server  36  writes to the SSML  50 . The Configuration Server  36  will wait synchronously with the data for the status from SSML  50 . (Flow  2 .)   SSML  50  writes to DS  40 . The status of the LDAP write will be available to SSML  50 . (Flow  3 .)   SSML  50  will send the status of the updates to the Configuration Server  36 . (Flow  4 .)   Configuration Server  36  will update its cache with the newly modified client preferences data. The address book changes, if any, will not be cached or modified by the Configuration Server  36 . (Flow  5 .)   Configuration server  36  will then send the status of the updates back to the SC/HC  60 ,  18 . (Flow  6 .)   On successful update, SC/HC  60 ,  18  will update the local data structures with the modified user, service and device profiles, and address book data. The SC/HC  60 ,  18  will reflect the changes on GUI as required. (Flow  7 .)       

       FIG. 11  provides detailed information about updates made from the Portal to client preferences (part of user profile) and/or the address book in the preferred embodiment:
         Subscriber makes changes in the Portal  12  and the Portal  12  forwards the changes to SSML  50 . (Flow  1 .)   SSML  50  writes the changes to the DS  40 . The status of the DS  40  write is available to SSML  50 . (Flow  2 .)   SSML  50  sends the updates to the PE  30 . (Flow  3 .)   PE  30  acknowledges update request to SSML  50 . Downstream updates are done asynchronously with guaranteed delivery. (Flow  4 .)   SSML  50  sends the status of the update to the Portal  12 . As soon as the DS  40  is updated and the request has been acknowledged by PE  30 , the status is sent back to the Portal  12  to ensure that system resources are not tied up for this transaction. (Flow  5 .)   The PE  30  then updates the Configuration Server  36 . (Flow  6 .)   Configuration Server  36  modifies its local cache, if any. (Flow  7 .)   The Configuration Server  36  sends the status back to the PE  30 . (Flow  8 .)   Configuration Server  36  sends a Notify (SIP Protocol) message to SIP Proxy (contains the Location of modified user/device profile information), and/or addressbook change notification, if SC/HC  60 ,  18  is online. If SC/HC  60 ,  18  is not online, the changes will be applicable on next login. (Flow  9 .)   SIP Proxy will forward the Notify message (contains the Location of modified user/device profile information) to SC/HC  60 ,  18  if it is online. (Flow  10 .)   SC/HC  60 ,  18  will send XCAP request to get the modified information (user, service and/or device profile) from the Configuration Server  36 . (Flow  11 .)   Configuration Server  36  will send down the modified (user and/or device profile) information from its cache to SC/HC  60 ,  18 , if the data is present in its cache. Otherwise, the Configuration Server will get the data from the DS  40  and send it to SC/HC  60 ,  18 . (Flow  12 .)   SC/HC  60 ,  18  will request address book changes from the Configuration Server  36 , which then retrieves it from the DS  40  and sends the data back to the SC/HC  60 ,  18 . (Flows  11 - 12 .)       

     Preferred embodiments of the invention has many advantages. For example, it is possible to automate the provisioning process to provide for an integrated solution that provides for NAT traversal, real-time updates to SC/HC, maintain persistence of data in a centralized place to enable the subscriber to have a consistent experience across a variety of platforms and hardware solutions, support for nomadic clients, support charging functions (prepaid services/account activation/deactivation), be network agnostic for efficient transfer of changed data elements, provide call detail record information on-demand, provision  3 rd party systems, and provision new network elements. 
     While embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, it is not intended that these embodiments illustrate and describe all possible forms of the invention. Rather, the words used in the specification are words of description rather than limitation, and it is understood that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.