Abstract:
A universal PXE client obtains configuration information for an information handling system, applies the configuration information to create a drive on the information handling system and loads a manufacture operating system in the drive. The manufacture operating system runs a manufacture application that configures the software of the information handling system. The universal PXE client is generated by a scripting engine of a network boot program that is downloaded to the information handling system with a NIC boot kernel activated on power-up. The state of manufacture is periodically saved to a network location that tracks manufacture progress and persists manufacture state information through system re-boots.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    The present invention relates in general to the field of information handling system manufacture, and more particularly to a method and system for network-based configuration of information handling system software.  
           [0003]    2. Description of the Related Art  
           [0004]    As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.  
           [0005]    Purchasers of information handling systems typically prefer to select hardware and software components so that a purchased information handling system is built and configured to the purchaser&#39;s specification. One difficulty with building information handling systems to order with a wide variety of hardware and software components is that each unique information handling system generally is built with a unique configuration. Network tools are available to download software components as images or executable files that install on information handling system storage devices, such as a hard disk drive. However, in order for the network tools to communicate with the information handling system, an operating system typically is required to control the hardware components. Thus, during manufacture, a floppy disk is often used to initially power-up the information handling system with a manufacture operating system that includes configuration information for the hardware components, such as the NIC and hard disk drive, to communicate with network tools. The floppy disk provides information to build, test and install software on the information handling system and also provides a persistent storage area that tracks the software configuration process through manufacture of the information handling system, such as through repeated boots and downloading of images to the hard disk drive that destroy the contents of hard disk drives during storage of the image.  
           [0006]    A difficulty with using floppy disks to manufacture information handling systems is that the preparation of a floppy disk for each information handling system is expensive and time consuming. As hardware components of an information handling system are assembled, the identification of each component is tracked and used to create the configuration information on the floppy disk for initial power-up during manufacture of the information handling system. Copying of the configuration information to a floppy disk is slow and unreliable, and the storage capacity is limited. Further, floppy disk drives are now often not included with information handling systems. One way to avoid the use of floppy disks during manufacture is to instead use the hard disk drive. However, hard disk drives will not work in all situations, such as when RAID hardware is installed or no FAT partitions exist, and limits the use of imaging techniques since imaging tools destroy the contents stored on the hard disk drive. Another way to avoid the use of floppy disks is to initiate boot from a network, such as with a Pre-boot Execution Environment (PXE) server, however, PXE boots generally requires that basic software configuration be installed to support network communications.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0007]    Therefore a need has arisen for a method and system which supports building, testing and downloading software during manufacture of an information handling system without the use of a floppy disk.  
           [0008]    A further need exists for a method and system which tracks configuration of software during manufacture of an information handling system without use of a removable medium.  
           [0009]    In accordance with the present invention, a method and system are provided which substantially reduce the disadvantages and problems associated with previous methods and systems for configuring information handling system software during manufacture. The information handling system downloads a universal PXE client at power-up. The universal PXE client obtains configuration information for the information handling system from a network location and applies the configuration information to create a virtual drive on the information handling system which stores a manufacture operating system and manufacture information to configure the software of the information handling system without a removable storage medium.  
           [0010]    More specifically, hardware component configuration of a manufactured information handling system is stored at a manufacture data storage and retrieval system network location. Upon initial power-up of the manufactured information handling system, a boot kernel in NIC firmware executes to download a network boot program from a PXE server. The boot kernel executes the network boot program on the information handling system to create a universal PXE client. The universal PXE client looks up the configuration information from the network location by reference to a unique identifier for the information handling system and applies the configuration information to create a virtual drive in RAM of the information handling system. The Universal PXE client then downloads a manufacture operating system from a PXE server, stores the manufacture operating system in the virtual drive and executes the manufacture operating system. The manufacture operating system obtains manufacturing information from the network location and creates a virtual manufacture disk in the virtual drive that configures the information handling system in the place of a floppy disk. The manufacture data storage and retrieval system stores the state of manufacture before re-boots that erase the RAM in order to persist manufacture state information through the manufacture process.  
           [0011]    The present invention provides a number of important technical advantages. One example of an important technical advantage is that the universal PXE client supports building, testing and downloading software during manufacture of an information handling system without the use of a floppy disk. A virtual disk is instead created in volatile memory of the information handling system by the universal PXE client which applies configuration information compiled during assembly of the information handling system and stored at a network location. The use of network storage instead of floppy disks reduces the time and expense of obtaining initial power-up of the information handling system and improves reliability of software configuration and testing.  
           [0012]    Another example of an important technical advantage of the present invention is that network-based manufacture storage tracks manufacturing states for configuration of software on an information handling system without use of a removable medium. Manufacture progress is tracked on the virtual drive in volatile memory of the information handling system similar to the process used for floppy removable disks. However, at re-boot of the information handling system the manufacture information is destroyed. Thus, before each re-boot and periodically through manufacture, the manufacture information is stored at a network location. By referencing the network location after completion of re-boot, the information handling system progresses with the next manufacture state. This allows the use of multiple different operating systems compared with the single operating system generally available on the limited storage of a floppy disk and also permits imaging to permanent storage, such as the hard disk drive, without loss of manufacture information.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0013]    The present invention may be better understood, and its numerous objects, features and advantages made apparent to those skilled in the art by referencing the accompanying drawings. The use of the same reference number throughout the several figures designates a like or similar element.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 1 depicts a block diagram of a system for network-based configuration of information handling system software during manufacture; and  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 2 depicts a flow diagram of a process for network-based configuration of information handling system software during manufacture. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0016]    A network-based information handling system manufacture software configuration is performed with a universal PXE client that creates a virtual manufacture disk in memory of the information handling system and loads a manufacture operating system to configure the software of the information handling system. For purposes of this application, an information handling system may include any instrumentality or aggregate of instrumentalities operable to compute, classify, process, transmit, receive, retrieve, originate, switch, store, display, manifest, detect, record, reproduce, handle, or utilize any form of information, intelligence, or data for business, scientific, control, or other purposes. For example, an information handling system may be a personal computer, a network storage device, or any other suitable device and may vary in size, shape, performance, functionality, and price. The information handling system must include random access memory (RAM), one or more processing resources such as a central processing unit (CPU) or hardware or software control logic, ROM, and/or other types of nonvolatile memory. Additional components of the information handling system may include one or more disk drives, one or more network ports for communicating with external devices as well as various input and output (I/O) devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a video display. The information handling system may also include one or more buses operable to transmit communications between the various hardware components.  
         [0017]    Referring now to FIG. 1, a block diagram depicts a system for network-based configuration of information handling system software during manufacture. An information handling system  10  is assembled from a number of hardware components, such as a CPU  12 , BIOS  14 , hard disk drive  16 , RAM  18 , chipset  20  and network interface card (NIC)  22 . As the hardware components are assembled, their identification codes, such as part numbers or serial codes, are provided to a configuration component tracking system  24 . Once assembly of hardware components for information handling system  10  is complete, configuration component tracking system  24  creates a process control file with instructions for a pre-operating system boot environment for the assembled hardware component configuration. For instance, the control file includes configuration information similar to that used on disks for information handling system manufacture. Configuration component tracking system  24  also identifies manufacturing information for use in software configuration of the information handling system post-operating system boot environment, such as the operating system, device drivers, manufacturing information and test diagnostics. The results from configuration component tracking system  24  are associated with a unique number of information handling system  10  and sent through a network  26  for storage on a manufacture data storage and retrieval system  28  in a configuration database  30 .  
         [0018]    When power is applied to information handling system  10 , a boot kernel  34  stored in firmware of NIC  22  is activated to communicate through network  26  with a PXE server  36  to download a network boot program  38 . Boot kernel  34  saves network boot program  38  in local memory and executes it. Network boot program  38  is a PXE OS having a scripting engine that executes scripts to create a universal PXE client  40  that customizes the manufacture boot process for the information handling system. Universal PXE client  40  first discovers a unique identifier for the information handling system, such as a serial number or service tag saved in non-volatile memory, such as CMOS, or input by an operator. Universal PXE client  40  uses the unique identifier to contact manufacture data storage and retrieval system  28  for obtaining the configuration information associated with the unique identifier in configuration database  30 , such as virtual drive size, operating system, image name, NIC type, the type of file system to install, the location to install the manufacturing operating system, or other specified unique information for the creation of the virtual drive. Universal PXE client  40  applies the configuration settings to determine a manufacture operating system image name, a drive size for creation of a drive within RAM  18  to act as a virtual disk, an operating system type and hardware component drivers. Universal PXE client  40  creates the virtual manufacture disk drive in RAM  18 , downloads the identified manufacture operating system  42  from PXE server  36  and prepares the virtual manufacture drive to operate. Universal PXE client  40  then initiates the manufacture operating system and removes itself from information handling system  10 . Creation of a RAM drive instead of a floppy or hard disk as the initial boot media and manufacture information storage device supports building unique information handling systems, including systems that lack a hard or floppy drive.  
         [0019]    The manufacturing operating system  42  installed on information handling system  10  by universal PXE client  40  is operates similar to manufacturing systems that operate from floppy disks. For instance, a DOS or Linux image having drivers for connecting to network  26  contacts manufacture data storage and retrieval system  28  to download manufacture applications associated with the unique identifier of the information handling system from configuration database  30 . The manufacture applications are loaded in the virtual RAM drive created by universal PXE client  40  and the state of the manufacture for the information handling system is stored in manufacture storage database  32 . Information handling system  10  then starts the manufacture process to configure the software. Instead of saving dynamic manufacturing information to a floppy disk drive as the manufacturing process is performed, the virtual drive in RAM is used, such as for storing test logs, the manufacture state, process control flags and related information. Before each re-boot and periodically through the manufacture process, the contents of the virtual manufacture drive are copied from RAM to manufacture storage database  32  in order to persist the data and make the latest manufacturing information readily available. The manufacturing application is thus able to switch from manufacturing operating system  42  to a test operating system  44  once the software configuration is complete without requiring the use of removable media. Further, during manufacture different operating systems may be run at different points of manufacture by booting with operating system specific universal PXE clients to switch to a different operating system as needed.  
         [0020]    Referring now to FIG. 2, a flow diagram depicts a process for network-based configuration of information handling system software during manufacture. The process begins at step  46  with power-up of the information handling system. At step  48 , device boot settings in the system CMOS activates the boot kernel stored in firmware to download the network bootstrap program from the PXE server. At step  50 , the boot kernel executes the network bootstrap program to create the universal PXE client. At step  52 , the universal PXE client discovers the unique identifier for the information handling system and, at step  54 , the universal PXE client downloads configuration information from a network location to volatile memory, such as RAM, of the information handling system. At step  56 , the universal PXE client creates the virtual drive in volatile memory, such as RAM, and downloads the manufacture operating system from the PXE server. At step  58 , the universal PXE client initiates boot from the virtual RAM drive and removes itself from memory. The manufacture operating system is then able to download any additional manufacturing information and proceed with configuration of the software of the information handling system by using the virtual RAM drive as a manufacturing disk in the place of a floppy disk.  
         [0021]    Although the present invention has been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made hereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.