Patent ID: 7363358

Claim:
A system for allowing a user to replace a direct connection of a client device adapted for network communications and having network configuration settings, with a connection through a network switch, comprising: a client device having a monitor having a screen which is capable of displaying a graphical user interface, a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and a computer program residing in the memory; and a network switch coupled to the client device, the network switch containing a software program which: determines whether the network switch has already been configured; and if the network switch has not been configured, then generates and sends a query to the client device to transfer all the network configuration settings from the client device to the network switch through a single command, receives the reguested configuration information from the client device, and configures the network switch with the configuration information received from the client device; wherein the computer program of the client device gathers the network configuration settings of the client device and transfers the network configuration settings from the client device to the network switch in response to receiving the query generated by the network switch.