Patent ID: 7269660

Claim:
A method for operating a server to handle a request from a client to control an appliance, said method comprising: storing at said server one or more predefined input templates each associated with a connection state between said server and said client, and a plurality of response templates; receiving at said server a packet via a network interface from said client, said server implemented in a microcontroller of the appliance; determining a current connection state between said server and said client; comparing the received packet with said one or more predefined input templates associated with the current connection state; if the received packet matches said one or more predefined input templates extracting variables from the received packet; selecting one of said plurality of response templates based on the matched predefined input template; inserting said extracted variables into said selected response template; transmitting said selected response template from said server to said client; wherein said connection state is based on progress within a predefined interaction between said server and said client, said predefined interaction following a protocol fully implemented by said client but not by said server.