Patent ID: 7370241

Claim:
A method for performing predictive data analysis using a central server, said method comprising: collecting failure analysis data in individual ones of a plurality of distributed devices in which each of the distributed devices uses a predictive failure analysis algorithm; receiving said failure analysis data at the central server from a network coupled to each device of said plurality of distributed devices; analyzing said failure analysis data received from said each device at the central server; and in response to the analysis, providing an updated predictive failure analysis algorithm from the central server to the distributed devices, wherein the updated predictive failure analysis algorithm is provided to the plurality of distributed devices in the form of a first microcode that is provided from the central server to the plurality of devices to be used instead of a second microcode previously used by the plurality of devices, wherein execution of the first microcode results in the updated predictive failure analysis algorithm using different tolerances of certain error events when estimating an impending failure.