Patent ID: 6950931

Claim:
A computer implemented method comprising: loading a profile template for configuring one or more servers, the profile template including abstracted server configuration parameters for abstractly configuring a server type of which the one or more servers are, and server configuration rules specifying how values of the abstracted configuration parameters translate to direct server values for directly configuring the one or more servers based on attributes of the one or more servers; requesting a user to at least one of modify preset values of the values of the abstracted server configuration parameters and enter missing values of the values of the abstracted server configuration parameters; and, generating a configuration for each of the one or more servers as the values of the abstracted server configuration parameters and the server configuration rules; wherein loading the profile template comprises loading one or more parent profile templates from which the profile template inherits one or more of the abstracted server configuration parameters and one or more of the server configuration rules of the profile template.