Patent ID: 7318148

Claim:
A method for automatically configuring a new computer within a computer network during a single boot process, the method comprising the steps of: requesting a generic part of an operating system from a computer within the computer network; persistently storing the generic part of the operating system on the new computer; identifying, within the new computer, hardware properties of the new computer by using the generic part of the operating system; executing a dynamic host configuration protocol client within the new computer; broadcasting a temporary network address request for the new computer from the dynamic host configuration protocol client into the computer network; requesting from the computer network a preparation of a hardware specific part of the operating system by the new computer depending on the identified hardware properties of the new computer; restarting the dynamic host configuration protocol client of the new computer; broadcasting a permanent network address request for the new computer from the dynamic host configuration protocol client into the computer network using a MAC address of a network interface card; transmitting a permanent network address for the new computer from the computer network to the new computer upon receipt of the permanent network address request using the MAC address of the new computer; communicating at least a part of the hardware specific data of the operating system between the computer network and the new computer; persistently storing the hardware specific part of the operating system on the new computer; and finalizing booting the new computer by executing the hardware specific part of the operating system within the new computer.