Patent ID: 7546448

Claim:
A method implemented at least in part by a server for determining characteristics of a client in a pre-boot environment, said method comprising: receiving a packet from the client at the server, said packet including a request for an image to boot the client, said server capable of providing a plurality of images to boot clients with different computing architectures; determining whether the received packet specifies computing architecture information of the client; if the received packet specifies the computing architecture information of the client, sending the requested image corresponding to the specified computing architecture information of the client from the server to the client; if the received packet fails to specify the computing architecture information of the client; prior to responding to the received packet with a requested image transmitting an application to the client in response to the received packet, wherein the application, when executed by the client, determines the computing architecture information of the client; receiving a response at the server from the application executed by the client, said received response including the computing architecture information of the client as determined by execution of the transmitted application; determining the characteristics of the client based on the received response; and transmitting an image from the plurality of images from the server to boot the client wherein the transmitted image is a function of the determined characteristics.