Patent ID: 7664836

Claim:
A method of booting a computer with an operating system from a directly attached network storage device, the method comprising: executing a monitor program in a processor and memory of the computer to be booted that: (i) reads a boot block loader program from a locally accessible storage device and writes the boot loader program to a first location in a processor accessible memory of the computer; and (ii) transfers control from the monitor program to the boot block loader program; and executing the boot block loader program in the processor and memory of the computer to be booted that: (iii) loads a boot driver program code that includes a network interface driver program code for accessing the directly attached network storage device on which the operating system is stored over a network; (iv) finds the operating system to be booted in the directly attached network storage device; (v) loads the operating system from the directly attached network storage device over the network using the network interface driver to a second location in a processor accessible memory of the computer; and (vi) transfers control from the boot block loader program to the operating system in memory, wherein the directly attached network storage device is not attached to the network through a network server computer having a processor, operating system, and server process executing therein.