Patent ID: 8510812

Claim:
A system comprising: a plurality of network devices, including one or more peer managed devices and one or more management devices, deployed within a network; wherein the plurality of network devices are pre-configured by a manufacturer or a distributor of the plurality of network devices to form a web of trust by, prior to installation of the plurality of network devices within the network, storing within each of the plurality of network devices a digital certificate signed by the manufacturer or the distributor and a unique identifier of the network device; wherein the unique identifier comprises a digest of the digital certificate or a serial number of the network device that is included within the digital certificate; wherein a peer managed device of the one or more peer managed devices is configured to establish a connection with a management device of the one or more management devices based on an address of the management device received from a trusted peer managed device of the one or more peer managed devices or a location server within the network; and wherein, prior to allowing the management device to perform management functionality in relation to the peer managed device, the peer managed device is configured to verify credentials of the management device by causing the unique identifier of the management device to be confirmed with reference to a pre-configured identifier of an authorized management device stored within the peer managed device.