Patent ID: 7353388

Claim:
A method for provisioning and registering a packet-switched communications device in an enterprise network, comprising: (a) providing an unprovisioned first packet-switched communications device in an enterprise network, the first packet-switched communications device having a corresponding unique identifier and an electronic address on the enterprise network; (b) as part of a provisioning process establishing, by the first packet-switched communications device, a secure communications session with a key generating agent in the enterprise network; (c) providing, to the key generating agent through the session, (i) when a key identifier is derived using the unique identifier associated with the first packet-switched communications device, the unique identifier or (ii) when the key identifier is derived using information not associated with the first packet-switched communications device, no unique identifier; (d) receiving, from the key generating agent through the session, (i) a secret key derived from an enterprise master key and a key identifier and (ii) the key identifier; (e) forwarding to an application server a registration request, wherein the registration request comprises the key identifier and wherein the first packet-switched communications device has a limited ability to communicate with a provisioned and registered second packet-switched communications device in the enterprise network until the first packet-switched communications device is successfully registered in step (g); (f) authenticating the first packet-switched communications device with the secret key or an authentication key derived therefrom; and (g) when the first packet-switched communications device is successfully authenticated, registering the first packet-switched communications device, wherein steps (b) through (e) occur after the first packet-switched communications device has been located at an end user's premises and wherein the first and second packet-switched communications device have different and unique secret keys and key identifiers.