Patent ID: 7308718

Claim:
An apparatus for serving a plurality of devices through a communications network, the apparatus comprising: a memory for storing a plurality of records associated with the devices, respectively; an input element for receiving from a selected device a request that is generated only upon initial power up of the selected device for configuration of the selected device from a generic configuration to a selected or custom configuration through the communications network, the request including coded information; a processor responsive to the request for locating a record associated with the selected device, and verifying an identity of the selected device based on the coded information, the record including stored information concerning the selected or custom configuration for the selected device, the selected or custom configuration corresponding to a predetermined feature set of the selected device; and an output element for providing through the communication network to the selected device information objects for modifying the generic configuration to the selected or custom configuration based on the stored information when the identity of the selected device is verified.