Patent ID: 8001368

Claim:
An information processing device comprising a plurality of slots each of which can be connected with a hardware unit that stores configuration information thereof; an OS store that stores an OS; a BIOS store that stores BIOS; and a CPU that runs said BIOS to realize a generator that generates recognition information for recognizing said hardware unit from the configuration information in the hardware unit if the hardware unit is connected with said slot when the information processing device is booting up and which runs said OS to realize a controller that recognizes said connected hardware unit by using the recognition information generated by said generator, wherein each of said plurality of slots can be connected with a hardware unit of the same specification, with at least one of said plurality of slots being connected with said hardware unit, and if a slot is not connected with said hardware unit when the information processing device is booting up, said generator generates the configuration information of a virtual hardware unit based on the configuration information in said connected hardware unit, generates the recognition information for recognizing the virtual hardware unit as a hardware unit connected with the slot from the configuration information of the virtual hardware unit, and when said hardware unit is connected with the slot, overwrites the configuration information in the connected hardware unit with the configuration information of the virtual hardware unit, wherein said controller generates a reference request to refer to the configuration information of said hardware unit; and when the hardware unit that is specified by said reference request is connected therewith, said generator informs said controller of the configuration information in the hardware unit, and when the hardware unit that is specified by said reference request is not connected therewith, informs said controller of the configuration information of said virtual hardware unit is recognized as the configuration information of the hardware unit that is specified by said reference request.