WO2010121312A1

WO2010121312A1 - Network appliance

Info

Publication number: WO2010121312A1
Application number: PCT/AU2010/000456
Authority: WO
Inventors: Trent Davis; James Peter Brotchie; Stephen James Thorne
Original assignee: Agent Smith Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2009-04-23
Filing date: 2010-04-22
Publication date: 2010-10-28

Abstract

A network appliance (1) comprising a unique identifier, a network interface (13) communicating with a local network (4) and a connection (14, 16) to external data storage (7, 15) for storage of data. The data is stored using the unique identifier or a key associated with the unique identifier.

Description

NETWORK APPLIANCE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of network communication, specifically the Internet. More particularly, the invention relates to an appliance for use in a communications network. The appliance provides user management and reporting.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Consumer appliances have been developed that make user access to the Internet quick and relatively simple. These appliances include routers, modems, firewalls, backup devices and network attached storage (NAS). Many of these devices require user specific data to be entered during an initial configuration in order for the device to operate in location. For instance, a modem will require the DNS of the ISP as well as a usemame and password. A router will need a gateway IP address and individual IP addresses for each device on the network. Some of the configuration requirements have been automated through the development of setup programs (called wizards) but significant user involvement is still often required.

To overcome the setup problems some suppliers of appliances have pre-configured their devices prior to shipping. For instance, an ISP may supply a pre-configured modem when establishing a new account. While this overcomes the initial configuration issue it creates new problems if the device is reset since the user generally does not have the experience or knowledge to reconfigure the appliance. Problems also arise if there are other appliances in the network that have conflicting IP addresses. Thus despite pre-configuration lengthy conversations with technicians are often required.

Once a network is configured and an Internet connection established a number of other problems often arise with network management. In particular, access to various websites may need to be restricted. This is true for either a business environment or a home environment, although for different reasons. It is also valuable to monitor network usage. For instance, home Internet accounts often have download limits. It can assist family harmony if a primary user can be identified and restricted so that all users have fair access to download capacity. Although some ISPs provide download management, it is at a macro level on the ISP side of the Internet gateway and not at a micro level on the user side of the gateway.

For larger networks, such as a business environment, user management at a micro level is even more important as there are generally more configuration parameters to control and higher volume usage to monitor. For instance, in a business environment every user will have a username and password whereas the home environment will generally allow open access.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to overcome or at least alleviate one or more of the problems identified above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one form, although it need not be the only or indeed the broadest form, the invention resides in a network appliance comprising: a unique identifier; a network interface communicating with a local network; and a connection to external data storage for storage of data; wherein the data is stored using the unique identifier or a key associated with the unique identifier.

The unique identifier is suitably a serial number. Optionally the unique identifier is stored on a removable storage device.

Preferably the appliance further comprises a gateway that enables communication between the local network and a global data communications network.

In one form the connection is a local connection to external local data storage. Preferably the connection is a connection to a global data communications network and the data storage is in a cloud data centre.

The data is suitably configuration data for configuration of the network appliance. Preferably the local network includes other network devices and the configuration data includes data for configuration of the other network devices. The data may also include network data and user data.

Suitably, the user data may include a username, a password and user activity data and may be encrypted.

Suitably, the user activity data may include a download volume and a download limit attributed to a user.

The data is suitably encoded using the unique identifier or a cryptographic key associated with the unique identifier.

In a further form the invention resides in a method of storing data pertaining to a local network including the steps of: gathering data from the local network; accessing an external data storage connected to the local network; and storing the data in the external data storage using a unique identifier associated with a network appliance on the local network. Suitably the external data storage is a cloud data centre in a global data communications network, such as the Internet.

The stored data is preferably encrypted.

Further features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To assist in understanding the invention and to enable a person skilled in the art to put the invention into practical effect, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG 1 is a schematic of a network environment relevant to the invention;

FIG 2 is a block diagram of a network appliance incorporating the invention; and

FIG 3 is a data structure example.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention reside primarily in a network appliance that provides management of users on the network. The network appliance is connected to a network of users as well as to a global communications network (the Internet). Many of the concepts associated with network computing will be well known to persons skilled in the art. Accordingly, the hardware and software described below have been illustrated in concise schematic form in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are necessary for understanding the embodiments of the present invention, but so as not to obscure the disclosure with excessive detail that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the present description. In this specification, adjectives such as first and second, left and right, and the like may be used solely to distinguish one element or action from another element or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order. Words such as "comprises" or "includes" are intended to define a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed, including elements that are inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus.

Referring to FIG 1 there is depicted a typical network arrangement incorporating a network appliance 1. The network appliance 1 is connected to a number of users 2 and other network devices 3 in a user network 4. The user network 4 may be a small local area network such as a home network of three or four computers or a larger local area network such as a business having several hundred computers. The user network 4 could also be a wide area network made up of several linked local area networks.

For the purposes of this description a user 2 is considered to be any of a range of possible connection devices in the network including: desktop computers; mobile computing devices such as laptops, netbooks and PDA devices; servers; or other active devices on the network. Also connected on the user network 4 are a number of network devices 3 which may include: network attached storage; Internet gateway device, such as a modem and/or a firewall; a spam filter; a virus scanner; a router or block of switches; or other network management and connectivity devices.

The user network 4 is connected to the Internet 5 in conventional manner and may access a cloud data centre 6 as described further below.

The appliance 1 is shown schematically in FIG 2. Each appliance 1 has one or more network ports 13 for connection to the local network 4 and/or the Internet 5. The appliance 1 may be a router/modem and attach directly to the Internet 5 via a network port 13 or may be an independent device that connects to other network devices 3 (such as a router and a modem) via the network ports 13. Each appliance 1 has a unique identifier, such as a serial number, which may be permanently stored in the appliance in local storage 11 , such as read only memory, but is preferably stored in a removable storage device 7 such as a USB key. The removable storage device 7 connects to the device through a port 16, which most commonly will be a USB port. In this embodiment the removable storage device 7 can be accurately considered as a key since it unlocks the operation of the appliance 1. In one embodiment there may be a security requirement that the removable storage device 7 must be connected to the appliance 1 for the appliance to operate.

The serial number or a cryptographic key associated with the serial number is used to identify user data collected and stored by the appliance 1. The user data may include: configuration data such as ISP address and login data; username and password for each user; user activity data such as websites visited and download volume; a download limit or quota; and date/time. The user data may also be encrypted in the case where a cryptographic key is associated with the serial number.

The download volume attributed to each user 2 on the user network 4 may be logged by appliance 1 and stored as part of the user data on the local removable storage device 7, the cloud data centre 6 or the local storage 15. The appliance 1 may identify users 2 by way of a Medium Access Control (MAC) address of a connection device which the user 2 is using. Alternatively, each user 2 may be required to log into the appliance 1 when accessing the internet 5 by providing the user name and password. The download volume may then be written to the user data according to a user name or a MAC address.

The appliance 1 may also have a RAM component 12 for temporary local storage of data, but in the preferred embodiment the collected data is stored externally so that it is retrievable independently of the appliance 1 and is nonvolatile. In this way failure of the appliance does not mean a loss of data. Furthermore, if the device does fail another device can be substituted and immediately configured from the externally stored configuration data.

In one embodiment the external storage is local storage 15 such as a hard disk drive, solid state drive or flash memory that is connected to the appliance 1 via a port 14. The port may be an RS232 port, USB port, parallel port or other suitable protocol port.

In a preferred embodiment the external storage is provided by a cloud data centre 6 that is accessible via the Internet 5. A cloud data centre is a distributed collection of network enabled data storage devices with associated processors that manage the storage and retrieval of data from the cloud. Data is stored in the cloud using an address that is encrypted for security. As mentioned above, one part of the security protocol may use a cryptographic key associated with the unique identifier that is stored in a removable storage device 7 that connects to the appliance 1 via a port 16. A benefit of this arrangement is that failure of the appliance is non-critical since the device 7 can be connected to a replacement device and provide the required key for accessing the data stored in the cloud 6. A similar advantage applies for data stored in a local external storage device 15.

By way of example, data may be stored in a format depicted in FIG 3 with each data record containing the unique key that facilitates retrieval and a user identification field to facilitate user specific analysis. The data may be arranged in any manner that permits later retrieval and analysis.

It will be appreciated that the generic appliance will contain all generic hardware and software for connecting to the user network and the Internet with the device 7, or the combination of the device 7 and external storage 15, providing the specific configuration data to facilitate communication. Specific user data may then be retrieved from the local external storage 15 or the cloud 6.

Storing user data in the cloud 6 removes the requirement of a user to have specific knowledge and experience about the configuration of the network they access. For instance, all network related data for all devices on the network may be stored in the cloud. If any particular device fails it is replaced with a generic device which then self-configures by retrieving required data from the cloud via the appliance 1. In this respect the device 7 is the element that contains the essential information for data access.

The data storage and management options differ significantly from existing options since all user data is stored in the cloud and accessible at any time at a micro level. Existing data captured, stored and processed by some ISPs is only captured from the ISP side of the user network 4 whereas the appliance 1 facilitates capture of data from the user side of the user network 4 as well as the ISP side.

It will be appreciated that capture of full user data allows for micro level management of user access. Individual users can be blocked from accessing certain websites and individual download limits can be sent. This is not currently possible unless a local network has specific user management tools and expert system administration.

Management and reporting of the user data may be accessed via a web interface that is processed in the cloud, thus reducing local processing requirements. An administrator simply connects to the user network 4 and has full access to all of the resources the cloud can provide, such as user permissions, quotas, user activity and usage history, rate limiting configuration etc.

A reporting web page may include a usage history showing web sites visited by a user, a time and date each web site was visited and how long the user spent on each website. The reporting web page may also include a communication history showing details of sent and received email and posts made to and from chat rooms and social networking websites. Additionally, the communication history may be reviewed by an administrator for appropriate language, detecting on line predators, detecting cyber-bullying and other related items. Alternatively, the communication history may be automatically reviewed by software and alerts sent to appropriate personnel. A user's download volume may also be reviewed on the reporting web page showing a download volume or quota used and a remaining download volume or quota for each user.

A management web page may allow an administrator to, but is not limited to:

1) Administer users including adding new users

2) Set a user's quota

3) Set permissions of web sites that a user may access and a length of time a user may stay on-line, for example

4) Configure alerts to appropriate personnel and lists of key words and phrases used in communication, such as words used in emails and social networking that trigger the alert.

A particular advantage of the invention, whether in the local external storage embodiment or the cloud data centre embodiment, is that the collection and processing of user and network data is independent of the ISP or the network appliance. Indeed, it is also independent of any other network devices on the user network. This provides enhanced security and flexibility compared to known systems.

The above description of various embodiments of the present invention is provided for purposes of description to one of ordinary skill in the related art. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to a single disclosed embodiment. As mentioned above, numerous alternatives and variations to the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art of the above teaching. Accordingly, while some alternative embodiments have been discussed specifically, other embodiments will be apparent or relatively easily developed by those of ordinary skill in the art. Accordingly, this invention is intended to embrace all alternatives, modifications and variations of the present invention that have been discussed herein, and other embodiments that fall within the spirit and scope of the above described invention.

Claims

1. A network appliance comprising: a unique identifier; a network interface communicating with a local network; and a connection to external data storage for storage of data; wherein the data is stored using the unique identifier or a key associated with the unique identifier.

2. The network appliance of claim 1 wherein the unique identifier is a serial number.

3. The network appliance of claim 1 wherein the unique identifier is stored on a removable storage device.

4. The network appliance of claim 1 further comprising a gateway that enables communication between the local network and a global data communications network.

5. The network appliance of claim 1 wherein the connection is a local connection to external local data storage.

6. The network appliance of claim 1 wherein the connection is a connection to a global data communications network and the external data storage is in a cloud data centre.

7. The network appliance of claim 1 wherein the data is configuration data for configuration of the network appliance.

8. The network appliance of claim 7 wherein the local network includes other network devices and the configuration data includes data for configuration of the other network devices.

9. The network appliance of claim 1 wherein the data is accessed using a web interface.

10. The network appliance of claim 1 wherein the data may also include network data and user data.

11. The network appliance of claim 10 wherein the user data may include a username, a password and user activity data.

12. The network appliance of claim 11 wherein the user activity data includes a download volume and a download limit attributed to a user.

13. The network appliance of claim 12 wherein the user is identified by a Media Access Control (MAC) address of a connection device the user is using.

14. The network appliance of claim 12 wherein the user is identified by the user entering a user name and a password.

15. The network appliance of claim 1 wherein the data is encoded using the unique identifier or a cryptographic key associated with the unique identifier.

16. A method of storing data pertaining to a local network including the steps of: gathering data from the local network; accessing an external data storage connected to the local network; and storing the data in the external data storage using a unique identifier associated with a network appliance on the local network.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the external data storage is a cloud data centre in a global data communications network.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the global communications network is the Internet.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein the stored data is encrypted.

20. The method of claim 16 wherein the data is configuration data for configuring the network appliance.