초록 ▼

An Internet access device uses an automatic configuration process to handle the task of configuring the Internet access device at a customer site for communication with the Internet. Once configured, the customer has electronic mail and other access to the Internet from his local area network. A not

An Internet access device uses an automatic configuration process to handle the task of configuring the Internet access device at a customer site for communication with the Internet. Once configured, the customer has electronic mail and other access to the Internet from his local area network. A not yet configured Internet access device is shipped directly to a customer without having to be manually configured first. The customer enters a registration identification number and a telephone number onto the Internet access device. The Internet access device then automatically connects to the Internet, downloads configuration data from a configuration server containing customer site specific configuration data, and then automatically configures itself for communication with the Internet. The Internet access device is simple to install for a customer and provides valuable features such as a router, firewall, e-mail gateway, web server, and other servers. The Internet access device initially connects to the Internet through an Internet service provider over a standard analog telephone line using a standard modem and using a dynamic IP address. Once automatically configured, the Internet access device may then communicate with the Internet using any suitable connection including an analog telephone line, or a higher-speed line such as an ISDN line or a frame relay circuit and is assigned a static IP address and a range of IP addresses for other devices on its local area network.

대표청구항 ▼

[ We claim:] [1.] A computer-implemented method of automatically configuring an access device for communication with a communications network, said method comprising the steps of:connecting said access device to a configuration server;sending a customer account identifier from the access device to t

[ We claim:] [1.] A computer-implemented method of automatically configuring an access device for communication with a communications network, said method comprising the steps of:connecting said access device to a configuration server;sending a customer account identifier from the access device to the configuration server;requesting that said configuration server return a configuration record identified by said customer account identifier, said configuration record containing configuration information for said access device;downloading said configuration record from said configuration server to said access device; andconfiguring said access device for communication with said communications network using said configuration information of said configuration record, wherein said step of configuring said access device includes the sub-steps of:configuring one selected from the group of a modem, an ISDN adapter, and a synchronous serial interface; andconfiguring a router of said access device.