Applications, systems and methods for permitting simultaneous use of a file by two or more computers over a network may include storing the file locally in a local storage device associated with a local computer; providing access to the file by at least one remote computer which is connectable to the local computer via the network, and wherein at least one of the computers is connectable to the network through a firewall element. The file may be stored in at least one remote storage device associated with the at least one remote computer, respectively, and versions of the file contained on the one or more remote storage devices are synchronized with that on the local device by transmitting over the network connecting the one or more remote storage devices with the local device, at least one of Delta files and Inverse Delta files between the remote storage devices and the local storage device. A method of remotely observing computer activity on a second computer remote with respect to a first computer is also provided. Further, file sharing systems and methods are provided for sharing files among computers.

Managed peer-to-peer applications, systems and methods for distributed data access and storage

A source image of the hardware and software configuration of a source computer, including the state of at least one source disk, is automatically captured The source computer may remain unprepared and requires no program for facilitating computer cloning and reconfiguration The source image is automatically analyzed and the hardware configuration of a destination computer is determined The source image is modified as needed for either compatibility with the destination computer, or for customization, and after possible modification the source image is deployed on the destination computer Either or both of the source and destination computers may be virtual machines

Computer image capture, customization and deployment

Systems and methods for remote access of network-enabled devices that provide seamless, firewall-compliant connectivity between multiple users and multiple devices, that allow collaborative operations by multiple users of remote devices, that allow point to multipoint control of multiple devices and which allow rapid, secure transmission of data between remote users and devices. In general terms, the system includes at least one connection server, and at least two computers operatively coupled to the connection server via a public or global network. In an example where at least one client computer is operatively connected to at least one network-enabled device through a connection server via the public or global network, the connection server is configured to route control instructions from the client to the network-enabled device, and route data from the network-enabled device to the client.

Access and control system for network-enabled devices

A mechanism is provided for making information about the virtual disk image file and/or its associated virtual image configuration file more readily available to a user. The virtual disk image file format is expanded to include fields in which information about the data in the file can be stored. Extensible information on file content, compatible HW configurations, compatible host OSes, timeout status, DRM status, patch state, and network topology, tag data for indexing, configuration files, saved state files, operation history data, and the like is stored in a location within a virtual disk image file that can be read without executing the virtual machine. This information can then be used to search the contents of the virtual disk image, to enforce usage policies, to provide extensibility for vendors, and the like.

Mechanism to store information describing a virtual machine in a virtual disk image

Facility for using images created by backup software to recreate an entire machine as it was at the point in time in the past when the backup was taken. The facility can be extended so as to bring up a set of machines which together serve some logical business function as in a cluster or federated servers, and further extended so that an entire data center may be virtualized from backup images. The virtualized servers provided may serve as an alternate data center standing in case of disaster or to meet maintenance windows achieving low cost Instant Disaster Recovery. A set of virtual machines may stand in for physical machines for a period of time and then resynchronized or re-seeded to physical machines via a combination of bare metal recovery and re-synchronizing from live LXJNs that form the virtual machine disks.

System and method for virtualizing backup images

The present invention provides tools and techniques for facilitating (314) management of storage (122), software (118), and other resources of a computer (102) at a distinct management computer (110) using a disassociated ample image (104) of a managed computer's storage. Ample images may be searched (310) to identify (414) infected files or illegal files, to extract (410) disk usage information, or for other reasons. Ample images may be modified (312) and then deployed (316) back to the original imaged computer and/or to other computers outside the management node. Modifications may change (502, 504, 506) application software, change (508, 510, 512) hardware drivers to match hardware changes on the target computer(s), manipulate (520) partitions, and/or perform other steps to optimize storage, software, or other resources.

Using disassociated images for computer and storage resource management

Mechanisms for enforcing permissions on stored data. Prior to storing the data, a data structure containing the data is accessed, and then modified to include a license that represents permission(s) for how the data should be used when the data structure is later accessed. The modified data structure is then stored, after perhaps some optional transformation. When the data structure is later accessed, the license is acquired from the data structure. The license is then used to determine whether or not to honor specific requests to use the data. This determination may be made based on license validation instructions executed from a removable media. Furthermore, the license may be the exclusive determining factor for the license validation instructions in determining whether or not to honor specific requests.

Roland D. Whatcott

Papers

Using disassociated images for computer and storage resource management

Intra-data license for using data