Patents Assigned to VMware
  • Patent number: 8245227
    Abstract: In a computing system having virtualization software including a guest operating system (OS), a method for operating wherein virtualization software address space is distributed in guest OS address space that includes: granting the guest OS execute, but not read or write, access, to pages in the virtualization software address space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: VMware, Inc.
    Inventors: Scott W. Devine, Lawrence S. Rogel, Prashanth P. Bungale, Gerald A. Fry
  • Patent number: 8245129
    Abstract: Methods and systems for providing synchronization of directory data between directory servers are provided. Example embodiments provide a Application Workspace System “AWS,” which enables users to access remote server-based applications using the same interface that they use to access local applications, without needing to know where the application is being accessed. In one embodiment of the AWS, every data entry in the LDAP is automatically replicated to the other directories using XLDAPS technology. In one embodiment, XLDAPS uses XSLT transformation rules to synchronize LDAP changes to different LDAP Directories which may have a different LDAP Schema and a different LDAP Directory Information Tree structure This abstract is provided to comply with rules requiring an abstract, and it is submitted with the intention that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: VMware, Inc.
    Inventors: Anthony J Wilkinson, Mark Benson
  • Patent number: 8244853
    Abstract: The present invention facilitates mapping dependencies between software applications, components, and business processes on a computer network. Packets communicated between software applications are sampled to identify characteristics of the packet. The characteristics are used to identify communicating applications and to generate dependency maps of software applications on a computer network.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: VMware, Inc.
    Inventor: Gil Raanan
  • Patent number: 8245081
    Abstract: A software component is executed to carry out a task, the task including a subtask. An external function is called to perform the subtask, the external function executing in a separate thread or process. The component receives an observation recorded by the external function, the observation including an identifier of a possible error condition and instance data associated with the possible error condition. The possible error condition being a cause of the failure of the external function to carry out the subtask. If the task cannot be completed, then a new observation is recorded along with the received observation, the new observation being related to a possible error condition of the component, which is a cause of the failure of the component to carry out the task. When the task can be completed despite the failure of the external function, the observation recorded by the external function is cleared.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: VMware, Inc.
    Inventors: Osten Kit Colbert, Dilpreet Bindra, Patrick Tullmann
  • Publication number: 20120203739
    Abstract: A snapshot of an inventory of a virtualized computer system is produced and a user-editable code is generated therefrom, so that the inventory can be reconstructed entirely or partially. The snapshot includes identifying data for items in the virtualized computer system, and relationship data that indicate hierarchical and non-hierarchical relationships between the items. The items in the inventory of the virtualized computer system include virtual machines, servers on which the virtual machines are running, one or more data centers in which the servers reside, and logical containers such as folders for virtual machines, resource pools that each contain one or more virtual machines, and server clusters that each contain one or more servers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 3, 2011
    Publication date: August 9, 2012
    Applicant: VMWARE, INC.
    Inventors: Vijayaraghavan SOUNDARARAJAN, Balaji PARIMI
  • Publication number: 20120204061
    Abstract: A checkpointing fault tolerance network architecture enables a backup computer system to be remotely located from a primary computer system. An intermediary computer system is situated between the primary computer system and the backup computer system to manage the transmission of checkpoint information to the backup VM in an efficient manner. The intermediary computer system is networked to the primary VM through a first connection and is networked to the backup VM through a second connection. The intermediary computer system identifies updated data corresponding to memory pages that have been least recently modified by the primary VM and transmits such updated data to the backup VM through the first connection. In such manner, the intermediary computer system holds back updated data corresponding to more recently modified memory pages, since such memory pages may be more likely to be updated again in the future.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2012
    Publication date: August 9, 2012
    Applicant: VMware, Inc.
    Inventors: Ole AGESEN, Raviprasad MUMMIDI, Pratap SUBRAHMANYAM
  • Patent number: 8239655
    Abstract: A method of virtual machine (VM) access to physical storage through a direct path to a virtual function (VF) of a storage adapter, the method for use in a system that includes a host computing machine configured to implement a virtualization intermediary and the virtual machine (VM) and that includes the storage adapter the method, comprising: sending virtual SCSI IO request from the VM to the physical storage that identifies a virtual disk address; mapping within the VF the identified virtual address to at least one physical region of the physical storage; creating within the VF a physical SCSI IO request that identifies a physical address for the mapped-to physical region; sending the physical SCSI IO request from the VF to the physical storage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2012
    Assignee: VMware, Inc.
    Inventors: Edward J. Goggin, Hariharan Subramanian
  • Patent number: 8239608
    Abstract: Detailed herein are approaches to enabling a secure computing environment. In one approach, a computer system runs an operating system and a virtual machine management console. An input device is used to provide input to the operating system. The operating system is configured such that input received from the input device is directed to the virtual machine management console. The virtual machine management console, in turn, is configured to pass some or all of the input to a virtual machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2006
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2012
    Assignee: VMware, Inc.
    Inventor: Matt Ginzton
  • Patent number: 8239646
    Abstract: A method for migrating a virtual machine disk (VM disk) from first physical storage to second physical storage while the virtual machine (VM) is running, the method comprising: (a) taking a snapshot of the VM disk as represented by a first parent VM disk stored on the first physical storage, whereby a first child VM disk is created on one of the first or second physical storage; (b) copying the first parent VM disk to the second physical storage as a second parent VM disk; (c) re-parenting the first VM child disk to the second parent VM disk; and (d) consolidating the first child VM disk and the second parent VM disk.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2012
    Assignee: VMware, Inc.
    Inventors: Osten Kit Colbert, Gregory M. Hutchins, Robert Bosch, Jairam Ranganathan, Joel Baxter
  • Publication number: 20120198097
    Abstract: System and methods for safely sharing universal serial bus (USB) devices are provided. A request is received to switch from a state in which user mode drivers are not enabled to a state in which user mode drivers are enabled. For each kernel mode USB driver in the system, an I/O control (IOCTL) is called in each kernel mode USB driver. The IOCTL requests that the kernel mode USB driver yield devices on which it has a claim. Also, for each kernel mode USB driver in the system, it is determined if the kernel mode USB driver will yield one or more devices on which it has a claim. For each kernel mode USB driver that will yield and for each device claimed by the kernel mode USB driver for which the kernel mode USB driver respects a request to unclaim the device, a process is executed as if there had been a hot unplug event on the device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 12, 2012
    Publication date: August 2, 2012
    Applicant: VMWARE, INC.
    Inventors: Erik Cota-Robles, Igor Korsunsky
  • Patent number: 8234518
    Abstract: A replicated decentralized storage system comprises a plurality of servers that locally store disk images for locally running virtual machines as well as disk images, for failover purposes, for remotely running virtual machines. To ensure that disk images stored for failover purposes are properly replicated upon an update of the disk image on the server running the virtual machine, a hash of a unique value known only to the server running the virtual machine is used to verify the origin of update operations that have been transmitted by the server to the other servers storing replications of the disk image for failover purposes. If verified, the update operations are added to such failover disk images. To enable the replicated decentralized system to recover from a failure of the primary server, the master secret is subdivided into parts and distributed to other servers in the cluster.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 31, 2012
    Assignee: VMware, Inc.
    Inventor: Jacob Gorm Hansen
  • Patent number: 8233882
    Abstract: One embodiment is a method of providing security in a virtualized mobile device including virtualization software that supports one or more virtual machines, the method including: (a) receiving a security policy at the virtualized mobile device, which security policy includes one or more location or location-time scenarios for the virtualized mobile device, which scenarios identify applications to be curtailed, and how they are to be curtailed and applications that are to be enabled, and how they are to be enabled; (b) collecting one or more of mobile device location information or information related to time spent at the location; identifying a scenario that pertaining to the one or more of the location and time information; and (c) curtailing or enabling applications in accordance with the identified scenario.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 31, 2012
    Assignee: VMware, Inc.
    Inventor: Lawrence S. Rogel
  • Publication number: 20120191922
    Abstract: A shared object space in a computer system provides synchronized access to data objects accessible to a plurality of concurrently running applications in the computer system. The shared object space is allocated a portion of memory of the computer system and concurrently running applications are able to connect to the shared object space. The shared object space restricts simultaneous access to data objects by the concurrently running applications by associating locks with the data objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Publication date: July 26, 2012
    Applicant: VMWARE, INC.
    Inventors: David J. MONNIE, Robert BRETL
  • Publication number: 20120185852
    Abstract: Techniques for enabling a virtual machine (VM) executing on a physical node to access a partition of a storage system are described. One embodiment associates an identifier with the VM for use when communicating with the storage system, wherein the identifier differs from a default identifier of a host bust adapter (HBA) usable by the physical node to communicate with the storage system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 23, 2012
    Publication date: July 19, 2012
    Applicant: VMWARE, INC.
    Inventors: Daniel J. SCALES, Mallik MAHALINGAM
  • Publication number: 20120185553
    Abstract: Selecting a master node in a group of computing nodes. Computing nodes exchange suitability messages, candidate messages, and master messages to indicate the state of each node. A deterministic algorithm based on scores and timings is executed by each computing node to encourage each node to select the same master node.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 13, 2011
    Publication date: July 19, 2012
    Applicant: VMWARE, INC.
    Inventor: Michael NELSON
  • Publication number: 20120185590
    Abstract: A user interface (UI) is accessible on a display to depict and control a plurality of smart racks in a data center is disclosed. The UI includes first, second and third graphical displays. The first graphical display depicts smart racks in the data center so as to mimic a physical arrangement of the smart racks. The second graphical display depicts a plurality of blade hosts in a smart rack in the plurality of smart racks, so as to mimic a physical arrangement of the plurality of blade hosts. The first and second graphical display may include visual indicators to depict error and warning conditions. The third graphical display depicts blade information about a blade host in the plurality of blade hosts. The blade information includes system information, a list of virtual machines hosted on the blade host, and a physical location of the blade host in the data center.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 27, 2012
    Publication date: July 19, 2012
    Applicant: VMWARE, INC.
    Inventors: Benjamin Trevor KOLIN, Eric Marshall RIDER
  • Publication number: 20120185453
    Abstract: A virtualization technique, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, includes emulating the small computing system interface (SCSI) protocol to access a virtual SCSI storage device backed by a file stored on network attached storage (NAS).
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 26, 2012
    Publication date: July 19, 2012
    Applicant: VMware, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael NELSON, Hao XU, Daniel J. SCALES, Matthew B. AMDUR
  • Publication number: 20120185915
    Abstract: A method and system enables transparent authentication and transparent policy enforcement in a fabric of a network. In an exemplary embodiment thereof, a packet stream sent from a network host to a network resource is received at a security system. The security system identifies an authentication exchange packet in the packet stream and determines, using the authentication exchange packet and a directory service, a user identity associated with the packet stream and whether the identified user has authorization to access the network resource. A network policy is created that defines whether the user has access to the network resource.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Publication date: July 19, 2012
    Applicant: VMWARE, INC.
    Inventor: John PRAMOD
  • Publication number: 20120185914
    Abstract: A virtualization framework provides security between multiple virtual machines with respect to network communications between the virtual machines and between the virtual machines and a physical network coupled to the underlying physical computer platform. The virtualization framework includes a network interface controller driver that provides an interface to the platform network interface controller and supports execution of a plurality of virtual machines. Each virtual machine includes a virtual network interface controller that provides a network communications path between the virtual machines and to the network interface controller driver. Each virtual network interface controller further contains a programmable network packet filter that controls the selective transfer of network packets with respect to a corresponding virtual machine.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 28, 2012
    Publication date: July 19, 2012
    Applicant: VMWARE, INC.
    Inventors: Matthew DELCO, Matthew ECCLESTON, Matthew GINZTON, Gustav WIBLING
  • Patent number: 8225071
    Abstract: A virtual memory system implementing the invention provides concurrent access to translations for virtual addresses from multiple address spaces. One embodiment of the invention is implemented in a virtual computer system, in which a virtual machine monitor supports a virtual machine. In this embodiment, the invention provides concurrent access to translations for virtual addresses from the respective address spaces of both the virtual machine monitor and the virtual machine. Multiple page tables contain the translations for the multiple address spaces. Information about an operating state of the computer system, as well as an address space identifier, are used to determine whether, and under what circumstances, an attempted memory access is permissible. If the attempted memory access is permissible, the address space identifier is also used to determine which of the multiple page tables contains the translation for the attempted memory access.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2012
    Assignee: VMware, Inc.
    Inventors: Xiaoxin Chen, Alberto J. Munoz