Abstract: A computer tablet includes a wireless receiver, and a pen is configured to be manipulated by a person to ride against the computer tablet and thereby provide input to the computer tablet. The pen includes a wireless transmitter. A processor associated with the computer tablet outputs an alarm when a signal from the transmitter of the pen is not sensed by the computer tablet within a time period.

Abstract: A method and system for accessing a remote real communication port (“COM port”) from a server blade in a server blade chassis by creating a virtual COM port in the server blade. A basic input/output system (BIOS) controller monitors an internal COM port in the server blade for communication traffic. Upon detecting the communication traffic, the BIOS controller reroutes the traffic to a virtual USB COM port created by the BIOS controller chipset. The virtual USB COM port directs the communication traffic to an internal universal serial bus (USB) device in the server blade. The USB device then forwards the traffic to an Ethernet media access controller (MAC) input/output (I/O) on a sideband channel to a remote system, which passes the communication traffic to a real COM port in the remote system.

Abstract: A method and system for accessing a remote real communication port (“COM port”) from a server blade in a server blade chassis by creating a virtual COM port in the server blade. A basic input/output system (BIOS) controller monitors an internal COM port in the server blade for communication traffic. Upon detecting the communication traffic, the BIOS controller reroutes the traffic to a virtual USB COM port created by the BIOS controller chipset. The virtual USB COM port directs the communication traffic to an internal universal serial bus (USB) device in the server blade. The USB device then forwards the traffic to an Ethernet media access controller (MAC) input/output (I/O) on a sideband channel to a remote system, which passes the communication traffic to a real COM port in the remote system.

Abstract: An approach is provided that identifies when a wireless keyboard unit is connected to an information handling system that includes a display screen that is partially blocked when the keyboard is attached. A determination is made as to the size of the visible portion of the display screen. Items are displayed on the visible portion of the display screen. The approach refrains from displaying items on the blocked portion of the display screen. The user is able to move the wireless keyboard, the movement of the keyboard resulting in a changed size of the visible portion of the display screen. After the keyboard is repositioned, the visual items are re-displayed on the visible portion of the display screen so that the items fit in the changed size of the visible portion of the display screen.

Abstract: When a disk sector is written to, a bit for the sector is set indicating that the sector will require secure data disposal (SDD) to be run on it. To save time during end of life disposal, SDD is executed only on sectors whose bits indicate that they have been written to. SDD can be executed on each dirty sector in one operation at end of life or incrementally during use as disk activity permits.

Abstract: A wireless network access point is described which provides the resources of a backbone network to wireless clients. The access point is able to detect a degraded condition on the backbone network. Upon detecting the degraded condition, the access point transmits or broadcasts a reassociation request to one or more clients associated with the access point. In addition, the rate at which new associations are made is halted or reduced during the degraded backbone condition. In one embodiment, the association rate is reduced by increasing the interval between beacons transmitted by the access point which identify the access to the backbone network.

Abstract: Prior to disabling itself in response to a disable command, a lost or stolen portable computer first constructs a log of data that has been accessed recently and sends the log to the rightful owner's address, so the owner knows specifically what data might have been compromised.

Abstract: An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for rapid wireless network association. The apparatus includes a logic unit containing a plurality of modules configured to functionally execute the necessary steps of conducting a preliminary full band search on a predefined frequency spectrum to identify the frequency of an active communication channel, investigate the availability of the active communication channels identified during the preliminary search, and associate with a wireless network device on the available active communication channel. These modules in the described embodiments include a search module, an investigation module, and an association module. Beneficially such an apparatus, system, and method provide for more efficient searching, scanning, and association than typically found in wireless networks.

Abstract: When an authenticated wireless computer loses connectivity to a wireless access point of a network and roams to another access point, the wireless computer (e.g., a hypervisor in the computer) determines whether the new access point is authorized for secure communication and if so, releases access to secure data on the network through the new access point.

Abstract: An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for protecting a motion-sensitive device. The apparatus includes an identification module, a determination module, and a scheduler. The identification module identifies a use-intensive task involving the motion-sensitive device. The determination module determines a motion forecast that predicts a substantially motionless time interval. The scheduler schedules the use-intensive task such that the use-intensive task executes within the substantially motionless time interval. In this manner, a historical movement pattern is used to schedule future tasks such that the coincidence of task use of the motion-sensitive device and movement of the motion-sensitive device is minimized.

Abstract: A computer determines whether it has been booted from a hard disk drive or from an alternate source (e.g., a floppy drive or portable memory) that entails a higher risk of importing a virus into the computer, and if it is determined that a non-HDD source was booted from, corrective action such as a virus scan can be preemptively taken.

Abstract: A client computer is connected via a network to an anti-virus server. A signal from the anti-virus server notifies the client computer that an anti-virus needs to be immediately downloaded from the anti-virus server. The client computer disengages from the network, and re-establishes a link with only the trusted anti-virus server. The anti-virus fix is installed, the client computer re-booted, and the client computer is then allowed to reconnect to the full network. If the client's primary operating system (OS) is infected, a secondary OS in the client computer performs the anti-virus download and execution. The disengagement from the network is performed by applying a filter in a network interface card (NIC) driver by the primary OS, the secondary OS, a service processor (SP), or by a virtual machine manager (VMM), depending on which is available at the client computer.

Abstract: A system, method, and program product is provided that initializes a counter maintained in a nonvolatile memory of a security module to an initialization value. The security module receives requests for a secret from requesters. The security module releases the secret to the requesters and the released secrets are stored in memory areas allocated to the requesters. A counter is incremented when the secret is released. Requestors send notifications to the security module indicating that the requestor has removed the secret from the requestor's memory area. The security module decrements the counter each time a notification is received. When the computer system is rebooted, if the counter is not at the initialization value, the system memory is scrubbed erasing any secrets that remain in memory.

Abstract: A system, method, and program product is provided that initializes a computer system using an initialization process that identifies secrets that were stored in memory and not scrubbed during a prior use of the computer system. During the initialization process, one or more secret indicators are retrieved that identify whether one or more secrets were scrubbed from the computer system's memory during a previous use of the computer system. If the secret indicators show that one or more secrets were not scrubbed from the memory during the prior use of the computer system, then the initialization process scrubs the memory. On the other hand, if the secret indicators show that each of the secrets was scrubbed from the memory during the prior use of the computer system, then the memory is not scrubbed during the initialization process.

Abstract: A method and system for reducing power consumed by a computer system. A network switch includes a processor coupled to a plurality of ports which are coupled to a plurality of computer systems. The processor includes logic for receiving a media access control address from one of the computer systems. The computer system may later enter into either a hibernation state or an off state. The processor may further include logic for receiving a magic packet that includes a repetitive address that identifies the computer system. Upon receiving the magic packet, the processor remotely activates the computer system from either the hibernation state or the off state. By remotely activating the computer system, the computer system may consume less power since the network subsystem in the computer system may not need to monitor for a magic packet. Instead, the magic packet may be monitored by the network switch.

Abstract: Applications are disclosed involving root measurable entities such as given a size of a garment from one manufacturer that fits, appropriate sizes for garments made by other manufacturers can be returned; also, given a particular computer network and a user-input desire for a particular task, optimum settings are returned.

Abstract: A system and method that rejuvenates a computer system is provided. The user uses the computer system that includes an operating system and applications for a first period of time creating data files and applying patches to the operating system and applications. An image is created of the primary drive and stored on a second nonvolatile storage area. In one embodiment, the second nonvolatile storage area is a hidden partition of a hard drive. The user continues using the system during a second period of time. When the computer system becomes sluggish, the primary drive is reformatted and the image is copied from the second nonvolatile storage area to the primary drive. In addition, patches and applications installed after the image was created are stored to the second nonvolatile storage area and reapplied and reinstalled on the primary drive after the image has been copied to the primary drive.

Abstract: A method and corresponding network interface device for communicating between devices connected to a LAN includes attempting to communicate between the network devices over an initial subset of the network media wires. If the communication fails, a subsequent subset of media wires is selected. The wires of this subsequent subset differ from the wires of the initial subset. If the attempted communication succeeds, the current subset of network media wires is used as the media over which subsequent network data is transmitted. Attempting to communicate over the media may include sending an initialization sequence such as an Ethernet Auto-negotiate sequence. In one embodiment, the network media is implemented as 8 wires of CAT 5 cabling suitable for use with a Gigabit Ethernet. In this embodiment, any subsequent subsets of the network media wires may consist of 4 of the 8 wires over which 100 Mbps Ethernet operation may occur.

Abstract: A first battery assembly is in a first battery housing that is mechanically engageable with a portable computer, and a second battery assembly is in a second battery housing that is mechanically couplable to the first battery housing. A switch has a first configuration in which communication is established between the portable computer and the first battery assembly and a second configuration in which communication is established between the portable computer and the second battery assembly.

Abstract: A system, method, and program product is provided that initializes expected PCRs stored in a TPM by generating and storing a random number, seeding expected PCRs with the random number, inputting a set of startup code processes to a hash algorithm resulting in a set of hash values, updating the expected PCRs using the set of hash values, and saving the expected PCRs in a nonvolatile data area that is secured by the TPM. Upon reboot, the random number is retrieved from the nonvolatile data area, the PCRs are seeded with the retrieved random number, the startup code processes are input to the hash algorithm process resulting in another set of hash values, the PCRs are updated using the resulting set of hash values, and an encrypted data object is decrypted in response to the PCRs being the same as the expected PCRs.