Abstract: A system for controlling access to computing resources including an authentication device operatively associated with a computing device, the authentication device being configured to transmit an interrogation signal to a predetermined area. A computing device has at least one software application resides thereon. A wireless license device is configured to transmit license information to the authentication device in response to the interrogation signal and to allow the software application to run while the wireless license device is within the predetermined area and to prevent the software application from running when the wireless license device is not within the predetermined area.

Abstract: Network device management using an RFID system. In one example embodiment, a method of determining the status of a network device may include communicating between a host computing device and a network device, communicating between the host computing device and an RFID reader, storing one or more status parameters of the network device in an RFID tag that is coupled to the network device, sending an interrogation signal from the RFID reader to an RFID tag, receiving the one or more status parameters from the RFID tag at the RFID reader, receiving the one or more status parameters from the RFID reader at the host computing device, storing the one or more status parameters in a database at the host computing device, and displaying the one or more status parameters to a user that is located remote from the predetermined location of the network device.

Abstract: Methods for managing an optical network through out-of-band communication between optical transceiver modules in a heterogeneous network fabric are disclosed. The disclosed methods include methods for performing fabric discovery, communicating error messages, detecting intrusion. Methods are also disclosed for communicating between transceivers of differing protocol versions and memory capacity.

Abstract: Test transceivers are disclosed for testing optical networks. The test transceivers generate one or more errors on a network in a specific, reproducible way, thereby enabling a tester to easily and readily identify whether network devices are operating properly, or prone to failure. A corrective transceiver is also disclosed. The corrective transceiver is configured to continually detect operating parameters of one or more network devices in a network. The corrective transceiver can identify the operating parameters through out-of-band communication with the one or more network devices. The corrective transceiver is further configured with one or more instructions to adjust its own operating parameters to re-sync with another network device as necessary to continue network communications during a failure of the network device.

Abstract: One example embodiment includes a testing device. The testing device comprises a signal reception element, an out-of-band detector and testing logic. The signal reception element is configured to receive a physical layer signal from a communication module via a physical link and to produce an incoming double modulated signal, the incoming double modulated signal including a high-speed data signal and an out-of-band data signal. The out-of-band data signal comprises diagnostic data of the communication module. The out-of-band detector is coupled to the signal reception element and is configured to extract the out-of-band data signal from the incoming double modulated signal. The testing logic is coupled to the out-of-band detector and is configured to extract and analyze the diagnostic data from the out-of-band data signal.

Abstract: An optical communication apparatus that includes multiple optically communicative components positioned optically in series. Some of the optically communicative components may be optical fiber segments of perhaps different types. The optical channel represented by the series of optically communicative components and approximates a transfer function of an optical channel of a longer optical fiber. Accordingly, rather than deal with a lengthy optical fiber, an apparatus having a shorter optical channel may be used instead. The construction of the optical communicative components may be calculating an input transfer function. The construction would include an ordering of discrete optically communicative components that, when placed optically in series, simulates an estimation of a particular transfer function. Testing may then occur by actually passing an optical signal through the series construction of optically communicative components, rather than through the longer optical fiber.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention relate to systems and methods for securing data transmission in networks. Embodiments of the invention further relate to encryption methods that dynamically adjust during the course of data transmission. Further, the encryption methods can adapt dynamically without user intervention. In one embodiment, an encryption scheme can be established, controlled, and monitored via out-of-band communication between transceiver modules.

Abstract: One example embodiment includes a testing device. The testing device comprises a signal reception element, an out-of-band detector and testing logic. The signal reception element is configured to receive a physical layer signal from a communication module via a physical link and to produce an incoming double modulated signal, the incoming double modulated signal including a high-speed data signal and an out-of-band data signal. The out-of-band data signal comprises diagnostic data of the communication module. The out-of-band detector is coupled to the signal reception element and is configured to extract the out-of-band data signal from the incoming double modulated signal. The testing logic is coupled to the out-of-band detector and is configured to extract and analyze the diagnostic data from the out-of-band data signal.

Abstract: A tunable element of a tuning module is receptive to optical data channels of a multiplexed optical data signal, each optical data channel having a different respective wavelength. The tunable element is responsive to different stimuli such that multiple passbands of the tunable element are defined, each passband corresponding to a respective stimulus and including no more than one wavelength of the optical data channels. An optical detector communicates with the tunable element and is receptive to no more than one optical data channel from the tunable element at any given time, an output of the optical detector is an electrical data signal that corresponds to the optical data channel received by the optical detector from the tunable element. A controller communicates with the tunable element and tunes the tunable element from one optical data channel to the other by causing application of a corresponding stimulus to the tunable element.

Abstract: A host communicates a firmware module to an electronic device utilizing a data communication interface (e.g., I2C). The host may also communicate a set of values representing information associated with execution of the firmware module to the electronic device. The host may utilize commands and/or flags to execute the firmware module at the electronic device. The electronic device executes the firmware module without resetting/suspending an ongoing execution of the electronic device. In some embodiments, the electronic device collects data upon execution of the firmware module. The collected data may be stored to a particular location of the electronic device and retrieved later by the host, or returned directly to the host.

Abstract: Systems and methods for identifying and resolving problems in wireless device configurations in a wireless network. In one example embodiment, a method for resolving wireless device configuration problems includes various acts including identifying all wireless devices that are wired to a network, retrieving configuration information from each wireless device, retrieving wireless device incompatibility information and corresponding configuration solutions for each wireless device, attempting to contact each wireless device over one or more wireless communication channels in order to determine if one or more wireless capabilities of each wireless device are functioning properly, and determining that the incompatibility information of one of the wireless devices with a malfunctioning wireless capability conflicts with the configuration information of one or more of the wireless devices.

Abstract: A method of controlling communication between transceivers includes transmitting payload data from a transmitter of a first transceiver in a data channel of a physical link to a receiver of a second transceiver, the second transceiver further including an equalizer, varying equalizer settings in the equalizer, analyzing effects of varying equalizer settings to determine transmitter diagnostic settings for the first transceiver, and transmitting the transmitter diagnostic settings from a transmitter of the second transceiver in an out-of-band channel of a physical link to a receiver of the first transceiver a second transceiver in a data channel.

Abstract: Methods for managing an optical network through out-of-band communication between optical transceiver modules in a heterogeneous network fabric are disclosed. The disclosed methods include methods for performing fabric discovery, communicating error messages, detecting intrusion. Methods are also disclosed for communicating between transceivers of differing protocol versions and memory capacity.

Abstract: Methods for managing an optical network through out-of-band communication between optical transceiver modules in a heterogeneous network fabric are disclosed. The disclosed methods include methods for performing fabric discovery, communicating error messages, detecting intrusion. Methods are also disclosed for communicating between transceivers of differing protocol versions and memory capacity.

Abstract: Recreating errors in a network device. In one embodiment, a method for recreating an error condition in a network device includes capturing a first set of commands sent to a network device; identifying an error condition in the network device, the error condition corresponding to the captured first set of commands; and sending a second set of commands to the network device in a second attempt to recreate the error condition. The second set of commands includes the first set of commands as well as additional commands that are configured to place the network device in substantially the same state as at the time that the first set of commands was sent to the network device.

Abstract: Systems for ordering network packets. In one example embodiment, a networking system includes a processor and memory. The memory has stored thereon a routing data structure, a transaction data structure, and first packet-route-to data. The processor is configured to receive a packet; to copy second route-to data from an entry in the routing data structure to the first packet-route-to data, the entry being associated with an identifier associated with the packet, the second route-to data comprising a value indicating that the packet should be routed back to the processor; to determine whether the packet is in order; to, when the packet is in order, copy third route-to data to the first packet-route-to data, the third route-to data comprising a value indicating that the packet should be routed to a destination; and to route the packet according to the first packet-route-to data.

Abstract: A method of controlling communication between transceivers includes transmitting payload data from a transmitter of a first transceiver in a data channel of a physical link to a receiver of a second transceiver, the second transceiver further including an equalizer, varying equalizer settings in the equalizer, analyzing effects of varying equalizer settings to determine transmitter diagnostic settings for the first transceiver, and transmitting the transmitter diagnostic settings from a transmitter of the second transceiver in an out-of-band channel of a physical link to a receiver of the first transceiver a second transceiver in a data channel.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention relate to systems and methods for securing data transmission in networks. Embodiments of the invention further relate to encryption methods that dynamically adjust during the course of data transmission. Further, the encryption methods can adapt dynamically without user intervention. In one embodiment, an encryption scheme can be established, controlled, and monitored via out-of-band communication between transceiver modules.

Abstract: An optical communication apparatus that includes multiple optically communicative components positioned optically in series. Some of the optically communicative components may be optical fiber segments of perhaps different types. The optical channel represented by the series of optically communicative components and approximates a transfer function of an optical channel of a longer optical fiber. Accordingly, rather than deal with a lengthy optical fiber, an apparatus having a shorter optical channel may be used instead. The construction of the optical communicative components may be calculating an input transfer function. The construction would include an ordering of discrete optically communicative components that, when placed optically in series, simulates an estimation of a particular transfer function. Testing may then occur by actually passing an optical signal through the series construction of optically communicative components, rather than through the longer optical fiber.

Abstract: Recreating errors in a network device. In one embodiment, a method for recreating an error condition in a network device includes capturing a first set of commands sent to a network device; identifying an error condition in the network device, the error condition corresponding to the captured first set of commands; and sending a second set of commands to the network device in a second attempt to recreate the error condition. The second set of commands includes the first set of commands as well as additional commands that are configured to place the network device in substantially the same state as at the time that the first set of commands was sent to the network device.