Patents by Inventor Steven A. West

Steven A. West has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Replacing system hardware
    Patent number: 7877358
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for managing spare partition units in a partitionable computing device is disclosed. The method comprises detecting if a spare partition unit is required for addition or replacement in a local operating system and if a spare partition unit is required for addition, initiating an addition of a spare partition unit. If a spare partition unit is required for replacement, a replacement of a failing partition unit with a spare partition unit is initiated; part of the memory of the failing partition unit is passively migrated into the memory of the spare partition unit's partition; part of the memory of the failing partition unit is also actively migrated into the memory of the spare partition unit's partition; and the partitionable computing device is cleaned up. Partition units are replaced without requiring that computer-executable instructions be recompiled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 25, 2011
    Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
    Inventors: Andrew J. Ritz, Santosh S. Jodh, Ellsworth D. Walker, Steven A. West, Michael G. Tricker
  • REPLACING SYSTEM HARDWARE
    Publication number: 20080120518
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for managing spare partition units in a partitionable computing device is disclosed. The method comprises detecting if a spare partition unit is required for addition or replacement in a local operating system and if a spare partition unit is required for addition, initiating an addition of a spare partition unit. If a spare partition unit is required for replacement, a replacement of a failing partition unit with a spare partition unit is initiated; part of the memory of the failing partition unit is passively migrated into the memory of the spare partition unit's partition; part of the memory of the failing partition unit is also actively migrated into the memory of the spare partition unit's partition; and the partitionable computing device is cleaned up. Partition units are replaced without requiring that computer-executable instructions be recompiled.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 15, 2007
    Publication date: May 22, 2008
    Applicant: MICROSOFT CORPORATION
    Inventors: Andrew J. Ritz, Santosh S. Jodh, Ellsworth D. Walker, Steven A. West, Michael G. Tricker