Patent US 7,970,877

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a user in a network environment can connect to a device on the network and automatically learn at least one detail regarding the device software image details. Examples of the software image details may include software version number, size in bytes, device model/family name, software filename, interface hardware details, and supported software feature set such as Internet Protocol (IP), Internet Packet Exchange (IPX), and AppleTalk. Additionally, an embodiment of the present invention may determine if the software image version or feature set is supported by a product which the user desires to use, suggest an upgrade to an appropriate software version or feature set to accommodate the product if the current version is not supported by the product, and automatically upgrade the software if the user approves of such action.