WO2017168408A1

WO2017168408A1 - System and method for remotely troubleshooting network connection problems

Info

Publication number: WO2017168408A1
Application number: PCT/IL2017/050340
Authority: WO
Inventors: David Ariel CHOURAQUI; Eliav GNESSIN
Original assignee: Cloud Of Things, Ltd
Priority date: 2016-03-31
Filing date: 2017-03-19
Publication date: 2017-10-05

Abstract

A system comprising: a wireless network connection enabling component, capable of connecting to a network; a wireless access point, enabling a user device to connect thereto; and a controller; the controller configured to: receive, from the user device, through a first connection established between the user device and the wireless access point, a network connection information request; and obtain, from the wireless network connection enabling component, network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between the system and the network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and send, through the first connection, the network connection information to the user device.

Description

SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR REMOTELY TROUBLESHOOTING NETWORK CONNECTION PROBLEMS

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to a system and method for remotely troubleshooting network connection problems.

BACKGROUND

More and more common devices (including, for example, kitchen appliances, smart light bulbs, air conditioners, smoke detectors, and more) are designed nowadays to connect to the Internet, thus giving their owners capabilities that the un-networked versions of those devices could not have provided. However, the process of connecting the device, which is in many cases headless and has no means to provide input to its owner, to the network is troublesome. Various problems may occur when attempting to connect the device to the network, these vary from home network difficulties, like IP address allocation errors by the local networking device or weak home network signal, to incompatible firmware or malfunctioning hardware of the device itself. These complications are usually out of the solving capacity of the common owner of such a device, meaning that the device's manufacturer has to invest costly technical support assets in solving these problems. Since the device failed to connect to the network, the support cannot be given remotely and in many cases requires a visit by a support technician in order for him to have physical access to the device.

There is thus a need in the art for a new system and method for remotely troubleshooting network connection problems.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

In accordance with a first aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a system comprising: a wireless network connection enabling component, capable of connecting to a network; a wireless access point, enabling a user device to connect thereto; and a controller; the controller configured to: receive, from the user device, through a first connection established between the user device and the wireless access point, a network connection information request; obtain, from the wireless network connection enabling component, network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between the system and the network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and send, through the first connection, the network connection information to the user device.

In some cases, the wireless network connection enabling component and the wireless access point enable the first connection and the second connection to simultaneously coexist.

In some cases, the wireless network connection enabling component and the wireless access point enable the connection attempt to be performed while the first connection exists.

In some cases, the network is an Internet Protocol (IP) based network and connecting to the network includes connecting to a networking device connected to the IP based network.

In some cases, the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

a. indication of a measured signal strength of a signal originating from the networking device and received by the wireless network connection enabling component;

b indication of a security protocol type mismatch between the networking device and the wireless network connection enabling component;

c. indication of an encryption mechanism type mismatch between the networking device and the wireless network connection enabling component;

d indication of wrong password provided by the wireless network connection enabling component for connecting to the networking device; e. indication of unavailability of an Internet Protocol (IP) address in the networking device;

f. indication of unavailability of a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server;

g indication of IP address collisions, resulting from the DHCP server allocating an IP address, the IP address being allocated to another device; h. indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS);

i. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or

j. indication of a misconfigured route in the routing tables of the wireless network connection enabling component.

In some cases, the controller is further configured to receive, from the user device, through the first connection, instructions including one or more of the following:

a. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given security protocol;

b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given password;

c. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given encryption mechanism; d. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to rebroadcast a DHCP discover message;

e. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given DNS server;

f. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection to a specific host; or

g. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to refresh its routing table.

a. a first hardware tests results report for the wireless network connection enabling component;

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

d. a first software integrity tests results report for the wireless network connection enabling component;

e. a second software integrity tests results report for the wireless access point;

f. a third software integrity tests results report for the controller; g. a system firmware version of the system;

h. a wireless network connection enabling component firmware version of the wireless network connection enabling component; or i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point.

In some cases, the controller is further configured to receive instructions including one or more of the following:

a. instruct the controller to restart;

b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to restart; c. instruct the wireless access point to restart;

d. instruct the controller to reload a system firmware of the system;

e. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to reload its firmware;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

g. instruct the controller to update the system firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a system firmware update;

h. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to update its firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a wireless network connection enabling component firmware update; or

i. instruct the wireless access point to update its firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a wireless access point firmware update.

In some cases, the system is comprised within a hardware module equipped with a serial port connection or a parallel port connection, the hardware module being connectable to a device through a second serial port connection of the device or through a second parallel port connection of the device.

In some cases, the controller is capable of controlling a device controller of the device.

In some cases, the network connection information includes a device firmware version of the device.

In some cases, the controller is configured to receive a device firmware update instruction for updating a firmware of the device, and control the device controller for executing the device firmware update instruction, thereby updating the firmware of the device, wherein the firmware update is comprised within the device firmware update instruction.

In some cases, the network connection information request originates from an application on the user device, through the first connection.

In some cases, the network connection information request is obtained from a user of the user device, through the application.

In some cases, the network connection information request originates from a remote support computer, through the Internet or another IP network.

In some cases, the network connection information request is obtained from a user of the remote support computer.

In accordance with a second aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a user device comprising: a wireless network connection enabling component, capable of connecting to a wireless access point of a system; and a processing unit; the processing unit is configured to: establish a first connection between the user device and the system, utilizing the wireless access point and the wireless network connection enabling component; send a network connection information request to the system, through the first connection; and receive network connection information from the system, through the first connection, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between a second wireless network connection enabling component of the system and a network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection.

In some cases, the processing unit is further configured to send one or more instructions, for establishing or improving the second connection, to the system, through the first connection.

In some cases, the network is an Internet Protocol (IP) based network and the second connection is established or attempted to be established by the second wireless network connection enabling component of the system, via a networking device connected to the Internet.

In some cases, the network connection information includes one or more of the following: a. indication of a measured signal strength of a signal originating from the networking device and received by the wireless network connection enabling component;

b. indication of a security protocol type mismatch between the networking device and the wireless network connection enabling component;

d. indication of wrong password provided by the wireless network connection enabling component for connecting to the networking device; e. indication of unavailability of an Internet Protocol (IP) address in the networking device;

g. indication of IP address collisions, resulting from the DHCP server allocating an IP address, the IP address being allocated to another device; h. indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS);

i. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or

j. indication of a misconfigured route in the routing tables of the wireless network connection enabling component. some cases, the instructions include one or more of the following:

a. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given security protocol;

b. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given password;

c. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given encryption mechanism; d. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to rebroadcast a DHCP discover message;

e. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given DNS server; f. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection to a specific host; or

g. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to refresh its routing table. In some cases, the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

h. a wireless network connection enabling component firmware version of the wireless network connection enabling component; or i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point. In some cases, the instructions include one or more of the following:

a. instruct the controller to restart;

d. instruct the controller to reload a system firmware of the system;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

h. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to update its firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a wireless network connection enabling component firmware update; or i. instruct the wireless access point to update its firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a wireless access point firmware update.

In some cases, the instructions are automatically determined by the processing unit.

In some cases, the processing unit is further configured to: establish a third connection between the user device and the network; and send the network connection information to a remote support computer, through the third connection.

In some cases, the processing unit is further configured to: establish a third connection between the user device and the network; send the network connection information to a remote support computer, through the third connection; and receive the instructions from the remote support computer, through the third connection.

In some cases, the instructions are automatically determined by the remote support computer.

In some cases, the instructions are provided by a user of the remote support computer.

In some cases, the processing unit is further configured to perform the following for establishing the third connection: disconnect the first connection; and connect the first wireless network connection enabling component and a networking device connected to the network.

In some cases, the processing unit is further configured to perform the following before sending the instructions: disconnect the third connection; and re-establish the first connection.

In some cases, the user device further comprises a third wireless network connection enabling component, capable of connecting to the network, and the third connection is established utilizing the third wireless network connection enabling component.

In some cases, the third wireless network connection enabling component is a Wi-Fi client and the third connection is established also utilizing a networking device.

In some cases, the third wireless network connection enabling component is a cellular network client and the third connection is established by the third wireless network connection enabling component not through a local area network. In accordance with a third aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a remote support computer comprising a processing unit, the processing unit configured to: receive network connection information from a user device, the network connection information originating from a system, through a first connection established between a first wireless network connection enabling component of the user device and a wireless access point of the system, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between a second wireless network connection enabling component of the system and a network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and send one or more instructions, for establishing or improving the second connection, to the system, through the first connection.

In some cases, the network is an Internet Protocol (IP) based network and the second connection is established or attempted to be established by the second wireless network connection enabling component of the system via a networking device connected to the Internet.

g indication of IP address collisions, resulting from the DHCP server allocating an IP address, the IP address being allocated to another device; h indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS); i. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or

In some cases, the instructions include one or more of the following:

b. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given password; c. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given encryption mechanism; d. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to rebroadcast a DHCP discover message;

g. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to refresh its routing table.

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

h. a wireless network connection enabling component firmware version of the wireless network connection enabling component; or i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point. some cases, the instructions include one or more of the following: a. instruct the controller to restart;

d. instruct the controller to reload a system firmware of the system; e. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to reload its firmware;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

In some cases, the instructions are automatically determined by the processing unit. In accordance with a fourth aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a method comprising: receiving, by a controller comprised within a system, from a user device, through a first connection established between the user device and a wireless access point comprised within the system, a network connection information request; obtaining, by the controller, from a wireless network connection enabling component comprised within the system and capable of connecting to a network, network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between the system and the network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and sending, by the controller, through the first connection, the network connection information to the user device.

In some cases, the wireless network connection enabling component and the wireless access point enable the first connection and the second connection to simultaneously coexist. In some cases, the wireless network connection enabling component and the wireless access point enable the connection attempt to be performed while the first connection exists.

g. indication of IP address collisions, resulting from the DHCP server allocating an IP address, the IP address being allocated to another device; h. indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS); i. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or

In some cases, the method further comprises receiving, by the controller, from the user device, through the first connection, instructions including one or more of the following: a. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given security protocol;

g. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to refresh its routing table. In some cases, the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

h. a wireless network connection enabling component firmware version of the wireless network connection enabling component; or i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point. In some cases, the method further comprises receiving, by the controller, instructions including one or more of the following:

a. instruct the controller to restart; b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to restart; c. instruct the wireless access point to restart;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

In some cases, the method further comprises receiving, by the controller, a device firmware update instruction for updating a firmware of the device, and controlling the device controller for executing the device firmware update instruction, thereby updating the firmware of the device, wherein the firmware update is comprised within the device firmware update instruction.

In some cases, the network connection information request originates from a remote support computer, through the Internet or another IP network. In some cases, the network connection information request is obtained from a user of the remote support computer.

In accordance with a fifth aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a method comprising: establishing, by a processing unit comprised within a user device, a first connection between the user device and a system, utilizing a wireless access point comprised within the system and a wireless network connection enabling component comprised within the user device and capable of connecting to the wireless access point; sending, by the processing unit, a network connection information request to the system, through the first connection; and receiving, by the processing unit, network connection information from the system, through the first connection, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between a second wireless network connection enabling component of the system and a network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection.

In some cases, the method further comprises sending, by the processing unit, one or more instructions, for establishing or improving the second connection, to the system, through the first connection.

c. indication of an encryption mechanism type mismatch between the networking device and the wireless network connection enabling component; d. indication of wrong password provided by the wireless network connection enabling component for connecting to the networking device; e. indication of unavailability of an Internet Protocol (IP) address in the networking device;

f. indication of unavailability of a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol

(DHCP) server;

In some cases, the instructions include one or more of the following:

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point; c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

In some cases, the method further comprises: establishing, by the processing unit, a third connection between the user device and the network; and sending, by the processing unit, the network connection information to a remote support computer, through the third connection. In some cases, the method further comprises: establishing, by the processing unit, a third connection between the user device and the network; sending, by the processing unit, the network connection information to a remote support computer, through the third connection; and receiving, by the processing unit, the instructions from the remote support computer, through the third connection.

In some cases, the method further comprises performing, by the processing unit, the following for establishing the third connection: disconnecting the first connection; and connecting the first wireless network connection enabling component and a networking device connected to the network.

In some cases, the method further comprises performing, by the processing unit, the following before sending the instructions: disconnecting the third connection; and re-establishing the first connection.

In some cases, the third wireless network connection enabling component is a cellular network client and the third connection is established by the third wireless network connection enabling component not through a local area network.

In accordance with a sixth aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a method comprising: receiving, by a processing unit of a remote support computer, from a user device, network connection information, the network connection information originating from a system, through a first connection established between a first wireless network connection enabling component of the user device and a wireless access point of the system, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between a second wireless network connection enabling component of the system and a network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and sending, by the processing unit, one or more instructions, for establishing or improving the second connection, to the system, through the first connection.

g indication of IP address collisions, resulting from the DHCP server allocating an IP address, the IP address being allocated to another device; h indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS);

1. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or

J- indication of a misconfigured route in the routing tables of the wireless network connection enabling component.

In some cases, the instructions include one or more of the following: a. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given security protocol;

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

a. instruct the controller to restart;

b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to restart; instruct the wireless access point to restart;

instruct the controller to reload a system firmware of the system;

instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to reload its firmware;

instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

instruct the controller to update the system firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a system firmware update;

instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to update its firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a wireless network connection enabling component firmware update; or

instruct the wireless access point to update its firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a wireless access point firmware update.

In accordance with a seventh aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code, executable by at least one processor of a computer to perform a method comprising: receiving, by a controller comprised within a system, from a user device, through a first connection established between the user device and a wireless access point comprised within the system, a network connection information request; obtaining, by the controller, from a wireless network connection enabling component comprised within the system and capable of connecting to a network, network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between the system and the network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and sending, by the controller, through the first connection, the network connection information to the user device.

In accordance with a eighth aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code, executable by at least one processor of a computer to perform a method comprising: establishing, by a processing unit comprised within a user device, a first connection between the user device and a system, utilizing a wireless access point comprised within the system and a wireless network connection enabling component comprised within the user device and capable of connecting to the wireless access point; sending, by the processing unit, a network connection information request to the system, through the first connection; and receiving, by the processing unit, network connection information from the system, through the first connection, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between a second wireless network connection enabling component of the system and a network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection.

In accordance with a ninth aspect of the presently disclosed subject matter, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code, executable by at least one processor of a computer to perform a method comprising: receiving, by a processing unit of a remote support computer, from a user device, network connection information, the network connection information originating from a system, through a first connection established between a first wireless network connection enabling component of the user device and a wireless access point of the system, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between a second wireless network connection enabling component of the system and a network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and sending, by the processing unit, one or more instructions, for establishing or improving the second connection, to the system, through the first connection.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to understand the presently disclosed subject matter and to see how it may be carried out in practice, the subject matter will now be described, by way of non- limiting examples only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a schematic illustration of an environment of a system for remotely troubleshooting network connection problems, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 2 is a block diagram schematically illustrating one example of a system and a device and a connection therebetween, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 3 is a block diagram schematically illustrating one example of a system, a user device and a networking device, and various connections therebetween, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating one example of a remote support computer connectable to a network, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 5 is a flowchart illustrating one example of a sequence of operations carried out by the system for resolving network connectivity problems, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 6 is a flowchart illustrating one example of a sequence of operations carried out by a user device for resolving network connectivity problems of a system, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter;

Fig. 7 is a flowchart illustrating one example of a sequence of operations carried out by a user device for managing connections to the system and to a networking device, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter; and

Fig. 8 is a flowchart illustrating one example of a sequence of operations carried out by a remote support computer for resolving network connectivity problems of a system, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the presently disclosed subject matter. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the presently disclosed subject matter may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well- known methods, procedures, and components have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the presently disclosed subject matter. In the drawings and descriptions set forth, identical reference numerals indicate those components that are common to different embodiments or configurations.

Unless specifically stated otherwise, as apparent from the following discussions, it is appreciated that throughout the specification discussions utilizing terms such as "receiving", "determining", "sending", "establishing", "re-establishing", "instructing", "connecting", "disconnecting" or the like, include action and/or processes of a computer that manipulate and/or transform data into other data, said data represented as physical quantities, e.g. such as electronic quantities, and/or said data representing the physical objects. The terms "computer", "processor", and "controller" should be expansively construed to cover any kind of electronic device with data processing capabilities, including, by way of non-limiting example, a personal desktop/laptop computer, a server, a computing system, a communication device, a smartphone, a tablet computer, a smart television, a processor (e.g. digital signal processor (DSP), a microcontroller, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.), any other electronic computing device, and/or any combination thereof.

The operations in accordance with the teachings herein may be performed by a computer specially constructed for the desired purposes or by a general purpose computer specially configured for the desired purpose by a computer program stored in a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. The term "non-transitory" is used herein to exclude transitory, propagating signals, but to otherwise include any volatile or non- volatile computer memory technology suitable to the application.

As used herein, the phrase "for example," "such as", "for instance" and variants thereof describe non-limiting embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter. Reference in the specification to "one case", "some cases", "other cases" or variants thereof means that a particular feature, structure or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment(s) is included in at least one embodiment of the presently disclosed subject matter. Thus the appearance of the phrase "one case", "some cases", "other cases" or variants thereof does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment(s).

It is appreciated that, unless specifically stated otherwise, certain features of the presently disclosed subject matter, which are, for clarity, described in the context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features of the presently disclosed subject matter, which are, for brevity, described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

In embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter, fewer, more and/or different stages than those shown in Fig. 5-8 may be executed. In embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter one or more stages illustrated in Fig. 5-8 may be executed in a different order and/or one or more groups of stages may be executed simultaneously. Figs. 1-4 illustrate a general schematic of the system architecture in accordance with an embodiment of the presently disclosed subject matter. Each module in Figs. 1-4 can be made up of any combination of software, hardware and/or firmware that performs the functions as defined and explained herein. The modules in Figs. 1-4 may be centralized in one location or dispersed over more than one location. In other embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter, the system may comprise fewer, more, and/or different modules than those shown in Figs. 1-4.

Bearing this in mind, attention is drawn to Fig. 1, showing schematic illustration of an environment of a system for remotely troubleshooting network connection problems, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter.

According to certain examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, the environment 10 includes one or more systems 110, each having a controller, a wireless access point, a wireless network connection-enabling component (e.g. a Wi-Fi client or any other component capable of connecting to a wireless network networking device) and system memory, as further detailed herein, inter alia with reference to Fig. 2. In some cases, the system 110 can be a home appliance (such as a refrigerator, a washing machine, a water heater, an air conditioner, a television set, an audio system, a smart light bulb, or and any other electronic system) that is designed to connect to a network 140 (e.g. any Internet Protocol (IP) based network, such as the Internet). In other cases, the system 110 can be comprised within a hardware module connectable to a device 100 (e.g. through a serial/parallel port thereof, or using any other suitable connection mechanism). In such cases, the device 100 can be a home appliance not designed to connect to the network 140, and connecting the hardware module thereto enables the device 100 to connect to the network 140, as further detailed herein.

The environment 10 further includes at least one networking device 130 (e.g. a router, a wireless router, a hotspot, an access point, or any other device enabling other devices connecting thereto with access to network 140), capable of connecting one or more systems 110 to the network 140. In some cases, the system 110 attempts to connect to the network 140 via the networking device 130, utilizing its wireless network connection-enabling component. In some cases, the attempt fails due to various reasons (e.g. IP address allocation errors, incompatible firmware, malfunctioning hardware, etc.) or the established connection is un-stable (e.g. due to weak network signal, etc.).

The environment 10 still further includes a user device 120 (e.g. a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a hand held user devices (such as smart phones, tables, etc.)), or any other device operated by a user. The user device 120 having a processing unit and a wireless network connection-enabling component (e.g. a Wi-Fi client, a third generation (3G) mobile network client, a fourth generation (4G) mobile network client, or any other component capable of connecting to networking device 130 or to an mobile or wireless network, such as network 140 or a cellular network, etc.). The wireless network connection-enabling component of the user device 120 enables it to connect to the network 140, as further detailed herein, inter alia with reference to Fig. 3). In those cases, that the connection attempt fails or the established connection is un-stable, the user device 120 can connect (e.g. utilizing a dedicated software application) to a wireless access point of the system 110 (utilizing its wireless network connection- enabling component) in order to attempt resolving the failed or un-stable connection, as further detailed herein, inter alia with reference to Figs. 5-8.

In some cases, in order to resolve the failed or un-stable connection, the user device 120 can connect to the network 140 via the networking device 130, for enabling a remote support computer 150 (e.g. any type of computer having a processing unit and connected to the network 140) to resolve the failed or un-stable connection, as further detailed herein, inter alia with reference to Figs. 6-7.

Attention is now drawn to Fig. 2, showing a block diagram schematically illustrating one example of a system and a device and a connection therebetween, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter.

The system 110 can comprise or be otherwise associated with a system memory 250 (e.g. a database, a storage system, a memory including Read Only Memory - ROM, Random Access Memory - RAM, or any other type of memory, etc.) configured to store data, including, inter alia, firmware for operating the system 110, information relating to the connection of the system 110 to the networking device 130, etc., as further detailed herein. In some cases, system memory 250 can be further configured to enable retrieval and/or update and/or deletion of the stored data. It is to be noted that in some cases, system memory 250 can be distributed.

The system 110 further includes a wireless network connection-enabling component 255 (e.g. a Wi-Fi client or any other component capable of connecting to networking device 130) through which system 110 can connect (or attempt to connect) to the networking device 130.

The system 110 also includes a wireless access point 260, configured to enable the user device 120 to connect thereto. In some cases, the wireless access point 260 becomes active upon detection (e.g. by system 110) of network connectivity problems (e.g. failure of system 110 to connect to network 140) and in some cases the wireless access point 260 becomes active upon a series of physical identification operations executed on the system 110 (e.g. a user of the system 110 presses a specific button of the system 110 one time or another pre-determined number of times consecutively, etc.).

In some cases, the connection between the system 110 and the user device 120 can be established automatically, e.g. using a pre-shared identifier, such as the name of the network published by wireless access point 260 or using another method. In some cases, the name of the network published by the wireless access point 260 can be hidden, thus enabling only user devices 120 that are familiar with the name of the network published by the wireless access point 260 to connect to it seamlessly.

In some cases, multiple systems 110 can co-exist in the same environment 10 and utilizing a unique naming convention of the published wireless network name or another pre-shared hashed key mechanism can enable each user device 120 to determine which network of the networks published by the wireless access points 260 to connect to.

The system 110 further includes a controller 270. Controller 270 can be one or more processing units (e.g. central processing units), microprocessors, microcontrollers (e.g. microcontroller units (MCUs)) or any other computing devices or modules, including multiple and/or parallel and/or distributed processing units, which are adapted to independently or cooperatively process data for controlling relevant system 110 resources and for enabling operations related to system 110 resources.

The controller 270 can comprise one or more of the following modules: device controller management module 280, network connection management module 285, instructions execution module 290 and a network connection information management module 295.

According to some examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, the device controller management module 280 can be configured to control a controller of the device 100 in those cases where the system 110 is comprised within a hardware module connected to a device 100, as further detailed, inter alia, with reference to Fig. 5.

The network connection management module 285 can be configured to manage the connections between the system 110 and the networking device 130 and connections between the system 110 and the user device 120, and to resolve network connectivity problems, as further detailed, inter alia, with reference to Fig. 5.

The instructions execution module 290 can be configured to execute one or more instructions received from the user device 120, as further detailed, inter alia, with reference to Fig. 5.

The network connection information management module 295 can be configured to obtain network connection information relating to a connection between the system 110 and the networking device 130 or to a failure thereof, as further detailed, inter alia, with reference to Fig. 5.

As indicated herein, in some cases the system 110 can be comprised within a hardware module. In such cases the system can be connected to a device 100, e.g. through a serial/parallel port thereof (or using any other suitable connection mechanism). For this purpose, system 110 can have a serial/parallel port connector 240 capable of connecting to a serial/parallel port connector 210 of the device 100. Connecting the system 110 to the serial/parallel port of the device 100 enables the system 110 to directly communicate with and or control the device controller 230.

The device controller 230 comprised within the device 100 can be one or more processing units (e.g. central processing units), microprocessors, microcontrollers (e.g. microcontroller units (MCUs)) or any other computing devices or modules, including multiple and/or parallel and/or distributed processing units, which are adapted to independently or cooperatively process data for controlling relevant device 100 resources and for enabling operations related to device 100 resources.

The device 100 can further comprise or be otherwise associated with a device memory 220 (e.g. a database, a storage system, a memory including Read Only Memory - ROM, Random Access Memory - RAM, or any other type of memory, etc.) configured to store data, including, inter alia, firmware for operating the device 100. In some cases, device memory 220 can be further configured to enable retrieval and/or update and/or deletion of the stored data. It is to be noted that in some cases, device memory 220 can be distributed.

Turning to Fig. 3, a block diagram is shown illustrating one example of a system, a user device and a networking device, and various connections therebetween, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter.

According to some examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, the user device 120 comprises one or more wireless network connection-enabling components 300 (e.g. a Wi-Fi client, a third generation (3G) mobile network client, a fourth generation (4G) mobile network client, or any other component capable of connecting to networking device 130 or to a mobile or wireless network, such as network 140 or a cellular network, etc.). In more specific cases the user device 120 can comprise a first wireless network connection-enabling component 300, being a Wi-Fi client, and a second wireless network connection-enabling component 300, being a mobile network client (e.g. a third generation (3G) mobile network client, a fourth generation (4G) mobile network client, etc.), capable of operating simultaneously. In other cases the user device 120 comprises one or more wireless network connection-enabling components 300 (e.g. a Wi-Fi client, a third generation (3G) mobile network client, a fourth generation (4G) mobile network client, etc.) and another wired connection to the network 140 via the networking device 130.

The user device 120 further comprises a processing unit 310. Processing unit 310 can be one or more processing units (e.g. central processing units), microprocessors, microcontrollers (e.g. microcontroller units (MCUs)) or any other computing devices or modules, including multiple and/or parallel and/or distributed processing units, which are adapted to independently or cooperatively process data for controlling relevant user device 120 resources and for enabling operations related to user device 120 resources.

The processing unit 310 can comprise one or more of the following modules: network connection management module 350, instructions determination module 360 and a network connection information management module 370. According to some examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, the network connection management module 350 can be configured to manage the first connection 320 between the user device 120 and the system 110 and the third connection 340 between the user device 120 and the networking device 130, as further detailed, inter alia, with reference to Fig. 5.

The instructions determination module 360 can be configured to determine one or more instruction to be sent to the system 110 for resolving errors in establishing a connection between the system 110 and the networking device 130, or instability of such connection, as further detailed, inter alia, with reference to Fig. 6.

The network connection information management module 370 can be configured to obtain, from the system 110, through a connection between the system 110 and the user device 120 (also referred to herein as first connection 320), network connection information relating to a connection between the system 110 and the networking device 130 or to a failure thereof, and optionally send the network connection information, through a connection between the user device 120 and the networking device 130 (also referred to herein as third connection 340), to a remote support computer 150, as further detailed, inter alia, with reference to Fig. 6.

As indicated herein, in some cases, the system 110 attempts to connect to the network 140 via the networking device 130, utilizing its wireless network connection- enabling component, for establishing a connection, also referred to herein as second connection 330. In some cases, the attempt fails due to various reasons (e.g. IP address allocation errors, incompatible firmware, malfunctioning hardware, etc.) or the established connection (second connection 330) is un-stable (e.g. due to weak network signal, etc.).

In those cases that the connection attempt fails or the established connection

(second connection 330) is un-stable, the user device 120 can establish a connection, also referred to herein as first connection 320, to a wireless access point 260 of the system 110 (e.g. utilizing its wireless network connection-enabling component 300 and a dedicated software application) in order to attempt resolving the failed or un-stable connection, as further detailed herein, inter alia with reference to Figs. 5-8.

In some cases, in order to resolve the failed connection attempt or the instability of the second connection 330, the user device 120 can establish a connection (also referred to herein as third connection 340) to the network 140 via the networking device 130, for enabling a remote support computer 150 (e.g. any type of computer having a processing unit and connected to the network 140) to resolve the failed or un-stable connection, as further detailed herein, inter alia with reference to Figs. 6-7.

Fig. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating one example of a remote support computer connectable to a network, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter.

According to some examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, the remote support computer 150 comprises a network interface 450, enabling connecting the remote support computer 150 to network 140 and enabling it to send and receive data sent thereto through the network 140, including sending and/or receiving network connection information data and various instructions as detailed herein, inter alia with reference to Figs. 6 and 8.

The remote support computer 150 further comprises a processing unit 410.

Processing unit 410 can be one or more processing units (e.g. central processing units), microprocessors, microcontrollers (e.g. microcontroller units (MCUs)) or any other computing devices or modules, including multiple and/or parallel and/or distributed processing units, which are adapted to independently or cooperatively process data for controlling relevant remote support computer 150 resources and for enabling operations related to remote support computer 150 resources.

The processing unit 410 can comprise one or more of the following modules: instructions determination module 420 and a network connection information management module 430.

According to some examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, the instructions determination module 420 can be configured to determine one or more instruction to be sent to the system 110 for resolving errors in establishing a connection between the system 110 and the networking device 130, or instability of such connection, as further detailed, inter alia, with reference to Fig. 8.

The network connection information management module 430 can be configured to obtain, from the user device 120, network connection information relating to a connection between the system 110 and the networking device 130 or to a failure thereof, as further detailed, inter alia, with reference to Fig. 8.

Having described the environment 10 and the components thereof, attention is drawn to Fig. 5, showing a flowchart illustrating one example of a sequence of operations carried out by the system for resolving network connectivity problems, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter.

As indicated herein, in some cases, the system 110 attempts to connect to the network 140 via the networking device 130, utilizing its wireless network connection- enabling component 250. In some cases, the attempt fails due to various reasons (e.g. IP address allocation errors, incompatible firmware, malfunctioning hardware, etc.) or the established connection is un-stable (e.g. due to weak network signal, etc.).

According to some examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, system 110 can be configured to execute a system network connectivity problems resolution process 500, utilizing network connection management module 285.

For this purpose, system 110 can be configured to receive, from the user device 120, through a first connection 320 established between the user device 120, utilizing the wireless network connection enabling component 300, and the wireless access point 260 of the system 110, a network connection information request (block 510).

It is to be noted that in some cases the request can originate from the user device

120, upon a user encountering network connectivity problems of the system 110 when trying to connect it to network 140 and initiating a user device network connectivity problems resolution process 600, as further detailed herein, with reference to Fig. 6. In some cases the user device network connectivity problems resolution process 600 can be initiated automatically, e.g. through a polling mechanism periodically executed on the user device 120.

In some cases, the name of the network published by the wireless access point 260 can be hidden, thus enabling only user devices 120 that are familiar with the name of the network published by the wireless access point 260 to connect to it seamlessly.

After receiving the network connection information request, system 110 can be configured to obtain from its wireless network connection enabling component 255, network connection information relating to either (a) the second connection 330 between the system 110 and the networking device 130, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection 330 (block 520).

In some cases, the network connection information can include one or more of the following:

a. a hardware tests results report for the wireless network connection enabling component 255 (e.g. received after the controller 270 instructing execution of a hardware built in test (BIT) on the wireless network connection enabling component 255);

b. a hardware tests results report for the wireless access point 260 (e.g. received after the controller 270 instructing execution of a BIT on the wireless access point 260);

c. a hardware tests results report for the controller 270 (e.g. received after the controller 270 executes a BIT);

d. a software integrity tests results report for the wireless network connection enabling component 255 (e.g. received after the controller 270 executes a checksum or a Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) test on the wireless network connection enabling component's 255 firmware); e. a software integrity tests results report for the wireless access point 260 (e.g. received after the controller 270 executes a checksum or a CRC test on the wireless access point's 260 firmware);

f. a software integrity tests results report for the controller 270 (e.g. received after the controller 270 executes a checksum or a CRC test on the system's 110 firmware);

g. a system firmware version of the system's 110 firmware;

h. a wireless network connection enabling component firmware version of the wireless network connection enabling component's 250 firmware; i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point's 260 firmware;

j. a device firmware version of the device's 100 firmware;

k. an indication of a measured signal strength of a signal originating from the networking device 130 and received by the wireless network connection enabling component 255; 1. an indication of a security protocol type mismatch between the networking device's 130 security protocol type and the wireless network connection enabling component's 255 security protocol type; m. an indication of an encryption mechanism type mismatch between the networking device's 130 encryption mechanism type and the wireless network connection enabling component's 255 encryption mechanism type;

n. an indication of wrong password provided by the wireless network connection enabling component 255 for connecting to the networking device 130;

o. an indication of unavailability of an Internet Protocol (IP) address in the networking device 130 (e.g. as the networking device 130 has allocated all of the IP addresses that it can allocate);

p. an indication of unavailability of a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol

(DHCP) server (e.g. as the DHCP server is down);

q. an indication of IP address collisions, resulting from the DHCP server allocating an IP address that was already allocated by the networking device 130 to another device other than system 110;

r. an indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS) (e.g. as the DNS server is down or as the DNS server is unreachable); or s. an indication of unavailability of route to a requested host (e.g. there is no suitable entry in the routing tables of the wireless network connection enabling component 255).

t. an indication of a misconfigured route (i.e. cyclic route or incomplete routing table) in the routing tables of the wireless network connection enabling component 255.

The controller 270 can be further configured to send to the user device 120, through the first connection 320, the network connection information (block 530), and receive from the user device 120, through the first connection 320, one or more instructions (block 540). The instructions can be determined automatically by the user device 120, or by a user of the user device 120 (e.g. through a User Interface (UI) of the user device 120) or automatically by a remote support computer 150, or by a user of the remote support computer 150 (e.g. through a UI of the remote support computer 150) (e.g. as further detailed with reference to Figs. 6 and 8).

In some cases, the instructions can include one or more of the following:

a. instruct the controller 270 to restart (e.g. in response to a determination that the hardware test results report for the controller 270 indicated of one or more errors);

b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component 255 to restart (e.g. in response to a determination that the hardware test results report for the wireless network connection enabling component 255 indicated of one or more errors);

c. instruct the wireless access point 260 to restart (e.g. in response to a determination that the hardware test results report for the wireless access point 260 indicated of one or more errors);

d. instruct the controller 270 to reload the system's 110 firmware (e.g. in response to a determination that a result of the system's 110 firmware checksum did not match the expected value);

e. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component 255 to reload its firmware (e.g. in response to a determination that a result of the wireless network connection enabling component's 255 firmware checksum did not match the expected value);

f. instruct the wireless access point 260 to reload its firmware (e.g. in response to a determination that a result of the wireless access point's 260 firmware checksum did not match the expected value); g. instruct the controller 270 to update the system's 110 firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a system firmware update (e.g. in response to a determination that the system's 110 firmware version is not the most up to date firmware version thereof);

h. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component 255 to update its firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a wireless network connection enabling component firmware update (e.g. in response to a determination that the wireless network connection enabling component's 255 firmware version is not the most up to date firmware version thereof); i. instruct the wireless access point 260 to update its firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a wireless access point firmware update (e.g. in response to a determination that the wireless access point's 260 firmware version is not the most up to date firmware version thereof);

j. instruct the controller 270 to control the device controller 230 for executing a device firmware update instruction, thereby updating the firmware of the device 100, wherein the firmware update is comprised within the device firmware update instruction (e.g. in response to a determination that the device controller's 230 firmware version is not the most up to date firmware version thereof);

k. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component 255 to establish the second connection 330 using a given security protocol (e.g. in response to a determination that a security protocol type mismatch between the networking device's 130 security protocol type and the wireless network connection enabling component's 255 security protocol type exists, e.g. made utilizing the network connection information); 1. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component 255 to establish the second connection 330 using a given password (e.g. in response to a determination that a wrong password was provided by the wireless network connection enabling component 255 for connecting to the networking device 130, e.g. made utilizing the network connection information);

m. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component 255 to establish the second connection 330 using a given encryption mechanism (e.g. in response to a determination that an encryption mechanism type mismatch between the networking device's 130 encryption mechanism type and the wireless network connection enabling component's 255 encryption mechanism type exists, e.g. made utilizing the network connection information);

n. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component 255 to rebroadcast a DHCP discover message (e.g. in response to a determination that the DHCP server is unavailable, e.g. made utilizing the network connection information); o. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component 255 to establish the second connection 330 using a given DNS server (e.g. in response to a determination that a previous DNS server was unavailable, e.g. made utilizing the network connection information); p. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component 255 to establish the second connection 330 to a specific host (e.g. in response to a determination that a previous host was unreachable, e.g. made utilizing the network connection information);

q. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component 255 to refresh its routing table (e.g. in response to a determination of unavailability of a route to a requested host, e.g. made utilizing the network connection information).

The controller 270 can be further configured to execute the received instructions (block 550).

It is to be noted that, with reference to Fig. 5, some of the blocks can be integrated into a consolidated block or can be broken down to a few blocks and/or other blocks may be added. It is to be further noted that some of the blocks (e.g. blocks 540 and 550) are optional. It should be also noted that whilst the flow diagram is described also with reference to the system elements that realizes them, this is by no means binding, and the blocks can be performed by elements other than those described herein.

Turning to Fig. 6, a flowchart illustrating one example of a sequence of operations carried out by a user device for resolving network connectivity problems of a system is shown, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter.

According to some examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, user device 120 can be configured to execute a user device network connectivity problems resolution process 600, utilizing network connection management module 350.

As indicated herein, in some cases, the system 110 attempts to connect to the network 140 via the networking device 130, utilizing its wireless network connection- enabling component 255, for establishing a connection, also referred to herein as second connection 330. In some cases, the attempt fails due to various reasons (e.g. IP address allocation errors, incompatible firmware, malfunctioning hardware, etc.) or the established connection (second connection 330) is un-stable (e.g. due to weak network signal, etc.).

In those cases that the connection attempt fails or the established connection (second connection 330) is un-stable, the user device 120 can be configured to establish a first connection 320, to a wireless access point 260 of the system 110 (e.g. utilizing its wireless network connection-enabling component 300 and a dedicated software application) in order to attempt resolving the failed or un-stable connection (block 610).

It is to be noted that in some cases a user of the user device 120, upon encountering the network connectivity problems of the system 110 when trying to connect it to network 140, can initiate the user device network connectivity problems resolution process 600 (e.g. utilizing dedicated software installed on the user device 120 having a UI enabling the user of the user device 120 to initiate the user device network connectivity problems resolution process 600 ).

In some cases the user device network connectivity problems resolution process 600 can be initiated by the user device 120 automatically. In some cases the automatic initiation can be for example through a polling mechanism periodically executed on the user device 120.

After establishing the first connection 320, the user device 120 can be configured to send a network connection information request to the system 110 (which receives the request in block 510), through the first connection 320 (block 620).

The user device 120, can be further configured to receive network connection information from the system 110 (which sends the network connection information thereto at block 530), through the first connection 320. As indicated herein the network connection information relates to either (a) a second connection 330 between a wireless network connection enabling component 255 of the system 110 and a network 140 (via networking device 130), or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection 330 (block 630). Network connection information can include one or more of the non-limiting examples provided in this respect with reference to Fig. 5.

In some cases, the network connection information can be displayed to the user of the user device 120, e.g. utilizing dedicated software installed on the user device 120 having one or more UI screens enabling the user of the user device 120 to view the network connection information.

In some cases, the user device network connectivity problems resolution process 600 involves remote support provided by a remote support computer 150. In such cases the user device 120 can be further configured to establish a third connection 340 between the user device 120 and the network 140 (via the networking device 130) (block 650). It is to be noted that in some cases the third connection 340 and the first connection 320 can simultaneously exist (e.g. in cases the user device 120 comprises of a first wireless network connection-enabling component 300, being a Wi-Fi client, and a second wireless network connection-enabling component 300, being a mobile network client (e.g. a third generation (3G) mobile network client, a fourth generation (4G) mobile network client, etc.), capable of operating simultaneously) whereas in other cases the user device 120 executes a network connection management process 700 as further detailed herein with reference to Fig. 7, during which the first connection 320 is disconnected, a third connection 340 is established, information is sent and received through the third connection 340 (as detailed herein in respect to blocks 660 and 670), the third connection 340 is disconnected and the first connection 320 is re-established.

After establishing the third connection 340, the user device 120 can send the network connection information to a remote support computer 150, through the third connection 340 (block 660).

In some cases, the user device 120 can thereafter receive instructions from the remote support computer 150, through the third connection 340 (block 670). Such instructions can be determined automatically by the remote support computer 150, or by a user of the remote support computer 150. Non-limiting examples of instructions are provided with reference to Fig. 5.

After receiving the instructions, the user device 120 can be optionally configured to send the received instructions, to the system 110, through the first connection 320, for establishing or improving the second connection 330 (block 680). In those cases, where the user device 120 executed the network connection management process 700, the first connection 320 is re-established before executing block 680.

In case the user device network connectivity problems resolution process 600 does not involve remote support provided by a remote support computer 150, the user 5 device 120 can optionally be configured to send one or more instructions, to the system, through the first connection 320, for establishing or improving the second connection 330 (block 640). Such instructions can be determined automatically by the user device 120, or manually by a user of the user device 120 (e.g. utilizing one or more UI screens of the user device 120, enabling the user of the user device 120 to determine one or

10 more instructions, and their parameters, to be sent to system 110). Non-limiting examples of instructions are provided with reference to Fig. 5.

It is to be noted that, with reference to Fig. 6, some of the blocks can be integrated into a consolidated block or can be broken down to a few blocks and/or other blocks may be added. It is to be further noted that some of the blocks (e.g. blocks 640 to

15 680) are optional. It should be also noted that whilst the flow diagram is described also with reference to the system elements that realizes them, this is by no means binding, and the blocks can be performed by elements other than those described herein.

Turning to Fig. 7, there is shown a flowchart illustrating one example of a sequence of operations carried out by a user device for managing connections to the

20 system and to a networking device, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter.

According to some examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, user device 120 can be configured to execute a user device network connection management process 700, utilizing network connection management module 350.

25 For this purpose user device 120 can be configure to disconnect the first connection 320 (block 710), connect the first wireless network connection enabling component 300 of the user device 120 and the networking device 130 connected to the network 140, giving rise to the third connection 340 (block 720).

The user device 120 then executes blocks 660 and 670 by sending and receiving

30 information through the third connection 340 (as detailed herein in respect to blocks 660 and 670) (block 725). The user device 120 can be configured to disconnect the third connection 340 (block 730) and to re-establish the first connection 320 (block 740) in a similar manner to block 610.

It is to be noted that, with reference to Fig. 7, some of the blocks can be integrated into a consolidated block or can be broken down to a few blocks and/or other blocks may be added. It should be also noted that whilst the flow diagram is described also with reference to the system elements that realizes them, this is by no means binding, and the blocks can be performed by elements other than those described herein.

Turning to Fig. 8, there is shown a flowchart illustrating one example of a sequence of operations carried out by a remote support computer 150 for resolving network connectivity problems of a system 110, in accordance with the presently disclosed subject matter.

According to some examples of the presently disclosed subject matter, remote support computer 150 can be configured to execute a remote support computer network connectivity problems resolution process 800, utilizing a network connection information management module 430 and an instructions determination module 420.

For this purpose remote support computer 150 can be configured (e.g. utilizing the network connection information management module 430) to receive network connection information from a user device 120, the network connection information originating from the system 110, through a first connection 320 established between a wireless network connection enabling component 300 of the user device 120 and a wireless access point 260 of the system 110, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection 330 between a wireless network connection enabling component 255 of the system 110 and a network 140 (via a networking device 130), or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection 330 (block 810). The received network connection information is the network connection information sent at block 660.

In some cases, the network connection information can be displayed to the user of the remote support computer 150, e.g. utilizing a dedicated software installed on the remote support computer 150 having one or more UI screens enabling the user of the remote support computer 150 to view the network connection information.

The remote support computer 150, can be further configured (e.g. utilizing the instructions determination module 420) to send one or more instructions, for establishing or improving the second connection 330, to the system 110, through the first connection 320 (block 820). Such instructions can be determined automatically by the remote support computer 150, or manually by a user of the remote support computer 150 (e.g. utilizing one or more UI screens of the remote support computer 150, enabling the user of the remote support computer 150 to determine one or more instructions, and their parameters, to be sent to system 110), The sent instructions are received by user device 120 at block 670. Non-limiting examples of instructions are provided with reference to Fig. 5.

It is to be noted that, with reference to Fig. 8, some of the blocks can be integrated into a consolidated block or can be broken down to a few blocks and/or other blocks may be added. It is to be further noted that some of the blocks (e.g. block 820) are optional. It should be also noted that whilst the flow diagram is described also with reference to the system elements that realizes them, this is by no means binding, and the blocks can be performed by elements other than those described herein.

It is to be understood that the presently disclosed subject matter is not limited in its application to the details set forth in the description contained herein or illustrated in the drawings. The presently disclosed subject matter is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Hence, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception upon which this disclosure is based may readily be utilized as a basis for designing other structures, methods, and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the presently disclosed subject matter.

It will also be understood that the system according to the presently disclosed subject matter can be implemented, at least partly, as a suitably programmed computer. Likewise, the presently disclosed subject matter contemplates a computer program being readable by a computer for executing the disclosed method. The presently disclosed subject matter further contemplates a machine-readable memory tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine for executing the disclosed method.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A system comprising:

a wireless network connection enabling component, capable of connecting to a network;

a wireless access point, enabling a user device to connect thereto; and

a controller; the controller configured to:

receive, from the user device, through a first connection established between the user device and the wireless access point, a network connection information request; obtain, from the wireless network connection enabling component, network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between the system and the network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and

send, through the first connection, the network connection information to the user device.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the wireless network connection enabling component and the wireless access point enable the first connection and the second connection to simultaneously coexist.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the wireless network connection enabling component and the wireless access point enable the connection attempt to be performed while the first connection exists.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the network is an Internet Protocol (IP) based network and connecting to the network includes connecting to a networking device connected to the IP based network.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following: a. indication of a measured signal strength of a signal originating from the networking device and received by the wireless network connection enabling component; b. indication of a security protocol type mismatch between the networking device and the wireless network connection enabling component;

d. indication of wrong password provided by the wireless network connection enabling component for connecting to the networking device;

e. indication of unavailability of an Internet Protocol (IP) address in the networking device;

g. indication of IP address collisions, resulting from the DHCP server allocating an IP address, the IP address being allocated to another device;

h. indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS);

i. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the controller is further configured to receive, from the user device, through the first connection, instructions including one or more of the following:

c. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given encryption mechanism;

d. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to rebroadcast a DHCP discover message; e. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given DNS server;

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

f. a third software integrity tests results report for the controller;

g. a system firmware version of the system;

h. a wireless network connection enabling component firmware version of the wireless network connection enabling component; or

i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to receive instructions including one or more of the following:

a. instruct the controller to restart;

b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to restart;

c. instruct the wireless access point to restart;

d. instruct the controller to reload a system firmware of the system;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware; g. instruct the controller to update the system firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a system firmware update;

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is comprised within a hardware module equipped with a serial port connection or a parallel port connection, the hardware module being connectable to a device through a second serial port connection of the device or through a second parallel port connection of the device.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the controller is capable of controlling a device controller of the device.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the network connection information includes a device firmware version of the device.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the controller is configured to receive a device firmware update instruction for updating a firmware of the device, and control the device controller for executing the device firmware update instruction, thereby updating the firmware of the device, wherein the firmware update is comprised within the device firmware update instruction.

13. The system of claim 1 , wherein the network connection information request originates from an application on the user device, through the first connection.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the network connection information request is obtained from a user of the user device, through the application.

15. The system of claim 1 , wherein the network connection information request originates from a remote support computer, through the Internet or another IP network.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the network connection information request is obtained from a user of the remote support computer.

17. A user device comprising:

a wireless network connection enabling component, capable of connecting to a wireless access point of a system; and

a processing unit; the processing unit is configured to:

establish a first connection between the user device and the system, utilizing the wireless access point and the wireless network connection enabling component;

send a network connection information request to the system, through the first connection; and

receive network connection information from the system, through the first connection, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between a second wireless network connection enabling component of the system and a network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection.

18. The user device of claim 17, wherein the processing unit is further configured to send one or more instructions, for establishing or improving the second connection, to the system, through the first connection.

19. The user device of claim 18, wherein the network is an Internet Protocol (IP) based network and the second connection is established or attempted to be established by the second wireless network connection enabling component of the system, via a networking device connected to the Internet.

20. The user device of claim 19, wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following: a. indication of a measured signal strength of a signal originating from the networking device and received by the wireless network connection enabling component; b. indication of a security protocol type mismatch between the networking device and the wireless network connection enabling component;

h. indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS);

i. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or

21. The user device of claim 19, wherein the instructions include one or more of the following: a. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given security protocol;

c. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given encryption mechanism;

d. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to rebroadcast a DHCP discover message;

22. The user device of claim 17, wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

f. a third software integrity tests results report for the controller;

g. a system firmware version of the system;

i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point.

23. The user device of claim 18, wherein the instructions include one or more of the following: a. instruct the controller to restart;

b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to restart;

c. instruct the wireless access point to restart;

d. instruct the controller to reload a system firmware of the system;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

g. instruct the controller to update the system firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a system firmware update; h. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to update its firmware, wherein the instruction comprises a wireless network connection enabling component firmware update; or

24. The user device of claim 1318, wherein the instructions are automatically determined by the processing unit.

25. The user device of claim 1317, wherein the processing unit is further configured to: establish a third connection between the user device and the network; and send the network connection information to a remote support computer, through the third connection.

26. The user device of claim 1318, wherein the processing unit is further configured to: establish a third connection between the user device and the network; send the network connection information to a remote support computer, through the third connection; and

receive the instructions from the remote support computer, through the third connection.

27. The user device of claim 1326, wherein the instructions are automatically determined by the remote support computer.

28. The user device of claim 1326, wherein the instructions are provided by a user of the remote support computer.

29. The user device of claim 1326, wherein the processing unit is further configured to perform the following for establishing the third connection:

disconnect the first connection; and connect the first wireless network connection enabling component and a networking device connected to the network.

30. The user device of claim 1329, wherein the processing unit is further configured to perform the following before sending the instructions:

disconnect the third connection; and

re-establish the first connection.

31. The user device of claim 1318, further comprising a third wireless network connection enabling component, capable of connecting to the network, and wherein the third connection is established utilizing the third wireless network connection enabling component.

32. The user device of claim 1331, wherein the third wireless network connection enabling component is a Wi-Fi client and the third connection is established also utilizing a networking device.

33. The user device of claim 1332, wherein the third wireless network connection enabling component is a cellular network client and the third connection is established by the third wireless network connection enabling component not through a local area network.

34. A remote support computer comprising a processing unit, the processing unit configured to:

receive network connection information from a user device, the network connection information originating from a system, through a first connection established between a first wireless network connection enabling component of the user device and a wireless access point of the system, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between a second wireless network connection enabling component of the system and a network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and send one or more instructions, for establishing or improving the second connection, to the system, through the first connection.

35. The remote support computer of claim 34, wherein the network is an Internet Protocol (IP) based network and the second connection is established or attempted to be established by the second wireless network connection enabling component of the system via a networking device connected to the Internet.

36. The remote support computer of claim 35, wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

a. indication of a measured signal strength of a signal originating from the networking device and received by the wireless network connection enabling component; b. indication of a security protocol type mismatch between the networking device and the wireless network connection enabling component;

h. indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS);

i. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or

37. The remote support computer of claim 35, wherein the instructions include one or more of the following: a. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given security protocol;

e. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given DNS server;

f. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection to a specific host; or

38. The remote support computer of claim 34, wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

f. a third software integrity tests results report for the controller;

g. a system firmware version of the system;

i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point.

39. The remote support computer of claim 34, wherein the instructions include one or more of the following:

a. instruct the controller to restart;

b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to restart;

c. instruct the wireless access point to restart;

d. instruct the controller to reload a system firmware of the system;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

40. The remote support computer of claim 1334, wherein the instructions are automatically determined by the processing unit.

41. A method comprising: receiving, by a controller comprised within a system, from a user device, through a first connection established between the user device and a wireless access point comprised within the system, a network connection information request;

obtaining, by the controller, from a wireless network connection enabling component comprised within the system and capable of connecting to a network, network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between the system and the network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and

sending, by the controller, through the first connection, the network connection information to the user device.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein the wireless network connection enabling component and the wireless access point enable the first connection and the second connection to simultaneously coexist.

43. The method of claim 41, wherein the wireless network connection enabling component and the wireless access point enable the connection attempt to be performed while the first connection exists.

44. The method of claim 41, wherein the network is an Internet Protocol (IP) based network and connecting to the network includes connecting to a networking device connected to the IP based network.

45. The method of claim 44, wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

h. indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS);

i. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or j. indication of a misconfigured route in the routing tables of the wireless network connection enabling component.

46. The method of claim 44, further comprising receiving, by the controller, from the user device, through the first connection, instructions including one or more of the following: a. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given security protocol;

47. The method of claim 41 , wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

f. a third software integrity tests results report for the controller;

g. a system firmware version of the system; h. a wireless network connection enabling component firmware version of the wireless network connection enabling component; or

i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point.

48. The method of claim 41, further comprising receiving, by the controller, instructions including one or more of the following:

a. instruct the controller to restart;

b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to restart;

c. instruct the wireless access point to restart;

d. instruct the controller to reload a system firmware of the system;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

49. The method of claim 41, wherein the system is comprised within a hardware module equipped with a serial port connection or a parallel port connection, the hardware module being connectable to a device through a second serial port connection of the device or through a second parallel port connection of the device.

50. The method of claim 49, wherein the controller is capable of controlling a device controller of the device.

51. The method of claim 50, wherein the network connection information includes a device firmware version of the device.

52. The method of claim 51, further comprising receiving, by the controller, a device firmware update instruction for updating a firmware of the device, and controlling the device controller for executing the device firmware update instruction, thereby updating the firmware of the device, wherein the firmware update is comprised within the device firmware update instruction.

53. The method of claim 41, wherein the network connection information request originates from an application on the user device, through the first connection.

54. The method of claim 53, wherein the network connection information request is obtained from a user of the user device, through the application.

55. The method of claim 41, wherein the network connection information request originates from a remote support computer, through the Internet or another IP network.

56. The method of claim 55, wherein the network connection information request is obtained from a user of the remote support computer.

57. A method comprising:

establishing, by a processing unit comprised within a user device, a first connection between the user device and a system, utilizing a wireless access point comprised within the system and a wireless network connection enabling component comprised within the user device and capable of connecting to the wireless access point;

sending, by the processing unit, a network connection information request to the system, through the first connection; and

receiving, by the processing unit, network connection information from the system, through the first connection, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between a second wireless network connection enabling component of the system and a network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection.

58. The method of claim 57, further comprising sending, by the processing unit, one or more instructions, for establishing or improving the second connection, to the system, through the first connection.

59. The method of claim 58, wherein the network is an Internet Protocol (IP) based network and the second connection is established or attempted to be established by the second wireless network connection enabling component of the system, via a networking device connected to the Internet.

60. The method of claim 59, wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

h. indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS);

i. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or

61. The method of claim 59, wherein the instructions include one or more of the following: a. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given security protocol;

62. The method of claim 57, wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

f. a third software integrity tests results report for the controller;

g. a system firmware version of the system;

i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point.

63. The method of claim 58, wherein the instructions include one or more of the following: a. instruct the controller to restart;

b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to restart;

c. instruct the wireless access point to restart;

d. instruct the controller to reload a system firmware of the system;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

64. The method of claim 1358, wherein the instructions are automatically determined by the processing unit.

65. The method of claim 1357, further comprising: establishing, by the processing unit, a third connection between the user device and the network; and

sending, by the processing unit, the network connection information to a remote support computer, through the third connection.

66. The method of claim 58, further comprising: establishing, by the processing unit, a third connection between the user device and the network;

sending, by the processing unit, the network connection information to a remote support computer, through the third connection; and receiving, by the processing unit, the instructions from the remote support computer, through the third connection.

67. The method of claim 56, wherein the instructions are automatically determined by the remote support computer.

68. The method of claim 56, wherein the instructions are provided by a user of the remote support computer.

69. The method of claim 56, wherein further comprising performing, by the processing unit, the following for establishing the third connection:

disconnecting the first connection; and

connecting the first wireless network connection enabling component and a networking device connected to the network.

70. The method of claim 59, further comprising performing, by the processing unit, the following before sending the instructions:

disconnecting the third connection; and

re-establishing the first connection.

71. The method of claim 58, wherein the user device further comprises a third wireless network connection enabling component, capable of connecting to the network, and wherein the third connection is established utilizing the third wireless network connection enabling component.

72. The method of claim 71, wherein the third wireless network connection enabling component is a Wi-Fi client and the third connection is established also utilizing a networking device.

73. The method of claim 72, wherein the third wireless network connection enabling component is a cellular network client and the third connection is established by the third wireless network connection enabling component not through a local area network.

74. A method comprising:

receiving, by a processing unit of a remote support computer, from a user device, network connection information, the network connection information originating from a system, through a first connection established between a first wireless network connection enabling component of the user device and a wireless access point of the system, the network connection information relating to either (a) a second connection between a second wireless network connection enabling component of the system and a network, or (b) a failure of a connection attempt for establishing the second connection; and

sending, by the processing unit, one or more instructions, for establishing or improving the second connection, to the system, through the first connection.

75. The method of claim 74, wherein the network is an Internet Protocol (IP) based network and the second connection is established or attempted to be established by the second wireless network connection enabling component of the system via a networking device connected to the Internet.

76. The method of claim 75, wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

h. indication of unavailability of a Domain Name Server (DNS);

i. indication of unavailability of route to a requested host; or

77. The method of claim 75, wherein the instructions include one or more of the following: a. instruct the second wireless network connection enabling component to establish the second connection using a given security protocol;

78. The method of claim 74, wherein the network connection information includes one or more of the following:

a. a first hardware tests results report for the wireless network connection enabling component; b. a second hardware tests results report for the wireless access point;

c. a third hardware tests results report for the controller;

f. a third software integrity tests results report for the controller;

g. a system firmware version of the system;

i. a wireless access point firmware version of the wireless access point.

79. The method of claim 74, wherein the instructions include one or more of the following: a. instruct the controller to restart;

b. instruct the wireless network connection enabling component to restart;

c. instruct the wireless access point to restart;

d. instruct the controller to reload a system firmware of the system;

f. instruct the wireless access point to reload its firmware;

80. The method of claim 74, wherein the instructions are automatically determined by the processing unit.

81. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code, executable by at least one processor of a computer to perform a method comprising:

receiving, by a controller comprised within a system, from a user device, through a first connection established between the user device and a wireless access point comprised within the system, a network connection information request;

82. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code, executable by at least one processor of a computer to perform a method comprising:

83. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code, executable by at least one processor of a computer to perform a method comprising: