US Patent 8239852 Remote update of computers based on physical device recognition

A system for remotely updating a program configuration includes an update server in communication with a client device configured to execute a remote update program. The client device includes a first processor coupled to memory storing the program which, executed, performs physical device recognition on the client device to determine its machine parameters, and generates unique device identifiers based thereon, and a first transceiver configured to send the identifiers to the update server. The update server is configured to collect the identifiers from the client device, and includes a second processor for analyzing the identifiers and determining an updated program configuration based on the collected identifiers matching known identifiers, and a second transceiver configured to deliver data representing the updated program configuration to the client device for storage therein.