Method, system, software, and processor for initializing information systems operating in headless and non-headless environments

1. A method of initializing an information system comprising the steps of:

establishing a communication between a platform BIOS and a platform boot monitor during an initialization sequence;

determining a boot mode for the platform BIOS;

communicating a boot initialization code between the platform BIOS and the platform boot monitor; and

identifying the boot mode using the boot initialization code.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

receiving a flash BIOS update image communicated by a memory coupled to the server platform upon determining a flash update boot mode;

storing the flash BIOS update image within a memory associated with the BIOS;

verifying the flash BIOS update image prior to updating the flash memory; and

communicating an acknowledgement message in response to the update.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising the steps of:

communicating a progress message between the platform BIOS and the boot monitor during the flash update; and

initiating a reboot using the service processor upon successfully updating the flash update.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

communicating a boot synch message between the platform BIOS and the platform boot monitor; and

initiating a boot mode based on the boot mode message.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising initiating a recent valid configuration dialog between the platform BIOS and the platform boot monitor.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising communicating a post code message between the platform BIOS and the platform boot monitor upon detecting a POST error of the server platform.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising communicating a mode ready message between the platform BIOS and the platform boot monitor to indicate that the platform BIOS is successfully initializing.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising communicating an error message between the platform BIOS and the platform boot monitor to indicate that the error occurred during initialization.

9. A method for initializing an information system comprising the steps of:

communicating a boot initialization request to a service processor during a low resource initialization period;

receiving a boot acknowledgement message including a boot code for initializing a server platform;

determining a boot mode using the boot code;

enabling a communication interface associated with the boot mode; and

communicating a ready signal to the service processor in response to an availability of the server platform.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the

determining the boot mode includes determining at least one of:

a flash update mode;

a CMOS update mode;

a diagnostic mode;

a set-up mode; and

a default mode.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising the steps of:

receiving a BIOS image communicated by the service processor in response to determining a flash update mode;

storing the BIOS image within a memory coupled to the server platform;

verifying the BIOS image prior to updating a BIOS flash memory of the server platform; and

communicating a progress message to a platform boot monitor during the flash update mode.

12. A computer readable medium tangibly embodying one or more instructions, said one or more instructions including instructions to:

establish a communication between a platform BIOS and a platform boot monitor during an initialization sequence;

determine a boot mode for the platform BIOS;

communicate a boot initialization code between the platform BIOS and the platform boot monitor; and

identify the boot mode using the boot initialization code.

13. The computer readable medium as in claim 12 further including instructions to:

receive a flash BIOS update image communicated by a flash memory coupled to the server platform upon determining a flash update boot mode;

store the flash BIOS update image within a memory associated with the BIOS;

verify the flash BIOS update image prior to updating the flash memory; and

communicate an acknowledgement message in response to the update.

14. The computer readable medium as in claim 13 further including instructions to:

communicate a progress message between the platform BIOS and the boot monitor during the flash update; and

initiate a reboot using the service processor upon successfully updating the flash update.

15. The computer readable medium as in claim 12 further including instructions to:

communicate a boot synch message between the platform BIOS and the platform boot monitor; and

initiate a boot mode based on the boot mode message.

16. The computer readable medium as in claim 12 further including instructions to initiate a resent valid configuration dialog between the platform BIOS and the platform boot monitor.

17. A computer readable medium tangibly embodying one or more instructions; said one or more instructions including instructions to:

communicate a boot initialization request to a service processor during a low resource initialization period;

receive a boot acknowledgement message including a boot code for initializing a server platform;

determine a boot mode using the boot code;

enable a communication interface associated with the boot mode; and

communicate a ready signal to the service processor in response to an availability of the server platform.

18. The computer readable medium as in claim 17 further including instructions to

determine at least one of:

a flash update mode;

a CMOS update mode;

a diagnostic mode;

a set-up mode; and

a default mode.