Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 17/876,128

CONFIGURATION AWARE FIRMWARE UPDATE

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Jul 28, 2022
Examiner
KENDALL, CHUCK O
Art Unit
2192
Tech Center
2100 — Computer Architecture & Software
Assignee
DELL PRODUCTS, L.P.
OA Round
5 (Non-Final)
87%
Grant Probability
Favorable
5-6
OA Rounds
3y 1m
To Grant
95%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 87% — above average
87%
Career Allow Rate
796 granted / 914 resolved
+32.1% vs TC avg
Moderate +8% lift
Without
With
+7.7%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 1m
Avg Prosecution
24 currently pending
Career history
938
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
11.9%
-28.1% vs TC avg
§103
22.8%
-17.2% vs TC avg
§102
52.3%
+12.3% vs TC avg
§112
3.3%
-36.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 914 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . This is in response to communication filed on 12/09/25. Claims 1, 2, 4 – 8, 10 – 14, and 16 –18 has been examined and are pending. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action: A person shall be entitled to a patent unless – (a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claim(s) 1, 2, 4 – 8, 10 – 14, and 16 –18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shaastry et al. US 20220156053 A1. Regarding claim 1, 7 and 13, an information handling system comprising: at least one processor [FIG. 9,904]; and a memory [FIG.9,906]; wherein the information handling system is configured to: receive an update package for applying an update to at least one information handling resource of the information handling system, wherein the update package includes the update and includes metadata regarding at least one dependency of the update package [0030, “…application 102, when run, may be configured to invoke dependency management module 104 to identify and update dependencies in source code …When an update is performed, in some example, data, metadata, attributes, and information associated with the update …”]; subsequent to receiving the update package, retrieve a revised version of the metadata, wherein the revised version of the metadata indicates a revised at least one dependency [0030, shows when update is performed updating metadata]; based on the revised at least one dependency, carry out a configuration change; and apply the update [0030, shows implementing update including dependency data]; wherein the information handling system further implements a preference setting indicating whether configuration dependencies are to be automatically resolved, and wherein the configuration change is carried out in response to the preference setting being true [see 0052 – 0053: “…a determination is made as to whether an error has occurred (i.e., was the implemented update compatible with the source code while also resolving the dependency) (616). …However, if the implementation of the identified, selected, and retrieved update generates an error, data related to the error…Subsequently, self-learning loop logic may be enabled to repeat and await another identification of an update to a dependency to occur.…process may be performed automatically or semi-automatically in order to reduce or altogether eliminate manual intervention …”. As noted in paragraph 0052 – 0053 it clearly shows resolving dependencies automatically contrary to Applicants arguments. Regarding claims 2, 8 and 14, the information handling system of claim 1, wherein the update is a firmware update [0019, shows can be software or firmware]. Regarding claims 4, 10 and 16, the information handling system of claim 1, wherein the configuration change is carried out by a management controller of the information handling system [0029, see dependency management module 104]. Regarding claims 5, 11 and 17, the information handling system of claim 1, wherein the revised at least one dependency indicates an incompatible information handling resource that is incompatible with the update [0024, shows updating compatible dependencies]. Regarding claims 6, 12 and 18, the information handling system of claim 5, further configured to: disable the incompatible information handling resource prior to applying the update; and re-enable the incompatible information handling resource after applying the update [0025, discloses handling incompatible dependencies, partial updating, fix, showing errors and managing the incompatibilities]. Response to Arguments Applicant's arguments filed 06/10/25 have been fully considered but moot in view of new grounds of rejection. Correspondence Information Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Chuck Kendall whose telephone number is 571-272-3698. The examiner can normally be reached on 10:00 am - 6:30pm. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Hyung Sough can be reached on 571-272-6799. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only [0060 – 0080]. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). /CHUCK O KENDALL/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2192
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Prosecution Timeline

Jul 28, 2022
Application Filed
Dec 02, 2023
Non-Final Rejection — §102
Feb 23, 2024
Response Filed
Jun 01, 2024
Final Rejection — §102
Aug 02, 2024
Response after Non-Final Action
Aug 27, 2024
Response after Non-Final Action
Aug 27, 2024
Applicant Interview (Telephonic)
Oct 03, 2024
Notice of Allowance
Dec 02, 2024
Response after Non-Final Action
Dec 12, 2024
Response after Non-Final Action
Mar 07, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §102
Jun 10, 2025
Response Filed
Sep 06, 2025
Final Rejection — §102
Nov 05, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Dec 09, 2025
Request for Continued Examination
Dec 20, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Feb 19, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

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Patent 12596543
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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

5-6
Expected OA Rounds
87%
Grant Probability
95%
With Interview (+7.7%)
3y 1m
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 914 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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