Controlling TCP data transmission

• US 10,462,711 B2
• Filed: 02/07/2017
• Issued: 10/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Futurewei Technologies Incorporated (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Futurewei Technologies Incorporated (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Yu, Jing, Wang, Julia, Tang, Yumin
• Primary Examiner(s): Nawaz, Asad M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ali, Syed
• Application Number:
  US15/426,319
• Publication Number:
  US 20180220337A1
• Time in Patent Office: 994 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/34 ensuring sequence integrity, e.g. using sequence numbers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0055 Physical resource allocation for ACK/NACK for physical mapping arrangements in ARQ protocols H04L1/1861
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0226 based on location or mobility handoff or reselection H04W36/00; mobile application services making use of the location of users or terminals H04W4/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0273 adapting protocols for flow control or congestion control to wireless environment, e.g. adapting transmission control protocol [TCP] wireless network protocols or protocol adaptations to wireless operation, e.g. wireless application protocol H04W80/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0022 for transferring data sessions between adjacent core network technologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/00224 between packet switched [PS] and circuit switched [CS] network technologies, e.g. circuit switched fallback [CSFB]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/14 Reselecting a network or an air interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/144 over a different radio air interface technology

Abstract

The disclosure includes a method for rapidly recovering the speed of TCP transmission after a cross technology handover experienced by a mobile device. In the method, the mobile device receives a sequentially first TCP data packet after the cross technology handover completes via a TCP session between the mobile device and a remote TCP server, generates a first acknowledgement (ACK) associated with the sequentially first TCP data packet, where the first ACK comprises a first Selective ACK (SACK) option, removes the first SACK option from the first ACK when a gap exists between data in the sequentially first TCP data packet and data received before the cross technology handover occurs, and sends the first ACK without the first SACK option to the remote TCP server via the TCP session. Because the ACK is without the SACK option when the gap exists, the speed of TCP transmission will be recovered rapidly.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

detecting, by a mobile device, a handover for the mobile device;

receiving, by the mobile device via a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) session between the mobile device and a remote TCP server, a sequentially first TCP data packet after the handover;

generating, by the mobile device, a first acknowledgement (ACK) associated with the sequentially first TCP data packet, wherein the first ACK comprises a first Selective ACK (SACK) option that causes the remote TCP server to enter a slow speed period that exists between the handover and a slow-start process, a TCP congestion window is set in minimum during the slow speed period, and a speed of sending TCP data packets is limited by the TCP congestion window that is kept in minimum;

determining, by the mobile device, a gap between data in the sequentially first TCP data packet and data received before the handover, wherein the gap is determined when a most right edge in the first SACK option is larger than a cumulative ACK sequence number of the first ACK;

removing, by the mobile device in response to the gap between the data in the sequentially first TCP data packet and the data received before the handover, the first SACK option from the first ACK; and

sending, by the mobile device, the first ACK in which the first SACK option is removed to the remote TCP server via the TCP session, wherein the first SACK option has one or more boundary items, each including a left edge and a right edge.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein when the SACK option includes a plurality of right edges, the most right edge is the largest one among the plurality of right edges.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein when the first SACK option includes only one right edge, the most right edge is the right edge.

4. The method claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the mobile device via the TCP session, a sequentially second TCP data packet after the handover;

generating, by the mobile device, a second ACK associated with the sequentially second TCP data packet, wherein the second ACK comprises a second SACK option;

removing, by the mobile device, the second SACK option from the second ACK; and

sending, by the mobile device, the second ACK in which the second SACK option is removed to the remote TCP server via the TCP session.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the second SACK option is removed from the second ACK when the most right edge in the second SACK option is larger than cumulative ACK sequence number of the first ACK.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first SACK option is an non-empty SACK option or is an effective SACK option.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the handover for the mobile device is either a cross area handover that occurs when the mobile device crosses from a first area to a second area, or a cross technology handover that occurs when the mobile device crosses from a first technology to a second technology.

8. A mobile device, comprising:

a non-transitory memory comprising instructions; and

one or more processors in communications with the memory, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the instructions to;

detect a handover for the mobile device;

receive, via a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) session between the mobile device and a remote TCP server, a sequentially first TCP data packet after the handover;

generate a first acknowledgement (ACK) associated with the sequentially first TCP data packet, wherein the first ACK comprises a first Selective ACK (SACK) option that causes the remote TCP server to enter a slow speed period that exists between the handover and a slow-start process, a TCP congestion window is set in minimum during the slow speed period, and a speed of sending TCP data packets is limited by the TCP congestion window that is kept in minimum;

determine a gap between data in the sequentially first TCP data packet and data received before the handover, wherein the gap is determined when a most right edge in the first SACK option is larger than a cumulative ACK sequence number of the first ACK;

remove, in response to the gap between the data in the sequentially first TCP data packet and the data received before the handover, the first SACK option from the first ACK; and

send the first ACK in which the first SACK option is removed to the remote TCP server via the TCP session, wherein the first SACK option has one or more boundary items, each including a left edge and a right edge.

9. The mobile device of claim 8, wherein when the first SACK option includes a plurality of right edges, the most right edge is the largest one among the plurality of right edges.

10. The mobile device of claim 8, wherein when the first SACK option includes only one right edge, the most right edge is the right edge.

11. The mobile device claim 8, wherein the processors are further configured to execute the instructions to:

receive, via the TCP session, a sequentially second TCP data packet after the handover;

generate a second ACK associated with the sequentially second TCP data packet, wherein the second ACK comprises a second SACK option;

remove the second SACK option from the second ACK; and

send the second ACK in which the second SACK option is removed to the remote TCP server via the TCP session.

12. The mobile device of claim 11, wherein the second SACK option is removed from the second ACK when the most right edge in the second SACK option is larger than cumulative ACK sequence number of the first ACK.

13. The mobile device of claim 8, wherein the first SACK option is a non-empty SACK option or is an effective SACK option.

14. The mobile device of claim 8, wherein the handover for the mobile device is either a cross area handover that occurs when the mobile device crosses from a first area to a second area, or a cross technology handover that occurs when the mobile device crosses from a first technology to a second technology.

15. A computer program product comprising computing executable instructions stored on a non-transitory medium that when executed by a processor cause the processor to:

detect a handover for a mobile device;

receive, via a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) session between the mobile device and a remote TCP server, a sequentially first TCP data packet after the handover;

generate a first acknowledgement (ACK) associated with the sequentially first TCP data packet, wherein the first ACK comprises a first Selective ACK (SACK) option that causes the remote TCP server to enter a slow speed period, that exists between the handover and a slow-start process, a TCP congestion window is set in minimum during the slow speed period, and a speed of sending TCP data packets is limited by the TCP congestion window that is kept in minimum;

determine a gap between data in the sequentially first TCP data packet and data received before the handover, wherein the gap is determined when a most right edge in the first SACK option is larger than a cumulative ACK sequence number of the first ACK;

remove in response to the gap between the data in the sequentially first TCP data packet and the data received before the handover, the first SACK option from the first ACK; and

send the first ACK in which the first SACK option is removed from the mobile device to the remote TCP server via the TCP session, wherein the first SACK option has one or more boundary items, each including a left edge and a right edge.

16. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein when the first SACK option includes a plurality of right edges, the most right edge is the largest one among the plurality of right edges.

17. The computer program product of claim 15, wherein the handover for the mobile device is either a cross area handover that occurs when the mobile device crosses from a first area to a second area, or a cross technology handover that occurs when the mobile device crosses from a first technology to a second technology.