Peer-to-peer (P2P) connection despite network address translators (NATs) at both ends

• US 20040139228A1
• Filed: 02/25/2003
• Published: 07/15/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Youssef Boiri, Kamal, Takeda, Yutaka
• Granted Patent: US 7,328,280 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/245
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/2567 for reachability, e.g. inquiring the address of a correspondent behind a NAT server
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/2575 using address mapping retrieval, e.g. simple traversal of user datagram protocol through session traversal utilities for NAT [STUN]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 using domain name system [DNS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5076 Update or notification mechanisms, e.g. DynDNS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/029 Firewall traversal, e.g. tunnelling or, creating pinholes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]

Abstract

Methods of operating a first endpoint device (ED) facilitate the making of a peer-to-peer (P2P) connection between the first ED and a second ED despite intervening network address translators (NATs) at both ends. The P2P connection extends across a system compliant with the internet protocol (IP) whose architecture that includes a first network (having at least the first ED and a first NAT), a second network (having at least the second ED and a second NAT) and a third network. The first ED connects to the third network via the first NAT while the second ED connects to the third network via the second NAT. A first such method includes: providing the second ED with the first IP-address/port pair; and providing the second ED with first type-information regarding the type of the first NAT.

Claims