Leaving a broadcast channel

• US 20040148348A1
• Filed: 12/11/2003
• Published: 07/29/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PH Madison Funding, LLC
• Original Assignee: Fred B. Holt, Virgil E. Bourassa
• Inventors: Holt, Fred B., Bourassa, Virgil E.
• Granted Patent: US 7,412,537 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1813 for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms instant messaging H04L51/04; protocols for multimedia communication H04L65/1101; arrangements for multi-party communication H04L65/403; telephonic conference arrangements H04M3/56; television conference systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1822 Conducting the conference, e.g. admission, detection, selection or grouping of participants, correlating users to one or more conference sessions, prioritising transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/185 with management of multicast group membership
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1854 with non-centralised forwarding system, e.g. chaincast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1068 Discovery involving direct consultation or announcement among potential requesting and potential source peers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1074 for supporting data block transmission mechanisms file transfer H04L67/06

Abstract

A method for leaving a multicast computer network is disclosed. The method allows for the disconnection of a first computer from a second computer. When the first computer decides to disconnect from the second computer, the first computer sends a disconnect message to the second computer. Then, when the second computer receives the disconnect message from the first computer, the second computer broadcasts a connection port search message to find a third computer to which it can connect.

Claims

1. A method in a computer system for determining a diameter of a broadcast channel, the broadcast channel having computers, each computer connected to at least three neighbor computers, the method comprising:

receiving a message from a neighbor computer;

identifying a distance traveled from the received message;

setting an estimated diameter based on the identified distance traveled amount;

incrementing the distance traveled in the message; and

sending the message with the incremented distance traveled to a neighbor computer.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the setting of the estimated diameter sets the estimated diameter to the distance traveled whenever the identified distance traveled is greater than the current estimated diameter.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the computers of the broadcast channel form an m-regular and m-connected graph.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein m is 4.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein each computer is connected to its neighbor computers via a point-to-point connections.

6. The method of claim 1 including when the estimated diameter is set, broadcasting a message indicating the new estimated diameter.

7. The method of claim 1 including:

receiving a message indicating a new estimated diameter; and

when the new estimated diameter is greater than the currently estimated diameter, setting the estimated diameter to the new estimated diameter.

8. The method of claim 1 including:

receiving a message indicated to reset the estimated diameter to a new estimated diameter; and

setting the estimated diameter to the new estimated diameter.

9. A method of disconnecting a first computer from a second computer, the first computer and the second computer being connected to a broadcast channel, the method comprising:

when the first computer decides to disconnect from the second computer, the first computer sends a disconnect message to the second computer; and

when the second computer receives the disconnect message from the first computer, the second computer broadcasts a connection port search message to find a third computer to which it can connect.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the second computer receives a port connection message indicating that the third computer is proposing that the third computer and the second computer connect.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the first computer disconnects from the second computer after sending the disconnect message.

12. The method of claim 9 wherein the broadcast channel is implemented using the Internet.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein each computer connected to the broadcast channel is connected to at least three other computers.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the computers and their connections form an m-regular graph.

15. The method of claim 9 wherein the first computer and second computer are connected via a TCP/IP connection.

16. A method for disconnecting a first computer from a second computer, the computers being connected to a broadcast channel, the method comprising:

connecting the first computer to a second computer;

attempting to send a message from the first computer to the second computer; and

when the attempt to send the message is unsuccessful, broadcasting from the first computer a connection port search message indicating that the first computer needs a connection.

17. The method of claim 16 including:

when a third computer receives the connection port search message and the third computer also needs a connection, sending a message from the third computer to the first computer proposing that the first computer and third computer connect.

18. The method of claim 17 including:

when the first computer receives the message proposing that the first computer and third computer connect, sending from the first computer to the third computer a message indicating that the first computer accepts the proposal to connect the first computer to the third computer.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein each computer connected to the broadcast channel is connected to at least three other computers.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the computers and connections of the broadcast channel form an m-regular graph.

21. The method of claim 19 wherein the computers and connections of the broadcast channel form an m-connected graph.

22. The method of claim 16 wherein the broadcasting includes sending the message to each computer to which the first computer is connected.

23. A computer-readable medium containing instructions for controlling disconnecting of a computer from another computer, the computer and the other computer being connected to a broadcast channel, comprising:

a component that, when the computer decides to disconnect from the other computer, the computer sends a disconnect message to the other computer; and

a component that, when the computer receives a disconnect message from another computer, the computer broadcasts a connection port search message to find a computer to which it can connect.

24. The computer-readable medium of claim 23 including:

a component that, when the computer receives a connection port search message and the computer needs to connect to another computer, sends to the computer that sent the connection port search message a port connection message indicating that the computer is proposing that the computer that sent the connection port search message connect to the computer.

25. The computer-readable medium of claim 24 including:

a component that, when the computer receives a port connection message, connecting to the computer that sent the port connection message.

26. The computer-readable medium of claim 23 wherein each computer connected to the broadcast channel is connected to at least three other computers.

27. The computer-readable medium of claim 23 wherein the computers and their connections form an m-regular graph.

28. The computer-readable medium of claim 23 wherein the computers are connected via a TCP/IP connection.

29. The computer-readable medium of claim 23 wherein the computers that are connected to the broadcast channel are peers.

30. The computer-readable medium of claim 23 wherein the broadcast channel is implemented using the Internet.