Communication stack for network communication and routing

• US 20050050203A1
• Filed: 08/29/2003
• Published: 03/03/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Padisetty, Sivaprasad, Chattopadhyay, Somak, Gulick, Trevor
• Granted Patent: US 7,191,248 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/227
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/63 Routing a service request depending on the request content or context
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/161 Implementation details of TCP/IP or UDP/IP stack architecture; Specification of modified or new header fields
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/22 Parsing or analysis of headers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/24 Negotiation of communication capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A communication stack enables computers implementing it to send, receive, or route network communications. The communication stack includes a message layer, a communication layer, a security layer, and a transport protocol layer, with plug-in transport protocol modules and plug-in security protocol modules. Each of the origin computer, target computer, and routing computers involved in delivering a message implements the communication stack. An application on the origin computer calls the message layer of the computer to send messages to a target computer and identifies routing computers on the route for delivering the message to the target computer. The message layer calls the communication layer to establish a connection to the target computer. The communication layer uses the transport protocol layer to establish an initial connection with the target computer, and uses the security layer to negotiate security parameters and to handle secured communications between the origin and target computers.

Claims

1. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing steps of:

receiving from an application a message to be delivered to a target application on a target computer and routing information identifying the target computer and routing computers in a selected route to the target computer, the routing information specifying a transport protocol to be used with each routing computer in the selected route to the target computer, and a security mechanism to be used for interacting with the target computer; and

establishing a secured connection with the target computer through the selected route based on the routing information for delivering the message.

2. A computer-readable medium as in claim 1, wherein the step of establishing a secured connection with the target computer includes calling a communication layer to open an initial connection to the target computer through the selected route provided by the application;

and calling a security layer to use the selected security mechanism to negotiate security parameters with the target computer and perform security operations on subsequent network communications with the target computer through the selected route.

3. A computer-readable medium as in claim 2, wherein the security layer is programmed to negotiate the security parameters with a corresponding security layer on the target computer.

4. A computer-readable medium as in claim 3, wherein the security layer is programmed to negotiate with the corresponding security layer of the target computer to obtain a symmetric security key for encrypting and signing subsequent communications with the target computer.

5. A computer-readable medium as in claim 2, wherein the security layer has a plurality of plug-in modules selectable for applying different security mechanisms.

6. A computer-readable medium as in claim 2, wherein the step of establishing a secured connection with the target computer includes the communication layer calling a transport layer to send a connection message to a first routing computer on the selected routing using a transport protocol specified in the routing information for the first routing computer.

7. A computer-readable medium as in claim 6, wherein transport layer has plug-in transport protocol modules, and wherein the communication layer calls the transport layer to use a plug-in module for the specified transport protocol for sending messages to the first routing computer in the selected route.

8. A computer-readable medium as in claim 1, wherein the step of receiving receives the message to be delivered and routing information from the application in an XML document.

9. A computer-readable medium as in claim 1, having further computer-executable instructions for performing the step of storing the message to be delivered in a persistent storage if said message cannot be delivered at a present time.

10. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable components of a communication stack for delivering a message for an application to a target computer, the communication stack comprising:

a message layer interfacing with the application to obtain from the application a message to be delivered to the target computer and routing information identifying the target computer and routing computers in a selected route to the target computer;

a communication layer callable by the message layer to open a connection to the target computer through the selected route provided by the application and sending the message payload to the target computer through the connection;

a security layer callable by the communication layer for performing security operations on outgoing and incoming network communications;

a transport protocol layer callable by the communication layer for sending messages via a selected transport protocol;

the communication layer being programmed to use the transport protocol layer to send a connection message via the selected route to the target computer to establish a connection, and call the security layer to negotiate security parameters with the target computer and perform security operations on subsequent communications with the target computer.

11. A computer-readable medium as in claim 10, wherein the routing information includes data identifying a transport protocol to be used with each routing computer in the selected route to the target computer.

12. A computer-readable medium as in claim 11, wherein the transport protocol layer has a plurality of plug-in transport protocol modules implementing different transport protocols.

13. A computer-readable medium as in claim 12, wherein the plug-in transport protocol modules implement TCP and UDP.

14. A computer-readable medium as in claim 10, wherein the security layer has a plurality of plug-in modules selectable for applying different security mechanisms.

15. A computer-readable medium as in claim 10, wherein the message layer receives the message to be delivered and routing information from the application in an XML document.

16. A computer-readable medium as in claim 10, wherein the message layer is programmed to store the message to be delivered in a persistent storage if said message cannot be delivered at a present time.

17. A computer-readable medium as in claim 10, wherein the communication stack further includes a plurality of cryptographic application programming interface (API) functions callable for providing cryptographic services.

18. A computer-readable medium as in claim 10, wherein the security layer is programmed to negotiate security parameters with a corresponding security layer of a corresponding communication stack on the target computer.

19. A computer-readable medium as in claim 10, wherein the security layer is programmed to negotiate with the target computer to obtain a symmetric security key for encrypting an signing subsequent communications with the target computer.

20. A computer-readable medium as in claim 10, wherein the connection message has a message header containing data identifying computers in the route to the target computer.

21. A computer-readable medium as in claim 10, wherein the message layer exposes a first group of application programming interface (API) functions callable by the application to use functionality of the message layer for message delivery.

22. A computer-readable medium as in claim 21, wherein the communication layer exposes a second group of application programming interface (API) functions callable by the message layer to use functionality of the communication layer.

23. A computer-readable medium as in claim 22, wherein the security layer exposes a third group of application programming interface callable by the communication layer for performing security operations.

24. A computer-readable medium as in claim 23, wherein the transport protocol exposes a fourth group of application programming interface callable by the communication layer and the security layer for sending messages using a selected transport protocol.

25. A method for delivering a message to a target computer, comprising:

providing a communication stack having a message layer, a communication layer, a security layer, and a transport protocol layer; and

invoking the message layer to deliver the message, including passing to the message layer the message to be delivered to the target computer and routing information identifying the target computer and routing computers in a selected route to the target computer,

the communication layer being callable by the message layer to open a connection to the target computer through the selected route provided by the application and send messages to the target computer through the connection, the security layer being callable by the communication layer for performing security operations on outgoing and incoming network communications,. and the transport protocol layer being callable by the communication layer for sending messages via a selected transport protocol, the communication layer being programmed to use the transport protocol layer to send a connection message via the selected route to the target computer to establish a connection, and to call the security layer to negotiate security parameters with the target computer and perform security operations on subsequent communications with the target computer.

26. A method as in claim 25, wherein the step of invoking the message layer calls an application programming interface (API) function exposed by the message layer.

27. A method as in claim 25, wherein the routing information includes data identifying for each routing computer in the selected route a transport protocol to be used with said each routing computer.

28. A method as in claim 25, wherein the step of invoking including passing information to the message layer identifying a plurality of security mechanisms to be tried by the security layer with the target computer for establishing security parameters.

29. A method as in claim 25, wherein the step of invoking passes the message to be sent to the target computer and routing information from in an XML document.

30. A method as in claim 25, wherein the message layer is programmed to store a message to be delivered to the target computer in a persistent storage if said message cannot be delivered at a present time.

31. A computer networking system for network communications, comprising:

an origin computer, a target computer, and at least one routing computer disposed between the origin computer and target computer for routing network communications between the origin and target computers, each of the origin, target, and routing computers implementing a communication stack including a message layer, a communication layer, a security layer, and a transport protocol layer;

an application on the origin computer using the communication stack on the origin computer to delivery a message to a target application on the target computer by invoking the message layer of the origin computer and passing the message to be delivered and routing information identifying a selected route from the origin computer to the target computer, said selected route including said at least one routing computer;

wherein the message layer of the origin computer calls the communication layer of the origin computer to connect to the target computer, the communication layer of the origin computer calls the transport protocol layer of the origin computer to send a connection message through the selected route to the target computer to establish a connection, and calls the security layer of the origin computer to negotiate security parameters with the security layer of the target computer and to perform security operations on subsequent messages sent to and received from the target computer, and

wherein the communication stack of the routing computer receives the connection message, recognizes that the routing computer is not a destination of the connection message, forwards the connection message to a next stop in the selected route toward the target computer, and routes subsequent communications between the origin computer and the target computer.

32. A computer networking system as in claim 31, wherein the communication stack of the target computer recognizes that the target computer is the destination of the connection message and calls the security layer of the communication stack of the target computer to negotiate with the security layer of the communication stack of the origin computer.

33. A computer networking system as in claim 32, wherein the communication stack of the target computer registers a message handler for the target application to receive communications from the origin computer.

34. A computer networking system as in claim 31, wherein the application on the origin computer passes the message to be delivered and the routing information to the message layer in a XML document.

35. A computer networking system as in claim 31, wherein the routing information includes data identifying a transport protocol to be used with each routing computer in the selected route to the target computer.

36. A computer networking system as in claim 31, wherein the transport protocol layer of the origin computer has a plurality of plug-in transport protocol modules implementing different transport protocols.

37. A computer networking system as in claim 36, wherein the plug-in transport protocol modules implement TCP and UDP.

38. A computer networking system as in claim 31, wherein the security layer of the origin computer has a plurality of plug-in modules selectable for applying different security mechanisms.

39. A computer networking system as in claim 31, wherein the message layers of the origin and routing computers are programmed to store a message to be delivered to the target computer in a persistent storage if said message cannot be delivered at a present time.

40. A computer networking system as in claim 31, wherein the communication stack of the origin computer further includes a plurality of cryptographic application programming interface (API) functions callable for providing cryptographic services.

41. A computer networking system as in claim 31, wherein each message to be delivered by the origin computer to the target computer has a message header containing data identifying routing computers in the selected route to the target computer.