Management of account information for mail exchange

• US 20050108342A1
• Filed: 10/08/2004
• Published: 05/19/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Square Enix
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Square Enix, Square Enix Incorporated (Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Hirao, Shinji, Obinata, Tadamichi, Sasaki, Hideaki
• Granted Patent: US 7,814,156 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A terminal operated by a user is connected to a server group, including a management server, a mail server, and a database server, via the Internet. In the database server, current account information, including a mail address of the user for mail exchange is registered. When the user registers a new mail address in the terminal, the new mail address is notified to the mail server and the database server. The database server updates the registered account information and also updates the account information registered in the mail server. The update of the account information in the server group is notified to the terminal. When the update of the account information is notified, the terminal apparatus requests the database server to send the account information. The terminal internally registers the account information sent from the database server in response to the request.

Claims

1. An account information management system comprising:

a server that provides at least a service of mail exchange; and

a client connected to the server via a network,

said server comprising;

a server side account information storage that stores account information used for mail exchange by a user;

an account information transmitter that transmits the account information stored in said server side account information storage to said client via the network; and

a server side mail exchange processor that executes processing for mail exchange with said client based on the account information stored in said server side account information storage,

said client comprising;

an account information receiver that receives the transmitted account information;

a client side account information storage that stores the received account information; and

a client side mail exchange processor that executes processing for mail exchange with said server based on the account information stored in said client side account information storage.

2. The account information management system according to claim 1, wherein said server further comprises:

a change confirming section that periodically confirms whether a change in the user'"'"'s account information occurs, and

an account information updating section that updates the account information stored in said server side account information storage when the change is confirmed.

3. The account information management system according to claim 2,

wherein the account information includes a name mail address having a predetermined name used in another service by the user;

wherein the name mail address becomes unavailable when the user stops using the predetermined name;

wherein said change confirming section includes a stop determining section that determines whether use of the predetermined name has stopped; and

wherein said account information updating section deletes the name mail address from said server side account information storage when said stop determining section determines that use of the corresponding predetermined name has stopped.

4. The account information management system according to claim 3,

wherein said server further provides a service of a network game, and

wherein the predetermined name is a character name used in the network game.

5. The account information management system according to claim 1,

wherein said server further comprises:

an account information updating section that updates the account information stored in said server side account information storage when a new mail address is set based on a request from said client; and

a completion notification transmitter that transmits an update completion page including predetermined control information when said account information updating section updates the account information; and

wherein said client further comprises;

an address setting requesting section that requests said server to set a mail address to be included in the account information via the network;

a page receiver that receives pages of multiple types including the update completion page sent from said server;

a control information detecting section that detects the predetermined control information from each of the received pages; and

an account information requesting section that requests said server to transmit the account information when said control information detecting section detects the predetermined control information;

wherein said account information transmitter transmits the account information stored in said server side account information storage based on the request from said account information requesting section.

6. The account information management system according to claim 1,

wherein said client further comprises an account information requesting section that requests the server to transmit the account information at the time of logging into the service provided by said server;

and

wherein said account information transmitter transmits the account information stored in said server side account information storage based on the request from said account information requesting section.

7. The account information management system according to claim 6,

wherein the account information stored in said server side account information storage includes time information indicating a date and time when the account information was last updated;

wherein the account information stored in said client side account information storage includes time information indicating a date and time when the account information was last updated;

wherein said client further comprises;

a time information obtaining section that obtains the time information included in the account information stored in said server side account information storage via the network at the time of logging into the service provided by the server; and

a time information determining section that determines whether the obtained time information is the same as the time information included in the account information stored in said client side account information storage; and

wherein the account information requesting section requests said server to transmit the account information when the obtained time information is different from the included time information.

8. The account information management system according to claim 7,

wherein said client further comprises a determining section that determines whether account information corresponding to the user, who logs in, is stored in said client side account information storage at the time of logging into the service provided by the server;

and

wherein said account information transmission requesting section requests the server to transmit the account information when it is determined that the account information corresponding to the user, who logs in, is not stored.

9. The account information management system according to claim 8,

wherein the account information includes user identification information;

wherein said client further comprises a user information input section that inputs identification information of the user, who logs in, at the time of logging into the service provided by the server; and

wherein said determining section determines whether the input identification information is stored in said client side account information storage.

10. The account information management system according to claim 1, wherein the account information includes an SMTP server name and its port number, and a POP server name and its port number.

11. An account information management server connected to a client operated by a user via a network, comprising:

an account information storage that stores account information used for mail exchange;

an account information transmitter that transmits the stored account information to the client via the network; and

a mail exchange processor that executes mail exchange with the client based on the stored account information.

12. The account information management server according to claim 11, further comprising:

a change confirming section that periodically confirms whether a change in the user'"'"'s account information occurs; and

an account information updating section that updates the account information stored in said account information storage when the change is confirmed.

13. The account information management server according to claim 12,

wherein the account information includes a name mail address having a predetermined name used in a service by the user;

wherein the name mail address becomes unavailable when the user stops using the predetermined name;

wherein said change confirming section includes a stop determining section that determines whether the use of the predetermined name has stopped; and

wherein said account information updating section deletes the name mail address from said account information storage when said stop determining section determines that the use of the corresponding predetermined name is stopped.

14. The account information management server according to claim 11, further comprising:

an account information updating section that updates the account information stored in said account information storage when a new mail address is set based on a request from the client; and

a completion notification transmitter that transmits an update completion page including predetermined control information to the client via the network when said account information updating section updates the account information;

wherein said account information transmitter transmits the account information stored in said account information storage based on a request sent from the client, which detects the predetermined control information.

15. The account information management server according to claim 11, wherein said account information transmitter transmits the account information based on a request from the client which logs into a service provided by the server.

16. The account information management server according to claim 11, wherein the account information includes an SMTP server name and its port number, and a POP server name and its port number.

17. An account information management server connected via a network to a client for offering use by a user, comprising:

a program memory that stores a program, a data memory that stores data, a processor that executes the program, and a communications apparatus that performs communications processing with the client;

wherein said data memory comprises an account information storage area that stores account information used for mail exchange by the user; and

wherein the program causes said processor to execute;

managing current account information in the account information storage area;

transmitting the managed account information to the client via the network; and

performing processing for mail exchange with the client based on the managed account information.

18. The account information management server according to claim 17, wherein the program further causes said processor to execute:

periodically confirming whether a change in the user'"'"'s account information occurs, and

updating the managed account information when the change of account information is confirmed.

19. The account information management server according to claim 17, wherein the program further causes said processor to execute:

updating the managed account information when a new mail address is set based on a request from the client; and

transmitting an update completion page including predetermined control information via the network when the managed account information is updated.

20. The account information management server according to claim 17, wherein the program further causes said processor to transmit account information of the user corresponding to a login request when the login request to a service provided by the server is received from the client.

21. A terminal apparatus connected via a network to a server that provides at least a service of mail exchange and manages current account information, comprising:

an account information receiver that receives account information, which is used for mail exchange and managed by the server, from the server;

an account information storage that stores the received account information; and

a mail exchange processor that executes processing for mail exchange with the server based on the stored account information.

22. The terminal apparatus according to claim 21, further comprising:

an address setting requesting section that requests the server to set a mail address to be included in the account information via the network;

a page receiver that receives a plurality of types of pages, which include an update completion page having predetermined control information that is sent when the server completes setting the mail address based on a request from said address setting requesting section, from the server via the network;

a control information detecting section that detects the predetermined control information from each of the received pages; and

an account information requesting section that requests the server to transmit the account information when the control information detecting section detects the predetermined control information.

23. The terminal apparatus according to claim 21, further comprising an account information requesting section that requests the server to transmit the account information at the time of logging into a service provided by the server.

24. The terminal apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the account information includes an SMTP server name and its port number, and a POP server name and its port number.

25. A terminal apparatus connected via a network to a server that provides at least a function of mail exchange and manages current account information, comprising:

a program memory that stores a program, a data memory that stores data, a processor that executes the program, and a communications apparatus that performs communications processing with the server;

wherein said data memory comprises an account information storage area that stores account information used for mail exchange by a user; and

wherein the program causes said processor to execute;

receiving account information, which is managed by the server, from the server;

storing the received account information in the account information storage area; and

performing processing for mail exchange with the server based on the stored account information.

26. An account information managing method executed between a server that provides at least a function of mail exchange and a client connected to the server via a network, comprising:

managing current account information, which is used for mail exchange by a user, in the server;

transmitting the managed account information from the server to the client via the network;

storing the account information transmitted from the server in the client; and

performing processing for mail exchange between the server and the client based on the account information managed in the server and the account information stored in the client.

27. A computer-readable storage medium recording a program, which is executed by a computer apparatus, connected to a client operated by a user via a network, wherein the program causes the computer to execute:

managing current account information, which is used for mail exchange by a user, in a predetermined area of a data memory;

transmitting the stored account information to the client via the network; and

performing processing for mail exchange with the client based on the stored account information.

28. A carrier wave superimposed with a data signal of a program, which is executed by a computer apparatus connected to a client operated by a user via a network, wherein the program causes the computer to execute:

managing current account information, which is used for mail exchange by a user, in a predetermined area of a data memory;

transmitting the stored account information to the client via the network; and

performing processing for mail exchange with the client based on the stored account information.

29. A computer-readable storage medium which is executed by a computer apparatus, connected to a server for providing at least a function of mail exchange and managing current account information via a network, wherein the program causes the computer to execute:

managing the account information used for mail exchange by a user in an account information storage area of a data memory;

receiving the current account information managed in the server from the server;

storing the received account information in the account information storage area; and

performing processing for mail exchange with the server based on the stored account information.

30. A carrier wave superimposed with a data signal of a program, which is executed by a computer apparatus connected to a server for providing at least a function of mail exchange and managing current account information via a network, wherein the program causes the computer to execute:

managing the account information used for mail exchange by a user in an account information storage area of a data memory;

receiving the current account information managed in the server from the server;

storing the received account information in the account information storage area; and

performing processing for mail exchange with the server based on the stored account information.