Method and apparatus for controlling an upper layer in a protocol stack to delay timeouts

• US 20060085547A1
• Filed: 10/18/2004
• Published: 04/20/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Research In Motion Limited (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: Cormier, Jean-Philippe Paul
• Granted Patent: US 7,590,881 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/227
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/59 Providing operational support to end devices by off-loading in the network or by emulation, e.g. when they are unavailable
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/28 Timers or timing mechanisms used in protocols

Abstract

In a device communicating over a network, a proxy to delay timeout of an application on the device where the proxy is on a communications path between the application and the network, the proxy comprising means for registering a data request from the application to the network; a counter for measuring a predetermined time interval, the time interval selected to prevent timeout at the application; means to send preventative data to the application after the counter has expired but before a response is received; means for modifying a response received from the network to remove preventative data already sent to the application, creating a modified response; and means for forwarding the modified response to the application, wherein the proxy registers that a message has been sent and waits a predetermined interval, and if a response has not been received during that interval sends the preventative data to the application to delay a timeout.

Claims

1. In a device communicating over a network, a proxy to delay timeout of an application on the device where the proxy is on a communications path between the application and the network, the proxy comprising

means for registering a data request from the application to the network;

a counter for measuring a predetermined time interval, the time interval selected to prevent timeout at the application;

means to send preventative data to the application after the counter has expired but before a response is received;

means for modifying a response received from the network to remove preventative data already sent to the application, creating a modified response; and

means for forwarding the modified response to the application, wherein the proxy registers that a message has been sent and waits a predetermined interval, and if a response has not been received during that interval sends the preventative data to the application to delay a timeout.

2. The proxy of claim 1, wherein the application is an HTTP application.

3. The proxy of claim 2, wherein a transport layer for the network is a TCP layer.

4. The proxy of claim 3, wherein the proxy couples an application layer and the TCP layer.

5. The proxy of claim 4, wherein the preventative data is a response header.

6. The proxy of claim 5, wherein the response header is a string having the characters “

HTTP/1.”

7. The proxy of claim 6, wherein the means for sending preventative data sends individual bytes of the response header.

8. A method for delaying the timeout of an application on a device communicating over a network, the method comprising the steps of:

registering that a request for data has been sent by the application to the network;

waiting a predetermined interval;

if a response to the request has not been received,

sending data to the application to prevent a timeout; and

repeating the waiting step; and

if a response to the request is received,

modifying the response to remove from the response data sent to the application; and

forwarding the modified response to the application.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the data sent in the sending step is known header information for a response.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the application uses an HTTP layer.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the header information is a string with characters “

HTTP/1.”

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the sending data step sends one byte of the header information after the predetermined interval.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the sending data step sends multiple bytes of the header information after the predetermined interval.