Methods, systems, and computer-readable mediums for configuring electronic messaging applications

• US 20060200524A1
• Filed: 03/07/2005
• Published: 09/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Novitskey, Robert, Rook, Harvey, Starbuck, Bryan, Costenaro, Daniel P., Ashby, Erik
• Granted Patent: US 8,898,308 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/37 E-mail addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/48 Message addressing, e.g. address format or anonymous messages, aliases
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/02 Protocol performance

Abstract

Methods, systems, and computer-readable mediums configure electronic messaging applications to communicate with a server storing messages to and/or from an electronic messaging account of a user. A method involves receiving an electronic message address and a password of the user as inputs, deriving server connection settings based on the electronic message address, and applying the server connection settings to the electronic messaging account. Another method involves receiving an electronic message address of the user and discovering the server connection settings for the electronic messaging account on a server having a designated protocol name as a server prefix name to assist in locating the server and having the server connection settings. The method also involves retrieving the server connection settings from a file provided by the server in response to locating the server having the designated name and applying the server connection settings to the electronic messaging account.

Claims

1. A method for configuring an electronic message application to communicate with a server storing messages at least one of to and from an electronic message account of a user, the method comprising:

receiving an electronic message address and a password of the user as inputs;

deriving server connection settings based on the electronic message address; and

applying the server connection settings to the electronic message account.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein deriving the server connection settings comprises:

a) applying one of a known prefix name and no prefix name to a domain portion of the electronic message address;

b) attempting to connect the electronic message application to the server storing messages using one of the known prefix name and no prefix name and the domain portion as the server connection settings and using the password;

c) detecting whether the electronic message application connected to the server;

d) in response to detecting that the electronic message application connected to the server, determining whether the server connection settings are more optimal than previously stored server connection settings based on at least one of a security criterion, a protocol criterion, and an authentication criterion;

e) in response to determining that the connection settings are more optimal, storing the more optimal connection settings as the server connection settings; and

repeating a)-e) for each known prefix name and no prefix name in a designated order for at least one of receive protocols and send protocols.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising searching for configured known prefix names based on the domain portion of the electronic message address in order to narrow a number of attempts to connect to the server.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein attempting to connect the electronic message application to the server comprises simultaneously attempting to connect to the server on a secure port and a non-secure port of the server.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein detecting that the electronic message application connected to the server includes receiving an affirmative response greeting on a TCP session further comprising using the secure port as one of the more optimal server settings when the affirmative response greeting is returned on the secure port and the non-secure port.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving the electronic message address comprises receiving an email address wherein the known prefix name comprises a POP prefix name including one of ‘

pop’

, ‘

mail’

, ‘

sslmail’

, ‘

pop3’

, ‘

securepop’ and

no prefix name.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving the electronic message address comprises receiving an email address and wherein the known prefix name comprises an IMAP prefix name including one of ‘

mail’

, ‘

imap’

, and no prefix name.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving the electronic message address comprises receiving an email address and wherein the known prefix name comprises an SMTP prefix name including one of ‘

smtp’

, ‘

smtpauth’

, ‘

mail’

, ‘

mailhost’

, ‘

securesmtp’

, and no prefix name.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the type of the account comprises one of email and network news transfer protocol.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein when the third component indicates that the request will be redirected to another server, the third component has a value comprising one of an http URL and https URL that the client computer uses to obtain the server connection settings.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein when the third component indicates that the retrieved XML payload contains the server connection settings, and wherein the kind of mail account being configured comprises at least one of EXCH, EXPR, POP3, SMTP, IMAP, DAV, WEB, and NNTP.

9. A method for configuring an electronic message application to communicate with a server storing messages for an electronic message account of a user, the method comprising:

receiving an electronic message address of the user;

discovering server connection settings for the electronic message account on a server having a designated name as a server prefix name and having the server connection settings;

in response to locating the server having the designated name, retrieving the server connection settings from a file provided by the server having the designated name; and

applying the server connection settings to the electronic message account.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein discovering the server connection settings comprises:

a) applying a designated name as a server prefix name to a domain portion of the electronic message address to form a server name;

b) searching for the server having the designated name as a server prefix name by sending a request for the server connection settings over a network to the server name;

c) detecting whether the server having the designated name and having the server connection settings has been located; and

d) in response to detecting that the server having the designated name has not been located, repeating a)-c) for another domain portion of the electronic message address until a designated domain level has been reached.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein discovering the server connection settings further comprises:

in response to reaching the designated domain level without locating the server having the designated name, applying the designated name as a server prefix name to a public domain service to form the server name; and

searching for the server having the designated name as the server prefix name by sending a request for the server connection settings over a network to the server name.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein retrieving the server connection settings from the file provided by the server having the designated name comprises retrieving the server connection settings from a markup language file.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein retrieving the server connection settings from a markup language file comprises retrieving the server connection settings from an XML file provided by the server having the designated name.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein retrieving the server connection settings from an XML file comprises retrieving the server connection settings from an XML file built by the server having the designated name from a dynamic directory of electronic message account server connection settings.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

simultaneously deriving the server connection settings based on the electronic message address wherein applying the server connection settings to the electronic message account comprises applying the server connection settings derived when the server connection settings cannot be discovered.

16. The method of claim of claim 9, wherein retrieving the server connection settings from the file provided by the server having the designated name comprises retrieving the server connection settings both in a version for retrieval inside a firewall and a version for retrieval outside the firewall.

17. A computer-readable medium having computer executable components, comprising:

a first component that is arranged to indicate that a retrieved XML payload comprises a response to a request for server connection settings that support an account associated with an application program, the request being initiated from the application program executing on a client computer to a server having a designated server prefix name to assist the client computer in locating the server;

a second component arranged to specify a type of the account;

a third component arranged to indicate one of whether the retrieved XML payload contains the server connection settings, whether the request will be redirected to another server for the server connection settings, and whether an email address used by the application program to request the server connection settings should be changed;

a fourth component arranged to enclose specifications for the server connection settings when the third component is arranged to indicate that the retrieved XML payload contains the server connection settings;

a fifth component arranged to specify a kind of mail account being configured for the type of the account; and

a sixth component arranged to specify a name of a mail server corresponding to the kind of mail account being configured.