Peer tunnels and peer group targets

• US 20070121671A1
• Filed: 11/30/2005
• Published: 05/31/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Kaler, Christopher
• Granted Patent: US 7,562,151 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/466
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1091 Interfacing with client-server systems or between P2P systems

Abstract

Transferring data using peer-to-peer protocols. A method may be practiced, for example, at a computer system in a computer network. The computer network may include one or more networked agents formed into a peer group of peers using at least one peer-to-peer connection. The method includes an act of receiving a computer readable message from a peer-to-peer network. The computer readable message is a centric message enveloped in a peer-to-peer message. The centric message is extracted. The centric message is delivered to an agent configured for centric type communications.

Claims

1. At a computer system in a computer network including one or more networked agents formed into a peer group of peers using at least one peer-to-peer connection, a method of transferring data, the method comprising acts of:

receiving a computer readable message from a peer-to-peer network, the computer readable message being a centric message enveloped in a peer-to-peer message;

extracting the centric message; and

delivering the centric message to an agent configured for centric type communications.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the centric message is at least one of an SMTP, an IMAP, a POP or an HTTP message.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the computer readable message is an RF protocol message.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more networked agents comprise smart peripherals connected to the computer system.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving a computer readable message from a peer-to-peer network comprises receiving the computer readable message at a protocol stack that includes a peer-to-peer protocol and a centric protocol, the method further comprising the peer-to-peer protocol examining the computer readable message to determine that it contains a centric message.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the computer readable message is transparent to the agent configured for centric type communications.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the computer system comprises a peer file server, the method further comprising delivering the centric message to a local peer client.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving a computer readable message from a peer-to-peer network comprises receiving a Web Services message.

9. At a computer system in a computer network including one or more networked agents formed into a peer group of peers using at least one peer-to-peer connection, a method of transferring data, the method comprising acts of:

sending a message from an agent configured for centric type communications;

receiving the message at a peer-to-peer conversion module;

enveloping the message in a peer-to-peer message; and

sending the message enveloped in the peer-to-peer message to one or more of the peers in the peer group using a peer-to-peer protocol.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein sending a message from an agent configured for centric type communications comprises sending at least one of an SMTP, an IMAP a POP or an HTTP message.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein sending the message enveloped in the peer-to-peer message comprises sending an RF protocol message.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein sending the message enveloped in the peer-to-peer message comprises sending a Web Services message.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein sending a message from an agent configured for centric type communications comprises addressing the message to a distribution list, wherein the distribution list maps to the peer group.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the computer system comprises a protocol stack including a peer-to-peer protocol, the method further comprising examining the message at the peer-to-peer protocol to determine that the message is addressed to the peer group, and in response, the act of sending the message enveloped in the peer-to-peer message to one or more of the peers in the peer group using a peer-to-peer protocol comprises sending the message enveloped in the peer-to-peer message to the peer group.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein sending the message enveloped in the peer-to-peer message to one or more of the peers in the peer group using a peer-to-peer protocol comprises sending the message enveloped in the peer-to-peer message to the entire peer group irrespective of any addressing done at that agent configured for centric type communications.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein sending the message enveloped in the peer-to-peer message is transparent to the agent configured for centric type communications.

17. The method of claim 9, wherein the computer system comprises a peer file server configured to send messages across a peer-to-peer network.

18. At a computer system in a computer network including one or more networked agents formed into a peer group of peers using at least one peer-to-peer connection, a method of transferring data, the method comprising acts of:

communicating through a peer-to-peer protocol to contact agents in the peer group;

discovering what agents are in the peer group through the peer-to-peer protocol;

addressing a message using centric type endpoint addressing to the agents discovered in the peer group; and

sending the message using centric protocols to the agents in the peer group.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein sending the message using centric protocols to the agents in the peer group comprises sending at least one of an SMTP, an IMAP and a POP message.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein communicating through a peer-to-peer protocol to contact agents in the peer group comprises communicating to a trust group.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein discovering what agents are in the peer group through the peer-to-peer protocol comprises authenticating a peer by using at least one of encryption or authentication tokens.