System and method for provisioning universal stateless digital and computing services

• US 20080071860A1
• Filed: 11/20/2007
• Published: 03/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/17/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: XDS, Inc.
• Original Assignee: XDS, Inc.
• Inventors: Dal Canto, Mario, Northcutt, Duane, Curtis, Matthew, Dube, Gerard
• Application Number:
  US11/986,119
• Publication Number:
  US 20080071860A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0272 Virtual private networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0442 wherein the sending and receiving network entities apply asymmetric encryption, i.e. different keys for encryption and decryption cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for public-key encryption H04L9/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/08 specially adapted for terminal emulation, e.g. Telnet
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• 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 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion

Abstract

A service provisioning system and method for providing remote access to digital services over a communications network, comprising a plurality of client devices connected to the communications network for requesting digital services from a plurality of service centers and presenting output from the digital services. The network operation center connected to the communications network authenticates client devices and users, manages sessions, and processes requests for digital services. A connector associated with each service center establishes a session with a client device specified by the network operation center and encapsulates the native protocols of the digital services within a remote interactive protocol. The remote interactive protocol includes information for generating a human-perceptible presentation on the client device, to provide a remote access to the digital services without modifying the hardware and software infrastructure of the service centers.

Claims

1. A network operating center (NOC) for assisting in connecting a client device and one of a plurality of servers over a network, each of the plurality of servers providing at least one digital service over the network, the NOC comprising:

a client database for storing client profile information of client devices and/or users that have an account with the NOC, the client profile information having at least a client identification (ID) identifying respective client devices and/or users and subscriber information indicative of services available in association with the client ID;

an authentication service adapted to receive client IDs from the client devices connected to the NOC over the network, the authentication service capable of accessing the client database to obtain stored client IDs to assist in authenticating the client;

a service selection service configured to present, on an authenticated client device, a display of available services based, at least in part, on the subscriber information, and to receive indication of a selected service from the user; and

a connection service configured to contact one of the plurality of servers over the network that provides the selected service to facilitate access to the selected service over the network.

2. The NOC of claim 1, wherein the service selection service receives client information provided by the client device, and wherein the service selection service customizes the display based on the subscriber information and/or client information.

3. The NOC of claim 2, wherein the service selection service customizes the display based, at least in part, on an identify of a user operating the client device.

4. The NOC of claim 2, wherein the service selection service customizes the display based, at least in part, on a specific client device operated by the user.

5. The NOC of claim 4, wherein the service selection service selects a display format based on the type of the specific client device.

6. The NOC of claim 2, wherein the service selection service customizes the display based, at least in part, on a location of the user.

7. The NOC of claim 2, wherein the service selection service customizes the display based, at least in part, on a time at which the client device connected to the NOC.

8. The NOC of claim 1, wherein the connection service provides a network address of the authenticated client device to the one of the plurality of servers providing the selected service to facilitate establishing the bi-directional connection.

9. A system for securely providing access to digital services from one of a plurality of servers to one of a plurality of client devices over a network, wherein each of the digital services is provided, at least in part, by generating data in a native format to be articulated to a user via a respective client device, the system comprising:

a network operating center (NOC) for authenticating the plurality of client devices, and for brokering a bi-directional connection between authenticated client devices requesting a digital service and a server providing the service;

at least one first connector coupled to each of the plurality of servers, each of the at least one connector adapted to transform the data in the native format to a set of rendering commands capable of instructing the client device connected to the server how do render data on the client device such that the data in the native format is not transferred over the bi-directional connection or stored by the client device.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the rendering commands include pixel information to be displayed on the client device.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the data in the native format includes text data and the rendering commands include pixel information representing the text data to be displayed on the client device.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the at least one connector receives user inputs from the client device and converts the user inputs into instructions on how to manipulate the data in the native format.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the data is in a native format of a software application located on the server, but not located on the client device, and wherein the at least one connector converts the data into rendering commands such that the client device can view the data without requiring the software application.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the rendering commands are formatted according to an interactive format, the system further comprising at least one second connector coupled to each of the client devices, the at least one second connector adapted to convert user commands input on the client device to the interactive format.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the at least one first connector is adapted to convert data from the client device in the interactive format to modifications of the data in the native format.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the at least one second connector is part of the respective client device.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the at least one second connector is located remotely from the respective client device, and operates as a proxy for the respective client device.