Stateless Application Notifications

• US 20130061046A1
• Filed: 09/01/2011
• Published: 03/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Joy, George, Lau, Cheuk Wan William, Louie, Darren, Firstenberg, Yosef, Cherukuri, Ravikant, Woley, Kevin Michael, Ayers, Matthew R., Anand, Gaurav S.
• Granted Patent: US 9,225,538 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/162
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1859 adapted to provide push services, e.g. data channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0807 using tickets, e.g. Kerberos cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using tickets or tokens H04L9/3213
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/164 at the network layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/146 Markers for unambiguous identification of a particular session, e.g. session cookie or URL-encoding
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services

Abstract

Stateless application notifications are described that enable third parties to provide messages to client applications. A communication channel can be established between a notification service and an application. Upon request, the notification service can generate obfuscated routing data for the channel, which can be in the form of a channel handle or token. The routing data can be encrypted and digitally signed to obscure the content and format of the routing data from third parties. An application service possessing the obfuscated routing data can package a notification with the data and send the package to the notification service for delivery. The application service does so without knowing the channel particulars encoded by the obfuscated routing data. The notification service that produces the obfuscated routing data can decrypt and interpret the data, and deliver the notification on the channel to an appropriate endpoint application on behalf of the application service.

Claims

1. One or more computer-readable storage media storing instructions, that when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to implement an notification service configured to perform acts comprising:

establishing a communication channel with a client application to deliver notifications from an application service to the client application;

generating obfuscated routing data for the communication channel usable by the application service to direct notifications on the channel through the notification service;

issuing the obfuscated routing data for use by the application service;

obtaining a notification packaged with the obfuscated routing data from the application service; and

interpreting the obfuscated routing data to identify the communication channel and direct the notification to the client application.

2. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the obfuscated routing data is not interpretable by the application service.

3. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the obfuscated routing data encodes a pathway of the communication channel that can be ascertained by the notification service from the obfuscated routing data in process and without looking-up cached state data for the communication channel.

4. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the obfuscated routing data comprises a channel handle that is derived as an abstraction of an address of the communication channel.

5. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the obfuscated routing data comprises a token formatted to carry routing data interpretable by the notification service to direct notifications sent in association with the token on the communication channel.

6. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the notification service is further configured to perform acts comprising securing the communication channel by encrypting and digitally signing the obfuscated routing data.

7. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the notification service is configured to de-authorize the obfuscated routing data without affecting the communication channel.

8. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein establishing the communication channel comprises assigning a channel identifier as a persistent globally unique address between the notification service and the client application.

9. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the format and content of the obfuscated routing data is controlled by the notification service and obscured from both the client application and the application service.

10. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein generating the obfuscated routing data comprises constructing a channel handle for the communication channel in response to a request from the client application based upon state data cached at the client and provided in the request.

12. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein interpreting the obfuscated routing data comprises:

decrypting the obfuscated routing data;

checking an expiration time to verify validity of the decrypted routing data;

authenticating the application service to send notifications based on a comparison of credentials embedded within the obfuscated routing data to credentials used by the application service to sign-in; and

processing the decrypted routing data to identify the communication channel for the notification.

11. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 11, wherein the channel handle is constructed as a uniform resource identifier (URI) that encodes a combination of the client application, a client device, and a user of the client device.

13. A computer implemented method comprising:

obtaining a request from a client for a token associated with a channel established to enable notifications from an application service to an application of the client;

generating the token containing routing data that encodes a delivery pathway for the channel;

encrypting and digitally signing the token to obfuscate the routing data from third parties;

returning the token to the client to enable the client to employ the channel for notifications from the application service;

obtaining a notification for delivery to the application of the client that uses the token;

decrypting the token to retrieve the routing data and verify the validity of the routing data;

delivering the notification to the client based on the routing data retrieved from the token.

14. The computer implemented method of claim 13, further comprising:

receiving a request from the client to renew the token from the client; and

issuing another valid token for use on the channel such that multiple tokens are active on the channel at the same time to ensure continuity of notifications on the channel.

15. The computer implemented method of claim 13, further comprising de-authorizing the token to prevent the token from being available for use on the channel such that the channel remains active and additional valid tokens are available for use on the channel.

16. The computer implemented method of claim 13, wherein the routing data encoded in the token comprises a channel handle issued for the channel.

17. A computer implemented method comprising:

initiating, by a client, creation of a channel to provide notifications from an application service to an application of the client;

requesting, by the client, a channel handle for the channel from a notification service the channel handle encoding routing data interpretable by the notification service to direct notifications on the channel to the application of the client;

caching at the client a channel handle returned by the notification service in response to the requesting;

providing, by the client, the channel handle to the application service;

receiving at the client a notification on the channel from the notification service, the notification sent by the application service in association with the channel handle to cause the notification service to direct the notification on the channel.

18. The computer implemented method of claim 17, wherein the channel handle comprise a uniform resource identifier (URI) that encodes a combination of identifiers for the application, the client device, and a user of the client.

19. The computer implemented method of claim 17, wherein the client is configured to request multiple channel handles for the same channel from the notification service at least some of which are active at the same time to enable:

continuity of notifications from the application service to the client; and

de-authorizing of expired and comprised channel handles for the channel without having to establish a new channel between the client and application service to provide subsequent notifications.

20. The computer implemented method of claim 17, further comprising:

requesting, by the client, renewal of the channel handle that is cached by the client before an expiration time associated with the channel handle; and

obtaining another channel handle issued for the channel by the notification service in response to the request.