CONNECTING TO AN EVOLVED PACKET DATA GATEWAY

• US 20130114432A1
• Filed: 11/09/2011
• Published: 05/09/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: HAYNES, Thomas W.
• Granted Patent: US 9,191,985 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/252
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/029 Firewall traversal, e.g. tunnelling or, creating pinholes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/141 Setup of application sessions admission control or resource allocation in data switching networks H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/18 Multiprotocol handlers, e.g. single devices capable of handling multiple protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/24 Negotiation of communication capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/12 Setup of transport tunnels
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/18 Management of setup rejection or failure
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/22 Manipulation of transport tunnels

Abstract

A user device may receive an access request to access an application provided by a cellular carrier associated with the user device. The user device may use a first type of tunneling protocol to establish a connection, via an evolved packet data gateway (ePDG), to a server that provides the application; determines whether the connection is established using the first type of tunneling protocol; and use a second type of tunneling protocol to establish the connection when the connection is not established using the first type of tunneling protocol. The user device may also use the connection to access the application via the ePDG.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a user device, an access request to access an application provided by a cellular carrier associated with the user device;

using, by the user device, a first type of tunneling protocol to establish a connection, via an evolved packet data gateway (ePDG), to a server that provides the application;

determining, by the user device, whether the connection is established using the first type of tunneling protocol;

using, by the user device, a second type of tunneling protocol to establish the connection when the connection is not established using the first type of tunneling protocol; and

using, by the user device, the connection to access the application via the ePDG.

2. The method of claim 1,

where the first type of tunneling protocol is an Internet protocol security (IPsec) tunneling protocol, and

where the second type of tunneling protocol is a tunneling protocol that is different from the IPsec tunneling protocol.

3. The method of claim 1, where the second type of tunneling protocol is one of:

a transport layer security (TLS) tunneling protocol, or

a point-to-point tunneling protocol (PPTP).

4. The method of claim 1, where using the first type of tunneling protocol comprises:

transmitting, to the ePDG, a first request for a list of tunneling protocols supported by the ePDG,

receiving, from the ePDG, the list of tunneling protocols,

selecting the first type of tunneling protocol from the list of tunneling protocols, and

transmitting, to the ePDG, a second request to establish the connection by using the first type of tunneling protocol.

5. The method of claim 4, where determining whether the connection is established comprises:

receiving, from the ePDG, a message in response to the second request, and

determining whether the connection is established based on the message.

6. The method of claim 4, where determining whether the connection is established comprises:

determining a time period after transmitting the second request, and

determining that the connection is not established when a response has not been received to the second request and the time period is greater than a particular period of time.

7. The method of claim 1, where the connection is not established when a firewall, between the user device and the ePDG, does not support the first type of tunneling protocol.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting that wireless Internet service is provided via a wireless access point;

transmitting, to the wireless access point, a request to establish a wireless Internet connection via the wireless access point; and

receiving, from the wireless access point and before using the first type of tunneling protocol, an Internet protocol (IP) address assigned to the user device.

9. A device comprising:

a memory to store a first list of prioritized tunneling protocols supported by the device;

a processor to;

receive a first request to access an application provided by a cellular carrier associated with the device,

transmit, to an evolved packet data gateway (ePDG), a second request to provide a second list of tunneling protocols supported by the ePDG,

select a first type of tunneling protocol that is included in the first list and the second list, and

use the first type of tunneling protocol to establish a connection, via the ePDG, to a server that provides the application.

10. The device of claim 9, where the processor is further to:

determine whether the connection is established using the first type of tunneling protocol,

select a second type of tunneling protocol that is included in the first list and the second list when the connection is not established after using the first type of tunneling protocol, and use the second type of tunneling protocol to establish the connection.

11. The device of claim 10, where the first type of tunneling protocol has a higher priority than the second type of tunneling protocol in the first list.

12. The device of claim 10, where, when determining whether the connection is established, the processor is to:

determine a time period after using the first type of tunneling protocol, and

determining that the connection is not established when a response has not been received, from the ePDG, indicating that the connection has been established and the time period is greater than a particular period of time.

13. The device of claim 10, where the connection is not established when a firewall, between the device and the ePDG, does not support the first type of tunneling protocol.

14. The device of claim 10,

where the first type of tunneling protocol is an Internet protocol security (IPsec) tunneling protocol, and

where the second type of tunneling protocol is a transport layer security (TLS) tunneling protocol.

15. The device of claim 9, where the processor is further to:

use, after the connection is established, the connection to access the application via the ePDG.

16. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media for storing instructions, the instructions comprising:

one or more instructions, which when executed by one or more processors of a network device, cause the one or more processors to establish an Internet connection via a wireless access point;

one or more instructions, which when executed by the one or more processors of the network device, cause the one or more processors to receive an access request to access an application provided by a cellular carrier associated with the network device;

one or more instructions, which when executed by the one or more processors of the network device, cause the one or more processors to transmit, to an evolved packet data gateway (ePDG) and via the Internet connection, a first request to establish a first type of tunnel by using a first type of tunneling protocol;

one or more instructions, which when executed by the one or more processors of the network device, cause the one or more processors to determine whether the first type of tunnel is established;

one or more instructions, which when executed by the one or more processors of the network device, cause the one or more processors to transmit, to the ePDG and via the Internet connection, a second request to establish a second type of tunnel by using a second type of tunneling protocol when the first type of tunnel is not established; and

one or more instructions, which when executed by the one or more processors of the network device, cause the one or more processors to use, the first type of tunnel when the first type of tunnel is established; and

one or more instructions, which when executed by the one or more processors of the network device, cause the one or more processors to use, the second type of tunnel when the second type of tunnel is established.

17. The media of claim 16,

where the first type of tunneling protocol is an Internet protocol security (IPsec) tunneling protocol,

where the first type of tunnel is an IPsec tunnel,

where the second type of tunneling protocol is a transport layer security (TLS) tunneling protocol, and

where the second type of tunnel is a TLS tunnel.

18. The media of claim 16, where the one or more instructions to determine whether the first type of tunnel is established comprise:

one or more instructions to receive, from the ePDG, a message in response to the first request, and

one or more instructions to determine whether the first type of tunnel is established based on the message.

19. The media of claim 16, where the first type of tunnel is not established when a firewall, between the network device and the ePDG, does not support the first type of tunneling protocol.

20. The media of claim 16,

where the instructions comprise:

one or more instructions to retrieve a prioritized list of tunneling protocols supported by the network device before transmitting the first request to the ePDG, and

where the first type of tunneling protocol has a higher priority than the second type of tunneling protocol in the prioritized list of tunneling protocols.