Techniques for preserving content during a redirection for authentication

• US 7,334,257 B1
• Filed: 10/31/2003
• Issued: 02/19/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Novell Incorporated (Open Text Corporation)
• Inventors: Ebrahimi, Hashem Mohammad, Amin, Baber, Carter, Stephen R, Stilmar, Robert Skousen, Pathakis, Scott William
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheikh; Ayaz
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chai; Longbit
• Application Number:
  US10/698,303
• Time in Patent Office: 1,572 Days
• Field of Search: 726/3
• US Class Current: 726/3
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/563 Data redirection of data network streams

Abstract

Techniques are provided for preserving content during a network transaction. A client issues a content-bearing request to a desired service. At the time the request is issued, the client is not authenticated to the service. The content associated with the content-bearing request is preserved and associated with a modified request. The modified request and a redirection to an authentication service are sent to the client. The client authenticates and transparently sends the modified request. The modified request is used for reacquiring the content. The content-bearing request along with the content are sent to the desired service for processing.

Claims

1. A method for preserving content, comprising:

receiving a request having content originating from a non-authenticated client, wherein the request is a content-bearing and is issued from the client;

modifying the request and associating the content with the modified request, wherein the modified request is done to permit the content to be recaptured after the non-authenticated client is authenticated;

redirecting the non-authenticated client to an authentication service and including the modified request; and

receiving the modified request from an authenticated client, via a resubmit application transparently installed on the client, and reacquiring the content using the modified request from the client, wherein the content is available from the modified request and does not have to be re-supplied by a user associated with the client after successful authentication.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the modifying further includes compressing the content within the modified request.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the modifying further includes directing the non-authenticated client to store the content in a temporary file and identifying the temporary file within the modified request.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the modifying further includes assigning a key to the modified request, storing the content, and indexing the content based on the key.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the redirecting further includes installing the resubmit application on the non-authenticated client that transparently transmits the modified request from the client back to the receiving the modified request processing when the non-authenticated client is successfully authenticated.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising recreating the content based on directions provided in the modified request.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein receiving the request further includes receiving the request as a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) request from a World-Wide Web (WWW) browser on the non-authenticated client, the request received over the Intent using Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) communications.

8. A method for preserving content, comprising:

issuing, from a client, a content-bearing request to a service, wherein the content-bearing request originates from the client and is directed to the service;

receiving, at the client, a modified request and a redirection for authentication along with a directive to retain the content at the client, and wherein a resubmit application is also received on the client and is transparently installed on the client, and the resubmit application assists in redirecting to an authentication service and subsequent to the authentication automatically and transparently sends the modified request back to the service, wherein the modified request is done to permit the content to be recaptured after the non-authenticated client is authenticated;

authenticating the client with the authentication service; and

issuing from the client the modified request to the service, the modified request having the content so that the content does not have to again be re-supplied by a user associated with the client after successful authentication.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the receiving further includes receiving content sent with the content-bearing request in a compressed format within the modified request.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the receiving further includes receiving instructions with the modified request to store content sent with the content-bearing request in a temporary file.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein receiving the instructions further include storing the content as a cookie.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein the receiving further includes receiving a key associated with content sent with the content-bearing request, wherein the key is subsequently used to reacquire the content.

13. The method of claim 8 wherein issuing the content-bearing request further includes issuing the content bearing request as a Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) communication including at least one of a PUT operation and a POST operation.