Selective transmission of an email attachment

• US 7,409,425 B2
• Filed: 11/13/2003
• Issued: 08/05/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Snap, Inc.
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Naick, Indran, Wilson, Jeffrey Kenneth
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Phuoc H
• Application Number:
  US10/713,735
• Publication Number:
  US 20050108335A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,727 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/203, 709/219, 709/229
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/063 Content adaptation, e.g. replacement of unsuitable content
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/08 Annexed information, e.g. attachments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/18 Commands or executable codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

Methods, devices, systems, and media are disclosed for replacing an email attachment with a call, and forwarding the email with the call to a user for selective display of the attachment by making a call. One embodiment includes receiving an email on a mail server, wherein the email has the email attachment, and removing the email attachment from the email to produce a stripped email. The embodiment further includes storing the email attachment on a server, adding the call to the stripped email, and forwarding the stripped email with the call for displaying to a recipient.

Claims

1. A method for replacing an email attachment associated with an email with a call to code, wherein the code downloads the email attachment upon activation of the call by a recipient of a stripped email, the method comprising:

removing the email attachment from the email, and producing the stripped email;

storing the email attachment;

adding the call to the stripped email, wherein adding the call comprises adding code to the email, the code being configured to automatically execute upon display of the email via an email client associated with the recipient, to request transmission of the email attachment;

generating the call to the code, wherein the code downloads the email attachment upon activation of the call by the recipient of the stripped email, wherein the code responds to user-defined rules configured for instructing an identity and a location of the email attachment for the recipient, wherein the identity and the location may differ for other recipients; and

forwarding the stripped email with the call to the recipient.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request for transmission of the email attachment in response to activation of the call; and

transmitting the email attachment to the recipient in response to the request.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising authenticating the request prior to transmission of the email attachment.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising partitioning a mail server to create an attachment server.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein storing comprises storing the email attachment in storage associated with an attachment server, the attachment server being configured to transmit the email attachment in response to activation of the call by the recipient.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein a hyperlink, upon activation, initiates access to an Internet protocol address associated with the code for the retrieval of the email attachment.

7. A method for replacing an email attachment associated with an email with a call to code, wherein the code downloads the email attachment upon activation of the call by a recipient of a stripped email, the method comprising:

removing the email attachment from the email, and producing the stripped email;

storing the email attachment;

adding the call to the stripped email, wherein adding the call comprises adding a hyperlink to the stripped email, wherein the hyperlink is configured to initiate code associated with the email attachment to transmit the email attachment to the recipient;

generating the call to the code, wherein the code downloads the email attachment upon activation of the call by the recipient of the stripped email, wherein the code responds to user-defined rules configured for instructing an identity and a location of the email attachment for the recipient, wherein the identity and the location may differ for other recipients; and

forwarding the stripped email with the call to the recipient.