Method and apparatus for providing mobile and other intermittent connectivity in a computing environment

• US 7,574,208 B2
• Filed: 08/10/2006
• Issued: 08/11/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/09/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Netmotion Wireless Holdings, Inc. (NetMotion Software, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Netmotion Wireless Incorporated
• Inventors: Olson, Erik D., Sturniolo, Emil, Menn, Anatoly, Hanson, Aaron D., Savarese, Joseph T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bost; Dwayne D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): DESIR, PIERRE LOUIS
• Application Number:
  US11/501,909
• Publication Number:
  US 20070038759A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,097 Days
• Field of Search: 455/432, 455/435, 455/435.1, 709/225, 709/250, 709/249, 370/345
• US Class Current: 455/435.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1809 Selective-repeat protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/188 Time-out mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1887 Scheduling and prioritising arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/107 wherein the security policies are location-dependent, e.g. entities privileges depend on current location or allowing specific operations only from locally connected terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/133 Protocols for remote procedure calls [RPC]
• 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 67/564 Enhancement of application control based on intercepted application data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/59 Providing operational support to end devices by off-loading in the network or by emulation, e.g. when they are unavailable
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/63 Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0011 for data sessions of end-to-end connection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0019 adapted for mobile IP [MIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/08 Reselecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/00 Network data management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/02 Processing of mobility data, e.g. registration information at HLR [Home Location Register] or VLR [Visitor Location Register]; Transfer of mobility data, e.g. between HLR, VLR or external networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/10 : Small scale networks; Flat hierarchical networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/14 : Backbone network devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/182 : Network node acting on behalf of an other network entity, e.g. proxy

Abstract

A seamless solution transparently addresses the characteristics of nomadic systems, and enables existing network applications to run reliably in mobile environments. A Mobility Management Server coupled to the mobile network maintains the state of each of any number of Mobile End Systems and handles the complex session management required to maintain persistent connections to the network and to other peer processes. If a Mobile End System becomes unreachable, suspends, or changes network address (e.g., due to roaming from one network interconnect to another), the Mobility Management Server maintains the connection to the associated peer task—allowing the Mobile End System to maintain a continuous connection even though it may temporarily lose contact with its network medium. An interface-based listener uses network point of attachment information supplied by a network interface to determine roaming conditions and to efficiently reestablish connection upon roaming. The Mobility Management Server can distribute lists to Mobile End Systems specifying how to contact it over disjoint networks.

Claims

1. A mobile network including:

at least one mobile device wirelessly connected to the network via at least one network point of attachment, said at least one mobile device being capable of roaming between network points of attachment and being capable of detecting a change in network topology when roaming, said mobile device executing at least one user computing application, and

at least one server coupled to said network, said mobile device communicating with said server via said network,

said mobile network including a policy control arrangement that applies policy rules based on metrics including mobile device location,

wherein said policy control arrangement applies said policy rules using policy decisionmaking that is distributed between said at least one mobile device and said server,

wherein the server provides for central administration of the policy rules and policy decisionmaking, and effects distribution of at least some of said policy rules and said policy decisionmaking authority to the mobile device, and

wherein the mobile device makes at least one policy decision, and can enforce said at least one policy decision to affect said at least one user computing application while roaming between network points of attachment.

2. A network as in claim 1 wherein said distributed policy control arrangement distributes processing of attributes of the policy rules between the mobile device and the server, and wherein said server comprises a mobility management server.

3. A network as in claim 1 further comprising a priority arrangement that prioritizes the policy rules by position of said rules in a policy table and/or explicit notation by an ordinal.

4. A network as in claim 1 further comprising a datastore for policy rule attributes that is centrally administered via said server.

5. A network as in claim 1 further comprising an arrangement that modifies behavior of a particular user computing application(s) to provide a behavior modification that is based on plural metrics including cost of service, network point of attachment, and trust relationship.

6. A network as in claim 5 wherein the effect of the behavior modification is to at least one of (a) allow, (b) deny and (c) delay a request based on attributes of the policy rules.

7. A network as in claim 1 further comprising an arrangement that invokes at least one policy rule to modify user computing application(s) processes even if the user computing application is already started.

8. A network as in claim 1 further comprising point of presence information that is further used to govern application behavior.

9. A network as in claim 1 further comprising an arrangement that uses rate of motion along with distance measurements to alter behavior of applications and/or the communication path.

10. A network as in claim 1 further comprising an arrangement that extracts topological information as result of the location information and uses such extracted topological information in said policy decisionmaking.

16. The system of claim 1 wherein said policy decisionmaking is performed at least in part in response to change in network topology detected by said mobile device.

11. In a mobile method wherein:

at least one mobile device is wirelessly connected to a network via at least one network point of attachment;

said at least one mobile device roams between network points of attachment; and

at least one server communicates with said mobile device over said network during times when said mobile device has established communications with said at least one server via a network point of attachment,

a method comprising;

applying policy rules based on metrics including mobile device location, including applying said policy rules using policy decisionmaking authority that is distributed between said at least one mobile device and said server,

centrally administering the policy rules and policy decision making,

distributing at least some of said policy rules and said policy decisionmaking to the mobile device via at least one network point of attachment,

detecting network topology as said mobile device roams between network points of attachment, and

making at least one policy decision at the mobile device at least in part in response to detected network topology, and enforcing said policy decision at said roaming mobile device to affect at least one user computing application executing on the roaming mobile device.

12. The method of claim 11 further including:

detecting change in network topology with said mobile device when said mobile device roams, and

performing, at the mobile device, policy decisionmaking at least in part in response to said change in network topology detected by said mobile device.

13. The method of claim 11 further comprising using mobile device point of presence connection information to govern behavior of applications running on the mobile device.

14. The method of claim 11 further comprising using detected rate of motion of said mobile device along with distance measurements to alter behavior of applications running on the mobile device.

15. The method of claim 11 further comprising extracting topological information as result of the location information and using such extracted topological information in said policy decisionmaking.