Architecture for mobile IPv6 applications over IPv4

• US 7,810,149 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2006
• Issued: 10/05/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Carl Williams, John S. Mcfarlane, Junaid Islam
• Original Assignee: Carl Williams, John S. Mcfarlane, Junaid Islam
• Inventors: McFarlane, John S., Williams, Carl, Islam, Junaid
• Primary Examiner(s): Cervetti; David Garcia
• Application Number:
  US11/468,281
• Publication Number:
  US 20070050613A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,498 Days
• Field of Search: 713/150, 726/11, 726/26, 726/1
• US Class Current: 726/11
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/52 Multiprotocol routers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/25 of the same type
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0272 Virtual private networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/029 Firewall traversal, e.g. tunnelling or, creating pinholes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/167 Adaptation for transition between two IP versions, e.g. between IPv4 and IPv6 translation of Internet protocol [IP] addresses H04L61/2503
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/045 involving different protocol versions, e.g. MIPv4 and MIPv6

Abstract

Mobile clients can execute IPv6 applications in an IPv4 environment without the need for any specialized IPv6 hardware or upgrades to the network infrastructure. The architecture provides a seamless, disruption-free connectivity experience for mobile clients. Mobile clients are automatically connected to other mobile clients irrespective of their network connectively, whether wireless, wire line, IPv4, IPv6, public or private. Mobile clients communicate with other mobile clients using a secure, end-to-end IPv6 tunnel. This creates a persistent VPN connection between two clients using software.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

providing a home agent server, coupled to an Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) network, managing a plurality of groups of Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) clients;

providing a first IPv6 client and second IPv6 client coupled to the home agent via the IPv4 network, wherein the first and second IPv6 clients are in a first group, and the first and second IPv6 clients do not have access to IPv6 addresses of IPv6 clients managed by the home agent not in the first group;

from the first IPv6 client, sending to the home agent an IPv4 address and IPv6 address associated with the first IPv6 client;

from the second IPv6 client, sending to the home agent an IPv4 address and IPv6 address associated with the second IPv6 client;

when the first and second IPv6 clients are connected to the home agent server, implementing a first IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel in the IPv4 network between the first IPv6 client and the second IPv6 client, wherein the first IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel is implemented without passing through the home agent;

from the first IPv6 client, transferring data in an encrypted form using the first IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel directly from the first IPv6 client to the second IPv6 client, where the data does not pass through the home agent server,

providing a third IPv6 client in the first group coupled to the home agent;

implementing a second IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel between the first IPv6 client and the third IPv6 client;

implementing a third IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel between the second IPv6 client and the third IPv6 client;

when the second IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel between the first IPv6 client and the third IPv6 client fails, attempting to connect the third IPv6 client to the first IPv6 client through the first and third IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnels; and

when the first and second IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnels fail, attempting to connect the third IPv6 client to the first IPv6 client through the home agent.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the home agent comprises a client authentication directory and an IPv6 router that forwards traffic between IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnels without needing to decrypt the IPv6 payload.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the when the first and second IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnels fail, attempting to connect the third IPv6 client to the first IPv6 client through the home agent comprises:

when the first IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel becomes disconnected, continuing transferring data from the first IPv6 client in the encrypted form using a fourth IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel between the first IPv6 client and the home agent to a data cache at the home agent server associated with the second IPv6 client.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the data is stored in the data cache is stored in the encrypted form.

5. The method of claim 3 further comprising:

when the second IPv6 client becomes reconnected to the home agent server, transferring data from the data cache to the second IPv6 client.

6. The method of claim 1 comprising:

sending the IPv4 address and IPv6 address associated with the second IPv6 client to the first IPv6 client.

7. The method of claim 6 comprising:

sending the IPv4 address and IPv6 address associated with the first IPv6 client to the second IPv6 client.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

when the first IPv6 client initiates a data transfer to the second IPv6 clients, at the home agent server, determining whether the first and second IPv6 client are behind a network address translation (NAT) firewall.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the first IPv6 client makes a determination of whether the first IPv6 client is behind a firewall by comparing its private IPv4 address and its public IPv4 address, which is received from the home agent server.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein if the private IPv4 address is the same as the public IPv4, the first IPv6 client is not behind a firewall.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein if a public IPv4 address of the first IPv6 client is the same as a public IPv4 address of the second IPv6 client, then the first and second IPv6 are behind the same NAT firewall.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

if the first and second IPv6 clients are behind the same NAT firewall, implementing a second IPv6 tunnel in the IPv4 network between the first IPv6 client and the second IPv6 client using a private IPv4 address of the first IPv6 client and a private IPv4 address of the second IPv6 client; and

from the first IPv6 client, transferring data in an encrypted form using the second IPv6 tunnel directly from the first IPv6 client to the second IPv6 client, where the data does not pass through the home agent server.

13. The method of claim 8 wherein the first IPv6 client makes a determination of whether the second IPv4 client is behind a firewall by comparing the second IPv4 client'"'"'s private IPv4 address and public IPv4 address, both of which are received from the home agent server.

14. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

if both first and second IPv6 clients are each behind different firewalls, transferring data between the first and second IPv6 clients by passing the data through the home agent server, wherein the data is encrypted at the first IPv6 client and decrypted at the second IPv6 client.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the data is not decrypted by the home agent server before passing the data on to the second IPv6 client.

16. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

if the first IPv6 client is behind a firewall and the second IPv6 client is not behind a firewall, initiating a second IPv6 tunnel from the second IPv6 client to the first IPv6 client; and

from the first IPv6 client, transferring data in an encrypted form using the second IPv6 tunnel directly from the first IPv6 client to the second IPv6 client, where the data does not pass through the home agent server.

17. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

after a third IPv6 client in the first group loses connectivity to the home agent server and later reestablishes a connection to the home agent server, updating the first and second IPv6 clients in the first group with connectivity information of the third IPv6 client.

18. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

publishing a list of shared files available for download to the IPv6 clients in the first group.

19. A method comprising:

providing a home agent server, coupled to a plurality of Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) clients organized in groups, all connected in an Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) network;

providing a set of IPv6 commands comprising a PUSH command to transfer data over the IPv4 network through an IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel, without passing through the home agent, from one of the IPv6 clients in one group to another IPv6 client in the same group, a PUBLISH command to show clients in one group files available to other clients in the same group, and a PULL command to request sending of at least one file made available through the PUBLISH command from the client having the file;

issuing a PUSH command from a first IPv6 client of in a first group to transfer data to a second IPv6 client in the first group through an IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel, without passing through the home agent;

when the second IPv6 client is connected the network, executing the PUSH command by transferring the data directly from the first IPv6 client to the second IPv6 client, without passing through the home agent;

when the second IPv6 client is not connected the network, executing the PUSH command by transferring the data to a data cache on the home agent server; and

when the second IPv6 client connects to the network, transferring the data from the data cache to the second IPv6 client.

20. The method of claim 19 comprising:

issuing a PULL command from the first IPv6 client of in the first group to request a data transfer from a third IPv6 client in the first group;

when the third IPv6 client is connected the network, executing the PUSH command by transferring the data directly from the third IPv6 client to the first IPv6 client;

when the third client is not connected the network, storing the PUSH command in the data cache of the home agent server; and

when the third IPv6 client connects to the network, checking whether the first client is connected to the network.

21. The method of claim 20 further comprising:

if the first IPv6 client is connected to the network, initiating transferring of the data from the third IPv6 client to the second IPv6 client through an IPv6-over-IPv4 tunnel, without passing through the home agent;

if the first IPv6 client is not connected to the network, transferring the data to the data cache on the home agent server.

22. The method of claim 21 further comprising:

when the first IPv6 client connects to the network after being disconnected, transferring the data from the data cache to the first IPv6 client.

23. The method of claim 19 further comprising:

issuing a PUBLISH command from the first IPv6 client of the first group to show at least one file available for download from the first IPv6 client to other clients in the first group; and

displaying a listing of the at least one file is provided to each of the IPv6 clients in the first group, but not other groups.

24. The method of claim 19 further comprising:

when the second IPv6 client connects to the network, performing a binding update which includes transferring an IP address of the second IPv6 client to the home agent server.

25. The method of claim 19 further comprising:

when the second IPv6 client connects to the network, performing a binding update which includes transferring an IP address of the second IPv6 client in the first IPv6 client.