System and method for connecting network sockets between applications

• US 8,024,469 B1
• Filed: 03/04/2011
• Issued: 09/20/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/05/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Infrared5, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Brass Monkey, Inc.
• Inventors: Allen, Christopher, Zupko, Andrew, Burton, Trevor
• Primary Examiner(s): WANG, LIANG CHE A
• Application Number:
  US13/041,319
• Publication Number:
  US 20110219129A1
• Time in Patent Office: 200 Days
• Field of Search: 709/227, 709/228, 709/229, 709/232
• US Class Current: 709/227
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/54 Interprogram communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/2567 for reachability, e.g. inquiring the address of a correspondent behind a NAT server
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor

Abstract

A system and method for establishing communication over a network includes devices, instructions, and/or operations for: executing a browser application within a web browser, the web browser including a security mechanism for restricting access to and from the browser application; receiving, by the browser application, a private network address of an endpoint device; establishing a first network socket connection and a second network socket connection between the browser application and an application; and sending loss-sensitive network traffic over the first network socket connection and loss-tolerant network traffic over the second network socket connection.

Claims

1. A method for establishing communication over a network comprising:

executing, by a host device in communication with a computer network, a browser application within a web browser having a security mechanism that prevents the browser application associated with the host device from discovering an endpoint device in communication with the computer network;

receiving, by the browser application executing on the host device, from a server, a private network address of the endpoint device in order to establish a first network socket connection and a second network socket connection between the browser application and an application executing on the endpoint device;

generating, by the host device, the endpoint device, or both, network traffic using pre-constructed packet headers, each pre-constructed packet header configured to identify the network traffic as either loss-sensitive network traffic or loss-tolerant network traffic prior to the network traffic being transmitted over the network; and

sending, by the host device, the endpoint device, or both, loss-sensitive network traffic over the first network socket connection and loss-tolerant network traffic over the second network socket connection.

2. A method as set forth in claim 1 wherein the step of sending includes sending the loss-sensitive network traffic over a TCP connection and sending the loss-tolerant network traffic over a UDP connection.

3. A method as set forth in claim 1 further comprising determining which socket to send the network traffic over by processing a data type from the pre-constructed packet header.

4. A method as set forth in claim 1 further comprising executing, by the host device, a browser application in a web browser.

5. A method as set forth in claim 1 further comprising executing, by the endpoint device, an application configured to communicate with the browser application, wherein the first and second network socket connections allow the endpoint device to communicate with the web application.

6. A computer program, stored on a hardware computer readable storage medium, having a plurality of instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

executing, on a host device in communication with a computer network, a browser application within a web browser, the web browser including a security mechanism that prevents the browser application associated with the host device from discovering an endpoint device in communication with the computer network;

receiving, by the browser application, a private network address of the endpoint device, from a server, to establish a first network socket connection and a second network socket connection between the browser application and an application executing on the endpoint device;

generating, by the application, the browser application, or both, network traffic using pre-constructed packet headers, each pre-constructed packet header configured to identify the network traffic as either loss-sensitive network traffic or loss-tolerant network traffic prior to the network traffic being transmitted over the network; and

sending, by the application, the browser application, or both, loss-sensitive network traffic over the first network socket connection and loss-tolerant network traffic over the second network socket connection.

7. A computer program as set forth in claim 6 wherein the operations further include sending the loss-sensitive network traffic over a TCP connection and sending the loss-tolerant network traffic over a UDP connection.

8. A computer program as set forth in claim 6 wherein the operations further include determining which socket to send the network traffic over by processing a data type from the pre-constructed packet header.

9. A computer program as set forth in claim 6 wherein the operations further include executing, by the computing device, a browser application in a web browser.

10. A computer program as set forth in claim 6 wherein the operations further include executing, by the endpoint device, an application configured to communicate with the browser application, wherein the first and second network socket connections allow the endpoint device to communicate with the web application.

11. A system for establishing communication over a network, the system comprising:

an endpoint device configured to execute an application designed to communicate through network sockets established across a computer network;

a host device configured to execute, within a web browser, a browser application designed to receive, from a server, a private network address of the endpoint device in order to communicate, through the network sockets, with the application executed by the endpoint device;

a first network socket connection established, upon communication between the browser application and the application executed by the endpoint device, for carrying loss-sensitive data between the endpoint device and the host device; and

a second network socket connection established, upon communication between the browser application and the endpoint application, for carrying loss-tolerant data between the endpoint device and the host device;

wherein the application, the browser application, or both are further designed to generate the loss-sensitive and loss-tolerant data using pre-constructed packet headers, each pre-constructed packet header configured to identify data as either loss-sensitive data or loss-tolerant data prior to the network traffic being carried across the first or second network socket connections.

12. A system as set forth in claim 11 wherein the first network socket connection is a TCP connection and the second network socket connection is a UDP connection.

13. A system as set forth in claim 11 wherein the application, the browser application, or both are further designed to determine which network socket connection to send the network traffic over by reading a data type from the pre-constructed packet header.

14. A system as set forth in claim 11 wherein the web browser application and the application executed by the endpoint device are one of:

the same application;

different applications; and

compatible applications designed to communicate with each other.