Method and apparatus for providing mobile and other intermittent connectivity in a computing environment
First Claim
1. In a wireless computer network providing wireless communication with plural wirelessly networked mobile devices, said network providing resources to said plural mobile devices, said network comprising plural points of attachment, a method of managing said resource consumption including:
- permitting said networked mobile devices to roam between said plural network points of attachment;
enforcing policy management for managing consumption of said resources by said mobile devices; and
distributing the managing of the consumption of said resources by said mobile devices between said mobile devices and at least one server facilitating communications with said mobile devices,said policy management remaining in effect for a mobile device even when the mobile device becomes temporarily disconnected from said network while roaming, andintercepting network activity in the mobile devices and relaying the intercepted network activity to the at least one server via remote procedure calls to keep connection state information synchronized.
15 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A seamless solution transparently addresses the characteristics of nomadic systems, and enables existing network applications to run reliably in mobile environments. The solution extends the enterprise network, letting network managers provide mobile users with easy access to the same applications as stationary users without sacrificing reliability or centralized management. The solution combines advantages of existing wire-line network standards with emerging mobile standards to create a solution that works with existing network applications. 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. In one example, Mobility Management Server communicates with Mobile End Systems using Remote Procedure Call and Internet Mobility Protocols.
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Citations
18 Claims
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1. In a wireless computer network providing wireless communication with plural wirelessly networked mobile devices, said network providing resources to said plural mobile devices, said network comprising plural points of attachment, a method of managing said resource consumption including:
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permitting said networked mobile devices to roam between said plural network points of attachment; enforcing policy management for managing consumption of said resources by said mobile devices; and distributing the managing of the consumption of said resources by said mobile devices between said mobile devices and at least one server facilitating communications with said mobile devices, said policy management remaining in effect for a mobile device even when the mobile device becomes temporarily disconnected from said network while roaming, and intercepting network activity in the mobile devices and relaying the intercepted network activity to the at least one server via remote procedure calls to keep connection state information synchronized. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. In a wireless computer network providing wireless communication between plural mobile devices, said network providing resources to said plural mobile devices, said network including plural points of attachment, a system of providing connectivity while managing said resource consumption including:
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a roaming arrangement that allows said mobile devices to roam between said plural network points of attachment; a configurator that configures allowable consumption of said resources by said mobile devices; a distributed policy manager, stored on a tangible medium, that is executable to communicate with said configurator and to distribute the managing of said resource consumption between said mobile devices and at least one server associated with the mobile devices; and a processor structured and arranged to execute the distributed policy manager, said distributed policy manager managing said resource consumption by a mobile device even during times the mobile device becomes temporarily disconnected from said network while roaming, and the mobile devices having interceptors to intercept network activity and relay the intercepted network activity to the at least one server via remote procedure calls to keep connection state information synchronized. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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Specification