Direct access electronic mail (email) distribution and synchronization system with trusted or verified IMAP-Idle implementation

• US 8,880,619 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2009
• Issued: 11/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Van Wely, Matthew
• Primary Examiner(s): Murray, Daniel C
• Application Number:
  US12/409,543
• Publication Number:
  US 20100250681A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,051 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/219, 709/221, 709/224, 455/412.1, 714/41
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/16 Combinations of two or more digital computers each having at least an arithmetic unit, a program unit and a register, e.g. for a simultaneous processing of several programs coordinating program control therefor G06F9/52; in regulating and control system G05B
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/212 using filtering or selective blocking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/23 Reliability checks, e.g. acknowledgments or fault reporting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/00 Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications user-to-user messaging H04L51/00; network arrangements, protocols or services for supporting real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/04 Error control

Abstract

A communications system includes a network engine that communicates with a plurality of a user subscribed mobile wireless communications devices via a communications network for sending and receiving emails. A direct access server is connected to the network engine for polling electronic mailboxes of users from an email source and retrieving electronic messages from the electronic mailboxes and pushing any electronic mailboxes to the network engine to selected users subscribed mobile wireless communications devices. The direct access server communicates with an email source using the internet message access protocol (IMAP) and IMAP-Idle supportable connections in a communications channel to accept real-time notifications. The direct access server verifies an Idle command functionality on the communications channel before relying on the communications channel for new mail notifications.

Claims

1. A communications system, comprising:

a network engine comprising a hardware processor configured to communicate with a mobile wireless communications device via a communications network for sending and receiving emails therefrom; and

a direct access server connected to the network engine and comprising a hardware processor configured to;

poll an electronic mailbox of a user from an email source, retrieve email from the electronic mailbox and push any email through the network engine to the mobile wireless communications device, communicate with the email source over a communications channel;

learn the Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) idle capabilities of the email source, establish an IMAP-Idle connection in the communications channel and verify an IMAP-Idle command functionality on the communications channel before relying on the communications channel for new mail notifications by checking if any failures to deliver new mail notifications occur a predetermined number of times, and if so, ceasing to use the IMAP-Idle connection, wherein a connection limit is reached or exceeded to an electronic mailbox, the IMAP-Idle manager disables IMAP-Idle connection to the electronic mailbox and marks the electronic mailbox as IMAP-Idle disabled such that the electronic mailbox will not be connected to establish an IMAP-Idle connection.

2. The communications system according to claim 1, wherein if the IMAP-Idle manager determines that messages are found for which no notification was sent, the IMAP-Idle manager increases a fail count.

3. The communications system according to claim 2, wherein if the fail count exceeds a predetermined limit, said IMAP-Idle manager switches to polling the electronic mailbox and cease to use IMAP-Idle.

4. The communications system according to claim 1, wherein no IMAP-Idle connection can be made to an electronic mailbox when a connection limit has been reached.

5. The communications system according to claim 1, wherein if IMAP-Idle connection attempts to an electronic mailbox fail a predetermined number of times, said IMAP-Idle manager will not attempt to connect to an electronic mailbox using an IMAP-Idle connection.

6. The communications system according to claim 1, wherein said IMAP-Idle manager is operative for determining whether an IMAP-Idle connection has been dropped when a secondary connection was in progress such that an IMAP-Idle connection is disabled.

7. The communications system according to claim 6, wherein said secondary connection comprises a connection for email polling.

8. The communications system according to claim 1, wherein an email account is not subscribed in the future when an IMAP-Idle connection is disabled.

9. The communications system according to claim 1, wherein said IMAP-Idle manager is operative for issuing an IMAP fetch to check if new email was received.

10. A communications method, comprising:

communicating through a network engine and hardware processor with a mobile wireless communications device via a communications network for sending and receiving emails therefrom;

polling an electronic mailbox of a user at an email source from a direct access server;

retrieve email from the electronic mailbox;

push any email through the network engine to the mobile wireless communications device;

communicating with an email source over a communications channel and learn the Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) idle capabilities of the email source and establishing the IMAP-Idle connection in the communications channel;

verifying an IMAP-Idle command functionality on the communications channel before relying on the communications channel for new mail notifications by checking if any failures to deliver new mail notifications occur a predetermined number of times, and if so, ceasing to use the IMAP-Idle connection;

disabling the IMAP-Idle connections to the electronic mailbox when a connection limit is reached or exceeded to an electronic mailbox; and

marking the electronic mailbox as IMAP-Idle disabled such that the electronic mailbox will not be connected to establish an IMAP-Idle connection.

11. The method according to claim 10, and further comprising increasing a fail count when the IMAP-Idle manager determines that messages are found for which no notification was sent.

12. The method according to claim 11, and further comprising polling the electronic mailbox if the fail count exceeds a predetermined limit and ceasing to use IMAP-Idle.

13. The method according to claim 10, which further comprises not subscribing in the future to an email account when an IMAP-Idle connection is disabled.

14. The method according to claim 10, which further comprises determining whether an IMAP-Idle connection has been dropped when a secondary connection was in progress such that an IMAP-Idle connection is disabled.

15. The method according to claim 10, which further comprises issuing an IMAP fetch to check if new mail was received.

16. The method according to claim 10, which further comprises user subscribing to an IMAP-Idle enabled connection.