Method and device for transparent interception of socket connections

• US 8,914,480 B1
• Filed: 04/21/2008
• Issued: 12/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/15/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Collins Government Systems Incorporated
• Original Assignee: 6020356 Canada Inc.
• Inventors: Jones, Peter Frederico, Jorgenson, Mark Brady, Johnson, Robert William, Bova, William Michael, Hayhoe, Erin Irene
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Dhairya A
• Application Number:
  US12/148,565
• Time in Patent Office: 2,430 Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/04 Processing captured monitoring data, e.g. for logfile generation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]

Abstract

A method and device is provided for managing data transmission on a network. The device includes Transparent Interceptor for transparently intercepting socket connections from first parties to one or more second parties. A signal socket connection is established to each second party. When one or more first parties request a data stream to a second party, the device distributes the data stream obtained from the second party through the single socket connection to one or more first parties. Data processor of the device may operate on data contents from the first or second party. A customized protocol may be used for the data transmission.

Claims

1. A method of managing network traffic over a network connection between a client and a server, the network connection including a plurality of segments, the method comprising the steps of:

intercepting a client packet transmission from the client addressed to the server at a client interconnect point, the client interconnect point and the client defining a first segment of the plurality of segments;

the first segment using a first communication protocol;

the client interconnect point being located before a second segment of the plurality of segments, the client interconnect point accessing packets in the client packet transmission;

replacing the packets in the client packet transmission into a second communication protocol at the client interconnect point;

forwarding the client packet transmission from the client interconnect point through the second segment to a server interconnect point using the second communication protocol, the server interconnect point and the server defining a third segment of the plurality of segments;

replacing the packets in the client packet transmission into the first communication protocol at the server interconnect point; and

transmitting the client packet transmission from the server interconnect point to the server through the third segment using the first communication protocol;

wherein the client interconnect point includes a terminator server having a terminator server address;

wherein the server interconnect point includes a regenerator client having a regenerator client address;

wherein the client packet transmission comprise data packets, the data packets having a source address identifying the client and a destination address identifying the server;

wherein the step of intercepting a client packet transmission comprises the step of;

re-addressing at the client interconnect point the data packets resulting in the destination address being the terminator server address.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

intercepting a server packet transmission from the server addressed to the client at the server interconnect point;

forwarding the server packet transmission from the server interconnect point through the second segment to the client interconnect point using the second communication protocol; and

transmitting the server packet transmission from the client interconnect point to the client through the first segment using the first communication protocol.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the client interconnect point includes a terminator server having a terminator server address;

wherein the server interconnect point includes a regenerator client having a regenerator client address;

wherein the server packet transmission comprise data packets, the data packets having a source address identifying the server and a destination address identifying the client;

wherein the step of intercepting a server packet transmission further comprise the step of;

re-addressing at the server interconnect point the data packets resulting in the destination address being the regenerator client address.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the step of transmitting the server packet transmission further comprise the step of:

re-addressing at the client interconnect point the data packets resulting in the source address being the address of the server.

5. The method as claimed in claim 2, further comprising the step of identifying server packets of the server packet transmission by examining:

a source address of the server packets;

a destination address of the server packets; and

a communication protocol used for sending the server packets.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first communication protocol is connection-oriented.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second communication protocol is connection-less.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second communication protocol is a proprietary protocol.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second segment is a disadvantaged segment.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first communication protocol is TCP.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second communication protocol is UDP.

12. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of transmitting the client packet transmission further comprise the step of:

re-addressing at the server interconnect point the data packets resulting in the source address being the address of the client.

13. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the client interconnect point or the server interconnect point is transparent to the client or the server.

14. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the step of identifying a client packet of the client packet transmission by examining:

a source address of the client packet;

a destination address of the client packet; and

a communication protocol used for sending the client packet.

15. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the data packets of the client packet transmission are selected from the group consisting of:

a connection request packet, a client data packet, a client ACK, a client NACK, and a client control packet; and

the data packets of the server packet transmission are selected from the group consisting of;

a connection response packet, a server data packet, a server ACK, a server NACK; and

a server control packet.

16. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising the step of:

storing packet transmission information, the packet transmission information including at least one selected from a group consisting of;

an address of the client, a destination port of the client, an address of the server, and a destination port of the server.

17. A system for managing network traffic over a network connection between a client and a server, the network connection including a plurality of segments, the system comprising:

a computer processor;

a client interconnect point intercepting a client packet transmission from the client addressed to the server, the client interconnect point and the client defining a first segment of the plurality of segments;

the first segment using a first communication protocol;

the client interconnect point being located before a second segment of the plurality of segments, the client interconnect point accessing packets in the client packet transmission, replacing the packets in the client packet transmission into a second communication protocol and forwarding the client packet transmission;

the client interconnect point including a terminator server having a terminator server address;

the client interconnect point re-addressing the data packets resulting in the destination address being the terminator server address;

a server interconnect point for receiving the client packet transmission from the client interconnect point through the second segment using the second communication protocol, replacing the packets in the client packet transmission into the first communication protocol and forwarding the client packet transmission to the server through a third segment defined by the server interconnect point and the server;

the server interconnect point including a regenerator client having a regenerator client address;

wherein the client packet transmission comprise data packets, the data packets having a source address identifying the client and a destination address identifying the server.

18. The system as claimed in claim 17, wherein the server interconnect point

intercepts a server packet transmission from the server addressed to the client forwards the server packet transmission through the second segment to the client interconnect point using the second communication protocol;

and

wherein the client interconnect point transmits the server packet transmission to the client through the first segment using the first communication protocol.

19. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium readable by a computer encoding a computer program for execution by the computer to carry out a method of managing network traffic over a network connection between a client and a server, the network connection including a plurality of segments, the computer program comprising:

code means for intercepting a client packet transmission from the client addressed to the server at a client interconnect point, the client interconnect point and the client defining a first segment of the plurality of segments;

the first segment using a first communication protocol;

the client interconnect point being located before a second segment of the plurality of segments, the client interconnect point accessing packets in the client packet transmission;

wherein the client interconnect point includes a terminator server having a terminator server address;

wherein the server interconnect point includes a regenerator client having a regenerator client address;

wherein the client packet transmission comprise data packets, the data packets having a source address identifying the client and a destination address identifying the server;

code means for re-addressing at the client interconnect point the data packets resulting in the destination address being the terminator server address;

code means for replacing the packets in the client packet transmission into a second communication protocol at the client interconnect point;

code means for forwarding the client packet transmission from the client interconnect point through the second segment to a server interconnect point using a second communication protocol, the server interconnect point and the server defining a third segment of the plurality of segments;

code means for replacing the packets in the client packet transmission into the first communication protocol at the server interconnect point; and

code means for transmitting the client packet transmission from the server interconnect point to the server through the third segment using the first communication protocol.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium as claimed in claim 19, further comprising:

code means for intercepting a server packet transmission from the server addressed to the client at the server interconnect point;

code means for forwarding the server packet transmission from the server interconnect point through the second segment to the client interconnect point using the second communication protocol; and

code means for transmitting the server packet transmission from the client interconnect point to the client through the first segment using the first communication protocol.