Method, system and apparatus for configuring a device for interaction with a server

• US 9,178,947 B2
• Filed: 06/10/2010
• Issued: 11/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: O'Reilly, Jacob Samuel, Proudfoot, Ryan Brock
• Primary Examiner(s): SALAD, ABDULLAHI ELMI
• Application Number:
  US12/813,261
• Publication Number:
  US 20110219132A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,972 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/563 Data redirection of data network streams

Abstract

A method to a method, system and apparatus for configuring a device for interaction with a server is provided. An intermediation infrastructure mediates registration traffic between any of a plurality of application servers hosting a server-side application and any of a plurality of computing devices executing a client-side application that corresponds to the server-side application. The intermediation infrastructure receives account registration information, including an account identifier and a server identifier, from an application server that is hosting an account. Any one of the computing devices can access the intermediation infrastructure using the account identifier and thereby determine the server identifier and thereafter direct communications with the application server can be effected.

Claims

1. A method for configuring a computing device for interaction with a server, the method comprising:

receiving an account identifier at the computing device, the account identifier corresponding to a single one of a plurality of accounts maintained by an application hosted on one of a plurality of application servers;

retrieving a preconfigured registration server address identifying a registration server from a memory of the computing device;

sending a first request including the account identifier to the registration server;

receiving an application server identifier based on a matching of the account identifier to a further account identifier paired with the application server identifier maintained by the registration server;

locating an application server based on the application server identifier;

establishing communication between the computing device and the application server; and

sending a second request, including the account identifier to the application server, for accessing the single one of the plurality of accounts from the computing device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the account identifier is associated with a client-side application executable on the computing device, the client-side application corresponding to the server application.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the sending the account identifier to the registration server includes sending the account identifier to the registration server via a mediation server and a gateway.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the establishing communication includes establishing communication between the client-side application and the server application.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the account identifier corresponds with credentials of the account.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the application server identifier corresponds with a network address of the application server.

7. The method of claim 6 comprising:

prior to the receiving the account identifier, creating the account, at the application server;

sending the application server identifier and the account identifier from the application server to the registration server.

8. The method of claim 7 comprising:

receiving the application server identifier and the account identifier at the registration server, from the application server; and

storing the application server identifier and the account identifier at the registration server.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein the client-side application includes a social networking client application and the server-side application includes a social networking server application.

10. The method of claim 6 wherein the client-side application includes an email client application and the server-side application includes an email server application.

11. A computing device comprising:

a memory interconnected with a processor;

the processor configured to receive an account identifier, the account identifier corresponding to a single one of a plurality of accounts maintained by an application hosted on one of a plurality of application servers;

the processor configured to retrieve a preconfigured registration server address identifying a registration server from the memory;

the processor further configured to send a first request including the account identifier to the registration server;

the processor further configured to receive an application server identifier from the registration server based on a matching of the account identifier to a further account identifier paired with the application server identifier maintained by the registration server;

the processor further configured to locate an application server based on the application server identifier;

the processor further configured to establish communication between the computing device and the application server; and

the processor further configured to send a second request including the account identifier to the application server, to access the single one of the plurality of accounts from computing device.

12. The computing device of claim 11 wherein the account identifier is associated with a client-side application executable on the computing device, the client-side application corresponding to the server application.

13. The computing device of claim 12 wherein the send the account identifier to the registration server includes send the account identifier to the registration server via a mediation server and a gateway.

14. The computing device of claim 13, the processor configured to establish communication by establishing communication between the client-side application and the server application.

15. The computing device of claim 14 wherein the account identifier corresponds with credentials of the account.

16. The computing device of claim 15 wherein the application server identifier corresponds with a network address of the application server.

17. The computing device of claim 16 wherein the client-side application includes an email client application and the server-side application includes an email server application.

18. A registration server, comprising:

A network interface for connecting the registration server to a computing device and a plurality of application servers;

a memory; and

a processor configured to;

receive, via the network interface from one of the application servers, a first account identifier corresponding to a single one of a plurality of accounts maintained by a single server application hosted on the one application server;

pair the account identifier with an application server identifier identifying the one application server;

store the paired identifiers in a record in the memory;

subsequent to the storing, receive a second account identifier from the computing device;

determine whether the second account identifier matches the first account identifier;

when the determination is affirmative, retrieve the application server identifier paired with the first account identifier in the memory; and

send the application server identifier to the computing device.

19. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having a computer-readable program code executable by a computing device to implement a method to configure the computing device for interaction with a server, the method comprising:

receiving an account identifier at the computing device, the account identifier corresponding to a single one of a plurality of accounts maintained by an application hosted on one of a plurality of application servers;

retrieving a preconfigured registration server address identifying a registration server from a memory of the computing device;

sending a first request including the account identifier to the registration server;

receiving an application server identifier, at the computing device, based on a matching of the account identifier to a further account identifier paired with the application server identifier maintained by the registration server;

locating an application server based on the application server identifier;

establishing communication between the computing device and the application server; and

sending a second request including the account identifier to the application server for accessing the single one of the plurality of accounts from the computing device.