Connector gateway

• US 20050073982A1
• Filed: 10/07/2003
• Published: 04/07/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Accenture Global Services Limited (Accenture PLC)
• Original Assignee: Accenture Global Services GmbH (Accenture PLC)
• Inventors: Corneille, Kevin R., Sherwin, John D.
• Granted Patent: US 7,324,473 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 using domain name system [DNS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4523 using lightweight directory access protocol [LDAP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0227 Filtering policies mail message filtering H04L51/212
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/105 Multiple levels of security
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/63 Routing a service request depending on the request content or context
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/082 using revocation of authorisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/084 using delegated authorisation, e.g. open authorisation [OAuth] protocol
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/086 using security domains
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/088 using filters or firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 Gateway arrangements

Abstract

A connector gateway system that provides mobile devices with access to business services is disclosed. The connector gateway system comprises a mobile device that includes an application that is capable of generating a service request. The service request may be generated from the application and may include a DNS name that translates to an address on the connector gateway server. The connector gateway server performs a lookup operation to determine the business server associated with the service request. The connector gateway server creates a data filter that drives an emulation between the mobile device and the business server to pump data between the mobile device and the business server.

Claims

1. A connector gateway system that provides mobile devices with access to business services, comprising:

a mobile device including an application that is capable of generating a service request;

a wireless access network connected with the mobile device;

a connector gateway server connected with the wireless access network;

at least one business server connected with the connector gateway server;

where the service request generated from the application includes a DNS name that translates to an address on the connector gateway server;

where the connector gateway server performs a lookup operation to determine the business server associated with the service request;

where the connector gateway authenticates that a user is a valid user of the requested service, where the connector gateway server creates a data filter that drives an emulation between the mobile device and the business server to pump data between the mobile device and the business server.

2. The connector gateway of claim 1, where the connector gateway is able to track usage data down to the specific business server being accessed and save it in a data file.

3. The connector gateway system of claim 1, where the lookup operation comprises accessing a connector table that defines a connector that is configured on the connector gateway server.

4. The connector gateway system of claim 3, where the connector maps to a unique IP address and a port that corresponds to a service type associated with the application.

5. The connector gateway system of claim 4, where the connector gateway server creates a listening socket for the service type to be used by the mobile device and the business server.

6. The connector gateway system of claim 1, where the connector gateway server creates a session filter that allows firewall events to be received and processed by the connector gateway server in response to the service request.

7. The connector gateway system of claim 1, where the connector gateway server locates a session filter that allows firewall events to be received and processed by the connector gateway server in response to the service request.

8. The connector gateway system of claim 1, where the data filter uses an external socket on the connector gateway server and an internal socket on the business server to implement a socket interface between the connector gateway server and the business server.

9. The connector gateway system of claim 8, where the external socket is spawned by an application filter object of the application when an external connection is accepted by the connector gateway server.

10. The connector gateway system of claim 8, where the internal socket on the business server is accessed by the connector gateway server through a gateway controlled connection object.

11. The connector gateway system of claim 1, where an external connection is created on the connector gateway server in response to the service request that will prompt a remote bind to be emulated to an appropriate business server.

12. The connector gateway system of claim 1, where access is controlled to the business server by using a provisioning table to determine if the mobile device has access to the business server.

13. The connector gateway system of claim 1, where user access/authorization is accomplished through an LDAP lookup.

14. The connector gateway system of claim 1, where a logging module logs all user traffic in a text file.

15. A method of providing mobile devices with access to business servers, comprising the steps of:

generating a connection request for a connector type that is associated with an application with a mobile device;

transmitting the connection request to a connector gateway server;

determining if the mobile device has access to the connector type;

determining a business server associated with the connector type; and

emulating a connection between the mobile device and the business server using the connector gateway server.

16. The method of claim 15, where the connector type maps to a unique IP and port combination that corresponds to a respective business server.

17. The method of claim 15, where determining the business server associated with the connector type further includes the step of performing a lookup operation with the connector gateway server.

18. The method of claim 17, where the lookup operation maps a unique IP address and a port that corresponds to the connector type.

19. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of creating a listening socket for the connector type to be used by the mobile device and the business server.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of creating a session filter that allows firewall events to be received and processed by the connector gateway server.

21. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of locating a session filter that allows firewall events to be received and processed by the connector gateway server.

22. The method of claim 15, where a data filter uses an external socket on the connector gateway server and an internal socket on the business server to emulate the connection between the mobile device and the business server.

23. A computer program embodied on a computer readable medium for provisioning mobile services in a plurality of mobile devices, comprising:

a code segment that generates a connection request for a connector type for an application located on a mobile device;

a code segment that transmits the connection request to a connector gateway server;

a code segment that determines if the mobile device has access to the connector type;

a code segment that determines a business server associated with the connector type; and

a code segment that emulates a connection between the mobile device and the business server using the connector gateway server.

24. The computer program of claim 23, where the business server is determined by querying a session table using a source IP address contained in the connection request to obtain a mobile identification number.

25. The computer program of claim 24, where a server table is queried using the mobile identification number and the connector type to get a service identification.

26. The computer program of claim 25, where the server table is queried using the service identification to get a business server IP address.

27. A method of providing mobile devices with access to business servers, comprising the steps of:

reading a connector table to create an external listening socket for at least one service type on a connector gateway server;

authenticating that a user has the appropriate access permissions for the requested service type;

receiving a connection request from the mobile device on a listening socket on the connector gateway server;

creating a copy of the external listening socket for the connection request on the connector gateway server;

determining the business server associated with the connection request;

initiating a session filter for the business server;

creating a data filter to drive an emulation between the at least one mobile device and the server; and

emulating a connection between the at least one mobile device and the server on the connector gateway server by pumping data between the at least one mobile device and the server.

28. The method of claim 27, where the server associated with the connection request is determined by querying a session table using a source IP to get a mobile identification number, where the mobile identification number and the service type are used to query the session table to obtain a service ID, and where the service table is queried using the service ID to obtain a remote server IP address.