Firewall providing enhanced network security and user transparency

• US 20050149747A1
• Filed: 11/07/2003
• Published: 07/07/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/1996
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Christopher D. Coley, Ralph E. Wesinger Jr
• Original Assignee: Christopher D. Coley, Ralph E. Wesinger Jr
• Inventors: Coley, Christopher D., Wesinger, Ralph E. Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 7,249,376 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/26
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 11/004 in blanks, e.g. sheets precut and creased for folding
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/42 using separate channels for security data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/027 involving a payment switch or gateway
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/677 Multiple interfaces, e.g. multihomed nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/25 of the same type
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/2514 between local and global IP addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/2521 Translation architectures other than single NAT servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/256 NAT traversal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/35 involving non-standard use of addresses for implementing network functionalities, e.g. coding subscription information within the address or functional addressing, i.e. assigning an address to a function
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4511 using domain name system [DNS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4552 Lookup mechanisms between a plurality of directories; Synchronisation of directories, e.g. metadirectories
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/02 for separating internal from external traffic, e.g. firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0227 Filtering policies mail message filtering H04L51/212
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0263 Rule management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0281 Proxies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0807 using tickets, e.g. Kerberos cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using tickets or tokens H04L9/3213
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/18 using different networks or channels, e.g. using out of band channels cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key distribution involving distinctive intermediate devices or communication paths H04L9/0827; cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for authentication using a plurality of channels H04L9/3215
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/16 Implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/164 Adaptation or special uses of UDP protocol
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 : Network security protocols

Abstract

The present invention provides a firewall that achieves maximum network security and maximum user convenience. The firewall employs “envoys” that exhibit the security robustness of prior-art proxies and the transparency and ease-of-use of prior-art packet filters, combining the best of both worlds. No traffic can pass through the firewall unless the firewall has established an envoy for that traffic. Both connection-oriented (e.g., TCP) and connectionless (e.g., UDP-based) services may be handled using envoys. Establishment of an envoy may be subjected to a myriad of tests to “qualify” the user, the requested communication, or both. Therefore, a high level of security may be achieved. The usual added burden of prior-art proxy systems is avoided in such a way as to achieve fall transparency-the user can use standard applications and need not even know of the existence of the firewall. To achieve full transparency, the firewall is configured as two or more sets of virtual hosts. The firewall is, therefore, “multi-homed,” each home being independently configurable. One set of hosts responds to addresses on a first network interface of the firewall. Another set of hosts responds to addresses on a second network interface of the firewall. In one aspect, programmable transparency is achieved by establishing DNS mappings between remote hosts to be accessed through one of the network interfaces and respective virtual hosts on that interface. In another aspect, automatic transparency may be achieved using code for dynamically mapping remote hosts to virtual hosts in accordance with a technique referred to herein as dynamic DNS, or DDNS.

Claims

1. A system for providing a software license over a computer network, the system comprising:

a computer network connection;

an association between user identifiers and IP addresses;

a license server, the license server having at least one webpage and being in communication with the association, the at least one webpage providing a software license to a client over a computer network, the client being in communication with the license server over the computer network connection.

2. A method for delivering content items over a network to a client within a service region, the method comprising:

storing content items with a plurality of file servers connected to the network and distributed within a service region;

on at least one main server, receiving and processing requests for content items from clients; and

directing clients to file servers to obtain requested content items in response to receiving and processing requests for content items on the at least one main server.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising determining whether a client is outside of a service region and denying access to requested content to clients outside of the service region.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising determining that a client is entitled access if the client is outside of a service region.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising counting a number of bytes transferred to the client.

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising detecting multiple instances of content items.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising determining if the detected multiple instances of contents violates a license.

8. The method of claim 2, further comprising the content item communicating with the main server when the content item is in use.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising the main server storing a time associated with communicating with the content item.

10. The method of claim 2, further comprising decrypting the content item if the content item is encrypted and associated with a region.

11. The method of claim 2, wherein the content item comprises a license, the method further comprising updating the license when the content item is accessed by a client.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising computing an identifier to uniquely identify each instance of the license.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising collecting information about when the content item was first created.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising collecting information about when the content item was last used.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising computing an association between a user identifier and a user'"'"'s Internet protocol (IP) address.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein a specified time period is associated with the software license, further comprising disabling the license if the specified time period associated with the software license has expired.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising automatically selling additional software licenses to a user.