System and method for provisioning an email account using mail exchange records

• US 20070073818A1
• Filed: 09/29/2005
• Published: 03/29/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: TeamOn Systems Incorporated (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: Gorty, Suryanarayana, McCarthy, Steven, Gardner, Darren
• Granted Patent: US 8,078,681 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

A system provisions an electronic mail (email) account of a user for allowing access to an electronic mailbox from a remote device to retrieve email. A communications module receives email address parameters of the user and transmits a domain name system (DNS) query to the Internet for returning mail exchange (MX) records corresponding to the email address parameters of the user. A configuration module processes any returned MX records as a starting point for determining configuration parameters for accessing the email account of the user to retrieve user email.

Claims

1. A system for provisioning an electronic mail (email) account of a user for allowing access to an electronic mailbox from a remote device to retrieve email comprising:

a communications module that receives email address parameters of the user and transmits a domain name system (DNS) query to the Internet for returning mail exchange (MX) records corresponding to the email address parameters of the user; and

a configuration module that processes any returned MX records as a starting point for determining configuration parameters for accessing the email account of the user to retrieve user email.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein said configuration module is operative for determining from the MX records a mail exchange server for an email domain name from which email is routed for the user email account.

3. A system according to claim 1, wherein said communications module is operative for receiving a password from the user and attempting access to the user email account using any determined configuration parameters.

4. A system according to claim 1, wherein said configuration module is operative for obtaining from the MX records a prioritized list of possible mail servers to which the user email account is to be accessed and attempting access to an email account based on priority.

5. A system according to claim 1, wherein said configuration parameters comprise one of at least a mail host, port, log-in name or password.

6. A system according to claim 1, wherein said configuration module is operative for generating a subset of possible configuration parameters by using heuristics of likelihood that a set of configuration parameters would be valid for accessing an electronic mailbox.

7. A system according to claim 6, and further comprising a database containing relevant configuration conventions that are sets of email expressions formed by symbols that symbolically represent the conventions used by email service providers for a set of configuration parameters, wherein said configuration module is operative for generating sets of possible configuration parameters that can be tried for accessing an electronic mailbox of a user.

8. A system according to claim 1, and further comprising a mobile office platform on which said communications module and configuration module are operative and having a direct access proxy used for accessing an electronic mailbox.

9. A method of provisioning an electronic mail (email) account of a user for allowing access to an electronic mailbox from a remote device to retrieve email, which comprises:

receiving email address parameters entered by a user;

transmitting a domain name system (DNS) query to the Internet and returning the mail exchange (MX) records corresponding to the email address parameters entered by the user; and

using the MX records as a starting point for determining configuration parameters for accessing the email account of the user.

10. A method according to claim 9, which further comprises determining from the MX records a mail exchange server for an email domain name from which email is routed for the user email account.

11. A method according to claim 9, which further comprises receiving a password from the user and attempting access to the user email account using any determined configuration parameters and the received password.

12. A method according to claim 9, which further comprises obtaining from the MX records a prioritized list of possible mail servers to which the user email account is to be accessed and attempting access to an email account based on priority.

13. A method according to claim 9, which further comprises determining one of at least a mail host, port, login name or password.

14. A method according to claim 9, which further comprises generating a subset of possible configuration parameters by using heuristics of likelihood that a set of configuration parameters would be valid for accessing an electronic mailbox.

15. A method according to claim 14, which further comprises retrieving from a database relevant configuration conventions that are sets of email expressions formed by symbols that symbolically represent the conventions used by email service providers for a set of configuration parameters, and generating sets of possible configuration parameters that can be tried for accessing an electronic mailbox of a user.

16. A method according to claim 9, which further comprises determining configuration parameters and accessing an electronic mailbox through a mobile office platform having a direct access proxy.

17. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for executing instructions, which comprises:

receiving email address parameters entered by a user;

transmitting a domain name system (DNS) query to the Internet and returning the mail exchange (MX) records corresponding to the email address parameters entered by the user; and

using the MX records as a starting point for determining configuration parameters for accessing the email account of the user.

18. A computer-readable medium according to claim 17, wherein said computer-executable instructions are operative for determining from the MX records a mail exchange server for an email domain name from which email is routed for the user email account.

19. A computer-readable medium according to claim 17, wherein said computer-executable instructions are operative for obtaining from the MX records a prioritized list of possible mail servers to which the user email account is to be accessed and attempting access to an email account based on priority.

20. A computer-readable medium according to claim 17, wherein said computer-executable instructions are operative generating a subset of possible configuration parameters by using heuristics of likelihood that a set of configuration parameters would be valid for accessing an electronic mailbox.

21. A computer-readable medium according to claim 20, wherein said computer-executable instructions are operative for retrieving from a database relevant configuration conventions that are sets of email expressions formed by symbols that symbolically represent the conventions used by email service providers for a set of configuration parameters, and generating sets of possible configuration parameters that can be tried for accessing an electronic mailbox of a user.