PROVIDING NETWORK COMMUNICATIONS SATISFYING APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS USING VIRTUALIZATION

• US 20120014389A1
• Filed: 09/23/2011
• Published: 01/19/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/17/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Asset Recovery Associates, LLC
• Original Assignee: Dispersive Networks, Inc.
• Inventors: TWITCHELL, Robert W.
• Granted Patent: US 9,055,042 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/401
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/56 Packet switching systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/586 of virtual routers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/17 Interaction among intermediate nodes, e.g. hop by hop
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/06 Message adaptation to terminal or network requirements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/14 Multichannel or multilink protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/18 Multiprotocol handlers, e.g. single devices capable of handling multiple protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/22 Parsing or analysis of headers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/28 Timers or timing mechanisms used in protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/32 Architecture of open systems interconnection [OSI] 7-layer type protocol stacks, e.g. the interfaces between the data link level and the physical level
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/325 in the network layer [OSI layer 3], e.g. X.25 H04L69/16 takes precedence

Abstract

A method of providing network communications includes receiving, at a second device via a virtual network connection associated with virtual dispersive routing (VDR) software that virtualizes network capabilities of the second device, a packet communicated from a first device over a connection path comprising a plurality of other devices, the packet including a header and a payload, the payload including data appended thereto by one or more devices of the plurality of devices; and determining, at the second device by the VDR software, whether the connection path satisfies one or more requirements of an application running on the second device, the determination being based at least in part on the data appended to the payload by the one or more devices of the plurality of other devices.

Claims

1. A method of providing network communications, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving, at a second device via a virtual network connection associated with virtual dispersive routing (VDR) software that virtualizes network capabilities of the second device, a packet communicated from a first device over a connection path comprising a plurality of other devices, the packet including a header and a payload, the payload including data appended thereto by one or more devices of the plurality of devices; and

(b) determining, at the second device by the VDR software, whether the connection path satisfies one or more requirements of an application running on the second device, the determination being based at least in part on the data appended to the payload by the one or more devices of the plurality of other devices.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the data appended to the payload by the one or more devices of the plurality of other devices comprises an identification of each of the one or more devices.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises, prior to the step of receiving the packet, a step of spawning the virtual network connection that virtualizes network capabilities of the device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the packet was routed using the Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP), the Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP), the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), or the Constrained Shortest Path First (CSPF) protocol.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the application is a computer game.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the second device comprises a computer.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the computer includes a plurality of processing cores.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the second device is a mobile phone.

9. A method of providing network communications, comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving, at a second device via a virtual network connection that virtualizes network capabilities of the second device, a packet communicated from a first device over a first connection path comprising a plurality of other devices using a first routing protocol, the packet including a header and a payload, the payload including data appended thereto by one or more devices of the plurality of devices;

(b) determining, at the second device, that the first connection path does not satisfy one or more requirements of an application running on the second device, the determination being based at least in part on the data appended to the payload by the one or more devices of the plurality of devices;

(c) in response to the determining step, selecting a second routing protocol from among a plurality of available routing protocols for communicating data using virtualized network capabilities of the second device, the second routing protocol being different than the first routing protocol; and

(d) using the selected routing protocol, communicating data from the second device to the first device over a second connection path, the second connection path being different from the first connection path.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the data appended to the payload by the one or more devices of the plurality of other devices comprises an identification of each of the one or more devices.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises, prior to the step of receiving the packet, a step of spawning the virtual network connection that virtualizes network capabilities of the device.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the plurality of available routing protocols includes the Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP), the Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP), the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), and the Constrained Shortest Path First (CSPF) protocol.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the application is a computer game.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the second device comprises a computer.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the computer includes a plurality of processing cores.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the second device is a mobile phone.

17. The method of claim 9, wherein said step of determining, at the second device, that the first connection path does not satisfy one or more requirements of an application running on the second device comprises utilizing application-specific information to make such determination.

18. The method of claim 9, wherein the method further includes a step of determining that the received packet is associated with the application.

19. The method of claim 9, wherein the method further includes a step of using application-specific information to determine that the received packet is important to the application.

20. A device, comprising:

(a) a processor;

(b) one or more network adapters providing network capabilities; and

(c) one or more computer readable media containing computer executable instructions configured to;

(i) receive, at the device via a first virtual network connection that virtualizes network capabilities of the one or more network adapters of the device, a packet communicated from another device over a first connection path comprising a plurality of other devices using a first routing protocol, the packet including a header and a payload, the payload including data appended thereto by one or more devices of the plurality of other devices,

(ii) determine, at the device, whether the connection path satisfies one or more requirements of an application running on the device, the determination being based at least in part on the data appended to the payload by the one or more devices of the plurality of other devices,

(iii) thereafter, select a second routing protocol from among a plurality of available routing protocols for communicating data using virtualized network capabilities of the second device, the second routing protocol being different than the first routing protocol, and

(iv) using the selected routing protocol, communicating data from the second device to the first device, via a second virtual network connection, over a second connection path, the second connection path being different from the first connection path.