Facility for distributing and providing access to electronic mail message attachments
First Claim
1. In a data processing environment having a first device and a second device, a method comprising the steps of:
- receiving an electronic mail message for a recipient at the first device;
wherein said electronic mail message includes text and an attachment;
removing the attachment from the electronic mail message at the first device and storing the attachment on the first device;
controlling access to the stored attachment for authorized recipients of the attachment including providing access to the attachment only to user identifications on an access control list;
sending the text of the electronic mail message from the first device to the recipient at the second device; and
transmitting the stored attachment to the recipient only if the recipient corresponds to one of the user identifications on the access control list.
7 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A facility stores attachments for electronic mail messages so that the messages may be transmitted to the intended recipients without the attachments. The recipients may then review and/or download the attachments by contacting the facility. This facility is especially useful in instances wherein the attachments are large. The facility eliminates the need to store multiple copies of the attachment throughout a system; thus consuming a great deal of memory space. In addition, the facility prevents the recipient from extensive delays that are often associated with downloading email messages that contain large attachments via a dial-up connection with a low transmission rate. The facility may be realized as a server and may be a web server so as to provide access to the attachments via an IP network.
320 Citations
67 Claims
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1. In a data processing environment having a first device and a second device, a method comprising the steps of:
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receiving an electronic mail message for a recipient at the first device;
wherein said electronic mail message includes text and an attachment;
removing the attachment from the electronic mail message at the first device and storing the attachment on the first device;
controlling access to the stored attachment for authorized recipients of the attachment including providing access to the attachment only to user identifications on an access control list;
sending the text of the electronic mail message from the first device to the recipient at the second device; and
transmitting the stored attachment to the recipient only if the recipient corresponds to one of the user identifications on the access control list. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. In a system having an electronic mail service that permits the transfer of electronic mail messages with a first computer system and a second computer system, a method comprising the steps of:
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storing an attachment for an electronic mail message on the first computer system;
controlling access to the stored attachment for authorized recipients of the attachment including providing access to the attachment only to user identifications on an access control list;
sending the electronic mail message without the attachment from a sender to at least one recipient on the second computer system; and
enabling the recipient to remotely access the attachment on the first computer system from the second computer system only if the recipient corresponds to one of the user identifications on the access control list. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. In a system having a first device, a second device, a web server and an electronic mail service for transferring electronic mail messages, a method, comprising the steps of:
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generating an electronic mail message from a sender to a recipient at the first device, wherein the electronic mail message includes a textual portion and an attachment;
storing the attachment on the web server;
controlling access to the stored attachment for authorized recipients of the attachment including providing access to the attachment only to user identifications on an access control list;
adding a notification of the attachment into the electronic mail message at the web server;
sending the textual portion of the electronic mail message along with the notification from the server to the sender at the second device; and
facilitating access by the recipient to the attachment on the web server only if the recipient corresponds to one of the user identifications on the access control list. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30, 31)
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32. In a system having a first computer, an electronic mail server and a second computer, wherein the second computer is a client of the electronic mail server, a method comprising the steps of:
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sending an email from the first computer toward the second computer, wherein said email includes both text and an attachment;
receiving the email at the electronic mail server;
stripping the attachment off the email and storing it at the electronic mail server;
controlling access to the stored attachment for authorized recipients of the attachment including providing access to the attachment only to user identifications on an access control list;
forwarding the text of the email from the electronic mail server to the second computer; and
providing the second computer with access to the attachment on the electronic mail server only if the recipient corresponds to one of the user identifications on the access control list. - View Dependent Claims (33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48)
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38. In a data processing environment having a first device and a second device, a computer-readable medium holding computer-executable instructions for performing a method comprising the steps of:
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receiving an electronic mail message for a recipient at the first device, wherein said electronic mail message includes text and an attachment;
removing the attachment from the electronic mail message at the first device and storing the attachment on the first device;
controlling access to the stored attachment for authorized recipients of the attachment including providing access to the attachment only to user identifications on an access control list;
sending the text of the electronic mail message from the first device to the recipient at the second device; and
transmitting the stored attachment to the recipient only if the recipient corresponds to one of the user identifications on the access control list. - View Dependent Claims (49, 50)
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51. In a system having an electronic mail service that permits the transfer of electronic mail messages with a first computer system and a second computer system, a computer-readable medium holding computer-executable instructions for performing a method comprising the steps of:
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storing an attachment for an electronic mail message on the first computer system;
controlling access to the stored attachment for authorized recipients of the attachment including providing access to the attachment only to user identifications on an access control list;
sending the electronic mail message without the attachment from a sender to at least one recipient on the second computer system; and
enabling the recipient to remotely access the attachment on the first computer system from the second computer system only if the recipient corresponds to one of the user identifications on the access control list. - View Dependent Claims (52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63)
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58. A server computer system, comprising:
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a detector for detecting that an email to a client includes an attachment;
a stripper for stripping the attachment from the email;
a storage for storing the attachment that has been stripped from the email; and
an interface for enabling the client to access the server computer system based on access control options, wherein the server computer system provides controlled access to the stored attachment for authorized recipients of the attachment including providing access to the attachment only to user identifications on an access control list and transmitting the stored attachment to the recipient only if the recipient corresponds to one of the user identifications on the access control list.
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64. A method of providing electronic mail, the method comprising:
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detaching an attachment from an electronic mail message;
transmitting the electronic mail message without the attachment to a user; and
controlling access to the stored attachment for authorized recipients of the attachment including providing access to the attachment only to user identifications on an access control list; and
transmitting the stored attachment to the recipient only if the recipient corresponds to one of the user identifications on the access control list. - View Dependent Claims (65, 66, 67)
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Specification