Enforcement of user level policies from visited networks in a mobile IP environment

• US 7,944,875 B1
• Filed: 03/06/2007
• Issued: 05/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Leung, Kent, Panda, Biswaranjan, Iyer, Jayaraman, Stammers, Timothy P., Yegani, Parviz
• Primary Examiner(s): Zewdu; Meless N
• Application Number:
  US11/682,817
• Time in Patent Office: 1,533 Days
• Field of Search: 370/310, 370328-329, 370/331, 370/338, 370/341, 370/395.43, 370/395.5, 370/395.52, 370/230, 370/349, 370/395.2, 370/395.21, 370/395.3, 455/406, 455407-408, 455410-411, 455418-420, 4554321-4323, 455433-434, 455/439, 455/450, 455/509, 455/550.1, 455/552.1, 455/556.2, 455560-561, 455/415, 455/422.1, 4554351-4352, 455/436, 455/453, 455/456.3, 455/466, 455512-514, 455/517, 726 1- 7, 726/14, 709/218, 709/226, 709/228
• US Class Current: 370/328
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/14 Charging , metering or billing arrangements for data wireline or wireless communications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1403 Architecture for metering, charging or billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0893 Assignment of logical groups to network elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0894 Policy-based network configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5029 Service quality level-based billing, e.g. dependent on measured service level customer is charged more or less
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5061 characterised by the interaction between service providers and their network customers, e.g. customer relationship management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/50 using label swapping, e.g. multi-protocol label switch [MPLS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/10 Flow control; Congestion control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/15 in relation to multipoint traffic arrangements for broadcast or multicast in data networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/70 Admission control; Resource allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/724 at intermediate nodes, e.g. resource reservation protocol [RSVP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/805 QOS or priority aware
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/824 Applicable to portable or mobile terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5014 using dynamic host configuration protocol [DHCP] or bootstrap protocol [BOOTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0892 by using authentication-authorization-accounting [AAA] servers or protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/162 at the data link layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1016 IP multimedia subsystem [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1104 : Session initiation protocol [SIP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/141 : Setup of application sessions admission control or resource allocation in data switching networks H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/14 : Multichannel or multilink protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/24 : Negotiation of communication capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 : Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 : Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/18 : Negotiating wireless communication parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0033 : with transfer of context information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/12 : Reselecting a serving backbone network switching or routing node
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/14 : Reselecting a network or an air interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/14 : using user query or user detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/00 : Affiliation to network, e.g. registration; Terminating affiliation with the network, e.g. de-registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 : Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/26 : Network addressing or numbering for mobility support
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 : Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/10 : adapted for application session management, e.g. SIP [Session Initiation Protocol] connection management H04W76/00; arrangements for session management H04L67/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/02 : Inter-networking arrangements

Abstract

In one embodiment, a system for providing mobile Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity includes a memory and a processor. The memory stores one or more user level policies associated with an access terminal. The processor establishes a mobile IP connection with the access terminal. The processor receives the user level policies from a home IP gateway of the access terminal, and applies the user level policies to the mobile IP connection.

Claims

1. A system for providing mobile Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity, comprising:

a memory configured to store a plurality of user level policies associated with an access terminal; and

a processor of a visited bearer manager, the processor in communication with the memory and configured to;

establish a mobile IP connection with the access terminal;

receive at the visited bearer manager the user level policies in a skippable mobile IP extension of a control message sent from a home bearer manager in response to registering a care-of address of the access terminal, the mobile IP extension comprising a user level policies field communicating one or more policy identifiers corresponding to the user level policies;

skip a user level policy of the user level policies that is not recognizable; and

apply user level policies that are recognizable to the mobile IP connection.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to receive the user level policies in a standard mobile IP extension.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further operable to receive the user level policies in a vendor-specific mobile IP extension.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the user level policies are selected from the group consisting of a quality of service policy, a security policy, an accounting policy, a mobility policy, a charging policy, and a packet inspection policy.

5. A method for providing mobile Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity from a foreign network, comprising:

establishing a mobile IP connection with an access terminal;

receiving, at a visited bearer manager, a plurality of user level policies in a skippable mobile IP extension of a control message sent from a home bearer manager in response to registering a care-of address of the access terminal, the mobile IP extension comprising a user level policies field communicating one or more policy identifiers corresponding to the user level policies;

skipping a user level policy of the user level policies that is not recognizable; and

applying user level policies that are recognizable to the mobile IP connection.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein receiving the user level policies further comprises:

receiving the user level policies in a standard mobile IP extension.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein receiving the user level policies further comprises:

receiving the user level policies in a vendor-specific mobile IP extension.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein receiving the user level policies further comprises:

receiving the user level policies in a skippable mobile IP extension.

9. The method of claim 5, wherein the user level policies are selected from a group consisting of a quality of service policy, a security policy, an accounting policy, a mobility policy, a charging policy, and a packet inspection policy.

10. A logic for providing mobile Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity from a foreign network, the logic embodied in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and configured to:

establish a mobile IP connection with an access terminal;

receive, at a visited bearer manager, a plurality of user level policies in a skippable mobile IP extension of a control message sent from a home bearer manager in response to registering a care-of address of the access terminal, the mobile IP extension comprising a user level policies field communicating one or more policy identifiers corresponding to the user level policies;

skip a user level policy of the user level policies that is not recognizable; and

apply user level policies that are recognizable to the mobile IP connection.

11. The logic of claim 10, wherein the logic is further configured to receive the user level policies in a standard mobile IP extension.

12. The logic of claim 10, wherein the logic is further configured to receive the user level policies in a vendor-specific mobile IP extension.

13. The logic of claim 10, wherein the logic is further configured to receive the user level policies in a skippable mobile IP extension.

14. The logic of claim 10, wherein the user level policies are selected from a group consisting of a quality of service policy, a security policy, an accounting policy, a mobility policy, a charging policy, and a packet inspection policy.

15. A system for providing mobile Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity, comprising:

means for establishing a mobile IP connection with an access terminal;

means for receiving a plurality of user level policies in a skippable mobile IP extension of a control message sent from a home bearer manager in response to registering a care-of address of the access terminal, the mobile IP extension comprising a user level policies field communicating one or more policy identifiers corresponding to the user level policies;

means for skipping a user level policy of the user level policies that is not recognizable; and

means for applying user level policies that are recognizable to the mobile IP connection.