Automatic switching network points based on configuration profiles

• US 8,001,223 B2
• Filed: 08/14/2009
• Issued: 08/16/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: CA, Inc. (d/b/a CA Technologies) (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Symantec Corporation (NortonLifeLock Inc.)
• Inventors: Zhang, Yadong, Yeap, Yuen-Pin
• Primary Examiner(s): Pwu; Jeffrey
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sciacca; Scott M
• Application Number:
  US12/583,097
• Publication Number:
  US 20090313359A1
• Time in Patent Office: 732 Days
• Field of Search: 709/220, 709/221, 709/224
• US Class Current: 709/221
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/19 Connection re-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/22 Manipulation of transport tunnels
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]

Abstract

A method and apparatus to reconfigure parameters for establishing a link with a new host after a computer is moved to a new location or a new network.

Claims

1. A method for establishing communication between a wireless station and a network, the method comprising:

establishing a plurality of network profiles in a profile database of the wireless station comprising displaying a dialog box to a user, wherein the plurality of network profiles in the profile database is prioritized, wherein the user manually enters the network profiles into the profile database using the dialog box, wherein user entered data available to be entered by the user comprises an SSID, a mode of operation selected from either ad hoc or infrastructure, whether traffic should be scrambled for privacy, encapsulation or translation to be used to wrap the header, IP address, subnet mask, and DNS setting;

establishing a first link using a network profile of the network profiles;

periodically examining the first link for a need to establish a new second link;

determining that link quality of the first link indicates that the second link is needed; and

establishing the second link comprising;

selecting another network profile of the network profiles without requiring the user to manually select the another network, profile; and

reconfiguring parameters automatically in accordance with the another network profile.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the first link is established with a first access point device.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the second link is established with a second access point device.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the establishing the second link further comprises issuing a command to a driver of a wireless card of the wireless station to establish the second link, wherein upon establishing the second link, the second link is an established link and the first link is a previous link.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising periodically examining the established link for a need to establish a new link, the new link being different from the established link.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising pausing the periodic examination upon a determination that the link quality is good.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the periodic examination is paused for three seconds.

8. The method of claim 5 wherein the periodic examination is repeated once every three seconds.

9. The method of claim 5 further comprising determining whether an access point device used for the established link is a same access point device used for the previous link.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein upon a determination that the access point device used for the established link is not the same access point device used for the previous link, the method further comprising:

determining whether the TCP/IP setting for the access point device used for the established setting is static or dynamic.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein upon a determination that the TCP/IP setting is static, the method further comprising:

releasing a current IP; and

renewing the current IP.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein upon a determination that the TCP/IP setting is dynamic, the method further comprising:

releasing a current IP;

renewing the current IP; and

receiving and returning packets from and to a wireless card driver.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the user uses the dialog box to associate unique names to access point devices of the network profiles.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the user uses the dialog box to enable power saving mode.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein the user uses the dialog box to set transfer speeds for communicating with access point devices of the network profiles.

16. An apparatus comprising:

a processor;

a memory comprising program instructions, wherein execution of the program instructions by the processor generates a method comprising;

establishing a plurality of network profiles in a profile database comprising displaying a dialog box to a user, wherein the plurality of network profiles in the profile database is prioritized, wherein the user manually enters the network profiles into the profile database using the dialog box, wherein user entered data available to be entered by the user comprises an SSID, a mode of operation selected from either ad hoc or infrastructure, whether traffic should be scrambled for privacy, encapsulation or translation to be used to wrap the header, IP address, subnet mask, and DNS setting;

establishing a first link using a network profile of the network profiles;

periodically examining the first link for a need to establish a new second link;

determining that link quality of the first link indicates that the second link is needed; and

establishing the second link comprising;

selecting another network profile of the network profiles without requiring the user to manually select the another network profile; and

reconfiguring parameters automatically in accordance with the another network profile.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the establishing the second link, further comprises issuing a command to a driver of a wireless card to establish the second link, wherein upon establishing the second link, the second link is an established link and the first link is a previous link.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the method further comprises periodically examining the established link for a need to establish a new link, the new link being different from the established link.

19. The apparatus of claim 18 further comprising pausing the periodic examination for three seconds upon a determination that the link quality is good.

20. A computer program product comprising a nontransitory computer readable storage medium comprising computer code comprising:

a configuration module for establishing a plurality of network profiles in a profile database of the wireless station comprising displaying a dialog box to a user, wherein the plurality of network profiles in the profile database is prioritized, wherein the user manually enters the network profiles into the profile database using the dialog box, wherein user entered data available to be entered by the user comprises an SSID, a mode of operation selected from either ad hoc or infrastructure, whether traffic should be scrambled for privacy, encapsulation or translation to be used to wrap the header, IP address, subnet mask, and DNS setting;

the configuration module further for establishing a first link using a network profile of the network profiles;

the configuration module further for periodically examining the first link for a need to establish a new second link;

the configuration module further for determining that link quality of the first link indicates that the second link is needed; and

the configuration module further for establishing the second link comprising;

selecting another network profile of the network profiles without requiring the user to manually select the another network profile; and

reconfiguring parameters automatically in accordance with the another network profile.