System and method for maintaining connectivity to remote application servers

• US 8,892,928 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2013
• Issued: 11/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Maciocco, Christian, Gobriel, Sameh, Fleming, Kristoffer, Prat, Gideon, Tai, Tsung-Yuan Charlie
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, VINCENT HUY
• Application Number:
  US13/779,862
• Publication Number:
  US 20130198547A1
• Time in Patent Office: 628 Days
• Field of Search: 713/150, 713/300, 713/320, 713/323, 713/324
• US Class Current: 713/323
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3209 Monitoring remote activity, e.g. over telephone lines or network connections
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3234 Power saving characterised by the action undertaken
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3287 by switching off individual functional units in the computer system
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/12 Arrangements for remote connection or disconnection of substations or of equipment thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/145 avoiding end of session, e.g. keep-alive, heartbeats, resumption message or wake-up for inactive or interrupted session
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0206 in access points, e.g. base stations access point devices per se H04W88/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/25 Maintenance of established connections
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A system and method for maintaining connectivity between a host system running an Always-On-Always-Connected (AOAC) application and an associated remote application server. The system further includes circuitry configured to establish a communication link between the host system and the remote application server. The circuitry is configured periodically transmit keep-alive messages to the remote application server after the host system transitions to and remains in a low-power state. The keep-alive messages are configured to maintain connectivity and presence of the AOAC application with the remote application server while the host system is in the low-power state.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

establishing a communication link between a host system executing an Always-On-Always-Connected (AOAC) application and a remote application server associated with said AOAC application;

receiving an indication to transition a host system from a first power state to a low-power state;

initiating the generation of a plurality of keep-alive messages associated with said AOAC application;

generating a general keep-alive message and a list of security tokens;

transitioning said host system from said first power state to said low-power state;

assembling said general keep-alive message with a respective one of said security tokens from said list to generate said keep-alive message after said host system transitions to said low-power state; and

periodically transmitting said keep-alive messages from circuitry to said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state, said keep-alive messages configured to maintain connectivity and presence of said AOAC application with said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing a portion of said keep-alive messages in memory accessible to said circuitry while said host system remains in said low-power state.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transitioning said host system from said low-power state to a second power state when a remaining number of keep-alive messages in said memory reaches a threshold; and

generating additional keep-alive messages while in said second power state and transition back to said low-power state thereafter, and wherein said circuitry is further configured to transmit said additional keep-alive messages while said host system is in said low-power state, thereby maintaining connectivity and presence of said AOAC application with said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state.

4. A system, comprising:

a host system configured to operate in a first power state and a low-power state, said host system further configured to execute at least one Always-On-Always-Connected (AOAC) application while in said first power state, said host system further configured to generate at least one partially pre-built keep-alive message;

circuitry configured to establish a communication link between said host system and a remote application server associated with said AOAC application, said circuitry further configured to generate one or more keep-alive messages from said at least one partially pre-built keep-alive message and to periodically transmit said one or more keep-alive messages to said remote application server upon said host system transitioning from said first power state to said low-power state, said keep-alive messages configured to maintain connectivity and presence of said AOAC application with said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state; and

memory configured to store said one or more keep-alive messages, said memory configured to be accessible to said circuitry while said host system remains in said low-power state.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein said host system is configured to initiate the generation of a set of one more keep-alive messages associated with said AOAC application upon activation of at least one of a function key and a predefined timeout period.

6. The system of claim 4, wherein said circuitry is further configured to transition said host system from said low-power state to a second power state when a remaining number of keep-alive messages in said memory reaches a threshold;

wherein said host system is further configured to generate additional keep-alive messages while in said second power state and transition back to said low-power state thereafter, and wherein said circuitry is further configured to transmit said additional keep-alive messages while said host system is in said low-power state, thereby maintaining connectivity and presence of said AOAC application with said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state.

7. The system of claim 4, wherein said at least one partially pre-built keep-alive message includes a general keep-alive message and a list of security tokens, and wherein said circuitry is further configured to recover said general keep-alive message and said list of security tokens, and assemble said general keep-alive message with a respective one of said security tokens from said list to generate a keep-alive message for transmission to said remote application server at the appropriate time.

8. An apparatus, comprising:

circuitry configured to establish a communication link between a host system executing an Always-On-Always-Connected (AOAC) application in a first power state and a remote application server associated with said AOAC application, said circuitry further configured to generate one or more keep-alive messages from at least one partially pre-built keep-alive message and to periodically transmit said one or more keep-alive messages associated with said AOAC application to said remote application server upon said host system transitioning from said first power state to a low-power state, said keep-alive messages configured to maintain connectivity and presence of said AOAC application with said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state;

wherein said keep-alive messages are stored in memory accessible to said circuitry while said host system remains in said low-power state.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein said one or more partially pre-built keep-alive messages are generated prior to transitioning said host system to said low-power state.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein said circuitry is configured to transition said host system from said low-power state to a second power state when a remaining number of keep-alive messages in said memory reaches a threshold;

wherein circuitry is further configured to initiate the generation of additional keep-alive messages while said host system is operating in said second power state; and

wherein said circuitry is further configured to transmit said additional keep-alive messages after said host system transitions back to said low-power state, thereby maintaining connectivity and presence of said AOAC application with said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein said one or more partially pre-built keep-alive messages includes a general keep-alive message and a list of security tokens and wherein said circuitry is further configured to assemble said general keep-alive message with a respective one of said security tokens from said list to generate said keep-alive message for transmission to said remote application server at the appropriate time.

12. At least one non-transitory computer accessible medium storing instructions which, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform operations, said operations comprising:

generating one or more keep-alive messages from at least one partially pre-built keep-alive message after said host system has transitioned from a first power state to a low-power state, said one or more keep-alive messages associated with an Always-On-Always-Connected (AOAC) application having a communication link between a host system and a remote application server associated with said AOAC application; and

periodically transmitting said keep-alive messages from circuitry associated with said host system to said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state, said keep-alive messages configured to maintain connectivity and presence of said AOAC application with said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state.

13. The at least one non-transitory computer accessible medium of claim 12, further comprising:

storing said at least one partially pre-built keep-alive messages in memory accessible to said circuitry while said host system remains in said low-power state.

14. The at least one non-transitory computer accessible medium of claim 12, wherein,

said one or more partially pre-built keep-alive message includes a general keep-alive message and a list of security tokens;

and

wherein generating said one or more keep-alive messages includes assembling said general keep-alive message with a respective one of said security tokens from said list to generate said keep-alive message after said host system transitions to said low-power state.

15. The at least one non-transitory computer accessible medium of claim 12, further comprising:

transitioning said host system from said low-power state to a second power state when a remaining number of keep-alive messages in said memory reaches a threshold; and

generating additional keep-alive messages while in said second power state and transition back to said low-power state thereafter, and wherein said circuitry is further configured to transmit said additional keep-alive messages while said host system is in said low-power state, thereby maintaining connectivity and presence of said AOAC application with said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state.

16. A method, comprising:

establishing a communication link between a host system executing an Always-On-Always-Connected (AOAC) application and a remote application server associated with said AOAC application;

receiving an indication to transition a host system from a first power state to a low-power state;

initiating the generation of a plurality of keep-alive messages associated with said AOAC application;

transitioning said host system from said first power state to said low-power state;

periodically transmitting said keep-alive messages from circuitry to said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state, said keep-alive messages configured to maintain connectivity and presence of said AOAC application with said remote application server while said host system is in said low-power state;

transitioning said host system from said low-power state to a second power state when a remaining number of keep-alive messages in said memory reaches a threshold;

generating additional keep-alive messages while in said second power state and transitioning back to said low-power state thereafter; and

transmitting said additional keep-alive messages while said host system is in said low-power state.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

storing a portion of said keep-alive messages in memory accessible to said circuitry while said host system remains in said low-power state.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

generating a general keep-alive message and a list of security tokens prior to said host system transitioning to said low-power state;

recovering said general keep-alive message and said list of security tokens and assembling said general keep-alive message with a respective one of said security tokens from said list to generate said keep-alive message after said host system transitions to said low-power state.