US6397255B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Method and apparatus for providing intelligent network services
Assignee: AT&T Inc
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Filing: 1998-12-23
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Granted: 2002-05-28
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Expires: 2018-12-23
Abstract
Abstract Proposed is a system and method for providing Intelligent Network services. In one embodiment, the system of the present invention includes a database interacting with a socket redirector installed on a client computer. In one method implemented using the system of the present invention, a socket redirector intercepts a standard Internet Protocol (IP) socket call from a client software application and identifies parameters within the socket call. If the redirector is able to determine that the identified parameters are addressed to the most appropriate socket for accommodating the software application's request, the IP socket call is sent to network software where the socket call is used to form packets which are sent over the network to the requested socket. If the redirector is unable to determine that the identified parameters are addressed to the most appropriate socket for accommodating the request, the redirector requests instructions from a database. The socket redirector then modifies the IP socket call parameters using the instructions received from the database and sends the modified IP socket calls to network software for processing as described above.
Inventors
- 👤 Steven Howard Nurenberg
- 👤 David Hilton Shur
- 👤 Aleksandr Zelezniak
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-24 13:35
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04L; H04L61/00; H04L61/09; H04L61/10; H04L67/00; H04L67/14; H04L9/00; H04L9/40; H04L2101/00; H04L2101/60; H04L2101/618; H04L2101/663; H04L69/00; H04L69/30; H04L69/32; H04L69/322; H04L69/329
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 27
Claim 1
Independent Claim
123 words
A method for connecting a client to a second network device, comprising the steps of: receiving a communication request at a redirector module within said client, wherein said communication request was generated by a first software application within said client, said request having at least one value, and wherein said request relates to communicating with a second network device; determining whether said at least one value matches a predetermined criteria; sending a first message to a database if said at least one value matches said predetermined criteria; receiving, from said database, a second message containing at least one modified value corresponding to said at least one value; and connecting to a second software application within said second network device using said modified value.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
123 words
A method for connecting a client to a second network device, comprising the steps of: receiving a communication request at a redirector module within said client, wherein said communication request was generated by a first software application within said client, said request having at least one value, and wherein said request relates to communicating with a second network device; determining whether said at least one value matches a predetermined criteria; sending a first message to a database if said at least one value matches said predetermined criteria; receiving, from said database, a second message containing at least one modified value corresponding to said at least one value; and connecting to a second software application within said second network device using said modified value.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein said at least one value is a communication parameter.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of claim 1 , further comprising the step of: storing said second message for use upon receiving a subsequent communication request having said at least one value.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 3 wherein said communication request is an IP socket call.
Claim 6
Independent Claim
110 words
A method for providing network services, comprising the steps of: intercepting a communication request that was generated by a software application within a first network device, wherein said communication request includes a parameter, and wherein said intercepting is performed at the first network device; determining at the first network device that the intercepted communication request meets a condition; sending a message from the first network device to a second network device; receiving, from said second network device, instructions to modify said communication request parameter; and causing a communication to be sent from the first network device to a destination network device based on the communication request with said modified parameter.
Claim 7
Independent Claim
110 words
A method for providing network services, comprising the steps of: intercepting a communication request that was generated by a software application within a first network device, wherein said communication request includes a parameter, and wherein said intercepting is performed at the first network device; determining at the first network device that the intercepted communication request meets a condition; sending a message from the first network device to a second network device; receiving, from said second network device, instructions to modify said communication request parameter; and causing a communication to be sent from the first network device to a destination network device based on the communication request with said modified parameter.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 5 , wherein the communication request is a socket call.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 6 , wherein said method is performed by a socket redirector module.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 7 , wherein the second network device is a redirector control server.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
39 words
The method of claim 5 , wherein said parameter is a destination address for the communication request, wherein said step of modifying a parameter modifies the destination address, and wherein the communication is sent to the modified destination address.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
30 words
The method of claim 5 , wherein the communication request contains a multicast address, and wherein said step of modifying a parameter comprises performing a multicast to unicast address translation.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 5 , wherein said modifying a parameter comprises remapping of an Internet Protocol header parameter in the communication request.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
18 words
The method of claim 11 , wherein said remapping comprises remapping a logical address to a routable address.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of claim 5 , wherein the intercepted communication is determined to have met said condition whenever said parameter is not recognized by a redirector module at the first network device.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
25 words
The method of claim 13 , wherein the intercepted communication is also determined to have meet said condition whenever said parameter has a predefined value.
Claim 17
Independent Claim
109 words
A method for providing network services, comprising the steps of: receiving a communication request that was generated by a software application within a client device, wherein said communication request is received by a socket redirector module within said client device; sending a message from the client device to a socket redirector server requesting instructions for handling the communication request; receiving from the socket redirector server instructions in response to said message; modifying a parameter within the communication request at the socket redirector module if the instructions indicate that the parameter should be so modified; and causing the communication request to be sent from the client to a network server.
Claim 18
Independent Claim
109 words
A method for providing network services, comprising the steps of: receiving a communication request that was generated by a software application within a client device, wherein said communication request is received by a socket redirector module within said client device; sending a message from the client device to a socket redirector server requesting instructions for handling the communication request; receiving from the socket redirector server instructions in response to said message; modifying a parameter within the communication request at the socket redirector module if the instructions indicate that the parameter should be so modified; and causing the communication request to be sent from the client to a network server.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 15 , wherein the communication request is a socket call.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 16 , wherein said method is performed by a socket redirector module.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 17 , wherein the second network device is a redirector control server.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
39 words
The method of claim 15 , wherein said parameter is a destination address for the communication request, wherein said step of modifying a parameter modifies the destination address, and wherein the communication is sent to the modified destination address.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
30 words
The method of claim 15 , wherein the communication request contains a multicast address, and wherein said step of modifying a parameter comprises performing a multicast to unicast address translation.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 15 , wherein said modifying a parameter comprises remapping of an Internet Protocol header parameter in the communication request.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
18 words
The method of claim 21 , wherein said remapping comprises remapping a logical address to a routable address.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method of claim 15 , wherein the intercepted communication is determined to have met said condition whenever said parameter is not recognized by a redirector module at the first network device.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 15 , wherein the intercepted communication is determined to have meet said condition whenever said parameter has a predefined value.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2005-05-27 | 2005-11-26 | 2006-05-28 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2009-05-27 | 2009-11-26 | 2010-05-28 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2013-05-27 | 2013-11-26 | 2014-05-28 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |