Instant messaging device/server protocol

摘要

A generic IM device/server protocol permits a single implementation of a IM application on client devices for communicating with different enterprise IM servers types. The protocol defines a server maintained tag to identify the currency of a contact list it is managing for a client device. The client device receives and persists the tag and provides it at login. The server automatically sends a contact list update only if the tag indicates the client devices contact list instance is not current. Presence updates may also be sent automatically at login and the client device need not separately request contact list or presence updates at login. The client device may be pre-provisioned with respective graphics, text and server capabilities for multiple server types. A specific IM configuration may be selected in response to service information.

主权项

1. A method of a server device managing a contact list for a client device, the method comprising:
the server device defining a tag representing the currency of a contact list corresponding to the client device, the contact list comprising one or more groups of at least one contact associated with a plurality of IM services; the server device storing the tag; the server device updating the tag in response to updates to the contact list; the server device receiving from the client device, a value corresponding to a copy of the tag as previously stored by the client device; the server device comparing the value received from the client device to the tag stored by the server device to determine if a contact list update is required on the client device; for inbound IM communications, the server device:
receiving an inbound data packet sent by said client device in accordance with a generic client to server protocol for said plurality of IM services;determining a configuration ID indicated in the inbound data packet, the configuration ID defining a specific IM server; andconnecting said client device to said specific IM server; and for outbound IM communications, the server device: sending an outbound data packet according to the generic client to server protocol by including a corresponding configuration ID indicating from which of a plurality of different IM server types the outbound data packet is being sent to enable a recipient device to load a configuration file according to the configuration ID, the recipient device storing more than one such configuration file to address the plurality of different IM server types.