Method and apparatus for management of network communications

摘要

A method and apparatus for maintaining a communication link through a NAT or other boundary device. Keep-alive messages (keep-alives) are transmitted and received by the boundary device to maintain the link therethrough. Address information of a keep-alive purports that keep-alive has traversed or is to traverse a predetermined portion of the communication link, such as a wireless “over the air” portion. However, the keep-alive is inhibited from traversing the predetermined portion. This may be accomplished by one or more of: spoofing the origin of the keep-alive such that it only appears to have traversed the predetermined portion; and causing the keep-alive to be discarded before traversal of the predetermined portion. Discard may be facilitated by configuration of the TTL field of the keep-alive or by use of a filtering device.

主权项

1. A method of maintaining a first communication link between a first communication device and a second communication device, the first communication link established through a boundary device, the method comprising:
a. generating a keep-alive message at a keep-alive server operatively coupled to the boundary device via an auxiliary communication link, the keep-alive server having an IP address which differs from an IP address of the first communication device and an IP address of the second communication device, the keep-alive message being generated having address information indicative that either its origin is the first communication device and its destination is the second communication device or its origin is the second communication device and its destination is the first communication device, wherein said origin is spoofed as originating from either the IP address of the first communication device or the IP address of the second communication device, the address information being further indicative that the second communication device is its source or destination, the address information thereby purporting that the keep-alive message has traversed or is to traverse at least a second predetermined portion of the first communication link coupled to the second communication device and excluding the boundary device; b. maintaining the first communication link through the boundary device by transmitting the keep-alive message toward the boundary device, wherein the keep-alive message is received by the boundary device, the address information purporting that the keep-alive message has traversed or is to traverse at least a first predetermined portion of the first communication link coupled to the first communication device and excluding the boundary device, the predetermined portion being separate from the auxiliary communication link; and c. inhibiting the keep-alive message from traversing the first predetermined portion and the second predetermined portion.