Method of assisting an application to traverse a firewall
US7559082B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 25, 2003 |
| Grant date | Jul 7, 2009 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 29, 2025 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L63/0218
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A method for a firewall-aware application to communicate its expectations to a firewall without requiring the firewall to change its policy or compromise network security. An application API is provided for applications to inform a firewall or firewalls of the application's needs, and a firewall API is provided that informs the firewall or firewalls of the application's needs. An interception module watches for connect and listen attempts by applications and services to the network stack on the local computer. The interception module traps these attempts and determines what user is making the attempt, what application or service is making the attempt, and conducts a firewall policy look-up to determine whether the user and/or application or service are allowed to connect to the network. If so, the interception module may instruct the host and/or edge firewall to configure itself for the connection being requested.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.