Abstract: Responsive to receiving a request for a data communications connection, a data communications module of a receiver determines whether a sender of the request is local or remote with respect to the receiver. The data communications module also determines whether a location response flag indicates local or remote. If the relative location of the sender with respect to the receiver corresponds with the location response flag, then the data communications connection is allowed. Otherwise, the connection is not allowed.

Abstract: Disclosed is a computer implemented method and apparatus to retrieve authentication records required for user validation and creation of authentication credentials from an authentication server to be passed to the user. The method is comprised of the authentication server storing a first authentication record, then generating a first authentication credential based on the first authentication record. The authentication server associates the first authentication record with a first credential expiration time. The authentication server stores a second authentication record. The authentication server generates a second authentication credential based on the second authentication record, wherein the second authentication credential is associated with a second credential expiration time. Next, the authentication server associates the second authentication credential with a second credential expiration time.

Abstract: A mechanism is provided for identifying a snooping device in a network environment. A snoop echo response extractor generates an echo request packet with a bogus MAC address that will only be received by a snooping device. The snoop echo response extractor also uses an IP address that will cause the snooping device to respond to the echo request.

Abstract: A mechanism is provided for identifying a snooping device in a network environment. A snoop echo response extractor generates an echo request packet with a bogus MAC address that will only be received by a snooping device. The snoop echo response extractor also uses an IP address that will cause the snooping device to respond to the echo request. Non-snooping devices discard the echo request packet. Upon receiving the response packet, the snooping device is identified.

Abstract: A method, system and apparatus for improving data transfer rate over a network are provided. When a piece of data is to be transmitted to a target system, it is divided into a number of packets and a determination is made as to whether the number of packets exceeds a threshold number. If so, the packets are transferred in parallel over a plurality of network connections. The ideal network connections are TCP/IP connections. Thus, each packet has an IP header, which contains an IP identification field. An indicium is placed into the IP identification field for proper reconstruction of the data by the target system.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for an improved bulk read socket call are provided. With the apparatus and method, a new field, so_rcvlen, is added to the socket structure that identifies the bulk read size requested by the user. The kernel of the prior art recv( ) function is also modified so that it sets the so_rcvlen to the size requested by the user prior to the recv( ) function going to sleep and waiting for the full data size requested by the user. A new flag, SP_MSGWAITALL, is also provided in the socket structure. In the TCP input processing, when data is received for a particular socket, the current setting of the SP_MSGWAITALL is checked. If the SP_MSGWAITALL flag is set, it is determined whether the amount of data stored in the socket receive buffer is less than the value of so_rcvlen. If not, the TCP input processing does not wake up the recv( ) thread. However, for every alternate segment, the TCP input processing sends back an acknowledgment (ACK).

Abstract: A network system employs path health information to select an acceptable path between a source node and destination node within an information handling system (IHS) and/or between a source node within one IHS and a destination node within another IHS. One or more switches may connect these two IHSs together. The network system accesses the path health information to determine the availability of paths for communicating between nodes.

Abstract: A communication system, which facilitates distribution of electronic communications for a user account, includes an emergency auto-reply agent that scans each received communication addressed to the user account for a particular communication sent from at least one emergency address specified for the user account separate from the address of the user account. Responsive to the communication system detecting the particular communication sent from one of the emergency addresses, the emergency auto-reply agent parses the content of the particular communication to detect whether the particular communication comprises a required password. Responsive to detecting the required password within the content of the particular communication, the emergency auto-reply agent directs the communication system to compose and send auto-reply communications from the user account in reply to received communications addressed to the user account.

Abstract: A host enables any adapter of multiple adapters of the host to concurrently support any VIPA of the multiple VIPAs assigned to the host. Responsive to a failure of at least one particular adapter from among the multiple adapters, the host triggers the remaining, functioning adapters to broadcast a separate hardware address update for each VIPA over the network, such that for a failover in the host supporting the multiple VIPAs the host directs at least one other host accessible via the network to address any new packets for the multiple VIPAs to one of the separate hardware addresses of one of the remaining adapters.

Abstract: A computer implemented method and computer program product for obtaining a secure route. A trusted host sets a node security association for a trusted host. The trusted host receives, at the trusted host, a client communication request directed to a destination host. The trusted host builds a secure route query comprising a trusted host address, a destination host address, and at least one security level, to form at least one secure route. The trusted host sends packets from the trusted host to the destination host based on the at least one secure route. The packets are responsive to the client communication request, and the packets each have a security label that matches the security level.

Abstract: A last router in the route of a packet determines when a packet is at the last hop prior to reaching its destination, based on information conveyed in the routing table that the destination is a directly-connected host, and can then convey that information to the host by setting the TTL to zero in the packet being forwarded to its final destination. The host, being so informed that the packet is destined for its IP address, can thereby eliminate the IP address table search for the destination IP address of the incoming packet against the list of its allocated IP addresses to determine if the packet is destined for that host, thereby providing significant performance enhancements to the network system by enabling a receiving host to skip the IP address lookup process and immediately consume the received packet.

Abstract: A technique for facilitating identification of a matching search term in one or more images includes selecting at least a portion of an image and creating search enriched metadata for a document that includes the image. The search enriched metadata includes a text portion that provides one or more search terms that are associated with the selected portion of the image and a location portion that provides a location of the selected portion of the image.

Abstract: The present invention provides a computer implemented method, data processing system and computer program product for limiting instances of a client-server program within a plurality of platforms in a restricted distributed network. The data processing system receives an invocation of the client-server program. The data processing system assigns a write file to the client-server program wherein the write file has a write file name and the write file is on a distributed file system accessible to the plurality of platforms. The data processing system determines whether the write file is available. Responsive to a determination that the write file is available, the data processing system opens the write file for writing wherein the write file is associated with the client-server program. The data processing system, responsive to a determination that the write file is available, forms an addressing file having addressing information of a first instance of the client-server program.

Abstract: Data processing systems, computer implemented methods, and computer program products are provided for updating an address resolution protocol table. Updates received for the address resolution protocol table are comprised of an internet protocol address, a media access control address, and a unique identifier.

Abstract: The reassembly timer in a TCP/IP receiver is dynamically set to avoid data corruption on fast networks caused by IP identification wrap-around. A sender generates IP packets with a special option specifying a reassembly time for fragments based on the subnet of the destination or on the calculated round-trip time of the connection. A receiver sets the reassembly timer to the reassembly time specified in the option. A sender can generate IP packets with an alternative option setting a time stamp for the generated packet. A receiver calculates a traversal time based on the difference between the arrival time of the fragment and this time stamp, and sets the reassembly timer based on this traversal time. A receiver can independently set the reassembly timer to a first reassembly time set by the user for fast networks or to a second reassembly timer set by the user for slow networks based on whether the receiver and sender are on the same subnet.

Abstract: A system, method, and program product is provided that requests, by a first computer system, a new network session with a second computer system. The new network session request occurs after a previous network session between the two systems and the new network session request includes a new sequence number that is different from a previous sequence number that was used during the previous network session. The first computer system receives an acknowledgement from the second computer system that references the previous sequence number instead of the new sequence number. In response to receiving the acknowledgement at the first computer system that references the previous sequence number, the first computer system modifies the new sequence number by setting it to a value that is higher than the previous sequence number, and the first computer system re-requests the new network session using the modified new sequence number.

Abstract: The present invention provides receiving and transmitting devices for providing fragmentation at a transport level along a transmission path. The transmitting device comprises an interface and a control unit coupled to the interface. The control unit is adapted to negotiate a packet size with a remote device. The control unit is also adapted to transmit a data packet of up to the negotiated size. The control unit is further adapted to receive acknowledgments from the remote device associated with one or more fragments, fragmented at the transport-level, of the transmitted data packet. The receiving device comprises an interface and a control unit coupled to the interface. The control unit is adapted to receive two or more fragments of a data packet transmitted by a remote device. The control unit is also adapted to transmit one or more acknowledgments to the remote device based on the received fragments.

Abstract: A method for virtual segmentation off-load in a logically partitioned data processing system is provided. A data transmission protocol stack formats a data message for segmentation off-load to form a virtual segmentation off-load package. The size of the data message is larger than a size of a maximum transmission unit. A partition manager firmware copies the virtual segmentation off-load package from a first logical partition to a virtual Ethernet adapter associated with a second logical partition. The virtual segmentation off-load package is copied without performing a segmentation operation on the data message associated with the virtual segmentation off-load package.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for handling reordered data packets. A method comprises receiving a data packet and determining if the data packet is received out of order. The method further comprises delaying transmission of an acknowledgement indicating that a data packet is missing in response to determining that the data packet is received out of order.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method, system, and computer program product for splicing proxied web requests with callback for subsequent requests. The method comprises: initiating by a proxy a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) splice between first and second socket connections in order to service a request; and returning control of the first and second socket connections to the proxy in response to a completion event associated with the TCP splice.