File Relay Policy Server for Offline Mobile IM Transfer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current mobile Instant Messaging (IM) technology requires both the sender and receiver to be logged in to the IM system for file transfer, limiting its application and user experience.
Innovation Solution
A file transfer system and method that includes a file sender, a file relay policy server, and an IM server, allowing file transfer even when the receiver is not logged in, by determining an appropriate file transfer mode and forwarding the file through a file relay server using services like MMS, email, or FTP.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If both sender and receiver must be logged in for file transfer, then system security and control are improved, but system adaptability and user convenience deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the login state requirements based on the file transfer mode. In real-time communication mode, both parties must be online for immediate transfer. In storage-and-forward mode, the receiver can be offline and receive files asynchronously. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction between security control and transfer availability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operational parameters of file transfer by introducing different transfer modes (real-time vs. storage-and-forward). By parameterizing the transfer mechanism, the system can switch between requiring both parties online or allowing receiver offline, thus resolving the contradiction between control reliability and adaptability.
2Speed
If both sender and receiver must be logged in for file transfer, then real-time interaction is improved, but system versatility and application scope deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system provides dynamic file transfer modes that adapt to different scenarios. Real-time mode maintains fast transfer speed when both parties are online, while storage-and-forward mode expands application scope to include offline receivers. The system dynamically selects the appropriate mode based on user needs.
Solution Approach 2:
The file transfer system achieves multi-functionality by supporting both real-time transfer (when both parties are online) and asynchronous transfer (when receiver is offline). This universal design allows the system to serve diverse application scenarios, from immediate file sharing to delayed delivery, resolving the contradiction between speed and versatility.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple file relay servers are introduced to support offline transfer, then file transfer availability is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces file relay servers as intermediary components that mediate between senders and receivers. These servers store files temporarily and forward them when receivers come online, enabling offline transfer capability. The intermediary approach resolves the contradiction by adding controlled complexity only where needed for asynchronous communication.
Solution Approach 2:
The system extracts the file storage and forwarding function into separate relay server components, independent from the core IM server. This extraction allows offline transfer capability to be added without fundamentally restructuring the entire system, managing complexity by isolating the asynchronous transfer mechanism into dedicated relay components.
Data Source
AI summary
A file transfer system including: a file sender, a file receiver, an Instant Messaging (IM) server, a file relay policy server and a file relay server. Also disclosed are the internal structures of the above file relay policy server and IM server and a file transfer method. If the file receiver has not logged in the IM system, it is possible that the file sender sends a file to the file relay policy server, the file relay policy server forwards the file to an appropriate file relay server, and the file relay server transfers the file to a mobile terminal as the file receiver according to a file transfer protocol of the file relay server itself, thereby facilitating the file transfer for the mobile subscriber and enhancing the mobile subscriber's experience in using the mobile IM service.