Web Socket Session Manager for Multi-Device Security

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Solution Overview

Problem

Managing multiple user sessions across various devices poses security risks, as unattended sessions can be vulnerable to unauthorized use and fraudulent access, especially when users establish an unlimited number of sessions without proper control.

Innovation Solution

Implementing a session manager that utilizes web socket containers to track and manage user sessions, enforcing user-defined rules on the number of active sessions and device types, ensuring secure and controlled access by maintaining a session identifier for each user and enforcing logout events across connected devices.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If users are allowed to establish an unlimited number of sessions with a web application, then user accessibility and convenience are improved, but security risks increase due to potential unauthorized use and fraudulent access

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser accessibilityVSAvoidsecurity risks
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system changes the parameter of session quantity from unlimited to limited by enforcing user-defined rules that specify maximum session counts per user and per device type. This parameter change resolves the contradiction by maintaining ease of operation for legitimate users while preventing security risks through controlled session establishment.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The system implements feedback mechanisms by continuously monitoring active sessions and automatically enforcing logout events when session limits are reached. This real-time feedback loop ensures that security constraints are maintained without impacting user convenience, as users receive immediate notification when their session limit is achieved.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

2Reliability

If session management rules are enforced to limit the number of active sessions, then security is improved by preventing unauthorized access, but system complexity increases due to tracking and managing multiple sessions across devices

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovesecurityVSAvoidsession management complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces a session manager as an intermediary component that centralizes session tracking and management. This mediator handles all session creation, monitoring, and termination operations, simplifying the overall system architecture while maintaining security. The session manager communicates with users through the existing web application interface, avoiding additional user-facing complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Measurement precision

If web socket containers are used to track user sessions, then session monitoring precision is improved, but resource consumption increases due to maintaining active connections

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesession tracking accuracyVSAvoidresource consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The system applies partial action by establishing web socket connections only when necessary for session management operations. Rather than maintaining continuous connections for all users at all times, the system creates connections selectively during session establishment, modification, or termination events, thereby achieving accurate session tracking while minimizing resource consumption.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentEP3656109B1Method for managing sessions using web sockets
Publication Date: 2022.04.20 CITRIX SYSTEMS INC
  • EP3656109B1 patent drawingFigure 1A
  • EP3656109B1 patent drawingFigure 1B
  • EP3656109B1 patent drawingFigure 1C

AI summary

This disclosure is directed to embodiments of systems and methods for tracking sessions of a user. A session manager executing on a server may establish a plurality of sessions with a web application for a user via a web socket of the session manager. The plurality of sessions may share a first session identifier. The session manager may track, by via a web socket container established for the first session identifier, the plurality of sessions. The session manager may detect a log off by the user from one of the plurality of sessions. The session manager may send a log off event to others of the plurality of sessions tracked via the web socket container, responsive to the detection.