Secure communications system for collaborative computing

Abstract

A distributed collaborative computer system is provided that comprises a plurality of server computers interconnected via a high-speed link. Client computers can connect to any available server computer and start or join a conference hosted on either the server computer to which the client computer is connected or any other server in the system. As a result, the system and method of the present invention is easily scalable to support an arbitrary number of participants to a conference by merely adding the appropriate number of server computers to the system. In addition, by replicating the conference information on more than one server computer, the single point of failure limitation is eliminated. In fact, if a server hosting or participating in a conference malfunctions, the failure is detected by other server computers and the client computer is able to reconnect to the conference through a new server computer.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO CD-ROM APPENDIX [0001] An Appendix containing a computer program listing is submitted on a compact disk, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. The total number of compact discs including duplicates is two. Appendix A, which is part of the present specification, contains a list of the files contained on the compact disk. These listings contain material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the patent and trademark office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] The present invention relates generally to computer networks and, more particularly, to collaborative computing over a computer network. [0004] 2. Description of the Related Art [0005] Traditional collaborative computing tools allow compu...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The present invention is a distributed collaborative computer system that can handle an arbitrary number of conference participants without a single point of failure. The system includes multiple server computers connected via high-speed links, allowing client computers to connect to any available server and start or join a conference. This eliminates the risk of failure and allows for easy scaling of the system by adding more server computers. The conference information is replicated on multiple servers, ensuring that if one server malfunctions, the conference can still be joined through another server.

Problems solved by technology

In fact, if a server hosting or participating in a conference malfunctions, the failure is detected by other server computers and the client computer is able to reconnect to the conference through a new server computer.

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