US 5832218

Patent Overview — US 5,832,218

Title: Client/server electronic mail system for providing off-line client utilization and seamless server resynchronization (as rendered in the supplied source, including the "providng" typographical variant).

Patent number: US5832218A. Application number: US08/572,589. Inventors: Robert Gibbs (assignment records list "Robert T. Gibbs") and Sebnem Jaji. Original assignee / current assignee (per source): International Business Machines Corporation. Priority/filing date: 1995-12-14. Publication (grant) date: 1998-11-03. Status shown: Expired – Fee Related; anticipated expiration 2015-12-14.

Purpose: The invention relates to client/server data communication systems and, more particularly, to electronic mail within such a system. It addresses the situation of a user who takes messaging functions off-line — telecommuting from home or on the road with, for example, a notebook computer — wanting to compose, update, and send messages as if server-connected, then reconnect and synchronize disconnected operations with the server. The stated problems include performing login to resynchronize and the need for the user to request replay of e-mail operations into the server upon reconnection.

Plain-language scope (from the supplied text): The system comprises a mail server on the server side providing e-mail functions across the network; a client mail server that accesses the mail server and copies selected e-mail functions into the client so composing can occur while disconnected; and a log manager that logs all e-mail activity performed while disconnected, then performs reconnection and resynchronization to replay the logged activity for execution by the mail server. The environment may be object oriented, with the local client/server instantiating selected class functions. The log manager may include optimizing means, such as removing redundant sequences within logged events. A local message store holds messages generated while disconnected; a server message store holds replayed messages. A corresponding method is disclosed: user-initiated disconnect, copying selected e-mail functions, disconnected operation with automatic logging, user-initiated reconnect, copying logged operations to the server, and resynchronization.

Source: https://patents.google.com/patent/US5832218/en

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