WO2006082307A2

WO2006082307A2 - Method and system for registering users, a hss server and an application server of an ims network

Info

Publication number: WO2006082307A2
Application number: PCT/FR2006/000211
Authority: WO
Inventors: Aude Pichelin; Salima Fazal-Karim
Original assignee: France Telecom
Priority date: 2005-02-02
Filing date: 2006-01-31
Publication date: 2006-08-10
Also published as: FR2881593A1; WO2006082307A3

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and system for registering users, a HSS server and an application server of an IMS network. More specifically, the invention relates to a system for registering terminal users with a network (24) for controlling packet-mode multimedia communication sessions established by the users. The inventive system comprises means (32) for authenticating each user registering with the network (24). The system also comprises means (34, 36) for transmitting user authentication information to a server (30) which supplies said information to at least one application (38) external to the network (24).

Description

Method and system for registering users, HSS server and application server of an IMS network

The present invention relates to a method for registering users with a packet mode multimedia communication control network.

The invention also relates to a system for registering users with a packet mode multimedia communication session control network, an HSS server and an application server of an IMS network.

The UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) telecommunication system has been designed to complement the traditional GSM ("Global System for Mobile Communications") mobile communications infrastructure to support new services, including multimedia and mobile applications. to offer higher user speeds.

Thus, a UMTS system comprises a packet-mode data transmission network ("Packet Switching Domain"), hereinafter referred to as the PS network, to which mobile terminals of users are intended to connect.

In the UMTS RELEASE 5 version, the PS network is connected to another network, called IMS network ("IP Multimedia Subsystem"), for controlling packet mode multimedia communication sessions established in the PS network. The IMS network is capable of managing the usual IP services that the PS network already manages (eg Voice over IP). In addition, the IMS network is capable of managing multimedia communication sessions, through the use of the SIP ("Session Initiation Protocol") protocol for controlling multimedia communication sessions (opening, closing, etc.). SIP servers, belonging to the IMS network, have the role of carrying out this control.

The IMS network may further include application servers capable of providing multimedia services (applications) and / or serving as entry points for applications outside the IMS network.

When a mobile device user attempts to establish a multimedia communication session using the IMS network, he registers with the PS network and then with the IMS network.

Registration with the IMS network includes a user authentication step. A user in the IMS can have multiple known identities. It is considered that the authentication of a user corresponds to the authentication of at least one of these identities. Thus, it is already known in the state of the art a method for registering users with a packet mode multimedia communication session control network established by the users, in which, for each user's record, from the network, the user is authenticated.

Registration is carried out by one of the SIP servers which consults on this occasion a particular server, called server HSS ("Home Subscriber Server") in the UMTS.

The HSS server includes user data (subscriber data), defined by 3GPP TS23.218.

According to this standard, the user data include "IFC filters" (English "Initial Filter Criteria") and authentication data ("authentication data"), specific to each user .

It is possible to define and activate the IFC filters of certain users for the recording SIP server to transmit information relating to the authentication of these users to an application server requiring, for its own operation, this information.

User authentication information is therefore available only for such an application server, and only partially.

The aim of the invention is to overcome this problem by providing a user registration method which allows an application external to the network to have access to the authentication information of all registered users.

For this purpose, the subject of the invention is a method for registering terminal users with a packet mode multimedia communication session control network established by the users, in which, for each record of a user at the network, the user is authenticated, characterized in that transmits information relating to the authentication of this user to a server for providing this information to at least one application external to the network.

Thanks to the invention, external applications can obtain the authentication information of all registered users.

In a particular embodiment of the invention, the authentication information supply server is a server common to all user registrations.

Thus, in the case where the server provides the information in response to a request sent by the external application, the latter only needs to know the address of this server to obtain the authentication information of all the applications. registered users. The design of this external application is simplified. In a particular embodiment of the invention, an HSS server comprising IFC filters for each user likely to register with the network, these IFC filters are used to transmit the authentication information, defining and activating it. previously to control the transmission of information relating to the authentication of this user to the server.

As IFC filters are viewed during each record, it ensures that the authentication information is transmitted for each record.

Advantageously:

the network is an IMS network, the server is an application server of the IMS network.

The invention is particularly well suited to an IMS network as described above, the application servers of such a network can indeed exchange data with external applications.

In another particular embodiment, the network implementing the SIP protocol:

for each registration with the network of a user, a message of the SIP Register type is received from the terminal of this user,

- Following this reception, a SIP Third Party Register type message is transmitted to the server, the SIP Third Party Register message containing the authentication information.

The use of SIP Third Party Register messages makes it very easy to implement the invention in networks using this SIP protocol.

Advantageously, the authentication information includes an indicator of the success of the authentication.

Thus, applications outside the network can easily determine whether a terminal user is authenticated or not.

The invention also relates to a system for registering users of terminals with a packet mode multimedia communication session control network established by the users, comprising means for authenticating each user registering with network, characterized in that it comprises means for transmitting information relating to the authentication of this user to a server for providing this information to at least one application external to the network.

In a particular embodiment, the transmission means comprise an HSS server comprising IFC filters for each user. capable of registering with the network, defined and activated to control the transmission of information relating to the authentication of this user to the server.

The subject of the invention is also an HSS server, characterized in that it comprises IFC filters for each user likely to register with the network, defined and activated to control the transmission of information relating to the authentication of this network. user to the server.

The subject of the invention is also an application server of an IMS network for controlling multimedia communication sessions in packet mode, characterized in that it comprises means for providing information relating to the authentication of each user. registered with the IMS network.

The invention will be better understood with the aid of the description which follows, given solely by way of example and with reference to the appended drawings in which:

- Figure 1 shows schematically a UMTS telecommunications system; and

- Figure 2 shows the successive steps of a terminal recording process implemented by this telecommunication system.

FIG. 1 shows a UMTS telecommunications system, designated by the general reference 10, comprising a packet mode data transmission network PS 12 to which mobile terminals 16 are intended to connect.

The network PS 12 comprises a first server 18 of the SGSN type ("Serving GPRS Support Node"), for the connection of the mobile terminals 16, and a second server 20 of the GGSN type ("Gateway GPRS Support Node"), forming a gateway with d other networks, such as the Internet 22.

Thus, a mobile terminal 16 connected to the network PS 12 can exchange data with the Internet network 22. Nevertheless, the network PS 12 is not suitable for controlling advanced multimedia communication sessions.

This is why the network PS 12 is further connected to a network 24 of the IMS type, to control multimedia communication sessions in packet mode established by the users, in particular through the use of the SIP protocol.

The IMS network 24 of FIG. 1 comprises two SIP servers 26 and 28 for controlling the multimedia communication sessions, called CSCF ("CaII State Control Functions") servers. It also includes at least one application server 30. The CSCF server 26 is the first point of contact for the mobile terminal 16 in the IMS domain 24, and is connected to the GGSN server 20 of the PS network 12. It is called P-CSCF server for "Proxy-CSCF".

The server CSCF 28 is in particular a server for registering users of mobile terminals 16 with the IMS network 24, and a server forming a gateway with the Internet network 22, in order to control the data exchanges transported by the network PS 12 between the mobile terminals 16 and this Internet network 22. It is called S-CSCF server for "Serving CSCF".

In order to register the users, the S-CSCF server 28 firstly comprises means 32 for authentication of each mobile terminal user 16 registering with the IMS network 24.

The S-CSCF server 28 is then able to consult an HSS server 34. This HSS server 34 comprises storage means 35, in particular, user data for each user who can register with the IMS network 24. The means storage 35 may be constituted by any digital data medium known to those skilled in the art.

The user data is data that the S-CSCF server 28 consults during each user registration. They include IFC filters.

The IFC filters of each of the users are defined and activated to control the transmission of information relating to the authentication of this user to the application server 30.

This authentication information comprises, in the example described, an indicator of the success of the authentication.

In order to transmit the information, the S-CSCF server 28 comprises means 36 for transmitting, to the application server 30, a SIP message Third Party Register containing the authentication information.

Thus, the HSS server 34 and the means 36 for transmitting a Third Party Register SIP message constitute means for transmitting, to the application server 30, information relating to the authentication of each user registering with the IMS network 24.

The application server 30 is a server, common to all user registrations, for providing authentication information to an application 38 external to the IMS network 24, located for example in the Internet network 22.

Thus, the server comprises means 39 for providing the authentication information to the external application 38. The provision of the authentication information can be done, in a first example, in response to a request from the application server 30, sent by the external application 38.

Thus, the application server 30 may be an "Identity Provider" type server, defined in the "Liberty Alliance" standard. In this case, the external application 38 can obtain the authentication information by following this standard.

Alternatively, the external application 38 can obtain the authentication information of the application server 30 using the Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) protocol.

In addition, the provision of the authentication information can, in a second example, be done actively, without the application server 30 being requested by the external application 38. This is the case when the server of application 30 is set to provide the information automatically.

FIG. 2 shows the steps related to the invention of a method for registering users with the IMS network 24, implemented by the system described above for each user's registration with the IMS network. .

It will be noted that, prior to the steps described below, the IFC filters of each user likely to register with the IMS network 24 will have been defined and activated to control the transmission of information relating to the authentication of this user to the user. application server 30.

In a first step 50, the mobile terminal 16 connects to the IMS network 24, and transmits a SIP Register type registration message to the S-CSCF server 28. In some cases, the S-CSCF server 28 may require transmission of another SIP Register message.

During a step 52, the S-CSCF server 28 accesses the HSS server 34 and consults the user data of the user of the mobile terminal 16. He also consults the IFC filters specific to this user.

Following receipt of the SIP Register message transmitted by the mobile terminal 16, the S-CSCF server 28 authenticates, during a step 54, the user of the mobile terminal 16, and transmits, during a step 56, a Third Party Register SIP message to the application server 30, common to all user registrations, in accordance with the user's own IFC filters.

Thus, the application server 30 receives the authentication information of the user of the mobile terminal 16, which he can provide to the external application 38. Also in step 56, the S-CSCF server 28 transmits the authentication information to the HSS server 34, as provided in the UMTS.

The application server 30 thus comprises the authentication information of all the users registered with the IMS network 24. Moreover, it is capable of supplying them via the means of provision 39 to the external application 38, for example in response to a request or automatically, as described above.

Note that the invention is not limited to the embodiment described above.

Indeed, the IMS network 24 may comprise other S-CSCF servers 28 responsible for registering users of mobile terminals. In this case, these other servers will also consult the HSS server 34 and thus transmit the authentication information to the same application server 30, according to the method described above.

In addition, other methods of providing the authentication information may also be used, without departing from the scope of the invention.

It is clear that a user registration system as described above, implementing the registration method described above, allows an application external to the IMS network to obtain the authentication information of all registered users. with this IMS network.

Claims

REVENDICAT1ONS

A method of registering terminal users with a network (24) for controlling packet multimedia communication sessions established by the users, wherein for each user's registration with the network (24) , the user is authenticated, characterized by transmitting (58) information relating to the authentication of this user to a server (30) for providing this information to at least one application (38) external to the network ( 24).

The method of registering users according to claim 1, wherein the authentication information providing server (30) is a server common to all user registrations.

A method of registering users as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein, an HSS server (34) including IFC filters for each user capable of registering with the network (24), these IFC filters are used for transmit the authentication information, defining and activating it previously to control the transmission of information relating to the authentication of this user to the server (30).

The method of registering users according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein:

the data transmission network (24) is an IMS network, the common server (30) is an application server of the IMS network.

The method of registering users according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein, the network (24) implementing the SIP protocol:

for each registration with the network (24) of a user, a message of the SIP Register type is received (54) from the terminal (16) of this user,

- Following this reception, a SIP message Third Party Register (58) is sent to the server (30), the SIP Third Party Register message containing the authentication information.

The method of registering users according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the authentication information includes an indicator of the success of the authentication.

A system for registering terminal users with a packet mode multimedia communication session control network (24) established by the users, comprising authentication means (32) for each user registering with the user. network (24), characterized in that it comprises means for transmitting (34, 36) information relating to the authentication of this user to a server (30) for providing this information to at least one application (38) external to the network (24).

The user registration system according to claim 7, wherein the transmission means (34, 36) comprises an HSS server (34) including IFC filters for each user who is able to register with the network (24). , defined and activated to control the transmission of information relating to the authentication of this user to the server (30).

9. HSS server (34) characterized in that it comprises IFC filters for each user likely to register with the network (24), defined and activated to control the transmission of information relating to the authentication of this user to the server (30).

10. Application server (30) of an IMS network (24) for controlling packet mode multimedia communication sessions, characterized in that it comprises means (39) for providing information relating to authentication. of each user registered with the IMS network (24).