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Managing Mobility of Users in a Virtual Network

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Abstract

Terminal and personal mobility are the fundamental characteristics of Nomadic Computing. However, personal mobility provides a greater degree of flexibility, creating an environment in which a user roams in network without a wireless laptop or a mobile phone and yet enjoys anytime, anywhere network accessibility. This work presents Nomad'sPersonal Access System (NPAS): a software system at OSI application layer that provides a personal mobility environment within a virtual, private network, spanning different organizational networks. It implements dynamic association between a user and shared devices associated with a new location. The dynamic mapping of users to devices is achieved using Internet'sLDAP distributed directory. The LDAP'sdistributed directory provides services and location data to the network—thus incoming and outgoing messages can be easily routed to the current location of a nomad. The ability to know the current location of a nomad increases his/her accessibility to and from other people. Therefore, NPAS also addresses the messaging services and suggests a solution based on agents. This work is motivated by the larger project of the Mobile Agents Alliance, a collaborative effort that includes the National Research Council of Canada, the University of Ottawa, and Mitel Corporation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Information Technology & Engineering, University of Ottawa, 161 Louis Pasteur, St. Ottawa, ON, Canada, K1N 6N5

    A. Hooda & A. Karmouch

  2. AmikaNow! Corp, 22 Balding Cres., Kanata, ON, Canada, K2K 2L4

    S. Abu-Hakima

Authors
  1. A. Hooda
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  2. A. Karmouch
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  3. S. Abu-Hakima
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Hooda, A., Karmouch, A. & Abu-Hakima, S. Managing Mobility of Users in a Virtual Network. Multimedia Tools and Applications 9, 43–68 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009623113707

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