Method & apparatus for identifying the cause of communication session faults
A communication network includes a wireless LAN and associated wireless communication devices and a computational device either located remotely from the wireless LAN or located in the wireless LAN. The wireless communication devices operate to conduct communication sessions with other communication devices associated with the communication network and they operate to log communication session event activity. In the event that a communication session being run by a wireless communication device unexpectedly ends due to a fault event, the wireless communications device is capable of sending the entire contents of the logged communication session to the computational device for analysis to determine the cause of the fault event. The computational device operates to run a virtual communication session under the control of a debug module such that the session can be stopped at any time to examine the contents of the virtual communication session.
1 . A method for identifying fault events associated with a communication session recorded by a wireless communications device, the method comprising:
the wireless communication device initiating a communication session with a wireless communication network;
the wireless communication device logging communication session activity during the course of the communication session;
the wireless communication device sending all of the logged communication session activity to a computational device if the communication session unexpectedly ends; and
the computational device receiving the logged communication session activity and running a virtual communication session under the control of a virtual application control module to examine the communication session activity in order to determine the cause of the unexpected end to the communication session.
2 . The method of claim 1 wherein the examination of the communication session activity is comprised of:
the virtual application control module initializing the virtual application module to generate a first application message;
the virtual application module making the first application message available to the virtual interface module;
the virtual interface module retrieving the first application message from the virtual application; and
the virtual application control module stopping the operation of the virtual application module in order to permit examination of the contents of the first application message.
3 . The method of claim 1 in which the wireless communications device is one of a mobile phone, a PDA and a mobile computer.
4 . The method of claim 1 in which the wireless communication network is comprised of at least one wireless LAN.
5 . The method of claim 1 in which the logging of communication session activity includes detecting and recording messaging activity at an interface to a main application.
6 . The method of claim 1 in which the communication session ends unexpectedly due to a fault event.
7 . The method of claim 1 in which the computational device is a PC.
8 . The method of claim 4 wherein the at least one wireless LAN includes the mobile communications device and the computational device.
9 . The method of claim 1 in which the wireless communications device and the computational device are located in different wireless LANs.
10 . A wireless communication device operable to log and report wireless communication session activity, the wireless communication device comprising:
a logger for detecting and recording communication session activity; and
a reporter for transmitting all of the recorded messages to a computational device that is remote to the wireless communications device if the wireless communication session unexpectedly ends.
11 . The wireless communications device of claim 10 wherein the wireless communications device is one of a mobile phone, a PDA and a mobile computer.
12 . The wireless communications device of claim 10 wherein the logged communication session activity is comprised of all messages transmitted through an interface of a main application on the wireless communications device.
13 . The wireless communications device of claim 10 wherein the logger is comprised of a detector for detecting all of the messages transmitted through the interface of the main application on the wireless communications device and a recorder for storing all of the messages transmitted through the interface of the main application on the wireless communications device.
14 . The wireless communications device of claim 10 wherein the reporter transmits the recorded messages if the wireless communications device unexpectedly ends due to a fault event occurring at the wireless communications device.
15 . The wireless communications device of claim 10 wherein the computational device is operable to receive the messages sent to it by the reporter and to use these messages to run a virtual communication session under the control of a virtual application control module.
16 . A computational device comprising:
a network interface device;
a processor coupled to the network interface device; and
a memory coupled to the processor, the memory including
a store of event activity associated with the wireless communication session;
a virtual application;
a virtual interface module; and
a virtual application control module for controlling the virtual application, which operates in conjunction with the virtual interface module to run a virtual communication session, to stop the operation of the virtual application in order to examine the wireless communication session event activity contents.
17 . The computational device of claim 16 is one of a mobile phone, a PDA and a mobile computer.
18 . The computational device of claim 16 wherein the event activity is comprised of a least one message detected by an event logger located on a wireless communications device and transmitted to the computational device.
19 . The computational device of claim 16 wherein the virtual application operates to control the start, maintenance and termination of the virtual wireless communication session.
20 . The computational device of claim 16 wherein the virtual application control module is a debugger module.