Patent ID: 7310307
Filing Date: 2007-12-18
Classification: H04L,H04W

Abstract:
1. An apparatus for authenticating an element in a network environment, comprising: an authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) server receiving a request for one or more triplets from a wireless local area network (WLAN) element, one or more of the triplets being associated with an authentication communications protocol being executed in order to facilitate a communication session via the WLAN element, the AAA server returning one or more of the triplets to the WLAN element such that the communication session is facilitated after proper authentication of an entity associated with the request, and wherein a mobile application part (MAP) gateway receives a request from the AAA server when the AAA server cannot communicate one or more requested triplets to the WLAN element, the MAP gateway accessing a cache table within the MAP gateway in order to return one or more triplets to the WLAN element in response to the request from the AAA server, whereby either the MAP gateway or the AAA server is accessed to locally cache the triplets such that a home location register (HLR) is not initially involved in an authentication process for the communication session.