Patent ID: 7694018

Claim:
A method for communicating comprising: receiving traffic at a proxy server from a first device and a second device that services said first device, wherein said proxy server acts as a communications relay between said first device and said second device, and wherein said traffic comprises first machine specific information specific to said first device and second machine specific information specific to said second device that if left unedited prevents said proxy server from facilitating communication between said first device and said second device, wherein said first machine specific information comprises an address of said first device; editing said first machine specific information including said address at the ISO/OSI application layer so that traffic from said first device sent to said second device appears to originate from said proxy server, said traffic complying with a protocol operating at said application layer; wherein said editing comprises: locating machine specific information including said address referencing said first device in traffic received from said first device; creating said traffic that is edited, said creating comprising: copying said traffic received from said first device; and substituting said machine specific information including said address referencing said first device with machine specific information referencing said proxy server in said traffic received from said first device; locating machine specific information referencing said second device in traffic received from said second device; and creating said traffic that is edited, said creating comprising: copying said traffic received from said second device; and substituting said machine specific information referencing said second device with machine specific information referencing said proxy server in said traffic received from said second device; forwarding said traffic that is edited from said first device to said second device to enable communication between said first device and said second device; and forwarding said traffic that is edited from said second device to said first device to enable communication between said second device and said first device.