Patent ID: 7706381

Claim:
A method of switching transport protocol connection keys, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of: within one communication session: a first computer network node sending a keychange request message from the first network node to a second node, wherein said keychange request message causes the second node to accept, from the first computer network node, subsequent non-confirmed first-key messages that are digitally signed with a first key and subsequent non-confirmed second-key messages that are digitally signed with a second key; wherein the second key is a next key in a pre-provisioned list of keys for the first and second nodes and a message digitally signed with a particular key from the pre-provisioned list of keys can be accepted using only the particular key; the first computer network node receiving a first response message from the second node acknowledging the receipt of the keychange request message; based on the first response message, the first computer network node accepting, from the second node, the subsequent non-confirmed first-key messages digitally signed with the first key and the subsequent non-confirmed second-key messages digitally signed with the second key; the first computer network node receiving a first subsequent message digitally signed with the second key from the second node; the first computer network node determining that there are no remaining non-confirmed first-key messages to be received digitally signed with the first key, and in response thereto, only accepting second-key messages digitally signed with the second key from the second node and sending a second subsequent message digitally signed with the second key to the second node, wherein said second subsequent message causes the second node to accept only the second-key messages digitally signed with the second key.