Patent ID: 7349974

Claim:
In a client-server environment having a server group including one or more participating servers and one or more controller servers, where each participating server can communicate with at least one controller server, a method for coordinating actions among the servers in the server group comprising the steps of: communicating between a client and at least one of the servers in the server group using a protocol that has limited or no defined procedures for passing state information between the client and the servers; transmitting a request for a first action by a client to a server that requires authentication; providing client identification information by the client; verifying the client identification information by one or more controller servers; generating client authentication information by one or more controller servers; maintaining the client authentication information by one or more servers; utilizing a means by one or more servers for preserving the client authentication information in the conversation; transmitting a request for a second action by the client to one of the servers that requires authentication; and using the client authentication information preserved in the conversation and the client authentication information maintained by one or more servers to authenticate the client.