External storage middleware for wireless devices with limited resources

Abstract

This paper introduces an external storage middleware, that offers a set of functions (API - Application Program Interface) to mobile applications and facilitates the transfer of files between a mobile device and external storage servers regardless of the available wireless network. The Middleware selects the best wireless service available. In addition, the files exchanged between the mobile device and the external storage server are encrypted to provide security when traveling through the network. As a use case, it was developed an automatic file swapper service for mobile devices. The service is running on the mobile device optimizing its available storage space. Our middleware was tested with the following wireless services: Wi-Fi, GPRS, MMS.