Communications +Framework Quick Start

Getting started +with Communications Framework

To manage communications +connections and transfer data, use the client interfaces provided by the Sockets +Server, together with additional interfaces that are provided by implementations +of specific communications protocols. For example, to communicate over the +TCP protocol, use the Sockets Server together with the Internet Sockets libraries +provided by Networking Services.
To implement new communications +protocols, implement plug-ins that conform to the Comms Architecture.
To configure the communications +set up of a phone, use the Comms Database.
To communicate over +a serial port, such as RS232, and to access other communications protocols +that can be used in a similar way, use the Serial Communications Server.

Architecture

The Communications Framework enables +communication in mobile devices. It allows the devices to connect to networks, +create and store network settings, manage memory used for communications, +and send and receive data.

The Communications Framework comprises +the following collections:

Communications Process +and Settings

This collection contains the Comms Root Server and +Comms Root Server Configurator components. For more information see Root Server.
Communications Configuration

This +collection contains the Comms Database. The Comms Database contains data about +all of the settings in the communication framework. For more information about +the Comms Database, see Comms +Database.
Data Communications +Server

This collection contains the ESock Server and ESock Server +Configurator components. For more information, see Data +Communications Server.
Communications Framework +Utilities

This collection contains the Comms framework, Comms +Elements and MBuf Manager. For more information, see Communications +Framework Utilities.
Serial Server and +Serial Comms Server Plug-ins

These collections contain the C32 +Serial Server and the C32 Serial Server and the Serial Port CSY. For more +information, see Serial +Communications Server.

The following diagram outlines the Communication Framework collections +and the components associated with each collection.

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Technologies

The Comms Framework defines the structure +and operations of the communications protocol stack in Symbian platform, +and allows applications to use the stack through a sockets type API. It defines +the concepts, roles, and rules that govern the function of the stack, but +does not itself implement specific protocols, such as TCP/IP, in that stack.

This +section describes the key features and technologies implemented by the Communications +Framework.

Comms Database

The +Comms database comprises a series of tables which are used to store communications +settings. Each table is made up of a set of records. These records are in +turn made up of a series of fields. A field is the basic unit of information +in the Comms Database. For more information, see Comms +Database.
Root Server

Root +Server manages the process in which all Communications Servers are loaded. +The process is called C32exe and is also known as C32. For more +information, see What +is Root Server and the C32exe Process?.
ESock Server

ESock +Server provides a generic interface to communications protocols through communication +end points known as sockets. They provide a generic interface to network level +communications protocols for common operations involved in network computing. +These include sending data, receiving data, establishing connections, and +configuring network protocols.
Network Interface +Manager

The Network Interface Manager (NifMan) creates and manages +network interfaces. The Network interfaces enable the devices to connect to +networks. For more information about NifMan, see Network +Interface Manager (NifMan).
MBufManager

An +MBuf is part of the implementation of a buffer in the Comms Architecture and +represents a section of memory. The Communications framework creates a MBufs +when the device starts. The MBufManager provides memory management for the +Comms processes. For more information about buffers and MBufs, see Memory +Management.
C32 Serial Server

The +Serial Communications Server provides a public API to access the serial ports +of the device. It provides functionality such as timeouts and port sharing +for all Serial Protocol Modules. For more information, see the Serial +Communications Server.