Bridge and asynchronous channel based bus to provide UI-to-UI asynchronous communication

• US 10,579,577 B2
• Filed: 06/27/2017
• Issued: 03/03/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vmware LLC (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: VMware, Inc. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Shanley, Dave
• Primary Examiner(s): Park, Ilwoo
• Application Number:
  US15/635,015
• Publication Number:
  US 20180373668A1
• Time in Patent Office: 980 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/387 for adaptation of different data processing systems to different peripheral devices, e.g. protocol converters for incompatible systems, open system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4027 using bus bridges G06F13/4022 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4226 with asynchronous protocol
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]

Abstract

In a system and method for providing UI-to-UI asynchronous communication, a bridge is coupled to an asynchronous channel based bus that has at least one Galactic channel. The bridge receives each message on the Galactic channel, and converts each message from a channel message format used by the Galactic channel to a common message format. The bridge utilizes a socket to broadcast each converted message to, and receive messages from, the one or more other bridges. The bridge determines that a message received from the one or more other bridges is destined for the Galactic channel. The bridge converts the message into the channel message format used by the Galactic channel. The bridge distributes the converted message to the at least one Galactic channel.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

an asynchronous channel based bus having at least one Galactic channel and at least one local channel, wherein the at least one Galactic channel includes a first Galactic channel and a second Galactic channel;

a first user interface (UI) coupled to the asynchronous channel based bus, the first UI to pass messages to and receive messages from a second UI using the at least one Galactic channel; and

a bridge coupled to the asynchronous channel based bus, the bridge comprising;

a message receiver to receive each message on the at least one Galactic channel and ignore any message on the at least one local channel;

a message translator to convert each message received from the at least one Galactic channel from a channel message format used by the at least one Galactic channel to a common message format;

a socket to broadcast each message converted to the common message format to one or more other bridges, and receive at least one message from the one or more other bridges; and

a received message sorter to determine that the at least one message received from the one or more other bridges is destined for the at least one Galactic channel, and provide the at least one message to the message translator to convert the at least one message to the channel message format used by the at least one Galactic channel; and

wherein the bridge is configured to;

distribute the converted message received from the one or more other bridges to the at least one Galactic channel;

receive and process a request message on the first Galactic channel;

send a response to the request message to the asynchronous channel based bus; and

send the response on the second Galactic channel according to the processing of the request message, the request message specifying the response be sent on the second Galactic channel.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the asynchronous channel based bus allows a dynamic creation of one or more of a plurality channels therein.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the asynchronous channel based bus allows a dynamic destruction of one or more of a plurality of channels therein.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the asynchronous channel based bus allows an actor to publish to any of the plurality of channels.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the asynchronous channel based bus allows any actor to subscribe to any of the plurality of channels.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the asynchronous channel based bus further comprises:

a monitor API, the monitor API broadcasts channel events including creation, subscription, unsubscription and destruction.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the bridge further comprises:

a Galactic channel monitor to listen to the monitor API for Galactic channel events, the Galactic channel monitor ignoring local channel events.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the bridge further comprises:

a socket watchdog that will reconnect the bridge to the one or more other bridges after an error or a disconnect.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the common message format is a simple text oriented messaging protocol (STOMP).

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the asynchronous channel based bus is not aware that the bridge is operating.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the asynchronous channel based bus comprises a plurality of Galactic channels.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the bridge communicates with each of the plurality of Galactic channels.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein a hash convention plus snake-case is used to identify the at least one Galactic channel.

14. A computer-implemented method for providing user interface (UI)-to-UI asynchronous communication, said computer-implemented method comprising:

monitoring, via a first bridge, at least one Galactic channel on a first asynchronous channel based bus coupled with a first UI, wherein the at least one Galactic channel includes a first Galactic channel and a second Galactic channel;

receiving, at the first bridge, every message sent on the at least one Galactic channel, wherein the first bridge is configured to;

receive and process a request message on the first Galactic channel;

send a response to the request message to the first asynchronous channel based bus; and

send the response on the second Galactic channel according to the processing of the request message, the request message specifying the response be sent on the second Galactic channel;

converting, via a message translator coupled with the first bridge, each message sent on the at least one Galactic channel from a message format used by the at least one Galactic channel into a common format;

sending, via a first Web Socket coupled with the first bridge, each common format message to a second bridge;

receiving, via a second Web Socket coupled with the second bridge, the common format message from the first bridge;

determining, at the second bridge, that the message received from the first bridge is destined for a Galactic channel on a second asynchronous channel based bus coupled with a second UI, the second asynchronous channel based bus monitored by the second bridge;

converting, via a message translator coupled with the second bridge, the common format message received from the first bridge to a message format used by the Galactic channel on the second asynchronous channel based bus; and

distributing, via the second bridge, the converted message received from the first bridge to the Galactic channel on the second asynchronous channel based bus.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, further comprising:

allowing a dynamic creation of a plurality of channels within the first asynchronous channel based bus and the second asynchronous channel based bus, and

allowing a subsequent destruction of one or more of the plurality of channels within the first asynchronous channel based bus and the second asynchronous channel based bus.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, further comprising:

allowing a service to publish to, and receive from, any of the plurality of channels of the first asynchronous channel based bus; and

allowing a controller to publish to, and receive from, any of the plurality of channels of the first asynchronous channel based bus.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, further comprising:

broadcasting, via a monitor API provided by the first asynchronous channel based bus, channel events including creation, subscription, unsubscription and destruction;

monitoring, via the first bridge, the broadcast of the monitor API for every Galactic channel event on the first asynchronous channel based bus; and

ignoring the broadcast of the monitor API with respect to local channel events.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, further comprising:

monitoring, via the first bridge, every Galactic channel on the first asynchronous channel based bus;

receiving, at the first bridge, every message sent on every Galactic channel of the first asynchronous channel based bus; and

converting, via the message translator coupled with the first bridge, every message received from every Galactic channel from the message format used by each Galactic channel of the first asynchronous channel based bus to a common message format.

19. A system comprising:

an asynchronous channel based bus having at least one Galactic channel and at least one local channel, the asynchronous channel based bus having a monitor API, the monitor API broadcasts channel events including creation, subscription, unsubscription and destruction, wherein the at least one Galactic channel includes a first Galactic channel and a second Galactic channel;

a first user interface (UI) coupled to the asynchronous channel based bus, the first UI to pass messages to and receive messages from a second UI using the at least one Galactic channel; and

a bridge coupled to the asynchronous channel based bus, the bridge comprising;

a Galactic channel monitor to listen to the monitor API for Galactic channel events, the Galactic channel monitor ignoring local channel events;

a message receiver to receive each message on the at least one Galactic channel;

a message translator to convert each message received from the at least one Galactic channel from a channel message format used by the at least one Galactic channel to a common message format;

a socket to broadcast each message converted to the common message format to one or more other bridges, and receive at least one message from the one or more other bridges; and

a received message sorter to determine that the at least one message received from the one or more other bridges is destined for the at least one Galactic channel, and provide the at least one message to the message translator to convert the at least one message to the channel message format used by the at least one Galactic channel; and

wherein the bridge is configured to;

distribute the converted message received from the one or more other bridges to the at least one Galactic channel;

receive and process a request message on the first Galactic channel;

send a response to the request message to the asynchronous channel based bus; and

send the response on the second Galactic channel according to the processing of the request message, the request message specifying the response be sent on the second Galactic channel.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the asynchronous channel based bus allows:

a dynamic creation of one or more of a plurality channels;

a dynamic destruction of one or more of the plurality of channels;

an actor to publish to any of the plurality of channels; and

any actor to subscribe to any of the plurality of channels.