Systems and methods for transaction chaining

• US 20040187127A1
• Filed: 02/24/2004
• Published: 09/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/25/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: BEA Systems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Takacsi-Nagy, Pal, Gondi, Albert, Blow, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 7,584,474 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 718/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/466 Transaction processing

Abstract

A transaction management engine, such as a business process management (BPM) engine, can allow an application to define transaction demarcations in order to ensure that portions of a workflow are processed atomically. In one such system, a JMS message is queued to the workflow as part of an existing transaction. If that transaction commits, the queued JMS message ensures that the workflow will be invoked in a new transaction that allows the workflow to perform the next unit of work in the newly initiated transaction. When the unit of work is completed, the workflow queues another JMS message. If this transaction commits, the transaction ensures the unit of work has executed in a transaction. When the workflow is invoked again due to the second JMS message, the workflow can continue its operation in a different transaction.

This description is not intended to be a complete description of, or limit the scope of, the invention. Other features, aspects, and objects of the invention can be obtained from a review of the specification, the figures, and the claims.

Claims

1. A method for ensuring atomicity in a workflow, comprising:

demarcating tasks in a workflow to be processed atomically.

2. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

committing the tasks if all tasks to be processed atomically are successfully processed.

3. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

aborting the tasks if any of the tasks to be processed atomically are not successfully processed.

4. A method for ensuring atomicity in a workflow, comprising:

queuing a message to a workflow when starting an atomic unit of work in a first transaction;

invoking the workflow in a second transaction if the first transaction commits, the message causing the workflow to be invoked;

allowing the workflow to perform the next unit of work in the second transaction; and

queuing another message such that when the second transaction commits and the workflow is subsequently invoked, the workflow can continue its operation in a new transaction.

5. A computer-readable medium, comprising:

means for demarcating tasks in a workflow to be processed atomically; and

means for atomically processing those tasks.

6. A computer program product for execution by a server computer for ensuring atomicity in a workflow, comprising:

computer code for demarcating tasks in a workflow to be processed atomically; and

computer code for atomically processing those tasks.

7. A system for ensuring atomicity in a workflow, comprising:

means for demarcating tasks in a workflow to be processed atomically; and

means for atomically processing those tasks.

8. A computer system comprising:

a processor;

object code executed by said processor, said object code configured to;

demarcate tasks in a workflow to be processed atomically; and

atomically process those tasks.

9. A computer data signal embodied in a transmission medium, comprising:

a code segment including instructions to demarcate tasks in a workflow to be processed atomically; and

a code segment including instructions to atomically process those tasks.