File editing system and shared file editing system with file content secrecy, file version management, and asynchronous editing

• US 20040205340A1
• Filed: 05/05/2004
• Published: 10/14/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/1994
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Shimbo, Atsushi, Takahashi, Toshinari, Tomoda, Ichiro, Murota, Masao
• Application Number:
  US10/838,313
• Publication Number:
  US 20040205340A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/165
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6209 to a single file or object, e.g. in a secure envelope, encrypted and accessed using a key, or with access control rules appended to the object itself
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6218 to a system of files or objects, e.g. local or distributed file system or database
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6227 where protection concerns the structure of data, e.g. records, types, queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2147 Locking files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/166 Editing, e.g. inserting or deleting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A file editing system that provides a high file content secrecy, a file version management and an asynchronous editing is disclosed. For a high file content secrecy, the block data of files managed by a file management server device are enciphered in units of blocks, and a client device obtains the block data of the desired file in enciphered state, deciphers the obtained block data in units of blocks, carries out an editing of the desired file to obtain editing data, enciphers the editing data in units of blocks, and transmits the enciphered editing data to the file management server device. For asynchronous editing, the system includes a unit for generating editing procedure data that indicates a procedure to obtain the editing made in the desired version of the desired file by each client device, a unit for converting the editing procedure data for the desired version of the converted desired file into the editing procedure data for the latest version of the desired file, and a unit for generating record management information indicating a result of the editing made by each client device according to the converted editing procedure data for the latest version of the desired file.

Claims

1-25. -25 (Cancel)

26. A shared file editing system, comprising:

a file management server device for managing files, each file containing a plurality of block data and block identification information for each block data;

a plurality of client devices, each client device making an access to the file management server device to obtain the block data corresponding to a desired version of a desired file managed by the file management server device, and editing the desired file formed by the block data obtained from the file management server device; and

asynchronous editing support means for supporting asynchronous editing by said plurality of client devices, including;

editing procedure generation means for generating editing procedure data indicating a procedure to obtain each editing made in the desired file by each client device;

editing procedure conversion means for converting the editing procedure data for the desired version of the desired file generated by the editing procedure generation means into editing procedure data for a latest version of the desired file; and

record management information generation means for generating record management information indicating a result of the editing made in the desired file by each client device, according to the editing procedure data for the latest version of the desired file obtained by the editing procedure conversion means, such that the file management server device manages the desired file according to the record management information and the block identification information for each block data.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein the file management server device includes;

client counting means for counting a number of client devices which are currently editing each version of each file, in correspondence to each version of each file managed by the file management server device; and

deletion delay means for delaying an execution of a deletion of a particular version of a particular file in response to a request for deleting the particular version of the particular file until said number of client devices counted by the client counting means becomes zero.

29. The system of claim 26, wherein each client device includes:

file memory means for storing a previously accessed version of the desired file; and

file data construction means for constructing a desired version of the desired file according to the previously accessed version stored in the file memory means and the block data belonging to the desired file which are obtained from the file management server device; and

wherein the file management server device includes;

difference construction means for constructing the block data to be given to the client device by obtaining difference between the previously accessed version and the desired version.

30. The system of claim 26, wherein the file management server device includes:

editing conflict detection means for detecting an occurrence of a conflict between an editing made by one client device and another editing made by another client device, and notifying the detected occurrence of the conflict to said one client device.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein the file management server device further includes:

record management means for carrying out a record management of the desired file according to the record management information obtained by the asynchronous editing support means for said one client device, only when the editing conflict detection means does not detect the occurrence of the conflict for said one client device.

32. The system of claim 26, wherein each client device includes:

access request means for issuing an access request in terms of system calls provided by an operating system, with respect to a shared file managed by the file management server device;

system call table means for registering address pointers corresponding to the system calls; and

shared file access processing means for obtaining a shared file access request to be transmitted from each client device to the file management server device, according to the address pointers registered in the system call table means corresponding to the system calls specified by the access request issued at the access request means.

28. The system of claim 28, wherein each client device includes:

block data reconstruction means for reconstructing a plurality of block data obtained from the file management server device into a new block data; and

wherein each client device transmits the new block data obtained by the block data reconstruction means to the file management server device, such that the file management server device manages the desired file according to the new block data received from the client device.

33-35. -35 (Cancel)

36. A method of shared file editing in a shared file editing system formed by a file management server device and a plurality of client devices, comprising the steps of:

managing files at the file management server device, each file containing a plurality of block data and block identification information for each block data;

making an access to the file management server device to obtain the block data corresponding to a desired version of a desired file managed by the file management server device, at each client device;

editing the desired file formed by the block data obtained from the file management server device, at each client device;

generating editing procedure data indicating a procedure to obtain an editing made in the desired file by each client device at the editing step;

converting the editing procedure data for the desired version of the desired file obtained at the editing procedure data generating step into editing procedure data for a latest version of the desired file; and

generating record management information indicating a result of the editing made in the desired file by each client device at the editing step, according to the editing procedures data for the latest version of the desired file obtained by the converting step, such that the file management server device manages the desired file according to the record management information and the block identification information for each block data.