Intelligent discovery of shares

• US 20050149480A1
• Filed: 10/07/2004
• Published: 07/07/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Deshpande, Sachin
• Granted Patent: US 7,487,136 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/10 File systems; File servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing

Abstract

A local computer sends out mount requests to remote computers for identifying folders or files that are available for sharing (shares). The local computer sends out the mount requests without previously discovering if the folders or files exist or are available for sharing on the remote computers. Any of the folders or files that are successfully mounted are identified as available for sharing.

Claims

1. A share discovery device, comprising:

a local computer configured to send out mount requests to remote devices to identify folders or files that are available for sharing (shares), the local computer sending out the mount requests without previously discovering if the folders or files exist or are available for sharing on the remote devices and identifying any of the share folder or files that are successfully mounted as available for sharing.

2. The share discovery device according to claim 1 wherein the local computer sends the mounting requests to the remote devices and receives mounting request responses back from the remote devices without going through an intermediary master browser.

3. The share discovery device according to claim 1 wherein the local computer dismounts or disconnects a successfully mounted folder or file and mounts any of the folders or files that are selected from the available list.

4. The share discovery device according claim 1 wherein the mount requests comprise Server Message Blocks (SMBs) and Common Internet File System (CIFS) messages.

5. The share discovery device according to claim 1 wherein the local computer or remote device do not support NetrShareEnum Request-Response transactions or Remote Procedure Calls (RPC).

6. The share discovery device according to claim 1 wherein the local computer sends out a device name query to any remote devices connected to a same network and then sends out the mount requests to the remote devices identified during the device name query.

7. The share discovery device according to claim 1 wherein the names of the shares are pre-selected media folder names commonly used on different computer systems for storing media.

8. The share discovery device according to claim 1 wherein the local computer queries a user for folder or files names and attempts to mount the folder or file names entered by the user, the local computer identifying any of the folder or files names that are successfully mounted as available shares.

9. The share discovery device according to claim 8 wherein the local computer conducts a share query and adds any of the names of any of the shares identified during the mounting requests to the names of shares identified during the share query.

10. The share discovery device according to claim 1 wherein the local computer is a television computer system coupled to a network that discovers other remote network devices including remote computers or other television or audio systems on the network that contain media folders and files, the television computer system identifying media on the other remote network devices previously designated for sharing and playing the identified media locally on the television computer system.

11. The share discovery device according to claim 1 wherein a username and password are preconfigured for one or more of the shares and the shares are mounted when the username and password entered into the local computer correspond to the preconfigured username and password for the shares.

12. The share discovery device according to claim 1 wherein the local computer prompts a user to enter a username or password associated with the shares that are selected by a user for mounting and only mounts the selected shares when the correct username or password is entered by the user.

13. A method for identifying shares on a network, comprising:

assembling an a priori list of folder or file names that might be available for sharing (shares) without knowing if the folder or files actually exist or are available for sharing on remote devices;

attempting to mount or connect to the folder or file names in the a priori list; and

assembling an available list of the folder or files that were successfully mounted.

14. The method according to claim 13 including:

dismounting or disconnecting any of the folder or files that were successfully mounted or connected; and

remounting or connecting to any of the folders or files that are selected from the available list.

15. The method according to claim 13 including:

sending a device discovery query to identify remote devices on the network; and

attempting to mount the folders or files named in the a priori list from the remote devices that are identified during the device discovery query.

16. The method according to claim 13 including:

sending a share discovery query to remote devices on the network to identify shares;

adding the names of the shares discovered during the share discover query to the available list;

comparing the names of the shares in the available list with the names of the shares in the a priori list; and

attempt to mount the shares in the a priori list that are not on the available list.

17. The method according to claim 13 including:

prompting a user to enter folder or file names for remote computers that are designated as shares without knowing if the names exist or are available for sharing;

attempt mounting the folder or file names entered by the user from the remote devices; and

identifying any names of the folder or files that are successfully mounted as available for sharing.

18. The method according to claim 17 including automatically adding to the a priori list any of the folder or file names entered by the user that are successfully mounted.

19. The method according to claim 13 including using Server Message Blocks (SMBs) or Common Internet File System (CIFS) messages for mounting the folder or files.

20. The method according to claim 13 including supplying folder or file names in the a priori list that are commonly used on different computers for storing media files.

21. The method according to claim 13 including:

preconfiguring a username and password to one or more of the shares; and

mounting the shares when the username and password for a local computer correspond to the preconfigured username and password for the shares.

22. The method according to claim 13 including:

associating a username or password with one or more of the shares;

prompting a user to enter the associated username or password when the shares are selected for mounting; and

mounting the selected shares only when the correct username or password is entered

23. A system for discovering shares, comprising:

a remote device containing folders or files designated for sharing with other devices on a network but not available for discovery using a share discovery query, the remote device receiving a mount request for the folders or files and identify the folders or files are available for sharing (shares) by successfully completing the mount request.

24. The system according to claim 23 wherein the device sending the mount request does not support NetrShareEnum Request-Response transactions or Remote Procedure Calls (RPC).

25. The system according to claim 23 wherein the remote device receives a device discovery query directly from a local device and responds by identifying itself to the local computer.

26. The system according to claim 23 wherein the remote device receives the mount requests after receiving the device discovery query without ever receiving a share discovery query.

27. The system according to claim 26 wherein the remote device uses folder or file names that are common between different devices and the received mount request attempts to mount the common folder or file names.