System and method for content and schema versioning

• US 20050251503A1
• Filed: 08/10/2004
• Published: 11/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: BEA Systems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: BEA Systems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Owen, James, Posner, Brad, Patadia, Jalpesh, Toussaint, Alexander, McCauley, Rodney
• Application Number:
  US10/915,033
• Publication Number:
  US 20050251503A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/219 Managing data history or versioning querying versioned data G06F16/2474; querying temporal data G06F16/2477

Abstract

A system and method for versioning content and schema information in a virtual content repository (VCR), comprising, integrating a plurality of repositories into the VCR, storing the content and schema information in the VCR, maintaining a version history to track changes to the content information, and wherein the content and schema information is accessible through a logical namespace that encompasses the plurality of repositories.

Claims

1. A method for versioning content and schema information in a virtual content repository (VCR), comprising:

integrating a plurality of repositories into the VCR;

storing the content and schema information in the VCR;

maintaining a version history to track changes to the content information; and

wherein the content and schema information is accessible through a logical namespace that encompasses the plurality of repositories.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining a version history to track changes to the schema information.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the content includes at least one value.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein:

the schema information can specify the data type of one or more of the at least one values.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein:

the content resides in a first repository and the schema information resides in a second repository; and

wherein the first repository and the second repository are of the plurality of repositories.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the content includes a link to information outside of the VCR.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the content includes an expression that provides the location of other information in the VCR.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the content includes a mapping to a database table or a database view.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the schema information has a shape that can be at least partially inherited.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the plurality of repositories does not natively support versioning of schema information.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the version history can be rolled back.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein:

access to the content and/or schema information can be controlled by at least one role and/or at least one policy.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of integrating includes:

implementing a service provider interface (SPI) that is compatible with the VCR.

14. A system for versioning content and schema information, comprising:

a virtual content repository (VCR);

a plurality of repositories integrated into the VCR;

a version history within the VCR to track changes to the content information; and

wherein the content and schema information is accessible through a logical namespace that encompasses the plurality of repositories.

15. The system of claim 14, further comprising:

a version history to track changes to the schema information.

16. The system of claim 14 wherein:

the content includes at least one value.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein:

the schema information can specify the data type of one or more of the at least one values.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein:

the content resides in a first repository and the schema information resides in a second repository; and

wherein the first repository and the second repository are of the plurality of repositories.

19. The system of claim 14 wherein:

the content includes a link to information outside of the VCR.

20. The system of claim 14 wherein:

the content includes an expression that provides the location of other information in the VCR.

21. The system of claim 14, wherein:

the content includes a mapping to a database table or a database view.

22. The system of claim 14 wherein:

the schema information has a shape that can be at least partially inherited.

23. The system of claim 14 wherein:

the plurality of repositories does not natively support versioning of schema information.

24. The system of claim 14 wherein:

the version history can be rolled back.

25. The system of claim 14 wherein:

access to the content and/or schema information can be controlled by at least one role and/or at least one policy.

26. The system of claim 14 wherein the step of integrating includes:

implementing a service provider interface (SPI) that is compatible with the VCR.

27. A machine readable medium having instructions stored thereon that when executed by one or more processors cause a system to:

integrate a plurality of repositories into the VCR;

store the content and schema information in the VCR;

maintain a version history to track changes to the content information; and

wherein the content and schema information is accessible through a logical namespace that encompasses the plurality of repositories.

28. The machine readable medium of claim 27, further comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

maintain a version history to track changes to the schema information.

29. The machine readable medium of claim 27 wherein:

the content includes at least one value.

30. The machine readable medium of claim 29 wherein:

the schema information can specify the data type of one or more of the at least one values.

31. The machine readable medium of claim 30 wherein:

the content resides in a first repository and the schema information resides in a second repository; and

wherein the first repository and the second repository are of the plurality of repositories.

32. The machine readable medium of claim 27 wherein:

the content includes a link to information outside of the VCR.

33. The machine readable medium of claim 27 wherein:

the content includes an expression that provides the location of other information in the VCR.

34. The machine readable medium of claim 27 wherein:

the content includes a mapping to a database table or a database view.

35. The machine readable medium of claim 27 wherein:

the schema information has a shape that can be at least partially inherited.

36. The machine readable medium of claim 27 wherein:

the plurality of repositories does not natively support versioning of schema information.

37. The machine readable medium of claim 27 wherein:

the version history can be rolled back.

38. The machine readable medium of claim 27 wherein:

access to the content and/or schema information can be controlled by at least one role and/or at least one policy.

39. The machine readable medium of claim 27, further comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

implement a service provider interface (SPI) that is compatible with the VCR.

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

a code segment including instructions to integrate a plurality of repositories into the VCR;

a code segment including instructions to store the content and schema information in the VCR;

a code segment including instructions to maintain a version history to track changes to the content information; and

wherein the content and schema information is accessible through a logical namespace that encompasses the plurality of repositories.