System and method for providing content services to a repository

• US 20050251506A1
• Filed: 08/10/2004
• Published: 11/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: BEA Systems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Owen, James, Posner, Brad, Patadia, Jalpesh, Toussaint, Alexander, McCauley, Rodney
• Granted Patent: US 7,162,504 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/188 Virtual file systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/219 Managing data history or versioning querying versioned data G06F16/2474; querying temporal data G06F16/2477
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/256 in federated or virtual databases
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99954 Version management

Abstract

A system and method for providing one or more content services to a repository in a plurality of repositories, said method comprising, integrating the plurality of repositories into a virtual content repository (VCR), maintaining a logical namespace that encompasses the plurality of repositories, providing the one or more content services to the repository, wherein the one or more content services includes at least one of: a versioning capability and a lifecycle capability, wherein the repository stores at least one of: content information and schema 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 providing one or more content services to a repository in a plurality of repositories, said method comprising:

integrating the plurality of repositories into a virtual content repository (VCR);

maintaining a logical namespace that encompasses the plurality of repositories;

providing the one or more content services to the repository;

wherein the one or more content services includes at least one of;

a versioning capability and a lifecycle capability;

wherein the repository stores at least one of;

content information and schema 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 for the repository to track changes to at least one of;

the content information and the schema information.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein:

the version history can be rolled back.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transitioning the content information through a set of states according to a lifecycle definition.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein:

the content information can transition from a first state in the set of states to a second state in the set of states when there is a transition between the first state and the second state.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

skipping the second state if a user or a process is in a superior role to a role associated with the transition.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein:

the transition can be constrained to at least one of;

a user, a group of users, a capability, and a role.

8. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

performing an action associated with a state in the set of states or a transition between two states in the set of states.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein:

the action can be constrained by at least one of;

a policy, a capability, and a role.

10. The method of claim 4 wherein:

a transition between states can be initiated by a user or by a process.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the integrating includes:

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

12. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the content information can include a link to information outside of the VCR.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the repository does not natively support the one or more content services.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the namespace is hierarchical.

15. A system for providing one or more content services to a repository in a plurality of repositories, said system comprising:

a virtual content repository (VCR) including one or more content services;

the plurality of repositories integrated into the VCR;

a logical namespace capable of encompassing the plurality of repositories;

wherein the one or more content services can be provided to the repository;

wherein the one or more content services includes at least one of;

a versioning capability and a lifecycle capability;

wherein the repository stores at least one of;

content information and schema information; and

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

16. The system of claim 15, further comprising:

a version history for the repository capable of tracking changes to at least one of;

the content information and the schema information.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein:

the version history can be rolled back.

18. The system of claim 15, further comprising:

a lifecycle definition capable of transitioning the content information through a set of states.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein:

the content information can transition from a first state in the set of states to a second state in the set of states when there is a transition between the first state and the second state.

20. The system of claim 18 wherein:

the second state can be skipped if a user or a process is in a superior role to a role associated with the transition.

21. The system of claim 19 wherein:

the transition can be constrained to at least one of;

a user, a group of users, a capability, and a role.

22. The system of claim 19, further comprising:

an action associated with a state in the set of states or a transition between two states in the set of states, wherein the action is capable of being performed.

23. The system of claim 22 wherein:

the action can be constrained by at least one of;

a policy, a capability, and a role.

24. The system of claim 18 wherein:

a transition between states can be initiated by a user or by a process.

25. The system of claim 15 wherein the integrating includes:

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

26. The system of claim 15 wherein:

the content information can include a link to information outside of the VCR.

27. The system of claim 15 wherein:

the repository does not natively support the one or more content services.

28. The system of claim 15 wherein:

the namespace is hierarchical.

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

integrate the plurality of repositories into a virtual content repository (VCR);

maintain a logical namespace that encompasses the plurality of repositories;

provide the one or more content services to the repository;

wherein the one or more content services includes at least one of;

a versioning capability and a lifecycle capability;

wherein the repository stores at least one of;

content information and schema information; and

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

30. The machine readable medium of claim 29, further comprising instructions stored thereon that when executed by the one or more processors cause the system to:

maintain a version history for the repository to track changes to at least one of;

the content information and the schema information.

31. The machine readable medium of claim 30 wherein:

the version history can be rolled back.

32. The machine readable medium of claim 29, further comprising instructions stored thereon that when executed by the one or more processors cause the system to:

transition the content information through a set of states according to a lifecycle definition.

33. The machine readable medium of claim 32 wherein:

the content information can transition from a first state in the set of states to a second state in the set of states when there is a transition between the first state and the second state.

34. The machine readable medium of claim 32, further comprising instructions stored thereon that when executed by the one or more processors cause the system to:

skip the second state if a user or a process is in a superior role to a role associated with the transition.

35. The machine readable medium of claim 33 wherein:

the transition can be constrained to at least one of;

a user, a group of users, a capability, and a role.

36. The machine readable medium of claim 33, further comprising instructions stored thereon that when executed by the one or more processors cause the system to:

perform an action associated with a state in the set of states or a transition between two states in the set of states.

37. The machine readable medium of claim 36 wherein:

the action can be constrained by at least one of;

a policy, a capability, and a role.

38. The machine readable medium of claim 32 wherein:

a transition between states can be initiated by a user or by a process.

39. The machine readable medium of claim 29, further comprising instructions stored thereon that when executed by the one or more processors cause the system to:

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

40. The machine readable medium of claim 29 wherein:

the content information can include a link to information outside of the VCR.

41. The machine readable medium of claim 29 wherein:

the repository does not natively support the one or more content services.

42. The machine readable medium of claim 29 wherein:

the namespace is hierarchical.

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

a code segment including instructions for integrating the plurality of repositories into a virtual content repository;

a code segment including instructions for maintaining a logical namespace that encompasses the plurality of repositories;

a code segment including instructions for providing the one or more content services to the repository;

wherein the one or more content services includes at least one of;

a versioning capability and a lifecycle capability;

wherein the repository stores at least one of;

content information and schema information; and

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