Method and system to provide files to a client computer

• US 20060101099A1
• Filed: 11/11/2004
• Published: 05/11/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/11/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Emc IP Holding Company LLC (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: EMC Corporation (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Shaw, Timothy C.
• Granted Patent: US 8,626,719 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/08 Annexed information, e.g. attachments

Abstract

Methods and systems for managing e-mails involve an e-mail server that maintains a data set identifying e-mails, and that implements a shortcut feature whereby at least a portion of an e-mail identified in the data set is identified by a shortcut identifier, so that the at least a portion of the e-mail is not stored in the data set. One method involves replicating a copy of at least some of the e-mails onto the client computer when the client computer is coupled to the e-mail server. Another method involves accessing a full copy of an e-mail while a client computer is not in communication with the e-mail server. Another method involves maintaining the shortcut identifier for an e-mail in the data set so that the data set is not updated with a full copy of the e-mail when a user requests the e-mail.

Claims

1. A method of managing e-mails in a computer system comprising at least one e-mail server and at least one client computer, wherein the at least one e-mail server maintains a data set identifying a plurality of e-mails managed by the at least one e-mail server, wherein the e-mail server identifies at least a portion of at least one e-mail in the data set by a shortcut identifier, so that the at least a portion of the at least one e-mail is not stored in the data set and is stored remotely from the data set, the method comprising:

(A) replicating copies of at least some of the plurality of e-mails identified in the data set on the at least one client computer when the at least one client computer is coupled to the at least one e-mail server, wherein each of the copies replicated on the at least one client computer comprises a full copy of the at least a portion of the at least one e-mail that is identified in the data set by the shortcut identifier.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least a plurality of portions of a plurality of e-mails are identified by a plurality of shortcut identifiers, and the copies replicated on the at least one client computer comprise a plurality of full copies associated with the plurality of shortcut identifiers.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein at least some of the plurality of e-mails replicated on the at least one client computer are e-mails assigned to an account of a user that logs into the at least one client computer.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein (A) is performed not in response to a user of the at least one client computer accessing the at least one e-mail.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least the portion of at least one e-mail identified in the data set by the shortcut identifier is an attachment to the at least one e-mail.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein (A) is performed by the at least one e-mail server.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein (A) comprises:

the e-mail server sending an indicator of the shortcut identifier of the at least the portion of the at least one e-mail to the at least one client computer; and

trapping the indicator of the shortcut identifier sent from the e-mail server,

so that the indicator of the shortcut identifier is not delivered to the at least one client computer.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein (A) comprises:

receiving, by the e-mail server, the full copy of the at least one portion of the at least one e-mail; and

generating, by the e-mail server, the shortcut identifier in response to the receipt of the full copy of the at least one portion.

9. A method of accessing at least one e-mail in a computer system comprising at least one e-mail server and at least one client computer, wherein the at least one e-mail server maintains a data set identifying a plurality of e-mails managed by the at least one e-mail server, wherein the e-mail server identifies at least a portion of at least one e-mail in the data set by a shortcut identifier, so that the at least a portion of the at least one e-mail is not stored in the data set and is stored remotely from the data set, the method comprising:

(A) accessing a full copy of the at least one e-mail from the at least one client computer while the at least one client computer is not in communication with the at least one e-mail server.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the at least one client computer stores replicated copies of at least some of the plurality of e-mails identified in the data set on the at least one client computer, and wherein the copies replicated on the at least one client computer comprise full copies of the at least a portion of the at least one e-mail that is identified in the data set by the shortcut identifier.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the replicated copy stored by the at least one client computer corresponds to e-mails assigned to an account of a user that logs into the at least one client computer.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising (B) storing the replicated copies on the at least one client computer when the at least one client computer is coupled to the at least one e-mail server.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein (B) is performed not in response to a user of the at least one client computer accessing the at least one e-mail.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein (B) is performed in response to an e-mail application program executing on the at least one e-mail server.

15. The method of claim 12, further comprising (C) the e-mail server sending an indicator of the shortcut identifier to the at least one client computer, and (D) trapping, by a program running on the at least one e-mail server, the shortcut identifier before (B) storing the replicated copy.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the at least a portion of the at least one e-mail represented in the data set by a shortcut identifier is an attachment to the at least one e-mail.

17. A method of managing e-mails in a computer system comprising at least one e-mail server and at least one client computer, wherein the at least one e-mail server maintains a data set identifying a plurality of e-mails managed by the at least one e-mail server, wherein the e-mail server identifies at least a portion of at least one e-mail in the data set by a shortcut identifier, so that the at least a portion of the at least one e-mail is not stored in the data set and is stored remotely from the data set, the method comprising:

(A) in response to a request sent to the at least one e-mail server from a user of the at least one client computer to access the at least one e-mail, maintaining, by the e-mail server, the shortcut identifier for the at least one e-mail in the data set so that the data set is not updated with a full copy of the at least one e-mail.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein (A) comprises, in response to the request, providing the full copy of the at least one e-mail to the user on the at least one client computer.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising (B) sending the request to the e-mail server before (A) maintaining the shortcut identifier, and (C) trapping a function call associated with the request, wherein the full copy is provided in response to the trapped function call.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising (D) retrieving the full copy from a remote storage unit, and (E) delivering the full copy to the client computer.

21. The method of claim 17, wherein the portion of at least one e-mail identified in the data set by the shortcut identifier is an attachment to the at least one e-mail.