XML storage solution and data interchange file format structure

• US 20060112116A1
• Filed: 01/03/2006
• Published: 05/25/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: McConnell, Christopher Clayton
• Granted Patent: US 7,519,609 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/123 Storage facilities
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation

Abstract

A relational database management system having an XML storage implementation to reduce overhead associated with consuming data from multiple data providers, where each having proprietary database schemas. The XML storage solution allows data from any arbitrary relational database schema to be loaded, rearranged and retrieved. The system is adapted to receive and managing data from external content providers by exposing a predetermined provider content file formats These formats use XPath as a schema reference, as a definition of legal combinations, and as a pattern to match other XPaths.

Claims

1-10. -10. (canceled)

11. An XML data exchange system, comprising:

a data aggregator associated with a relational database system;

a predetermined XML provider file structure, supplied to content providers by the data aggregator, the file structure defined by an XML schema;

an exchange mechanism that references at least one provider file; and

an import module that retrieves the at least one provider file and imports content contained therein into the data aggregator associated with the relational database system.

12. The system as recited in claim 11, wherein said at least one provider file comprises one of an extension file, an instance file, and a phrase file.

13. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein said extension file includes data related to said external content provider'"'"'s schema.

14. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein said instance file includes information from said external content provider'"'"'s schema that is queryable by users of said relational database system.

15. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein said phrase file includes definitions of connections from phrases to said external content provider'"'"'s schema.

16. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein said phrase file includes definitions of a collection of instances.

17. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein said phrase file includes mappings of nodes to phrases.

18. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein said phrase file includes definitions of legal combinations of content.

19-26. -26. (canceled)