Local agent for remote file access system

• US 20060282521A1
• Filed: 08/18/2006
• Published: 12/14/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Citrix Systems, Inc. (Cloud Software Group)
• Original Assignee: Sinotech PLC LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Anderson, Jeffrey G., Hoffman, Daniel G., Hoffman, Amy N.
• Granted Patent: US 9,344,482 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/2895 Intermediate processing functionally located close to the data provider application, e.g. reverse proxies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/62 Establishing a time schedule for servicing the requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

Systems and methods for remote file access are disclosed. According to an embodiment, a local agent polls a server for a task request at a polling interval scheduled by a schedule timer in accordance with a set of local agent and remote client preferences. The local agent is responsible for executing a task from the task request and causing a file to be uploaded to the server. The local agent uses a task processor for polling a server, a schedule timer for controlling polling, and one or more protocol stacks, such as TCP/IP and SOAP, for communicating with the server. The local agent can also interface with a MAPI database for message delivery.

Claims

1-20. -20. (canceled)

21. A local agent module for remote access to files, comprising:

a transmission control protocol/internet protocol stack for network communication with a server over a network;

an extensible markup language input/output parser, communicatively coupled to the transmission control/internet protocol stack, for breaking down data and commands;

a simple object access protocol interpreter, communicatively coupled to the extensible markup language input/output parser, for creating file system instructions to poll the server for a task request and retrieve a file specified in the task request;

and a task processor, communicatively coupled to the simple object access protocol interpreter, for executing subsystem instructions and initiating poll commands, based on a schedule timer.

22. The local agent module of claim 21, wherein local agent module includes a communications module configured to provide a carrier for network communication to the server, the local agent module configured to periodically connect to the server through the communication module at intervals set by the schedule timer.

23. The local agent module of claim 22, wherein the local agent module resides in a memory of a local computer, and is configured to access files in a storage device associated with the local computer.

24. The local agent module of claim 21, further comprising a message application programming interface, communicatively coupled to the task processor, for allowing access to a message application protocol interface database.

25. The local agent module of claim 24, wherein the message application interface database provides access to e-mail and calendar information.

26. The local agent module of claim 21, wherein the subsystem instructions and poll commands comprise:

instructions for polling a task queue in the server for a file request received by the server from a client that is separate from the local agent module;

instructions for retrieving a requested file from a local storage device associated with the local agent module if a task queue indicates that a file is requested;

instructions for forwarding the requested file to the server; and

instructions to the server to notify the client that the requested file is available from the server.

27. The local agent module of claim 26, wherein the instructions to the server to notify the client that the requested file is available further comprises an instruction to the server designating that notification is one of a push type of notification and a pull type of notification.

28. The local agent module of claim 26, further comprising:

setup commands to tailor access, security, and file transfer type information to the client.

29. The local agent module of claim 26, wherein instructions for polling a task queue in the server comprises instructions for polling the server in a periodic manner by remotely logging onto the server using a LAN connection.

30. A computer-readable storage medium having instructions which, when executed by a computer, control a local agent in a local computer to perform a method to retrieve a file for a client device, the local agent method comprising:

polling a task queue in a server for a file request received by the server from the client device, the client device separate from the local computer;

retrieving the requested file from the local computer if the task queue indicates that the client device requested the file;

forwarding the requested file from the local computer to the server; and

providing an instruction to the server to notify the client device that the requested file is available from the server;

wherein the local agent includes a transmission control protocol/internet protocol stack for network communication with a server over a network, an input/output parser for breaking down data and commands, a simple object access protocol interpreter for creating file system instructions to poll the server for a task request and retrieve the file specified in the task request, and a task processor for executing subsystem instructions and initiating poll commands based on a schedule timer.

31. The computer-readable medium of claim 30, wherein the instruction to the server to notify the client that the requested file is available at the server further comprises providing an instruction to the server designating that notification is one of a push type of notification and a pull type of notification.

32. The computer-readable medium of claim 30, further comprising:

providing setup commands to tailor access, security, and file transfer type information to the client.

33. The computer-readable medium of claim 30, wherein polling a task queue in the server comprises polling the server in a periodic manner by remotely logging onto the server using a LAN connection.