Email Server for Processing a Threshold Number of Email Jobs for a Given User and Related Methods

• US 20070073720A1
• Filed: 05/15/2006
• Published: 03/29/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: TeamOn Systems Incorporated (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: Clarke, David
• Granted Patent: US 8,799,368 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/466 Transaction processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/546 Message passing systems or structures, e.g. queues
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/226 Delivery according to priorities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/58 Message adaptation for wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal

Abstract

An electronic mail (email) server may include a pending email job queue manager for storing a plurality of email jobs for a plurality of users, and a processing email job queue manager. The processing email job queue manager may be for processing a threshold number of email jobs from the pending email job queue manager for a given user if a plurality of email jobs greater than the threshold number are available from the pending email job queue manager for the given user.

Claims

1. An electronic mail (email) server comprising:

a pending email job queue manager for storing a plurality of email jobs for a plurality of users; and

a processing email job queue manager for processing a threshold number of email jobs from said pending email job queue manager for a given user if a plurality of email jobs greater than the threshold number are available from said pending email job queue manager for the given user.

2. The email server of claim 1 wherein said pending email job queue manager stores the plurality of email jobs in an order they are received for each user.

3. The email server of claim 2 wherein said processing email job queue manager processes the threshold number of email jobs from said pending email job queue manager in the order they are received for the given user.

4. The email server of claim 1 wherein said processing email job queue manager sequentially processes the threshold number of email jobs from the pending email job queue manager for the given user.

5. The email server of claim 1 wherein said processing email job queue manager comprises a plurality of processing threads, and wherein each processing thread processes a threshold number of email jobs from said pending email job queue manager for a respective given user if a plurality of email jobs greater than the threshold number are available from said pending email job queue manager for the given user.

6. The email server of claim 1 wherein said processing email job queue manager cooperates with at least one email storage server to process the email jobs, and performs an initialization with the at least one email storage server prior to processing the threshold number of email jobs for the given user.

7. The email server of claim 1 wherein said pending email job queue manager compares email jobs and discards duplicates prior to storing.

8. A communications system comprising:

at least one electronic mail (email) storage server; and

an email proxy server comprising

a pending email job queue manager for storing a plurality of email jobs for a plurality of users, and

a processing email job queue manager for processing a threshold number of email jobs from said pending email job queue manager for a given user if a plurality of email jobs greater than the threshold number are available from said pending email job queue manager for the given user.

9. The communications system of claim 8 wherein said pending email job queue manager stores the plurality of email jobs in an order they are received for each user.

10. The communications system of claim 9 wherein said processing email job queue manager processes the threshold number of email jobs from said pending email job queue manager in the order they are received for the given user.

11. The communications system of claim 8 wherein said processing email job queue manager sequentially processes the threshold number of email jobs from the pending email job queue manager for the given user.

12. The communications system of claim 8 wherein said processing email job queue manager comprises a plurality of processing threads, and wherein each processing thread processes a threshold number of email jobs from said pending email job queue manager for a respective given user if a plurality of email jobs greater than the threshold number are available from said pending email job queue manager for the given user.

13. The communications system of claim 8 wherein said processing email job queue manager cooperates with at least one email storage server to process the email jobs, and performs an initialization with the at least one email storage server prior to processing the threshold number of email jobs for the given user.

14. The communications system of claim 8 wherein said pending email job queue manager compares email jobs and discards duplicates prior to storing.

15. An electronic mail (email) processing method comprising:

at a pending email job queue manager, storing a plurality of email jobs for a plurality of users; and

at a processing email job queue manager, processing a threshold number of email jobs from the pending email job queue manager for a given user if a plurality of email jobs greater than the threshold number are available from the pending email job queue manager for the given user.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein storing the plurality of email jobs comprises storing the plurality of email jobs at the pending email job queue manager in an order they are received for each user.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein processing the threshold number of email jobs comprises processing the threshold number of email jobs from the pending email job queue manager in the order they are received for the given user.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein processing the threshold number of email jobs comprises sequentially processing the threshold number of email jobs from the pending email job queue manager for the given user.

19. The method of claim 15 wherein the processing email job queue manager comprises a plurality of processing threads, and wherein each processing thread processes a threshold number of email jobs from the pending email job queue manager for a respective given user if a plurality of email jobs greater than the threshold number are available from the pending email job queue manager for the given user.

20. The method of claim 15 wherein the processing email job queue manager cooperates with at least one email storage server to process the email jobs;

and further comprising using the processing email job queue manager to perform an initialization with the at least one email storage server prior to processing the threshold number of email jobs for the given user.

21. The method of claim 15 further comprising comparing the email jobs at the pending email job queue manager and discarding duplicates prior to storing.

22. A computer-readable medium comprising:

a pending email job queue manager module for storing a plurality of email jobs for a plurality of users; and

a processing email job queue manager module for processing a threshold number of email jobs from said pending email job queue manager module for a given user if a plurality of email jobs greater than the threshold number are available from said pending email job queue manager module for the given user.

23. The computer-readable medium of claim 22 wherein said pending email job queue manager module stores the plurality of email jobs in an order they are received for each user.

24. The computer-readable medium of claim 23 wherein said processing email job queue manager module processes the threshold number of email jobs from said pending email job queue manager module in the order they are received for the given user.

25. The computer-readable medium of claim 22 wherein said processing email job queue manager module sequentially processes the threshold number of email jobs from the pending email job queue manager module for the given user.

26. The computer-readable medium of claim 22 wherein said processing email job queue manager module comprises a plurality of processing threads, and wherein each processing thread processes a threshold number of email jobs from said pending email job queue manager module for a respective given user if a plurality of email jobs greater than the threshold number are available from said pending email job queue manager module for the given user.

27. The computer-readable medium of claim 22 wherein said processing email job queue manager module cooperates with at least one email storage server to process the email jobs, and performs an initialization with the at least one email storage server prior to processing the threshold number of email jobs for the given user.

28. The computer-readable medium of claim 22 wherein said pending email job queue manager module compares email jobs and discards duplicates prior to storing.