Timeout helper framework

• US 20070118843A1
• Filed: 11/18/2005
• Published: 05/24/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Marlow Technologies, Llc
• Original Assignee: Sbc Knowledge Ventures, L.P.
• Inventors: Muzaffar, Bilal, Schmidt, Joseph, Seelig, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 7,774,779 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 719/330
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4843 by program, e.g. task dispatcher, supervisor, operating system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/52 Program synchronisation; Mutual exclusion, e.g. by means of semaphores
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/522 Barrier synchronisation

Abstract

A timeout helper main thread is created for an outbound call associated with a container. The main thread creates a timeout helper worker thread. A local timer is started to detect a first timeout condition based on a first timeout interval. The worker thread initiates a client Object Request Broker (ORB) to detect a second timeout condition based on a second timeout interval. If the outbound call completes within the first timeout interval, a result object is returned from the main thread. Otherwise, the main thread throws a timeout exception. If the outbound call has not completed within the second timeout interval, the client ORB throws an exception to the worker thread and one or more resources associated with the outbound call are reclaimed. As an alternative to the client ORB, an HTTP client can detect the second timeout condition.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

invoking a timeout helper main thread for an outbound call associated with a container;

creating a timeout helper worker thread by the timeout helper main thread;

starting a local timer to detect a first timeout condition based on a first timeout interval;

initiating, by the timeout helper worker thread, a client Object Request Broker (ORB) to detect a second timeout condition based on a second timeout interval;

throwing a timeout exception from the timeout helper main thread when the outbound call has not completed within the first timeout interval;

throwing a second exception by the client ORB to the timeout helper worker thread when the outbound call has not completed within the second timeout interval; and

reclaiming one or more resources associated with the outbound call in response to the second exception.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

passing the first timeout interval from the timeout helper main thread to the timeout helper worker thread.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

returning a result object from the timeout helper main thread if the outbound call completes within the first timeout interval.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the timeout helper main thread is invoked from a session bean, the method further comprising:

invoking a bean object by the timeout helper worker thread; and

receiving, by the timeout helper worker thread, the result object from the bean object;

wherein said returning the result object comprises returning the result object from the timeout helper main thread to the session bean.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first timeout interval is received from a client application.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

adding a fixed value N>

0 to the first timeout interval to determine the second timeout interval.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the exception is a Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) exception.

8. A method comprising:

invoking a timeout helper main thread for an outbound call associated with a container;

creating a timeout helper worker thread by the timeout helper main thread;

starting a local timer to detect a first timeout condition based on a first timeout interval;

throwing a timeout exception from the timeout helper main thread when the outbound call has not completed within the first timeout interval;

using a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) client to detect a second timeout condition based on a second timeout interval;

receiving, by the timeout helper worker thread, a timeout from the HTTP client when the outbound call has not completed within the second timeout interval; and

reclaiming one or more resources associated with the outbound call in response to the timeout from the HTTP client.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

passing the first timeout interval from the timeout helper main thread to the timeout helper worker thread.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

returning a result object from the timeout helper main thread if the outbound call completes within the first timeout interval.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the timeout helper main thread is invoked from a session bean, the method further comprising:

invoking a bean object by the timeout helper worker thread; and

receiving, by the timeout helper worker thread, the result object from the bean object;

wherein said returning the result object comprises returning the result object from the timeout helper main thread to the session bean.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the first timeout interval is received from a client application.

13. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

adding a fixed value N>

0 to the first timeout interval to determine the second timeout interval.

14. A computer-readable medium having computer-readable program code to cause a computer system to perform acts of:

invoking a timeout helper main thread for an outbound call associated with a container;

creating a timeout helper worker thread by the timeout helper main thread;

starting a local timer to detect a first timeout condition based on a first timeout interval;

initiating, by the timeout helper worker thread, a client Object Request Broker (ORB) to detect a second timeout condition based on a second timeout interval;

throwing a timeout exception from the timeout helper main thread when the outbound call has not completed within the first timeout interval;

throwing a second exception by the client ORB to the timeout helper worker thread when the outbound call has not completed within the second timeout interval; and

reclaiming one or more resources associated with the outbound call in response to the second exception.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the first timeout interval is received from a client application.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the acts further comprise:

adding a fixed value N>

0 to the first timeout interval to determine the second timeout interval.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the exception is a Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) exception.

18. A computer-readable medium having computer-readable program code to cause a computer system to perform acts of:

invoking a timeout helper main thread for an outbound call associated with a container;

creating a timeout helper worker thread by the timeout helper main thread;

starting a local timer to detect a first timeout condition based on a first timeout interval;

throwing a timeout exception from the timeout helper main thread when the outbound call has not completed within the first timeout interval;

using a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) client to detect a second timeout condition based on a second timeout interval;

receiving, by the timeout helper worker thread, a timeout from the HTTP client when the outbound call has not completed within the second timeout interval; and

reclaiming one or more resources associated with the outbound call in response to the timeout from the HTTP client.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the first timeout interval is received from a client application.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the acts further comprise:

adding a fixed value N>

0 to the first timeout interval to determine the second timeout interval.