Asynchronous Web Service Invocation Model

• US 20070150303A1
• Filed: 03/09/2007
• Published: 06/28/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: BEA Systems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Cheenath, Manoj
• Granted Patent: US 7,580,975 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/133 Protocols for remote procedure calls [RPC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A system and method for asynchronously invoking a remote web service on a server by application code residing on a client. The web service invoke request received from application code residing on the client, passes an invoke request to a web service residing on a server, receives a result from the web service, the result relating to the invoke request passed by the client, and transmits the result to the application code. Once the invoke request is passed to the web service by the client, the application code is freed to perform other tasks. The result may be transmitted to the application code from the client as part of a call back object passed to the client by the application code, as a result of application code polling of the client, or by the application code ending the task generated by the client.

Claims

1. A method for asynchronously invoking web services in a distributed network, said method comprising:

generating a web service request in a first thread by an application residing on a client in said distributed network;

transmitting the web service request by the client to a web service residing on a server;

releasing the first thread such that said application is enabled to perform one or more other tasks while the web service request is carried out, wherein said one or more other tasks do not require a result of said web service request;

processing the web service request by the web service residing on said server and obtaining the result of said web service request;

polling for said result of the web service request by the application; and

retrieving said result of the web service request by the application upon receiving an indication that said result is available.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein transmitting the web service request by the client to the web service residing on the server further includes:

transmitting the web service request over a first socket connection.

3. The method according to claim 2 wherein the server transmits the result of said web service request to the client on a second socket connection that differs from said first socket connection.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein transmitting the web service request by the client to the web service further includes:

generating a second thread to process a task scheduled by the client, the task configured to handle invoking the web service, wherein said first thread is released upon the generation of the second thread.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein polling for said result of the web service request by the application further includes:

notifying the application that the result is available;

receiving a result request from the application code; and

transmitting the result to the application code.

6. The method according to claim 1 wherein generating a web service request in a first thread by the application further includes:

passing a call back parameter by the application to the client as part of asynchronous context creation.

7. The method according to claim 1 wherein generating a web service request in a first thread by the application further includes:

creating a task and scheduling said task to a thread pool by the client wherein said task includes sending a request to the web service and receiving a result from the web service.

8. The method according to claim 7 wherein said task uses a protocol binding to transmit task request data over the distributed network to the web service for processing.

9. The method according to claim 1 wherein the web service request is initiated by at least one of:

a user action at a console, a user action on a graphical user interface (GUI), and by application code.

10. A system for asynchronous invocation of web services in a distributed network, said system comprising:

a client connected to the distributed network and having an application executing thereon, said application having generated a web service request in a first thread,

wherein said client transmits the web service request to a web service and releases said first thread such that the application is enabled to perform one or more other tasks while the web service request is processed, wherein said one or more other tasks are not dependent on a result of said web service request; and

a server connected to the distributed network and having the web service deployed thereon, wherein said server receives the web service request from the client, processes said web service request and obtains a result;

wherein said application periodically queries for said result of the web service request and retrieves the result upon receiving an indication that said result is available.

11. The system according to claim 10, further comprising:

a first socket connection over which the web service request is transmitted from the client to the server

12. The system according to claim 11, further comprising:

a second socket connection over which the result of said web service request is transmitted from the server to the client wherein said second socket connection differs from said first socket connection.

13. The system according to claim 10 wherein transmitting the web service request by the client to the web service further includes:

generating a second thread to process a task scheduled by the client, the task configured to handle invoking the web service, wherein said first thread is released upon the generation of the second thread.

14. The system according to claim 10 wherein periodically querying for said result of the web service request and retrieving the result by the application further includes:

notifying the application that the result is available;

receiving a result request from the application code; and

transmitting the result to the application code.

15. The system according to claim 10 wherein generating a web service request in a first thread by the application further includes:

passing a call back parameter by the application to the client as part of an asynchronous context creation.

16. The system according to claim 10 wherein generating a web service request in a first thread by the application further includes:

creating a task and scheduling said task to a thread pool by the client wherein said task includes sending a request to the web service and receiving a result from the web service.

17. The system according to claim 16 wherein said task uses a protocol binding to transmit task request data over the distributed network to the web service for processing.

18. The system according to claim 10 wherein the web service request is initiated by at least one of:

a user action at a console, a user action on a graphical user interface (GUI), and by application code.

19. A computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon which when executed by one or more processors cause a system to:

generate a web service request in a first thread by an application residing on a client in said distributed network;

transmit the web service request by the client to a web service residing on a server;

release the first thread such that said application is enabled to perform one or more other tasks while the web service request is carried out, wherein said one or more other tasks do not require a result of said web service request;

process the web service request by the web service residing on said server and obtain the result of said web service request;

poll for said result of the web service request by the application; and

retrieve said result of the web service request by the application upon receiving an indication that said result is available.