Multiple concurrent workflow persistence schemes

• US 20070156486A1
• Filed: 12/29/2005
• Published: 07/05/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Kothari, Nikhil, Hilerio, Israel, Maybee, Paul, Harder, Michael, Sanabria, Andres, Mihai, Constantin
• Application Number:
  US11/321,789
• Publication Number:
  US 20070156486A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/8
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06316 Sequencing of tasks or work
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0633 Workflow analysis

Abstract

Systems and methods that supply workflow management and workflow interaction with a plurality of persistence stores via employing a routing persistence service and an association lookup component. The routing persistence service routes and/or assigns each workflow instance to a corresponding persistence store, and the association lookup component manages caching associations between the workflow instance(s) and the plurality of persistence services. Accordingly, the subject innovation facilitates an extensible and/or pluggable mechanism for concurrent usage of multiple concrete implementations of a generic abstract workflow provider.

Claims

1. A computer implemented system comprising the following computer executable components:

a workflow system having a routing persistence service that routes each workflow instance to a corresponding persistence service implementation, and

a plurality of persistence service implementations, the corresponding persistence service implementation assigned to a workflow type by the routing persistence service.

2. The computer implemented system of claim 1, the workflow system further comprising an association lookup component that manages caching associations between a workflow instance and a persistence service implementation.

3. The computer implemented system of claim 2, the association lookup component further comprising a tabular arrangement.

4. The computer implemented system of claim 2, the association lookup component further comprising a workflow identification arrangement.

5. The computer implemented system of claim 1, the plurality of persistence service implementations comprises at least one of a database, XML/text file and an in-memory storage.

6. The computer implemented system of claim 1 further comprising a workflow provider class that provides for an interaction between a host application and a persistence store.

7. The computer implemented system of claim 2, the workflow instance registerable by the routing persistence service.

8. The computer implemented system of claim 6, the plurality of persistence service implementations accommodate different applications.

9. A computer implemented method comprising the following computer executable acts:

assigning each workflow instance associated with a workflow system to a corresponding persistence service implementation via a routing service provider; and

obtaining a workflow instance from the corresponding persistence service.

10. The computer implemented method of claim 9 further comprising obtaining routing registration information.

11. The computer implemented method of claim 10 further comprising verifying the routing service provider.

12. The computer implemented method of claim 9 further comprising creating a workflow instance.

13. The computer implemented method of claim 12 further comprising registering association between the workflow instance and a persistence service implementation via an identification.

14. The computer implemented method of claim 13 further comprising calling one of a load and save method from the persistence service implementation.

15. The computer implemented method of claim 14 further comprising connecting to a data store associated with the persistence service implementation.

16. The computer implemented method of claim 15 further comprising obtaining a workflow state representation.

17. The computer implemented method of claim 16 further comprising converting the workflow state representation to a workflow instance.

18. The computer implemented method of claim 17 further comprising returning the workflow instance to a host.

19. The computer implemented method of claim 18 further comprising calling a save method of the persistence service implementation.

20. A computer implemented system comprising the following computer executable components:

means for integrating persistence related functionalities for a plurality of data stores into runtime of a workflow; and

means for caching associations between workflow instances and plurality of persistence services.