Database access method

• US 20070156642A1
• Filed: 12/29/2005
• Published: 07/05/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Stoychev, Mladen
• Granted Patent: US 7,693,819 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/25 Integrating or interfacing systems involving database management systems

Abstract

Each record added to a database is assigned an identifier, for example, based on or at the time the record is added to the database. A database server receives a request for a first group of records that satisfy a condition, and searches and sorts on the basis of the identifier field all records in the database that satisfy the condition, to create an ordered set of records. The server sends the first group of records from the ordered set, in response to the request, and also sends a starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send a second group of records from the ordered set that satisfy the condition.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

assigning to each record in a database an identifier unique among all the records in the database (a “

UID”

);

receiving from a client a request for a first group of records that satisfy a one or more conditions;

creating an ordered set of records that satisfy the one or more conditions; and

sending to the client the first group of records from the ordered set, and a starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client any remaining records in the ordered set, responsive to the request for the first group of records.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client any remaining records in the ordered set is based on the UID assigned to a last record in the first group of records sent to the client.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving from the client a request for a second group of records that satisfy the one or more condition, and the starting point in the ordered set; and

,

sending to the client, beginning at the starting point, the second group of records in the ordered set, and a new starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client any still remaining records in the ordered set, responsive to the request for the second group of records.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising updating the ordered set of records, subsequent to sending to the client the first group of records but prior to sending to the client the second group of records from the ordered set.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the new starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client any remaining records in the ordered set is based on the identifier assigned to a last record in the second group of records sent to the client.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein assigning to each record in a database an UID comprises assigning to each record a UID based on the time at which such record was added to the database.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising adding records to the database, and wherein assigning to each record in a database a UID comprises assigning to each record a UID when such record is added to the database.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein creating the ordered set of records that satisfy the one or more conditions comprises:

searching the records in the database that satisfy the one or more conditions; and

sorting the records that satisfy the one or more conditions on the basis of their UIDs.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising extracting the records in the database that satisfy the one or more conditions, and wherein sorting comprises sorting the extracted records on the basis of their UIDs.

10. The method of claim 2, wherein the starting point in the ordered set based on the UID assigned to the last record in the first group of records sent to the client comprises the first record in a second group of records in the ordered set yet to be sent to the client.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send any remaining records in the ordered set is the starting point from which to begin to send a next group of records in the ordered set, in ascending order.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client any remaining records in the ordered set is the starting point from which to begin to send a previous group of records from the ordered set, in descending order.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending to the client a different starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client a different group of records from the ordered set.

14. An article of manufacture, comprising:

a machine readable medium having stored thereon instructions that when executed by a database server, cause the database server to;

assign to each record added to a database an identifier that has a value greater than that assigned to any record previously added to the database;

receive from a client a request for a first group of records that satisfy a condition;

search and sort on the basis of their identifiers the records that satisfy the condition, to create an ordered set of records; and

send to the client the first group of records from the ordered set, and a starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client a second group of records from the ordered set, responsive to the request for the first group of records.

15. The article of manufacture of claim 14, further wherein the machine readable medium having stored thereon instructions that when executed by the database server, cause the database server to:

receive from the client a request for a second group of records that satisfy the condition, and the starting point in the ordered set; and

,

send to the client, beginning at the starting point, the second group of records from the ordered set, and a new starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client a third group of records from the ordered set, responsive to the request for the second group of records.

16. The article of manufacture of claim 15, further wherein the machine readable medium having stored thereon instructions that when executed by the database server, cause the database server to:

search and sort on the basis of their identifiers the records that satisfy the condition, to update the ordered set of records.

17. The article of manufacture of claim 14, wherein the machine readable medium having stored thereon instructions that when executed by the database server, cause the database server to sort on the basis of their identifiers the records that satisfy the condition, include instructions to extract the records from the database that satisfy the condition, then sort the extracted records on the basis of their identifiers, to create the ordered set of records.

18. The article of manufacture of claim 14, further wherein the machine readable medium having stored thereon instructions that when executed by the database server, cause the database server to send to the client a different starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client a different group of records from the ordered set.

19. An apparatus, comprising:

means for assigning to each record added to a database an identifier that has a value greater than that assigned to any record previously added to the database;

means for receiving from a client a request for a first group of records that satisfy a condition;

means for searching and sorting on the basis of their identifiers the records that satisfy the condition, to create an ordered set of records; and

means for sending to the client the first group of records from the ordered set, and a starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client a second group of records from the ordered set, responsive to the request for the first group of records.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, further comprising:

means for receiving from the client a request for a second group of records that satisfy the condition, and the starting point in the ordered set; and

,

means for sending to the client, beginning at the starting point, the second group of records from the ordered set, and a new starting point in the ordered set from which to begin to send to the client a third group of records from the ordered set, responsive to the request for the second group of records