System and Method for Cacheing Web Files

• US 20090210511A1
• Filed: 04/24/2009
• Published: 08/20/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adobe Inc.
• Original Assignee: Adobe Systems Incorporated (Adobe Inc.)
• Inventors: Thomason, Lee
• Granted Patent: US 8,078,726 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9574 of access to content, e.g. by caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching

Abstract

A system and method receives a request for a file containing an identifier of the requested file and a message digest, containing an expected hash result of the requested file. The system and method identifies whether it has already stored a file having that identifier and a hash result matching the message digest. If so, the file is provided, optionally after being checked for authenticity via rehashing and comparing again to the message digest. If the file is not stored in the cache, it may be retrieved from a location included in the identifier, hashed and compared to the message digest to authenticate it, and provided to the requesting program if the hash result matches the message digest.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving a file request comprising a first message digest and a location;

determining whether a file having a second message digest corresponding to the first message digest is available in a storage area;

when the second message digest corresponds to the first message digest, providing the file from the storage area; and

when the second message digest does not correspond to the first message digest;

retrieving the file from the location;

storing the retrieved file in the storage area;

producing a third message digest from the retrieved file;

comparing the third message digest with the first message digest; and

responsive to the third message digest corresponding to the first message digest, providing the retrieved file.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing an error message when the third message digest does not correspond to the first message digest.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the file from the storage area comprises:

producing a fourth message digest from the file from the storage area; and

comparing the fourth message digest with the first message digest.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the second message digest is associated with a filename of the file.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein storing the retrieved file in the storage area comprises:

associating a unique identifier for the retrieved file based on a uniform resource locator of the location from which the file was retrieved.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the storage area is a cache.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the file comprises providing the file to a program comprising a browser plug-in.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the location is an Internet uniform resource locator.

9. A system comprising:

an input device;

an output device;

a storage area; and

a processor configured to perform operations comprising;

receiving a file request comprising a first message digest and a location;

determining whether a file having a second message digest corresponding to the first message digest is available in a storage area;

when the second message digest corresponds to the first message digest, providing the file from the storage area; and

when the second message digest does not correspond to the first message digest;

retrieving the file from the location;

storing the retrieved file in the storage area;

producing a third message digest from the retrieved file;

comparing the third message digest with the first message digest; and

responsive to the third message digest corresponding to the first message digest, providing the retrieved file.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the operations further comprise:

providing an error message when the third message digest does not correspond to the first message digest.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein providing the file from the storage area comprises:

producing a fourth message digest from the file from the storage area; and

comparing the fourth message digest with the first message digest.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the second message digest is associated with a filename of the file.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein storing the retrieved file in the storage area comprises:

associating a unique identifier for the retrieved file based on a uniform resource locator of the location from which the file was retrieved.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the storage area is a cache.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is configured to provide the file to a first program running within a second program.

16. The system of claim 9, wherein the location is an Internet uniform resource locator.

17. A computer storage medium encoded with a computer program, the program comprising instructions that when executed by data processing apparatus cause the data processing apparatus to perform operations comprising:

receiving a file request comprising a first message digest and a location;

determining whether a file having a second message digest corresponding to the first message digest is available in a storage area;

when the second message digest corresponds to the first message digest, providing the file from the storage area; and

when the second message digest does not correspond to the first message digest;

retrieving the file from the location;

storing the retrieved file in the storage area;

producing a third message digest from the retrieved file;

comparing the third message digest with the first message digest; and

responsive to the third message digest corresponding to the first message digest, providing the retrieved file.

18. The computer storage medium encoded with a computer program of claim 17, further comprising:

providing an error message when the third message digest does not correspond to the first message digest.

19. The computer storage medium encoded with a computer program of claim 17, wherein providing the file from the storage area comprises:

producing a fourth message digest from the file from the storage area; and

comparing the fourth message digest with the first message digest.

20. The computer storage medium encoded with a computer program of claim 17, wherein the second message digest is associated with a filename of the file.

21. The computer storage medium encoded with a computer program of claim 17, wherein storing the retrieved file in the storage area comprises:

associating a unique identifier for the retrieved file based on a uniform resource locator of the location from which the file was retrieved.

22. The computer storage medium encoded with a computer program of claim 21, wherein the storage area is a cache.

23. The computer storage medium encoded with a computer program of claim 17, wherein providing the file comprises providing the file to a program comprising a browser plug-in.

24. The computer storage medium encoded with a computer program of claim 17, wherein the location is an Internet uniform resource locator.