ADAPTING BETWEEN COUPLED AND DECOUPLED PROVIDER INTERFACES

• US 20090300646A1
• Filed: 06/02/2008
• Published: 12/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Wagner, Timothy A., Anderson, Zachary L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,266,189 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 719/312
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/541 via adapters, e.g. between incompatible applications

Abstract

Adapters are provided to convert a decoupled provider interface to a coupled provider interface and/or to convert a coupled provider interface to a decoupled provider interface. A decoupled provider may indirectly expose a data model by providing one or more of a sequence of unchanging views of data via snapshots and snapshot update events. A coupled provider may directly expose a dynamic data model or view and model update events. A decoupled consumer of data may consume data that is provided in snapshots and snapshot update events while a coupled consumer may consume data in the form of a dynamic data model and model update events.

Claims

1. A system for adapting a provider interface comprising:

a binder, the binder receiving a request from a consumer for a provider,

the consumer requesting a provider interface of a first type and the provider exposing a provider interface of a second type,

wherein the binder provides an object to the consumer, the object supporting the provider interface of the first type,

wherein the provider interface of the first type

comprises a provider interface that indirectly exposes a data model via snapshots and provides snapshot update events, or

comprises a provider interface that directly exposes a dynamic data model and provides model update events; and

wherein the provider interface of the second type

comprises a provider interface that indirectly exposes a data model via snapshots and provides snapshot update events, or

comprises a provider interface that directly exposes a dynamic data model and provides model update events.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the provider is a decoupled provider and indirectly exposes a data model by providing at least one unchanging view of data via a snapshot and at least one snapshot update event to the consumer.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the at least one snapshot update event comprises a previous snapshot, an updated snapshot and a delta comprising a difference between the previous snapshot and the updated snapshot.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the provider is a coupled provider and directly exposes a dynamic data model and provides model update events.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the consumer is a coupled consumer and consumes a dynamic data model and model update events or wherein the consumer is a decoupled consumer and consumes snapshots and snapshot update events.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the provider interface of the first type is a coupled provider interface and the provider interface of the second type is a decoupled provider interface and the binder provides to the consumer an adapter that converts the decoupled provider interface to a coupled provider interface.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the provider interface of the first type is a decoupled provider interface and the provider interface of the second type is a coupled provider interface and the binder provides to the consumer an adapter that converts the coupled provider interface to a decoupled provider interface.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the consumer is a decoupled consumer and the adapter converts the coupled provider interface to the decoupled provider interface by registering with the provider for model update events and in response to receiving a model update event, creates a snapshot that exposes data through a cache to the consumer, wherein requested data is returned from the cache and wherein in response to the adapter receiving a new model update event, the adapter creates a new snapshot and provides a snapshot update event to the consumer.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the consumer is a coupled consumer and the adapter converts the decoupled provider interface to the coupled provider interface by registering with the provider to receive snapshot update events and pointing to a latest snapshot as a dynamic data model and translating a delta of a snapshot update event to a model update event and sending the model update event to the coupled consumer.

10. A method for adapting provider interfaces comprising:

receiving a request from a consumer for data from a provider,

wherein the request;

identifies the provider or identifies a context associated with the provider and

identifies a provider interface of a first type for the consumer, the provider interface of the first type comprising;

a provider interface that indirectly exposes a data model using snapshots and provides snapshot update events or

a provider interface that directly exposes a dynamic data model and provides model update events; and

providing an object to the consumer, the object supporting the provider interface of the first type.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

determining the provider associated with the context in the request.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

in response to determining that the provider associated with the context does not exist, creating the provider.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

in response to determining that the provider identified in the request or the provider associated with the context identified in the request exposes a provider interface of a second type, creating an adapter to convert the provider interface of the second type to the provider interface of the first type.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the object provided to the consumer is the adapter, and wherein the adapter:

converts the coupled provider interface to a decoupled provider interface by registering with the provider for model update events and in response to receiving a model update event, creating a snapshot that exposes data through a cache to the consumer, wherein requested data is returned from the cache and wherein in response to receiving a new model update event, the adapter creates a new snapshot and provides a snapshot update event to the consumer or converts the decoupled provider interface to a coupled provider interface by registering with the provider to receive snapshot update events and pointing to a latest snapshot and translating a delta to a model update event and sending the model update event to the coupled consumer.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the snapshot update events are consolidated and processed.

16. A computer-readable storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions that when executed cause a computing environment to:

receive a request from a consumer using a first type of provider interface for data from a provider, the provider exposing a second type of provider interface,

wherein the first type of provider interface indirectly exposes a data model via snapshots and provides snapshot update events or directly exposes a dynamic data model and provides model update events; and

wherein the second type of provider interface indirectly exposes a data model via snapshots and provides snapshot update events or directly exposes a dynamic data model and provides model update events;

provide an object to the consumer, the object supporting the first type of provider interface.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, comprising further computer-executable instructions that when executed cause the computing environment to:

identify the provider from a context received in the request or in response to determining that the provider identified by the context in the request does not exist, create the provider.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, comprising further computer-executable instructions that when executed cause the computing environment to:

determine that the first type of provider interface is different than the second type of provider interface;

create an adapter that converts the second type of provider interface to the first type of provider interface and providing the adapter to the consumer.

19. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, comprising further computer-executable instructions that when executed cause the computing environment to:

convert the second type of provider interface to the first type of provider interface by

registering with the provider for model update events and in response to receiving a model update event,

creating a snapshot that exposes data through a cache to the consumer, wherein requested data is returned from the cache,

wherein in response to receiving a new model update event, creating a new snapshot and

providing a snapshot update event to the consumer or

convert the second type of provider interface to the first type of provider interface by

registering with the provider to receive snapshot update events,

pointing to a latest snapshot,

translating a delta to a model update event and

sending the model update event to the coupled consumer.

20. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, comprising further computer-executable instructions that when executed cause the computing environment to:

in response to determining that the provider identified by the context in the request does not exist, create the provider.