TECHNOLOGIES FOR DETECTING ERRONEOUS RESUMPTIONS IN A CONTINUATION BASED RUNTIME

• US 20100070806A1
• Filed: 09/17/2008
• Published: 03/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Raman, Karthik, Talbert, Nathan Christopher, Wolf, Kenneth David, Pinto, Edmund Samuel Victor, Brown, Justin David
• Granted Patent: US 8,255,451 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 714/47
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066

Abstract

Technologies for enabling a continuation based runtime to accept or reject external stimulus and, in addition, to determine if an external stimulus may be valid for processing at a later point in execution.

Claims

1. A computer-readable medium including computer-executable instructions embodying a continuation based runtime comprising a stability calculator wherein the stability calculator performs a stability check determining if a conversation is not considered stable, wherein the conversation is not considered stable if, in the context of an activity executing in the continuation based runtime, a non-conversation continuation exists or a governing continuation exist.

2. The computer-readable medium of claim 1 wherein a request to resume a conversation continuation initiates the stability check by the stability calculator.

3. The computer-readable medium of claim 2 wherein the request to resume the conversation continuation is associated with a conversation continuation that is associated with the conversation.

4. The computer-readable medium of claim 2 wherein the request to resume the conversation continuation is received from an external service.

5. The computer-readable medium of claim 2 wherein the determining includes determining if the request to resume the conversation continuation can be immediately accepted, or accepted at a later point in execution of the activity, or immediately rejected.

6. The computer-readable medium of claim 2 wherein the activity is comprised of a sequence of sub-activities.

7. A method of handling a request to resume a conversation continuation, the method comprising:

determining if a conversation is stable, the conversation being associated with the conversation continuation referred to by the request, and, if so;

determining if the conversation continuation referred to by the request exists and, if so, accepting the request, the conversation continuation being associated with an activity, otherwise rejecting the request; and

if the conversation is not stable then considering the request to be acceptable at a later point in execution of the activity.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising determining if the conversation remains unstable beyond a timeout period and, if so, rejecting the request based on the timeout.

9. The method of claim 7 further comprising delaying the handling of the request until a conversation continuation is created that is referred to by the request, the activity creating the conversation continuation.

10. The method of claim 7 further comprising delaying the handling of the request until the conversation becomes stable.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein accepting the request comprises continuing execution of the activity.

12. The method of claim 7 wherein rejecting the request comprises returning a failure message to the external service making the request.

13. The method of claim 7 wherein the conversation is unstable if a non-conversation continuation exists that is associated with the activity.

14. The method of claim 7 wherein the conversation is unstable if a governing continuation exists that is associated with the activity.

15. A computer-readable medium including computer-readable instructions embodying a method of handling a request to resume a conversation continuation, the method comprising:

determining if a conversation is stable, the conversation being associated with the conversation continuation referred to by the request, and, if so;

determining if the conversation continuation referred to by the request exists and, if so, accepting the request, the conversation continuation being associated with an activity, otherwise rejecting the request; and

if the conversation is not stable then considering the request to be acceptable at a later point in execution of the activity.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 15 further comprising determining if the conversation remains unstable beyond a timeout period and, if so, rejecting the request based on the timeout.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 15 further comprising:

determining if the conversation continuation referred to by the request exists and, if so, accepting the request; and

delaying the handling of the request until a conversation continuation is created that is referred to by the request, the activity creating the conversation continuation.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 15 further comprising delaying the handling of the request until the conversation becomes stable.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 15 wherein the conversation is unstable if a non-conversation continuation exists that is associated with the activity.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 15 wherein the conversation is unstable if a governing continuation exists that is associated with the activity.