DATA VERSIONING CONCEPT INCLUDING TIME DEPENDENCY AND ACTIVE AND INACTIVE STATES

• US 20100088270A1
• Filed: 10/03/2008
• Published: 04/08/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/03/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP SE
• Inventors: ZIEGLER, CARSTEN
• Application Number:
  US12/244,794
• Publication Number:
  US 20100088270A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/609
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/219 Managing data history or versioning querying versioned data G06F16/2474; querying temporal data G06F16/2477
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2329 using versioning

Abstract

A method and a system are described that involve data versioning with time dependency and active and inactive states. In one embodiment, the method includes creating a first version of an object in an application, wherein the application supports a versioning mode. The versioning mode maintains a set of versions of an object. The method further includes activating the first version of the object at a first timestamp and activating a second version of the object at a second timestamp in the versioning mode switched on. The first timestamp and the second timestamp define a validity period of the first version. Finally, the first version of the object is provided upon a request, wherein the request includes a timestamp in the validity period of the first version.

In one embodiment, the system includes an application that supports a versioning mode, an object with a set of versions, and a database to store the set of versions of the object with versioning information, wherein the versioning information includes a validity period, a timestamp, and a version state. The version state indicates if a version from the set of versions is active or inactive. The system also includes a unit to switch from the versioning mode to a non-versioning mode in the application.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

creating a first version of an object in an application, the application to support a versioning mode;

activating the first version of the object at a first timestamp;

activating a second version of the object at a second timestamp in the versioning mode, wherein the first timestamp and the second timestamp define a validity period of the first version; and

providing the first version of the object upon a request, the request to include a timestamp in the validity period of the first version.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

storing in a database table the first version of the object with versioning information, the versioning information to include the validity period of the first version, the first timestamp, and a version state, the version state to indicate if the first version is active.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein activating comprises setting the version state to active.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

activating the second version of the object in a non-versioning mode;

overwriting the first version of the object with the second version in response to activating the second version; and

deleting the second version in response to overwriting the first version.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

providing the second version of the object upon the request if the request does not include any timestamp, wherein the second version is a last activated version of the object.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

providing a last saved version of the object upon the request, the request to maintain the object and not to include any timestamp.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a rule for processing the object with a second request, the rule to include a point of time;

performing a first policy on a subset of the set of versions of the object created before the point of time of the rule; and

performing a second policy on a remaining subset of the set of versions of the object, the remaining subset of the set of versions created after the point of time of the rule.

8. A computing system comprising:

an application that supports a versioning mode;

an object with a set of versions;

a database to store the set of versions of the object with versioning information, the versioning information to include a validity period, a timestamp, and a version state, the version state to indicate if a version from the set of versions is active; and

a unit to switch from the versioning mode to a non-versioning mode in the application.

9. The computing system of claim 8, further comprising:

a first version of the object activated at a first timestamp; and

a second version of the object activated at a second timestamp in the versioning mode, wherein the first timestamp and the second timestamp define the validity period of the first version.

10. The computing system of claim 9, wherein the first version is provided to a request that includes the timestamp in the validity period of the first version.

11. The computing system of claim 8, wherein a last activated version of the object is provided to a request if the request does not to include any timestamp.

12. The computing system of claim 8, wherein a last saved version of the object is provided to a request, the request to maintain the object.

13. The computing system of claim 9, wherein the second version of the object is activated in a non-versioning mode.

14. The computing system of claim 13, wherein the second version overwrites the first version in the database after the second version is activated.

15. The computing system of claim 14, wherein the second version is deleted from the database after it overwrites the first version.

16. The computing system of claim 8, further comprising:

a rule for processing the object received with a request, the rule to include a point of time;

a first policy performed on a subset of the set of versions of the object created before the point of time of the rule; and

a second policy performed on a remaining subset of the set of versions of the object, the remaining subset of the set of versions created after the point of time of the rule.

17. A computer-readable storage medium having instructions therein that when executed by the machine, cause the machine to:

create a first version of an object in an application, the application to support a versioning mode;

activate the first version of the object at a first timestamp;

activate a second version of the object at a second timestamp in the versioning mode, wherein the first timestamp and the second timestamp define a validity period of the first version; and

provide the first version of the object upon a request, the request to include a timestamp in the validity period of the first version.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 having instructions that when executed further cause the machine to:

store in a database table the first version of the object with versioning information, the versioning information to include the validity period of the first version, the first timestamp, and a version state, the version state to indicate if the first version is active.

19. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein instructions causing the machine to activate comprise instructions causing the machine to set the version state to active.

20. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 having instructions that when executed further cause the machine to:

activate the second version of the object in a non-versioning mode;

overwrite the first version of the object with the second version in response to activating the second version; and

delete the second version in response to overwriting the first version.

21. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 having instructions that when executed further cause the machine to:

provide the second version of the object upon the request if the request does not include any timestamp, wherein the second version is a last activated version of the object.

22. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 having instructions that when executed further cause the machine to:

provide a last saved version of the object upon the request, the request to maintain the object and not to include any timestamp.

23. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 28 having instructions that when executed further cause the machine to:

receive a rule for processing the object with a second request, the rule to include a point of time;

perform a first policy on a subset of the set of versions of the object created before the point of time of the rule; and

perform a second policy on a remaining subset of the set of versions of the object, the remaining subset of the set of versions created after the point of time of the rule.