SYSTEM FOR DOWNLOADING AND EXECUTING A VIRTUAL APPLICATION

• US 20110185043A1
• Filed: 02/12/2010
• Published: 07/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Code Systems Incorporated (VOXX International Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Code Systems Incorporated (VOXX International Corporation)
• Inventors: Zeller, Mark Jeremy, Obata, Kenji C.
• Granted Patent: US 8,959,183 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2009/45595 Network integration; Enabling network access in virtual machine instances
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/656 while running
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44521 Dynamic linking or loading; Link editing at or after load time, e.g. Java class loading
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44568 Immediately runnable code
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44578 Preparing or optimising for loading
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45533 Hypervisors; Virtual machine monitors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45558 Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

A virtual process manager for use with a client application. Both the process manager and the client application are installed on a client computing device. In response to a user command to execute a virtual application at least partially implemented by a virtualized application file stored on a remote computing device, the client application sends a high priority command to the process manager to execute the virtual application. Before receiving the user command, the client application sends a low priority command to the process manager to download at least a portion of the virtualized application file. In response to the high priority command, and without additional user input, the process manager downloads any portion of the file not downloaded in response to the low priority command, and executes the virtual application on the client computing device. The client application may comprise a conventional web browser or operating system shell process.

Claims

1. A method performed by a virtual process manager and a client application both executing on a first computing device, the method comprising:

the client application connecting to a second computing device over a network, the second computing device storing a virtualized application file at least partially implementing a virtual application;

without user input, the client application sending a command to the virtual process manager to download a portion of the virtualized application file from the second computing device;

without user input, the virtual process manager downloading the portion of the virtualized application file from the second computing device, and waiting to execute the virtual application at least partially implemented by the downloaded virtualized application file on the first computing device until the virtual process manager receives a command from the client application to do so;

after the virtual process manager has begun downloading the portion of the virtualized application file from the second computing device, the client application receiving a user command to execute the virtual application at least partially implemented by the virtualized application file and in response to the user command, sending a command to the virtual process manager to execute the virtual application at least partially implemented by the downloaded virtualized application file on the first computing device; and

in response to the command to execute the virtual application, the virtual process manager downloading any portions of the virtualized application file not previously downloaded from the second computing device, and executing the virtual application at least partially implemented by the downloaded virtualized application file on the first computing.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second computing device transfers a webpage to the client application, the webpage identifying the virtualized application file as being available for download, the webpage being operable to receive the user command to execute the virtual application at least partially implemented by the virtualized application file, and the method further comprises:

the client application receiving the webpage and before receiving the user command to execute the virtual application at least partially implemented by the virtualized application file, the client application sending the command to the virtual process manager to download the portion of the virtualized application file from the second computing device; and

after the webpage receives the user command to execute the virtual application at least partially implemented by the virtualized application file, the client application sending the command to the virtual process manager to execute the virtual application at least partially implemented by the downloaded virtualized application file on the first computing device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein executing the virtual application at least partially implemented by the virtualized application file comprises:

executing a virtual machine executable to implement a virtualized environment; and

instructing the virtual machine executable to execute the virtualized application file inside the virtualized environment implemented by the virtual machine executable.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein executing the virtual application at least partially implemented by the virtualized application file comprises:

identifying a version associated with the virtualized application file;

identifying a virtual machine executable configured to execute virtualized application files having the identified version;

executing the identified virtual machine executable to implement a virtualized environment; and

instructing the identified virtual machine executable to execute the virtualized application file inside the virtualized environment implemented by the identified virtual machine executable.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

before the virtual process manager begins downloading the virtualized application file from the second computing device and without additional user input, the virtual process manager determining whether the virtualized application file was fully downloaded previously, and

if the virtualized application file was fully downloaded previously, the virtual process manager not downloading of the virtualized application file in response to the command to download the virtualized application file from the second computing device from the client application.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

before the virtual process manager begins downloading the virtualized application file and without additional user input, the virtual process manager determining whether the virtualized application file was partially downloaded previously, and

if the virtualized application file was partially downloaded previously, the virtual process manager downloading only a portion of the virtualized application file not previously downloaded.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the portion of the virtualized application file to be downloaded from the second computing device by the virtual process manager in response to the command send by the client application comprises about 5% to about 20% of the virtualized application file.

8. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions that when executed by a processor implement a virtual process manager configured to receive commands from a client application, the virtual process manager being configured to download a portion of a first virtualized application file without any user interaction in response to a low priority command from the client application identifying the first virtualized application file for download.

9. The computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the virtual process manager is further configured to:

pause downloading the portion of the first virtualized application file in response to a high priority command from the client application identifying a second virtualized application file for download until after the second virtualized application file is fully downloaded; and

in response to the high priority command, download the second virtualized application file.

10. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the virtual process manager is further configured to:

execute the second virtualized application file after the second virtualized application file is fully downloaded.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the virtual process manager is further configured to:

identify a virtual machine application configured to execute the second virtualized application file;

execute the identified virtual machine application; and

instruct the identified virtual machine application to execute the second virtualized application file.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the virtual process manager is further configured to before downloading the second virtualized application file:

determine whether the second virtualized application file was at least partially downloaded previously; and

if the second virtualized application file was at least partially downloaded previously, download only a portion of the second virtualized application file not downloaded previously.

13. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions that when executed by a processor implement a virtual process manager configured to receive a plurality of low priority commands and a high priority command from a client application, the virtual process manager being configured to:

download a portion of a plurality of virtualized application files without any user interaction in response to the low priority commands received from the client application, the low priority commands identifying the plurality of virtualized application files for download;

pause the downloading of the portions of a plurality of virtualized application files in response to receiving the high priority command from the client application, the high priority command identifying a particular one of the plurality of virtualized application files for execution;

after pausing the downloading of the portions of a plurality of virtualized application files, download any previously undownloaded portion of the particular one of the plurality of virtualized application files;

after downloading the particular one of the plurality of virtualized application files, resume the downloading of the portions of the plurality of virtualized application files other than the particular one of the plurality of virtualized application files; and

execute the particular one of the plurality of virtualized application files.

14. A computer-readable medium comprising:

instructions that when executed by a processor implement a client application configured to;

receive a webpage from a remote server computing device, the webpage identifying a virtualized application file stored on the remote server computing device;

before receiving any user commands with respect to the webpage, send a low priority command to download at least a portion of the virtualized application file from the remote server computing device;

receive a user command with respect to the webpage to execute the virtualized application file, and

in response to the user command, send a high priority command to execute the virtualized application file; and

instructions that when executed by a processor implement a virtual process manager, the virtual process manager being configured to;

receive the low priority command sent by the client application,

in response to receiving the low priority command and without additional user input, begin downloading the portion of the virtualized application file,

receive the high priority command sent by the client application, and

in response to receiving the high priority command and without additional user input, download any previously undownloaded portions of the virtualized application file, and initiate execution of the downloaded virtualized application file.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein when initiating execution of the downloaded virtualized application file, the virtual process manager is configured to initiate execution of a virtual machine configured to execute the downloaded virtualized application file and instruct the virtual machine to execute the downloaded virtualized application file inside a virtualized environment.

16. A method performed by a first computing device in communication with a second computing device over a network, the method comprising:

at a client application executing on the first computing device, receiving a plurality of application identifiers each associated with a different virtualized application file stored on the second computing device;

the client application sending low priority commands to a virtual process manager executing on the first computing device, each of the low priority commands commanding the virtual process manager to download a portion of an associated one of the virtualized application file stored on the second computing device;

at the client application, receiving user commands to execute selected ones of the virtualized application files stored on the second computing device;

in response to each of the user commands, the client application sending a high priority command to the virtual process manager to execute a virtual application at least partially implemented by an associated one of the virtualized application files stored on the second computing device;

at the virtual process manager, receiving the low priority commands sent by the client application;

in response to receiving each of the low priority commands and without additional user input, the virtual process manager initiating download of the associated one of virtualized application files from the second computing device,

at the virtual process manager, receiving the high priority commands sent by the client application; and

in response to receiving each of the high priority commands sent by the client application and without additional user input, the virtual process manager pausing the downloading initiated in response to the low priority commands, downloading any portion of the associated one of the virtualized application files not downloaded in response to the low priority commands, executing the virtual application at least partially implemented by the downloaded virtualized application file on the first computing device, and resuming the downloading initiated in response to the low priority commands with respect to any of the virtualized application files not associated with one of the high priority commands.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

in response to receiving each of the high priority commands from the client application, before downloading the associated one of the virtualized application files, and without additional user input, the virtual process manager generating a unique file identifier, associating the unique file identifier with the associated one of the virtualized application files, and sending the unique file identifier to the client application,

after receiving the unique file identifiers associated with the virtualized application files, the client application sending status inquires to the virtual process manager, each status inquiry comprising one of the unique file identifiers, and

after the virtual process manager begins downloading each of the associated ones of virtualized application files in response to receiving the high priority commands from the client application, and without additional user input, the virtual process manager receiving the status inquiries from the client application, and in response to each of the status inquires, determining status information related to the downloading of the virtualized application file associated with the unique file identifier included in the status inquiry, and sending the status information to the client application.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

after receiving each of the user commands to execute selected ones of the virtualized application files, the client application requesting a session with the virtual process manager, and

in response to each session request, the virtual process manager initiating a session with the client application and generating a session identifier, wherein the unique file identifiers generated by the virtual process manager are the session identifiers.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein each of the sessions is a Transmission Control Protocol (“

TCP”

) session.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the client application comprises a web browser.

21. The method of claim 16 for use with a first computing device having an operating system, wherein the client application comprises an operating system shell process implemented by the operating system of the first computing device.