EXTENSION OF SCHEMATIZED XML PROTOCOLS

• US 20120265798A1
• Filed: 04/13/2011
• Published: 10/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Dragomir, Adrian, Tewari, Ashutosh
• Granted Patent: US 10,048,992 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/201
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/541 via adapters, e.g. between incompatible applications

Abstract

An application using one version of a schematized XML protocol communicates with another application using a different version of the schematized XML protocol. The different versions may correspond to different deployments or releases of the protocol. Each application generates messages to be sent using two data sets. A first data set is incorporated into the message using elements available in a standard XML protocol schema. A second data set is incorporated into the message using XML annotation elements. The receiving application processes the message using the schematized XML protocol to parse out the first data set. The receiving application further parses the message to identify the second data set that is carried by enhanced XML annotation elements. Extension or annotations are flexibly added to the XML protocol without requiring the client application to request—or the server application to respond to—a pre-negotiated number or type of annotations.

Claims

1. A method for extending a schematized XML protocol, comprising:

identifying, by a client application running on a client processor, first data to be transmitted to a server application running on a server processor, the first data identified using a standard XML protocol schema, and second data to be transmitted to the server application, the second data not defined in the standard XML protocol schema; and

generating, by the client application on the client processor, a message comprising the first data using elements available in the standard XML protocol schema, and comprising the second data using XML annotation elements.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting the message to the server application.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving a response to the message from the server application;

identifying first returned data in the response, the first returned data carried in the response using the standard XML protocol schema; and

identifying second return data in the response, the second returned data carried in the response using XML annotation elements.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

ignoring, by the client application, data in the response that was not requested in the message.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the standard XML protocol schema includes XML elements that are known in all versions or deployments of the schema.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein XML annotations are used to identify data that does not correspond to elements defined in the standard XML protocol schema.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the message comprising the first data and the second data is a request for synchronization data.

8. The method of claim 3, wherein the response comprises synchronization data requested in the message comprising the first data and the second data.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the message comprising the first data and the second data is a status message.

10. A method for processing messages using an extended schematized XML protocol, comprising:

receiving, at a server application on a server processor, a message from another application;

parsing the message, by the server application on the server processor, using the elements defined in a standard XML protocol schema to identify first message data; and

parsing the message, by the server application on the server processor, to identify second message data carried by enhanced XML annotation elements.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

generating, by the server application, a return message comprising first return data using elements available in the standard XML protocol schema, and comprising second return data using XML annotation elements.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the message from the other application is a request for synchronization data, and wherein the return message is a response that comprises requested synchronization data.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the message from the other application is a status message.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the second return data is carried in XML annotation elements that identify name and value parameters for the second return data.

15. The method of claim of claim 10, further comprising:

identifying extra data carried by enhanced XML annotation elements;

determining, by the server application, that the extra data is not supported by the protocol deployed on the server application; and

ignoring the extra data.

16. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions for processing messages using an extended schematized XML protocol, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause a processor to perform actions comprising:

identifying first data to be transmitted to another device, the first data identified using a standard XML protocol schema, and second data to be transmitted to the other device, the second data not defined in the standard XML protocol schema; and

generating a message comprising the first data using elements available in the standard XML protocol schema, and comprising the second data using XML annotation elements.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, further comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a processor to perform actions comprising:

receiving a response to the message from the other device;

identifying first returned data in the response, the first returned data carried in the response using the standard XML protocol schema; and

identifying second return data in the response, the second returned data carried in the response using XML annotation elements.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, further comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a processor to perform actions comprising:

receiving a new message from the other device;

parsing the new message using the elements defined in the standard XML protocol schema to identify first message data; and

parsing the new message to identify second message data carried by enhanced XML annotation elements.

19. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, further comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a processor to perform actions comprising:

generating a return message in response to the new message comprising first return data using elements available in the standard XML protocol schema, and comprising second return data using XML annotation elements.

20. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the message is a request for synchronization data, and wherein the response is a message that comprises requested synchronization data.