Resuming Applications and/or Exempting Applications from Suspension

• US 20130067494A1
• Filed: 09/09/2011
• Published: 03/14/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/09/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Srour, Benjamin Salim, Krause, Michael H., Neves, Richard K., Kishan, Arun U., Pulapaka, Hari, Probert, David B., Pozen, Zinaida A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,578,394 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 719/318
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/46 Multiprogramming arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/485 Task life-cycle, e.g. stopping, restarting, resuming execution G06F9/4881 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/54 Interprogram communication

Abstract

Only a particular number of applications on a computing device are active at any given time, with applications that are not active being suspended. A policy is applied to determine when an application is to be suspended. However, an operating system component can have a particular application be exempted from being suspended (e.g., due to an operation being performed by the application). Additionally, an operating system component can have an application that has been suspended resumed (e.g., due to a desire of another application to communicate with the suspended application).

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, from an operating system component running on a computing device, a request to exempt one application of multiple applications running on the computing device from being suspended due to the multiple applications not satisfying a policy; and

exempting, in response to the request, the one application from being suspended on the computing device.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, the request being received in response to the operating system component determining that the one application is performing an operation that is to be allowed to continue.

3. A method as recited in claim 2, the one application comprising an audio player and the operation comprising playing back audio content.

4. A method as recited in claim 2, the operation comprising printing a document.

5. A method as recited in claim 2, the operation comprising communicating with a device at at least a threshold rate.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, the exempting comprising exempting the one application for an amount of time, and allowing the one application to be suspended after the amount of time elapses.

7. A method as recited in claim 6, the amount of time being dependent on an exemption class for the request, with different exemption classes having different amounts of time.

8. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising allowing the one application to be suspended in response to occurrence of an event.

9. A method as recited in claim 8, the event comprising a notification from the operating system component that the application is to no longer be exempted from being suspended.

10. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising receiving a reason why the one application is being requested to be exempted from being suspended as part of the request, and recording the received reason.

11. A method comprising:

receiving, from an operating system component running on a computing device, a request to resume execution of an application that has been suspended due to the computing device no longer displaying a user interface for the application; and

resuming, in response to the request, execution of the application.

12. A method as recited in claim 11, the request being received in response to the operating system component determining communication with the application is desired.

13. A method as recited in claim 12, the communication comprising an inter-process communication with another application.

14. A method as recited in claim 12, the communication comprising a communication to obtain data from the application in response to a user request received by another application.

15. A method as recited in claim 12, the communication comprising communication with the operating system component.

16. A method as recited in claim 11, further comprising exempting, in response to the request, the application from being suspended on the computing device.

17. A method as recited in claim 16, the exempting comprising exempting the application until a notification is received from the operating system component that a reason for requesting that execution of the application be resumed is no longer present, and allowing the application to be suspended in response to the notification.

18. A method as recited in claim 16, the exempting comprising exempting the application for an amount of time, and allowing the application to be suspended after the amount of time elapses.

19. A method as recited in claim 18, the amount of time being dependent on a reason why the application is being requested to be resumed.

20. One or more computer storage media having stored thereon multiple instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a computing device, cause the one or more processors to:

receive, from an operating system component running on the computing device, a request to exempt one application of multiple applications running on the computing device from being suspended due to the multiple applications not satisfying a policy, the request being received in response to the operating system component determining that the one application is performing an operation that is to be allowed to continue; and

exempt, in response to the request, the one application from being suspended on the computing device for an amount of time, and allow the one application to be suspended after the amount of time elapses, the amount of time being dependent on a reason why the one application is being requested to be exempted from being suspended.