CENTRALIZED READ ACCESS LOGGING

• US 20130332424A1
• Filed: 06/12/2012
• Published: 12/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Loukachev, Iouri, Nos, Kathrin, Christoph, Bjoern, Trester, Steve, Heitmann, Joerg, Girts, Robert
• Granted Patent: US 9,116,906 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/687
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1734 Details of monitoring file system events, e.g. by the use of hooks, filter drivers, logs

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed for creating a read-access log. A business application may send a request for data to a backend system using a communication protocol. At the backend system, the request may be observed and a determination made as to whether the request for data is log-relevant. The determination may be based on a log configuration record associated with the business application making the request. A record may be written in a read-access log when it is determined that the request for data is log-relevant. The log record may include information used to map entity information from the retrieved data to a semantic entity.

Claims

1. A system including instructions and executable by at least one processor, the system comprising:

the at least one processor; and

at least one memory storing;

a plurality of business applications, each business application configured to request data from an interface technology using one of a number of communication protocols,

a log configuration file, wherein a record in the log configuration file identifies one of the plurality of business applications and maps a business application entity to a semantic entity,

a number of read access hooks configured to use the at least one processor to;

observe requests from the business applications for data, the requests made over the communication protocols, and

determine whether a particular request for data from a particular business application is log-relevant based on at least one record in the log configuration file for the particular business application, and

a log writer configured to use the at least one processor to write a record in a read-access log when it is determined that the particular request for data is log-relevant, the record in the read-access log including information reflecting the particular request for data and a mapping of a business application entity returned in response to the particular request to its semantic entity in the at least one record in the log configuration file.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the log configuration file further includes, for each business application entity, an indication of whether the business application entity is log-relevant.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the log configuration file further includes, for each business application entity, an indication of whether a value of the business application entity is to be included in the read-access log.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein each of the number of read access hooks correspond to a different communication protocol.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein writing the record in the read-access log includes:

extracting read event information from the particular request for data, the read event information including the semantic entity;

extracting business application entity information from the particular request for data based on the log configuration file; and

writing the record, the record including the read event information and the business application entity information.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the record in the read-access log includes the read event information and the business application entity information, the business application entity information including unstructured information, retrieved in response to the particular request, for one or more business application entities.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one memory further stores a log consolidator configured to use the at least one processor to:

read the record from the read-access log;

apply the read event information to the unstructured information to generate a number of items accessed; and

create a consolidated log record for each of the number of items accessed.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the log consolidator is further configured to use the at least one processor to:

make the read-access log unavailable for writing prior to reading the read-access log; and

make a second read-access log available for writing.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one memory further stores a log reporter configured to use the at least one processor to:

receive a query; and

generate search results from the read-access log using the semantic entity, the search results including log records from a plurality of the business applications.

10. A computer-implemented method stored on a computer readable storage medium and executed by one or more processors, the method comprising:

observing a request for data for a particular data field from a business application to a backend system, the request made over a communication protocol and observed at the backend system;

determining at the backend system whether the request for data is log-relevant based on a log configuration record that identifies the business application and the particular data field; and

writing a record in a read-access log when it is determined that the request for data is log-relevant.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein if the business application does not have an associated log configuration record, the request for data is determined not to be log-relevant.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the log configuration record includes a mapping of business application entities to semantic entities.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the request for data is determined not to be log relevant when a log configuration file does not include the log configuration record that maps of the particular data field to a semantic entity.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the record in the read-access log includes information used to map the particular data field to a semantic entity.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

determining read event information for the request for data;

extracting entity information from retrieved data for the request based on the configuration record, the entity information including unstructured information for one or more entities from the retrieved data; and

writing the record in the read-access log, the record including the read event information and the entity information, wherein the read event information also includes the information used to map to the semantic entity.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

reading the record from the read-access log;

applying the read event information to the unstructured information to generate a number of items accessed; and

creating a consolidated log record for each of the number of items accessed.

17. A non-transitory computer program product, the computer program product being tangibly embodied on a computer-readable storage medium and comprising instructions that, when executed, are configured to:

receive a request for data from a business application at a backend system;

retrieve the requested data;

determine at the backend system whether the retrieved data is log-relevant based on a log configuration record associated with the business application, wherein when the business application does not have an associated log configuration record the retrieved data is determined not to be log-relevant; and

when the retrieved data is determined to be log-relevant;

extract read event information from the retrieved data,

extract entity information from the retrieved data based on the configuration record, the entity information including unstructured information for at least one entity from the request; and

write the record in a read-access log that includes the read event information and the entity information, wherein the read event information includes information mapping to a semantic entity from the log configuration record.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the instructions, when executed, are further configured to:

read the record from the read-access log;

apply the read event information to the unstructured information to generate a number of items accessed; and

create a consolidated log record for each of the number of items accessed.

19. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein the instructions, when executed, are further configured to:

receive a query; and

generate search results from the read-access log using the semantic entity, the search results including log records from a plurality of business applications.

20. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the log configuration record includes information for mapping the at least one entity to the semantic entity.