TECHNIQUES TO DISCOVER SERVICES RECURSIVELY IN A DISTRIBUTED ENVIRONMENT

• US 20140006579A1
• Filed: 06/29/2012
• Published: 01/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Pitsch, Yves, Boroujerdi, Rastan, Sehgal, Amit, Kopparapu, Santhosh, Eydelman, Vadim, Lim, Yong, Rao, Deepak
• Granted Patent: US 8,874,717 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/37 E-mail addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/385 Uniform resource identifier for session initiation protocol [SIP URI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/168 above the transport layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]

Abstract

Techniques to recursively discover services in a distributed environment may include receiving a request, including a unique client identifier, from a client device to access a home resource at a services site. The services site may identify which services site is mapped to the client domain of the unique client identifier in the request. If the services site that received the request is not the services site identified by the client domain, the services site that received the request may provide a redirect token that includes a link to the identified services site to the client device. Otherwise, the services site that received the request may provide one or more links to resources in a cluster within the services site. The links to resources may include a link to the requested home resource. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor circuit;

a memory unit to store a mapping table; and

root logic operative on the processor circuit to;

receive a request from a client device to connect to a home resource, the request including a unique client identifier for a user of the client device;

use the mapping table to identify a services site mapped to the client domain of the unique client identifier;

provide a link to the identified services site as a redirect token in a response to the client device when the identified service site is different from a services site that includes the apparatus; and

provide a user-resource link in a user token in a response to the client device when the identified service site is the same as a services site that includes the apparatus.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the user-resource link includes a link to the home resource.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the user-resource link includes a link to a cluster within the identified service site.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the cluster includes the home resource.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, the memory to store a site user directory, and the root logic operative to determine whether a user identified by the unique client identifier is included in the site user directory.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising a cluster having a redirection component and at least one home resource.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, the redirection component operative to identify whether the cluster includes the home resource for the client device, and to redirect the client device to a second cluster in the services site when the cluster does not include the home resource.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus is a component of an on-premises deployment.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus is a component of a cloud deployment.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, comprising authenticating the client device to the first cluster.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, wherein the response from the first discovery service comprises a user token, the method comprising:

connecting to a first cluster via user-resource link in the user token from the first discovery service; and

accessing the home resource via the user-resource link.

10. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

connecting to a first discovery service from a client device to locate a home resource using a unique client identifier;

receiving a response from the first discovery service, the response comprising a redirect token;

connecting to a second discovery service at a re-direction link in the redirect token;

receiving a response from the second discovery service, the response comprising a user token;

connecting to a first cluster via user-resource link in the user token; and

accessing the home resource via the user-resource link.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, comprising connecting to a first internal discovery service and to a first external discovery service substantially simultaneously to locate the home resource, wherein the connection to one of the first internal and external discovery services fails and the other connection succeeds and provides a response to the client device.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, comprising:

generating a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) GET request for the first discovery service;

generating a HTTP secure (HTTPS) GET request for the first discovery service;

sending both the HTTP and the HTTPS GET requests to the first discovery service; and

connecting to the first discovery service via one of the HTTP and the HTTPS GET requests.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, comprising:

receiving a redirect token in response to connecting to the user-resource link, the redirect token comprising a second user-resource link;

connecting to a second cluster via the second user-resource link; and

accessing the home resource via the second user-resource link.

16. At least one computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

receive a request from a client device to connect to a home resource, the request including a unique client identifier;

use a mapping table to identify a services site mapped to the client domain of the unique client identifier; and

provide a link to the identified services site as a redirect token in a response to the client device when the identified service site is different from a services site that includes the system.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to provide a user-resource link in a user token in a response to the client device when the identified services site is the same as a services site that includes the system.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the user-resource link includes a link to the home resource.

19. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the user-resource link includes a link to a cluster within the identified services site.

20. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, comprising instructions that when executed cause the system to:

request authentication of the client device;

connect the client device to the home resource when the authentication is successful; and

provide a redirect token to the client device when the authentication fails, the redirect token including a link to a different cluster than a cluster that requested authentication.