Portable file system operable under various computer environments

• US 5,864,853 A
• Filed: 09/14/1995
• Issued: 01/26/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Kimura, Tetsuro, Okamoto, Toshio
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Coby, Frantz
• Application Number:
  US08/528,056
• Time in Patent Office: 1,230 Days
• Field of Search: 345/173, 364/705.06, 364/900, 364/401, 364/200, 379/58, 395/601, 395/610, 395/616, 395/613, 707/10, 707/102, 707/104
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/10 File systems; File servers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A portable file system capable of sharing data among various computer environments, such that a user can freely utilize his own data under various computer environments. The system includes at least one portable data processing device having a memory unit for storing file data and file management data of portable side files; at least one stationary data processing device having a processing unit for executing desired processing by making accesses to the portable side files; and a conversion unit for converting at least one of the file data and the file management data of each requested file among the portable side files for which a file access request is issued by the processing unit into a form suitable for the stationary data processing device, such that the processing unit makes an access to each requested file among the portable side files according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the conversion unit. The conversion unit may be provided in the portable data processing device side, or in the stationary data processing device side.

Claims

1. A portable file system, comprising:

at least one portable data processing device having memory means for storing file data and file management data of portable device files belonging to the portable data processing device, the file management data including access permit/reject data for the portable device files;

at least one stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the portable device files; and

conversion means for converting at least the access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data of a requested file among the portable device files, into a form suitable for the stationary data processing device, such that the processing means makes an access to the requested file among the portable device files according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the conversion means.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the conversion means converts at least the access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data of the requested file among the portable device files for which a file access request is issued by the processing means.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the conversion means is provided in the portable data processing device, such that the converted file data/file management data are returned from the portable data processing device to the stationary data processing device in response to the file access request.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the conversion means is provided in the stationary data processing device, and the portable data processing device includes means for transmitting conversion data necessary in converting said at least the access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data at the conversion means to the stationary data processing device in response to the file access request.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the portable data processing device includes correspondence memory means for storing a correspondence between an ID of each network domain and file management data suitable for each network domain, such that the conversion means obtains converted file management data by referring to the correspondence memory means according to the ID of a network domain to which the portable data processing device is connected.

6. The system of claim 2, wherein the conversion means checks a structure of the file management data in the stationary data processing device when the file access request is issued by the processing means, and obtains the converted file management data by converting a structure of the file management data stored in the memory means into a structure suitable for the stationary data processing device.

7. The system of claim 2, wherein the portable data processing device includes correspondence memory means for storing a correspondence between an ID of each stationary data processing device and the file management data suitable for each stationary data processing device, such that the conversion means obtains the converted file management data by referring to the correspondence memory means according to the ID of the stationary data processing device which issued the file access request.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the stationary data processing device includes:

file memory means for storing stationary device files belonging to the stationary data processing device; and

mount point memory means for storing a mount point data indicating a mount point in the stationary device files to which the portable device files are to be mounted, and a mounting target point data indicating a mounting target point in the portable device files at which the portable device files are to be mounted to the stationary device files, in correspondence to a user ID of an owner of each portable data processing device.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the portable data processing device includes mounting method specifying means for specifying a manner of mounting the portable device files to the stationary device files, and the stationary data processing device further includes mounting control means for controlling the manner of mounting the portable device files to the stationary device files according to the manner specified by the mounting method specifying means.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the stationary data processing device includes back-up means for automatically producing and storing a back-up of the portable device files in the stationary data processing device while the processing means is accessible to the portable device files, and updating the back-up according to a change in the portable device files made by the processing executed by the processing means.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the stationary data processing device allows accesses to files in the back-up from the processing means while the processing means is not accessible to the portable device files in the portable data processing device.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the portable data processing device includes back-up control means for specifying a manner of producing the back-up in each stationary data processing device, such that the back-up means of each stationary data processing device produces the back-up according to the manner specified by the back-up control means.

13. The system of claim 1, further comprising an ID data device, to be carried around by an owner of each portable data processing device, for emitting an ID data signal to authenticate a carrier of the ID data device as the owner of each portable data processing device, such that each portable data processing device authenticates a user as the owner of each portable data processing device according to the ID data signal emitted from the ID data device.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the stationary data processing device and the portable data processing device are set in communication with each other when the portable data processing device is placed in a prescribed vicinity of the stationary data processing device, and the portable data processing device includes data protection means for making the portable device files accessible from the processing means of the stationary data processing device when the ID data device carried around by the owner of the portable data processing device is judged to be present within a prescribed proximity from the portable data processing device according to the ID data signal emitted from the ID data device.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the stationary data processing device includes means for transmitting a pass word entered by a user using the stationary data processing device to the portable data processing device, and the portable data processing device includes data protection means for making the portable device files accessible from the processing means of the stationary data processing device when the user using the stationary data processing device is judged as a proper user of the portable data processing device according to the pass word transmitted from the stationary data processing device.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the file management data includes a user ID of an owner of each portable data processing device, and the conversion means converts the user ID Into a form valid on the stationary data processing device.

17. The system of claim 2, wherein the portable device files include more than one file having an identical file name but written in different types of expression and stored at different memory positions in the memory means, the stationary data processing device issues the file access request by specifying a file name, the file management data includes a file memory position data for each requested file for which the file access request is issued indicating a memory position in the memory means at which each requested file is stored, and the conversion means converts the file memory position data for each requested file into a form valid on the stationary data processing device, such that when the file access request specifying the identical file name of said more than one file is issued, the processing means of the stationary data processing device makes an access to one of said more than one file written in a type of expression suitable for the stationary data processing device according to the converted file management data.

18. The system of claim 2, wherein the portable data processing device checks parameters specifying a computing environment of the stationary data processing device when the file access request is issued by the processing means, and the conversion means obtains the converted file data by converting values of the parameters checked by the portable data processing device that are contained in the file data stored in the memory means into values suitable for the stationary data processing device.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein the stationary data processing device and the portable data processing device are set in communication with each other when the portable data processing device is placed in a prescribed vicinity of the stationary data processing device.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the portable data processing device is placed in the prescribed vicinity of the stationary data processing device by an owner of the portable data processing device when the owner uses the portable device files on the stationary data processing device.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein a plurality of stationary data processing devices are connected to a network and grouped into a plurality of domains on the network, and the conversion means is provided in the portable data processing device, such that the conversion means converts at least one of the file data and the file management data of each requested file for which a file access request is received from one stationary data processing device belonging to one domain on the network into a form suitable for said one domain on the network, and returns converted file data/file management data to said one stationary data processing device via the network in response to the file access request.

22. A portable file system, comprising:

a portable data processing device having memory means for storing files; and

a stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the files stored in the memory means and having control means for controlling an execution of the processing by the processing means depending on who is operating the processing means;

wherein the portable data processing device includes means for returning a user ID valid on the stationary data processing device of an owner of each requested file for which a file access request is issued by the processing means, to the stationary data processing device, in response to the file access request received from the stationary data processing device; and

the control means controls the execution of the processing by the processing means according to the user ID returned from the portable data processing device.

23. A portable file system, comprising:

a portable data processing device having memory means for storing files; and

a stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the files stored in the memory means and having control means for controlling an execution of the processing by the processing means depending on an access permit/reject data of each file;

wherein the portable data processing device includes means for returning an access permit/reject data valid on the stationary data processing device for each requested file for which a file access request is issued by the processing means, to the stationary data processing device, in response to the file access request received from the stationary data processing device; and

the control means controls the execution of the processing by the processing means according to the access permit/reject data returned from the portable data processing device.

24. A portable data processing device to be used in conjunction with a stationary data processing device, comprising:

a memory for storing file data and file management data of files, the file management data including access permit/reject data for portable data processing device files; and

a conversion unit for converting at least the access Permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data of a file requested from the stationary data processing device into data suitable for the stationary data processing device, such that the stationary data processing device makes an access to the requested file according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the conversion unit.

25. A portable data processing device to be used in conjunction with a stationary data processing device, comprising:

memory means for storing file data and file management data of files, the file management data including an access permit/reject data for the portable data processing device files; and

conversion control means for controlling the stationary data processing device to convert at least the access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data of each requested file for which a file access request is received from the stationary data processing device into a form suitable for the stationary data processing device, by transmitting conversion data necessary in converting said at least the access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data at the stationary data processing device in response to the file access request, such that the stationary data processing device makes an access to each requested file according to converted file data/file management data obtained by using the conversion data.

26. A stationary data processing device to be used in conjunction with a portable data processing device, comprising:

processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to portable device files belonging to and stored in the portable data processing device; and

conversion means for converting at least access permit/reject data among file data and file management data of each requested file among the portable device files for which a file access request is issued by the processing means into a form suitable for the stationary data processing device, according to conversion data necessary in converting said at least access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data provided by the portable data processing device in response to the file access request, such that the processing means makes an access to each requested file according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the conversion means.

27. A portable data processing device to be used in conjunction with a network to which a stationary data processing device is connected, comprising:

a memory for storing file data and file management data of files, the file management data including access permit/reject data for the portable data processing device files; and

a conversion unit for converting at least the access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data of a file requested by the stationary data processing device via the network into data suitable for the network, such that the stationary data processing device makes an access via the network to the requested file according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the conversion unit.

28. A method of file data processing, comprising the steps of:

forming a portable file system of at least one portable data processing device having a memory for storing file data and file management data of portable device files, and at least one stationary data processing device having a processor for executing desired processing by making accesses to the portable device files, the file management data including access permit/reject data for the portable device files;

converting at least the access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data of a requested file among the portable device files, into a form suitable for the stationary data processing device, at a conversion unit; and

making an access to the requested file among the portable device files at the processor according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the conversion unit.

29. The method of claim 28, further comprising the step of issuing a file access request for the requested file among the portable device files from the processor, such that the converting step converts at least the access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data of the requested file among the portable device files for which the file access request is issued by the processor.

30. The method of claim 28, further comprising the step of storing a correspondence between an ID of each network domain and the file management data suitable for each network domain in the portable data processing device, such that the conversion unit obtains converted file management data by referring to stored correspondence according to the ID of a network domain to which the portable data processing device is connected.

31. The method of claim 29, wherein the conversion unit is provided in the portable data processing device, and the method further comprises the step of returning the converted file data/file management data obtained at the converting step from the portable data processing device to the stationary data processing device in response to the file access request.

32. The method of claim 29, wherein the conversion unit is provided in the stationary data processing device, and the method further comprises the step of transmitting conversion data necessary in converting said at least the access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data at the conversion unit from the portable data processing device to the stationary data processing device in response to the file access request.

33. The method of claim 29, further comprising the step of checking a structure of the file management data in the stationary data processing device at the conversion unit when the file access request is issued by the processing means at the issuing step, such that the conversion unit obtains the converted file management data by converting a structure of the file management data stored in the memory means into a structure suitable for the stationary data processing device at the converting step.

34. The method of claim 29, further comprising the step of storing a correspondence between an ID of each stationary data processing device and the file management data suitable for each stationary data processing device at a correspondence memory in the portable data processing device, such that the conversion unit obtains the converted file management data by referring to the correspondence memory unit according to the ID of the stationary data processing device which issued the file access request at the converting step.

35. The method of claim 28, further comprising the steps of:

storing stationary device files belonging to the stationary data processing device at a file memory in the stationary data processing device; and

storing a mount point data indicating a mount point in the stationary device files to which the portable device files are to be mounted, and a mounting target point data indicating a mounting target point in the portable device files at which the portable device files are to be mounted to the stationary device files, in correspondence to a user ID of an owner of each portable data processing device, at a mount point memory in the stationary data processing device.

36. The method of claim 35, further comprising the steps of:

specifying a manner of mounting the portable device files to the stationary device files from the portable data processing device to the stationary data processing device; and

controlling the manner of mounting the portable device files to the stationary device files at the stationary data processing device according to the manner specified from the portable data processing device.

37. The method of claim 28, further comprising the steps of:

automatically producing and storing a back-up of the portable device files in the stationary data processing device while the processing means is accessible to the portable device files; and

updating the back-up according to a change in the portable device files made by the processing executed by the processing means.

38. The method of claim 37, further comprising the step of allowing accesses to files in the back-up from the processing means at the stationary data processing device while the processing means is not accessible to the portable device files in the portable data processing device.

39. The method of claim 37, further comprising the step of specifying a manner of producing the back-up in each stationary data processing device from the portable data processing device, such that each stationary data processing device produces the back-up according to the manner specified from the portable data processing device.

40. The method of claim 28, further comprising the steps of:

providing an ID data device, to be carried around by an owner of each portable data processing device, for emitting an ID data signal to authenticate a carrier of the ID data device as the owner of each portable data processing device; and

authenticating a user as the owner of each portable data processing device according to the ID data signal emitted from the ID data device at each portable data processing device.

41. The method of claim 40, further comprising the steps of:

setting the stationary data processing device and the portable data processing device in communication with each other by placing the portable data processing device in a prescribed vicinity of the stationary data processing device; and

making the portable device files accessible from the processing means of the stationary data processing device at the portable data processing device when the ID data device carried around by the owner of the portable data processing device is judged to be present within a prescribed proximity from the portable data processing device according to the ID data signal emitted from the ID data device.

42. The method of claim 28, further comprising the steps of:

transmitting a pass word entered by a user using the stationary data processing device from the stationary data processing device to the portable data processing device; and

making the portable device files accessible from the processing means of the stationary data processing device at the portable data processing device when the user using the stationary data processing device is judged as a proper user of the portable data processing device according to the pass word transmitted from the stationary data processing device.

43. The method of claim 28, wherein the file management data includes a user ID of an owner of each portable data processing device, and the conversion unit converts the user ID into a form valid on the stationary data processing device at the converting step.

44. The method of claim 29, wherein the portable device file include more than one files having an identical file name but written in different types of expression and stored at different memory positions in the memory means, the stationary data processing device issues the file access request by specifying a file name, the file management data includes a file memory position data for each requested file for which the file access request is issued indicating a memory position in the memory means at which each requested file is stored, and the conversion unit converts the file memory position data for each requested file into a form valid on the stationary data processing device at the converting step, such that when the file access request specifying the identical file name of said more than one file is issued at the issuing step, the processing means of the stationary data processing device makes an access to one of said more than one file written in a type of expression suitable for the stationary data processing device according to the converted file management data.

45. The method of claim 29, further comprising the step of checking parameters specifying a computing environment of the stationary data processing device at the portable data processing device when the file access request is issued by the processing means at the issuing step, such that the conversion unit obtains the converted file data by converting values of the parameters checked by the portable data processing device that are contained in the file data stored in the memory means into values suitable for the stationary data processing device at the converting step.

46. The method of claim 28, further comprising the step of setting the stationary data processing device and the portable data processing device in communication with each other by placing the portable data processing device in a prescribed vicinity of the stationary data processing device.

47. The method of claim 46, wherein the portable data processing device is placed in the prescribed vicinity of the stationary data processing device by an owner of the portable data processing device when the owner uses the portable device files on the stationary data processing device.

48. The method of claim 28, wherein at the forming step, a plurality of stationary data processing devices are connected to a network and grouped into a plurality of domains on the network, and at the converting step, the conversion unit is provided in the portable data processing device, such that the conversion unit converts at least one of the file data and the file management data of each requested file for which a file access request is received from one stationary data processing device belonging to one domain on the network into a form suitable for said one domain on the network, and returns converted file data/file management data to said one stationary data processing device via the network in response to the file access request.

49. A method of file data processing, comprising the steps of:

forming a portable file system of a portable data processing device having memory means for storing files, and a stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the files stored in the memory means and having control means for controlling an execution of the processing by the processing means depending on who is operating the processing means;

issuing a file access request for each requested file among the files stored in the memory means from the processing means;

returning a user ID valid on the stationary data processing device of an owner of each requested file for which a file access request is issued by the processing means, from the portable data processing device to the stationary data processing device, in response to the file access request received from the stationary data processing device; and

controlling the execution of the processing by the processing means according to the user ID returned from the portable data processing device.

50. A method of file data processing, comprising the steps of:

forming a portable file system of a portable data processing device having memory means for storing files, and a stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the files stored in the memory means and having control means for controlling an execution of the processing by the processing means depending on an access permit/reject data of each file;

issuing a file access request for each requested file among the files stored in the memory means from the processing means;

returning an access permit/reject data valid on the stationary data processing device for each requested file for which a file access request is issued by the processing means, from the portable data processing device to the stationary data processing device, in response to the file access request received from the stationary data processing device; and

controlling the execution of the processing by the processing means according to the access permit/reject data returned from the portable data processing device.

51. An article of manufacture, comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer readable program code means embodied therein for causing a computer to function as a portable personal data device to be used in conjunction with a stationary data processing device, the computer readable program code means including

first computer readable program code means for causing the computer to store a correspondence between an ID of each stationary data processing device and a file management data suitable for each stationary data processing device; and

second computer readable program code means for causing the computer to receive the ID of the stationary data processing device which issued a file access request; and

third computer readable program code means for causing the computer to convert a file management data of each requested file for which the file access request is received from the stationary data processing device into a form suitable for the stationary data processing device by referring to the correspondence stored by the first computer readable program code means according to the ID of the stationary data processing device received by the second computer readable program code means, and to return converted file management data to the stationary data processing device in response to the file access request such that the stationary data processing device makes an access to each requested file according to converted file management data returned from the computer.

52. A method of file data processing between a first data processing device having a memory for storing file data and file management data and a second data processing device having a processor for executing a desired processing, the file management data including access permit/reject data, the method comprising the steps of:

converting at least the access permit/reject data among the file data and the file management data of a file stored in the first data processing device which is to be accessed by the second data processing device, into data suitable for the second data processing device; and

making an access to the file according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the converting step.

53. A portable file system, comprising:

at least one portable data processing device having memory means for storing file data and file management data of portable device files belonging to the portable data processing device;

at least one stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the portable device files; and

conversion means for converting at least one of the file data and the file management data of a requested file among the portable device files for which a file access request is issued by the processing means into a form suitable for the stationary data processing device, such that the processing means makes an access to the requested file among the portable device files according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the conversion means;

wherein the portable data processing device includes correspondence memory means for storing a correspondence between an ID of each stationary data processing device and file management data suitable for each stationary data processing device, such that the conversion means obtains converted file management data by referring to the correspondence memory means according to the ID of the stationary data processing device which issued the file access request.

54. A method of file data processing, comprising the steps of:

providing a portable file system of at least one portable data processing device having memory means for storing file data and file management data of portable device files, and at least one stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the portable device files;

storing a correspondence between an ID of each stationary data processing device and file management data suitable for each stationary data processing device in the portable data processing device;

issuing a file access request for a requested file among the portable device files from the processing means;

converting at least one of the file data and the file management data of the requested file among the portable device files for which the file access request is issued by the processing means into a form suitable for the stationary data processing device, at a conversion unit, by referring to stored correspondence according to the ID of the stationary data processing device which issued the file access request; and

making an access to the requested file among the portable device files at the processing means according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the conversion unit.

55. A portable file system, comprising:

at least one portable data processing device having memory means for storing file data and file management data of portable device files belonging to the portable data processing device;

at least one stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the portable device files; and

conversion means for converting at least one of the file data and the file management data of a requested file among the portable device files into a form suitable for the stationary data processing device, such that the processing means makes an access to the requested file among the portable device files according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the conversion means;

wherein the portable data processing device includes correspondence memory means for storing a correspondence between an ID of each network domain and file management data suitable for each network domain, such that the conversion means obtains converted file management data by referring to the correspondence memory means according to the ID of a network domain to which the portable data processing device is connected.

56. A method of file data processing, comprising the steps of:

providing a portable file system of at least one portable data processing device having memory means for storing file data and file management data of portable device files, and at least one stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the portable device files;

storing a correspondence between an ID of each network domain and file management data suitable for each network domain in the portable data processing device;

converting at least one of the file data and the file management data of a requested file among the portable device files into a form suitable for the stationary data processing device, at a conversion unit, by referring to stored correspondence according to the ID of a network domain to which the portable data processing device is connected; and

making an access to the requested file among the portable device files at the processing means according to converted file data/file management data obtained by the conversion unit.

57. A portable file system, comprising:

at least one portable data processing device having memory means for storing file data and file management data of portable device files belonging to the portable data processing device; and

at least one stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the portable device files, and back-up means for automatically producing and storing a back-up of the portable device files in the stationary data processing device while the processing means is accessible to the portable device files, and updating the back-up according to a change in the portable device files made by processing executed by the processing means.

58. A method of file data processing, comprising the steps of:

providing a portable file system of at least one portable data processing device having memory means for storing file data and file management data of portable device files, and at least one stationary data processing device having processing means for executing desired processing by making accesses to the portable device files;

making an access to a file among the portable device files at the processing means;

automatically producing and storing a back-up of the portable device files in the stationary data processing device while the processing means is accessible to the portable device files; and

updating the back-up according to a change in the portable device files made by processing executed by the processing means.