Implicit session context system with object state cache

• US 5,884,316 A
• Filed: 11/19/1996
• Issued: 03/16/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation, Sterling Software, Inc. (Northrop Grumman Corporation)
• Inventors: Bernstein, Philip Alan, Harry, Brian, Zander, Jason Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): Black, Thomas G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): HOMERE, JEAN RAYMOND
• Application Number:
  US08/752,328
• Time in Patent Office: 847 Days
• Field of Search: 707/103, 707/10, 395/200.33, 395/200.43, 395/683, 395/684
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/465 Distributed object oriented systems remote method invocation [RMI] G06F9/548
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/547 Remote procedure calls [RPC]; Web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/327 in the session layer [OSI layer 5]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/955 Object-oriented
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure

Abstract

An implicit session system with an object state cache. The implicit sessioning avoids explicitly passing session parameters in each function call to an object by implicitly associating the session context to a session object with each loaded object related to the session so that each function call runs with the session context of the called object. The object state cache minimizes the system resource impact of having multiple instances of an object in different sessions by sharing one copy of each respective unique object state in an object state cache.

Claims

1. A computer readable medium containing computer executable instructions to perform a method for implicitly passing session context in an object oriented system having a client and a server, said method comprising:

constructing a function call that is void of session identification information;

delivering said function call from said client to a called object; and

executing said function call with a session context of a session object that is inherent to said called object.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein said session context includes a session identifier.

3. A method according to claim 1 including:

first step of generating said session object for said client in response to a session object function call from said client to said server; and

establishing said session context as a context for each of at least one object created for a first time on behalf of said client subsequent to said first step of generating said session object.

4. A method according to claim 3 including:

second step of generating a unique copy of an object state in an object state cache for an object that is loaded for a first time on behalf of a first client; and

third step of generating a private header pointer to said object state for each occurrence of said object that is loaded on behalf of any client subsequent to said second step of generating said object state.

5. A method according to claim 1 wherein said object oriented system is a database system.

6. A method according to claim 5 wherein said database system is a repository system.

7. A computer readable medium containing computer executable instructions to perform a method for implicitly passing session context in an object oriented system having a client and a server, said method comprising:

first step of generating a session object having a session context wherein said step of generating said session object occurs in response to a session object function call from said client to said server;

establishing said session context as a context for each of at least one object created for a first time on behalf of said client subsequent to said first step of generating said session object;

second step of generating a unique object state in an object state cache for each of at least one object that is loaded for a first time by any client; and

pointing to said unique object state from a private header pointer in each of said at least one object that is loaded subsequent to said second step of generating said unique object state.

8. A method according to claim 7 including:

constructing a function call that is void of session identification information;

delivering said function call from said client to a called object; and

executing said function call with said session context of said session object that is inherent to said called object.

9. A method according to claim 8 wherein said session context includes a session identifier.

10. A method according to claim 7 wherein said object oriented system is a database system.

11. A method according to claim 10 wherein said database system is a repository system.

12. A computer readable medium containing computer executable instructions to perform a method for implicitly passing session context in an object oriented system having a client and a server, said method comprising:

first step of generating a session object having a session context wherein said step of generating occurs in response to a session object function call from said client to said server;

establishing said session context as a context for each of at least one object created for a first time on behalf of said client subsequent to said first step of generating said session object;

constructing a function call that is void of session identification information;

delivering said function call from said client to a called one of said at least one object; and

executing said function call with said context of said called one of said at least one object.

13. A method according to claim 12 wherein said session context includes a session identifier.

14. A method according to claim 12 including:

second step of generating an object state in an object state cache for each of said at least one object that is loaded for a first time on behalf of a first client; and

third step of generating a header pointer to said object state for each occurrence of said at least one object that is loaded on behalf of any client subsequent to said second step of generating said object state.

15. A method according to claim 12 wherein said object oriented system is a database system.

16. A method according to claim 15 wherein said database system is a repository system.