System, method and article of manufacture for a distributed computer system framework

• US 5,999,972 A
• Filed: 07/01/1996
• Issued: 12/07/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Gish, Sheri L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Asta, Frank J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Patru, Daniel
• Application Number:
  US08/675,262
• Time in Patent Office: 1,254 Days
• Field of Search: 709/217, 709/218, 709/219, 709/230, 709/237, 709/203, 709/244
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/54 Interprogram communication

Abstract

An interprise computing manager provides coordination between application programs by having each server program controlling the client executable program. In this manner, each client program communicates from the client to the server using a predefined protocol. A distributed computer system is disclosed with software for a client computer, a server computer and a network for connecting the client computer to the server computer which utilize an execution framework code segment configured to couple the server computer and the client computer via the network, by a plurality of client computer code segments resident on the server, each for transmission over the network to a client computer to initiate coupling; and a plurality of server computer code segments resident on the server which execute on the server in response to initiation of coupling via the network with a particular client utilizing the transmitted client computer code segment for communicating via a particular communication protocol.

Claims

1. A distributed computer system, comprising:

(a) a client computer code segment resident on a client computer node, the client computer code segment containing a first portion of executable code of a single application program and a first set of handlers for handling a message set specific to the single application program, the client computer code segment initiated on the client computer node;

(b) a server computer code segment resident on a server computer node coupled to the client computer node, the server computer code segment containing a second portion of executable code of the single application program and a second set of handlers for handling the message set specific to the single application program, the server computer-code segment initiated on the client computer node, such that the first portion of executable code and the second portion of executable code combined make up the single application program and such that the single application program can only be executed by commands from the client computer node;

(c) an execution framework code segment configured to couple the client computer code segment and the server computer code segment using the message set specific to the single application program to facilitate event driven message transfer between the client computer code segment and the server computer code segment, thereby enabling execution of the single application program in a distributed manner between the client computer node and the server computer code.

2. The distributed computer system as recited in claim 1, in which the client computer code segment comprises a presentation engine.

3. The distributed computer system as recited in claim 2, in which the presentation engine comprises:

(a) a user interface; and

(b) a message handler coupled to the user interface to receive events therefrom and to the execution framework code segment to receive message events therefrom.

4. The server for a distributed system as recited in claim 1, including a web connection which facilitates communication from the client computer to the server computer.

5. The server for a distributed system as recited in claim 1, including a communication protocol corresponding to the client code segment and the server code segment which is supported by a communication library on the client computer and the server computer.

6. The server for a distributed system as recited in claim 1, including a code segment which authenticates an initial request from a client computer before downloading a client code segment and initiating secure communication.

7. The server for a distributed system as recited in claim 4, wherein the web is the Internet.

8. A method for distributing computer between a server computer system and a client computer system, comprising the steps of:

(a) storing a client computer code segment resident on a client computer node, the client computer code segment containing a first portion of executable code of a single application program and a first set of handlers for handling a message set specific to the single application program, the client computer code segment initiated on the client computer node;

(b) storing a server computer segment resident on a server computer node coupled to the client computer node, the server computer code segment containing a second portion of executable code of the single application program and a second set of handlers for handling the message set specific to the single application program, the server computer code segment initiated on the client computer node, such that the first portion and the second portion combined make up the single application program and such that the single application program can only be executed by commands from the client computer node;

(c) configuring an execution framework code segment to couple the client computer code segment and the server computer code segment using the message set specific to the single application program to facilitate event driven message transfer between the client computer code segment and the server computer code segment, thereby enabling execution of the single application program in a distributed manner between the client computer node and the server computer node.

9. The method for distributing computing between a server computer system and a client computer system as recited in claim 8, in which the client computer code segment comprises a presentation engine.

10. The method for distributing computing between a server computer system and a client computer system as recited in claim 9, in which the presentation engine comprises:

(a) a user interface; and

(b) a message handler coupled to the user interface to receive events therefrom and to the execution framework code segment to receive message events therefrom.

11. The method for distributing computing between a server computer system and a client computer system as recited in claim 8, including a web connection which facilitates communication from the client computer to the server computer.

12. The method for distributing computing between a server computer system and a client computer system in claim 8, including the step of utilizing a communication protocol corresponding to the client code segment and the server code segment which is supported by a communication library on the client computer and the server computer to facilitate secure communications between the client computer system and the server computer system.

13. The method for distributing computing between a server computer system and a client computer system as recited in claim 8, including a code segment which authenticates an initial request from a client computer before downloading a client code segment and initiating secure communication.

14. The method for distributing computing between a server computer system and a client computer system as recited in claim 11, wherein the web is the Internet.

15. A computer program embodied on a computer-readable medium for enabling a distributed computer system, comprising:

(a) a client computer code segment resident on a client computer node, the client computer code segment containing a first portion of executable code of a single application program and a first set of handlers for handling a message set specific to the single application program, the client computer code segment initiated on the client computer node;

(b) a server computer code segment resident on a server computer node coupled to the client computer node, the server computer code segment containing a second portion of executable code of the single application program and a second set of handlers for handling the message set specific to the single application program, the server computer code segment initiated on the client computer node, such that the first portion and the second portion combined make up the single application program and such that the single application program can only be executed by commands from the client computer code;

(c) an execution framework code segment configured to couple the client computer code segment and the server computer code segment using the message set specific to the single application program to facilitate event driven message transfer between the client computer code segment and the server computer code segment, thereby enabling execution of the single application program in a distributed manner between the client computer node and the server computer node.

16. The computer program embodied on a computer-readable medium for enabling a distributed computer system as recited in claim 15, in which the client computer code segment comprises a presentation engine.

17. The computer program embodied on a computer-readable medium for enabling a distributed computer system as recited in claim 16, in which the presentation engine comprises:

(a) a code segment which provides a user interface; and

(b) a message handler code segment coupled to the user interface to receive events therefrom and to the execution framework code segment to receive message events therefrom.

18. The computer program embodied on a computer-readable medium for enabling a distributed computer system as recited in claim 15, including code segment supporting a web connection which facilitates communication from the client computer to the server computer.

19. The computer program embodied on a computer-readable medium for enabling a distributed computer system as recited in claim 15, including a communication protocol corresponding to the client code segment and the server code segment which is supported by a communication library on the client computer and the server computer.

20. The computer program embodied on a computer-readable medium for enabling a distributed computer system as recited in claim 15, including a code segment which authenticates an initial request from a client computer before downloading a client code segment and initiating secure communication.

21. The computer program embodied on a computer-readable medium for enabling a distributed computer system as recited in claim 18, wherein the web is the Internet.

22. The computer program of claim 17, including a code segment for formatting the transaction in accordance with a secure electronic protocol.