System, method, and article of manufacture for adding object services to a binary class in an object oriented server

• US 6,226,691 B1
• Filed: 10/02/1995
• Issued: 05/01/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Cantin, Guylaine, Sessions, Roger Hereward, Copeland, George Prentice, Hambrick, Geoffrey Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): COURTENAY III, ST JOHN
• Application Number:
  US08/537,648
• Time in Patent Office: 2,038 Days
• Field of Search: 395/685, 395/702, 395/700, 395/161, 395/683, 395/680, 709/310-332, 717/1-10
• US Class Current: 719/316
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4488 Object-oriented

Abstract

A system, method and article of manufacture for automatically inserting object services such as persistence, concurrency, recoverability, security and distribution into binary classes in an information handling system employing object oriented technology, includes the steps of registering a description of a class in a name service context, searching the name service context for a class object referred to as a factory with desired constraints on properties, whether the object is operable in a predetermined operational environment, where the search excludes object services constraints, for classes which are found by the search, first select those classes which already support the object services constraints, create in the operational environment a class object with the desired object services features, and adding a particular object services feature if the original class provide the desired feature, and returning the class object to the caller which can then use the class object to create multiple instances thereof.

Claims

1. A data processing system, comprising:

a processor and a memory in communication with said processor;

a binary class object stored in said memory, said binary class object having properties including a functional description summarizing an intended purpose of said binary class object, one or more inherent characteristics, and support for zero or more object services features;

an ExtendedNamingContext factory finder having at least one entry registered therein, wherein said entry associates said binary class object with said functional description, a description of each of said one or more inherent characteristics, and a description of each of said zero of more object services features;

a factory filter for accepting a request for a new class object, wherein said request includes specified constraints on properties, said specified constraints including a functional description summarizing an intended purpose of said binary class object, a description of at least one inherent characteristic of said new class object, and a description of at least one object services feature to be supported by said new class object, and for identifying all binary class objects registered in said ExtendedNamingContext factory finder matching said specified functional description and said specified description of at least one inherent characteristic;

a feature filter for determining whether at least one of said identified binary class objects supports all of said specified object services features; and

an automatic class builder for automatically forming said new class object with said specified constraints on properties and providing said new class object in response to said request, wherein;

said automatic class builder associates said new class object with a particular binary class object among said identified binary class objects if said particular binary class object supports all of said specified object services features, and,

if no identified binary class object supports all of said specified object services features, said automatic class builder selects a particular binary class object among said identified binary class objects and adds to said selected binary class object support for object services features specified in said request and not supported by said selected binary class object.

2. A data processing system according to claim 1, wherein:

said data processing system further comprises an interface definition language (IDL) definition for said binary class object; and

said request for a new class object is processed by obtaining information from said IDL definition and not from source code for said binary class object.

3. A data processing system according to claim 1, wherein said automatic class builder forms said new class object by combining said selected binary class object with one or more class objects that support object services features described in said request and not supported by said selected binary class object.

4. A data processing system according to claim 1, wherein:

said selected binary class object includes one or more preexisting methods; and

said automatic class builder forms said new class object by adding at least one first method to be executed before execution of at least one of said one or more preexisting methods.

5. A data processing system according to claim 1, wherein said new class object is automatically formed as a delegate class, wherein said delegate class references said selected binary class object.

6. A data processing system according to claim 1, wherein:

said properties of said binary class object include a location for said binary class object; and

said at least one entry associates said location for said binary class object with said functional description, said description of each of said one or more inherent characteristics, and said description of each of said zero or more object services features.

7. A data processing system according to claim 4, wherein said automatic class builder forms said new class object by adding at least one second method to be executed after execution of at least one of said one or more preexisting methods.

8. A data processing system according to claim 4, wherein said at least one first method conditionally prevents at least one of said one or more preexisting methods from executing.

9. A data processing system according to claim 4, wherein said automatic class builder forms said new class object by combining said selected binary class object with one or more BeforeAfter metaclass objects.

10. In an information handling system employing object oriented technology, a method for automatically supplementing a binary class object with at least one object services feature, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a binary class object having properties including a functional description summarizing an intended purpose of said binary class object, one or more inherent characteristics, and support for zero or more object services features;

providing an ExtendedNamingContext factory finder having at least one entry registered therein, wherein said entry associates said binary class object with said functional description, a description of each of said one or more inherent characteristics, and a description of each of said zero or more object services features;

receiving a request for a new class object having specified constraints on properties, said specified constraints including a functional description summarizing an intended purpose of said new class object, a description of at least one inherent characteristic of said new class object, and a description of at least one object services feature to be supported by said new class object;

searching the ExtendedNamingContext factory finder to identify all registered binary class objects associated with said specified functional description and said specified description of at least one inherent characteristic;

determining whether at least one of said identified binary class objects supports all of said specified object services features;

automatically forming said new class object with said specified constraints on properties by associating said new class object with a particular binary class object among said identified binary class objects if said particular binary class object supports all of said specified object services features, and, if no identified binary class object supports all of said specified object services features, by selecting a particular binary class object among said identified binary class objects and by adding to said selected binary class object support for object services features specified in said request and not supported by said selected binary class object; and

providing said new class object in response to said request.

11. A method according to claim 10, wherein:

said step of providing a binary class object further comprises the step of providing an interface definition language (IDL) definition for said binary class object; and

said binary class object is supplemented with said at least one object services feature by obtaining information from said IDL definition and not from source code for said binary class object.

12. A method according to claim 10, wherein said step of automatically forming said new class object comprises the step of combining said selected binary class object with one or more class objects that support object services features described in said request and not supported by said selected binary class object.

13. A method according to claim 10, wherein:

said selected binary class object includes one or more preexisting methods; and

said step of automatically forming a new class object comprises the step of adding at least one first method to be executed before execution of at least one of said one or more preexisting methods.

14. A method according to claim 10, wherein said new class object is automatically formed as a delegate class, wherein said delegate class references said selected binary class object.

15. A method according to claim 10, wherein:

said properties of said binary class object include a location for said binary class object; and

said at least one entry associates said location for said binary class object with said functional description, said description of each of said one or more inherent characteristics, and said description of each of said zero or more object services features.

16. A method according to claim 13, wherein said step of automatically forming a new class object further comprises the step of adding at least one second method to be executed after execution of at least one of said one or more preexisting methods.

17. A method according to claim 13, wherein said at least one first method conditionally prevents at least one of said one or more preexisting methods from executing.

18. A method according to claim 13, wherein said step of automatically forming said new class object further comprises the step of combining said selected binary class object with one or more BeforeAfter metaclass objects.

19. A program product that automatically adds one or more object services features to a binary class object having a plurality of properties including a functional description summarizing an intended purpose of said binary class object, one or more inherent characteristics, and support for zero or more object services features, said program product comprising:

an ExtendedNamingContext factory finder having at least one entry registered therein, wherein said entry associates said binary class object with said functional description, a description of each of said one or more inherent characteristics, and a description of each of said zero of more object services features;

a factory filter for accepting a request for a new class object, wherein said request includes specified constraints on properties, said specified constraints including a functional description summarizing an intended purpose of said new class object, a description of at least one inherent characteristic of said new class object, and a description of at least one object services feature to be supported by said new class object, and for identifying all binary class objects with entries in said ExtendedNamingContext factory finder matching said specified functional description and said specified description of at least one inherent characteristic;

a feature filter for determining whether at least one of said identified binary class objects supports all of said specified object services features;

an automatic class builder for automatically forming said new class object with said specified constraints on properties and providing said new class object in response to said request, wherein;

said automatic class builder associates said new class object with a particular binary class object among said identified binary class objects if said particular binary class object supports all of said specified object services features, and,

if no identified binary class object supports all of said specified object services features, said automatic class builder selects a particular binary class object among said identified binary class objects and adds to said selected binary class object support for object services features specified in said request and not supported by said selected binary class object; and

a computer usable medium encoding said ExtendedNamingContext factory finder, said factory filter, said feature filter, and said automatic class builder.

20. A program product according to claim 19, wherein:

said program product further comprises an interface definition language (IDL) definition for said binary class object encoded in said computer usable medium; and

said request for a new class object is processed by obtaining information from said IDL definition and not from source code for said binary class object.

21. A program product according to claim 19, wherein said automatic class builder forms said new class object by combining said selected binary class object with one or more class objects that support object services features described in said request and not supported by said selected binary class object.

22. A program product according to claim 19, wherein:

said selected binary class object includes one or more preexisting methods; and

said automatic class builder forms said new class object by adding at least one first method to be executed before execution of at least one of said one or more preexisting methods.

23. A program product according to claim 19, wherein said new class object is automatically formed as a delegate class, wherein said delegate class references said selected binary class object.

24. A program product according to claim 19, wherein:

said properties of said binary class object include a location for said binary class object; and

said at least one entry associates said location for said binary class object with said functional description, said description of each of said one or more inherent characteristics, and said description of each of said zero or more object services features.

25. A program product according to claim 22, wherein said automatic class builder forms said new class object by adding at least one second method to be executed after execution of at least one of said one or more preexisting methods.

26. A program product according to claim 22, wherein said at least one first method conditionally prevents at least one of said one or more preexisting methods from executing.

27. A program product according to claim 22, wherein said automatic class builder forms said new class object by combining said selected binary class object with one or more BeforeAfter metaclass objects.