Information processing apparatus and method

• US 6,253,248 B1
• Filed: 06/10/1998
• Issued: 06/26/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/13/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Yamoto, Shuji, Baba, Takeshi, Kanda, Tokuko, Shirai, Masahiko, Nakai, Akiya
• Primary Examiner(s): Rinehart, Mark H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): KANG, PAUL H
• Application Number:
  US09/095,073
• Time in Patent Office: 1,112 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/230, 709/216, 709/226, 709/246, 709/217, 709/219, 709/237, 707/507, 707/508
• US Class Current: 709/237
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A proxy server is present in the path between the client and server, and intervenes in communication therebetween. Upon receiving a request from the client according to the HTTP protocol, the proxy server specifies a server based on the request, and determines the communication protocol to be used in the communication with the specified server. If the CM protocol is determined, the proxy server generates request data suitable for the CM protocol by adding necessary information, so as to implement the request contents included in the request, and communicates with the server. The proxy server sends back the processing result based on the request to the client according to the HTTP protocol.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus having a proxy server function in a client/server system, comprising:

specifying means for receiving a first request that uses a first communication protocol from a client, and specifying a server on the basis of the first request;

determination means for determining a second communication protocol to be used in a communication with the server specified by said specifying means in accordance with that server and the first request;

detection means for detecting information which is insufficient to generate a second request suitable for the second communication protocol to implement request contents included in the first request;

acquiring means for acquiring the detected information from the client;

generation means for generating the second request suitable for the second communication protocol to implement request contents included in the first request, by adding the acquired information to the request contents; and

communication means for communicating with the server specified by said specifying means by means of the generated second request that uses the second communication protocol.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a correspondence table for storing communication protocols supported by individual servers in correspondence with the servers, and

wherein said determination means determines, as the second communication protocol, a communication protocol, which corresponds to the server designated by the first request in the correspondence table.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein when the server designated by the first request is not registered in said correspondence table, said determination means determines, as the second communication protocol, the first communication protocol used by the first request.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising presentation means for presenting a user interface which requests a user of the client to input at least the insufficient information detected by said detection means, and wherein said acquiring means acquires the information input via said user interface.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said presentation means makes a client apparatus, as a source of the request, present the user interface.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising providing means for providing a result obtained by said communication means to the client.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising acquisition means for, when a resource requested by the first request is not present on the specified server, acquiring the requested resource from a local disk that the client is in possession of.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein when said providing means provides the resource acquired from the local disk by said acquisition means to the client, said providing means adds information indicating that the resource has been acquired from the local disk.

9. The apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising acquisition means for, when a resource requested by the first request is checked out from the specified server, acquiring the requested resource from a local disk that the client is in possession of.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein when said providing means provides the resource acquired from the local disk by said acquisition means to the client, said providing means adds information indicating that the resource has been checked out.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising a directory table for making a directory on the server correspond to a directory on the local disk, and

wherein said acquisition means obtains a directory where the resource is present on the local disk from a directory name of the requested resource with reference to said directory table, and acquires the resource form the obtained directory.

12. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication means receives a reply to the second request from a server.

13. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

holding means for holding individual information for a plurality of clients; and

specifying means for specifying a client as a source of the request on the basis of identification information included in the first request.

14. The apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising providing means for providing a result obtained by said communication means to the client specified by said specifying means.

15. The apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising acquisition means for, when a resource requested by the request is not present on the server designated by the first request, acquiring the corresponding resource from a local disk of the client specified by said specifying means.

16. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein when said providing means provides the resource acquired by said acquisition means to the specified client, said providing means adds information indicating that the resource has been acquired from the local disk.

17. The apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising acquisition means for, when a resource requested by the request is checked out from the server designated by the first request, acquiring the requested resource from a local disk that the client is in possession of.

18. The apparatus according to claim 17, wherein when said providing means provides the resource acquired by said acquisition means to the specified client, said providing means adds information indicating that the resource has been checked out.

38. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a memory for storing the sufficient information, wherein said generation means generates the second request by adding the information stored in the memory when the memory stores the insufficient information detected by said detection means.

19. An information processing method for implementing a proxy server function in a client/server system, comprising:

a specifying step, of receiving a first request that uses a first communication protocol from a client, and specifying a server on the basis of the first request;

a determination step, of determining a second communication protocol to be used in a communication with the server specified in the specifying step in accordance with the server;

a detection step, of detecting information which is insufficient to generate a second request suitable for the second communication protocol to implement request contents included in the first request;

an acquiring step, of acquiring the detected information from the client;

a generation step, of generating the second request suitable for the second communication protocol to implement request contents included in the first request, by adding the acquired information to the request contents; and

a communication step, of communicating with the server specified in the specifying step by means of the generated second request that uses the second communication protocol.

20. The method according to claim 19, further comprising:

a correspondence table for storing communication protocols supported by individual servers in correspondence with the servers, and

wherein the determination step includes the step of determining, as the second communication protocol, a communication protocol, which corresponds to the server designated by the first request in the correspondence table.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein the determination step includes the step of determining, as the second communication protocol, the first communication protocol used by the first request, when the server designated by the first request is not registered in said correspondence table.

22. The method according to claim 19, further comprising a presentation step, of presenting a user interface which requests a user of the client to input at least the insufficient information detected in the detection step,

wherein the acquiring step includes acquiring the information input via said user interface.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the presentation step includes the step of making a client apparatus, as a source of the request, present the user interface.

24. The method according to claim 19, further comprising the providing step of providing a result obtained in the communication step to the client.

25. The method according to claim 24, further comprising acquisition means for acquiring a resource requested by the first request from a local disk possessed by the client, when the requested resource is not present on the specified server.

26. The method according to claim 25, wherein the providing step includes the step of adding information indicating that the resource has been acquired from the local disk when the resource acquired from the local disk in the acquisition step is provided to the client in the providing step.

27. The method according to claim 24, further comprising acquisition means for acquiring a resource requested by the first request from a local disk possessed by the client, when the requested resource is checked out from the specified server.

28. The method according to claim 27, wherein the providing step includes the step of adding information indicating that the resource is checked out when the resource acquired from the local disk in the acquisition step is provided to the client in the providing step.

29. The method according to claim 28, further comprising a directory table for making a directory on the server correspond to a directory on the local disk, and

wherein the acquisition step includes the step of obtaining a directory where the resource is present on the local disk from a directory name of the requested resource with reference to said directory table, and acquiring the resource form the obtained directory.

30. The method according to claim 19, wherein the communication step includes receiving a reply to the second request from a server.

31. The method according to claim 19, further comprising:

a holding step, of holding individual information for a plurality of clients; and

a specifying step, of specifying a client as a source of the request on the basis of identification information included in the first request.

32. The method according to claim 31, further comprising the providing step of providing a result obtained in the communication step to the client specified in the specifying step.

33. The method according to claim 32, further comprising the acquisition step of acquiring a resource requested by the request from a local disk of the client specified in the specifying step when the corresponding resource is not present on the server designated by the first request.

34. The method according to claim 33, wherein the providing step includes the step of adding information indicating that the resource has been acquired from the local disk when the resource acquired in the acquisition step is provided to the specified client in the providing step.

35. The method according to claim 32, further comprising the acquisition means step of acquiring a resource requested by the request from a local disk possessed by the specified client when the requested resource is checked out from the server designated by the first request.

36. The method according to claim 35, wherein the providing step includes the step of adding information indicating that the resource is checked out when the resource acquired in the acquisition step is provided to the specified client in the providing step.

39. The method according to claim 19, wherein, in the generation step, the second request is generated by adding the information obtained from a memory which stores the insufficient information when the memory stores the insufficient information detected in the detection step.

37. A storage medium storing a control program which controls a computer to implement a proxy server function in a client/server system, said control program comprising:

code for a specifying step, of receiving a first request that uses a first communication protocol from a client, and specifying a server on the basis of the first request;

code for a determination step, of determining a second communication protocol to be used in a communication with the server specified in the specifying step in accordance with the server and the first request;

code for a detection step, of detecting information which is insufficient to generate a second request suitable for the second communication protocol to implement request contents included in the first request;

code for an acquiring step, of acquiring the detected information from the client;

code for a generation step, of generating the second request suitable for the second communication protocol to implement request contents included in the first request, by adding the acquired information to the request contents; and

code for a communication step, of communicating with the server specified in the specifying step by means of the generated second request that uses the second communication protocol.