Method and system for providing object references in a distributed object environment supporting object migration

• US 6,453,320 B1
• Filed: 02/01/1999
• Issued: 09/17/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 02/01/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Micro Focus IP Development Ltd. (Open Text Corporation)
• Original Assignee: IONA Technologies Incorporated (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Inventors: Kukura, Robert Allen, Witham, Ronald Clarke Jr., Salamone, Julie Ann
• Primary Examiner(s): ROBINSON, GRETA LEE
• Application Number:
  US09/241,926
• Time in Patent Office: 1,324 Days
• Field of Search: 707/10, 707/103, 709/203, 709/201
• US Class Current: 707/791
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/465 Distributed object oriented systems remote method invocation [RMI] G06F9/548
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/955 Object-oriented
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/966 Distributed
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99955 Archiving or backup

Abstract

A prototype object reference for use in a distributed object computing environment is described. The object reference includes a specified object reference portion and an unspecified object reference portion. The prototype object reference is transformed into a valid object reference by insertion of specification information into the unspecified object reference portion. An indirect object reference for use in a distributed object computing environment comprising is also described, comprising a persistent object reference portion for communicating with a location service; and an object key; wherein a direct object reference is generated from the indirect object reference by insertion of the object key into a prototype direct object reference comprising transient information sufficient to communicate with the current location of an object referenced by the object key. A location service for generating a direct object reference based on an indirect object reference and a prototype object reference is also described.

Claims

1. A method of providing an object reference, comprising the steps of:

a first entity generating a first prototype object reference comprising information for communicating with the first entity, including a specified object reference portion and an unspecified object reference portion;

providing the first prototype object reference to a second entity;

the second entity generating a second prototype object reference comprising a second specified object reference portion and a second unspecified object reference portion,

providing the second prototype object reference to the first entity.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second prototype object reference comprises information for communicating with the second entity.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first entity is a location service, and the second entity is a server, further comprising the steps of:

the server generating an indirect object reference by inserting an identifier of an object of the server into the first prototype object reference.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the first entity is a location service, and the second entity is a server, further comprising the steps of:

the location service generating a direct object reference by inserting an identifier of an object of the server into the second prototype object reference.