Apparatus and method for monitoring a chain of electronic transactions

• US 6,631,411 B1
• Filed: 07/13/2001
• Issued: 10/07/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Micro Focus LLC (Open Text Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Freshwater Software, Inc. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Meier, John R., Gardner, Dennis, Welter, Peter J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrell, Robert B.
• Application Number:
  US09/905,672
• Time in Patent Office: 816 Days
• Field of Search: 709/100, 709/200, 709/222, 709/203, 709/224, 714/47
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34

Abstract

A method for testing a web site including creating at least one monitor to monitor at least one system that handles an electronic transaction, determining whether a test of the electronic transactions should be executed, monitoring the systems wherein monitor information is collected by a monitor, and processing the monitor information. The monitor information is then used in a subsequent monitor. This may be repeated for multiple subsequent monitors so that all subsequent monitors are using the original monitor information, or each subsequent monitor may use monitor information from the monitor before. Preferably all monitors are involved in the same chain of electronic transactions, so that the transactions are performed end-to-end. A monitor interface allows a user to control the execution of the composite monitor and the inclusion and timing of the individual monitors within the composite monitor.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring a chain of electronic transactions, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:

creating at least one monitor for monitoring said chain of electronic transactions;

using said at least one monitor for receiving information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said at least one monitor and wherein said one or more electronic transactions are from said chain of electronic transactions;

processing said information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said at least one monitor to form a result;

if a composite of N monitors are created for monitoring said chain of transactions wherein N is a positive integer that is greater than 1, then in said composite;

with respect to a first monitor, executing said first monitor;

with respect to each monitor that is to be executed after said first monitor is executed, performing the steps of;

if a previous result that is produced by executing a previous monitor and that satisfies a set of predetermined criteria, wherein said previous monitor is from said composite, then;

using said previous result as an input to said each monitor that is to be executed after said first monitor is executed; and

executing said each monitor.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the step of executing said first monitor comprises:

receiving a first information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said first monitor and that are from said chain of electronic transactions; and

processing said first information.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, further comprising the step of:

if an error occurs during processing of said first information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said first monitor, executing an operation for processing said error.

4. The method as recited in claim 3, wherein said operation for processing error includes logging an error message in a database that is associated with monitoring said chain of electronic transactions.

5. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein the step of processing said first information further comprises the step of:

determining whether said first information indicates success in said one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said first monitor.

6. The method as recited in claim 2, further comprising the step of:

if an error occurs during processing of said first information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said first monitor, determining what type of error has occurred and generating an error message.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the step of executing said each monitor comprises:

receiving information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said each monitor and that are from said chain of electronic transactions; and

processing said information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said each monitor and said previous result.

8. The method as recited in claim 7, further comprising the step of:

if an error occurs during processing of said information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said each monitor, executing an operation for processing said error.

9. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein said operation for processing error includes logging an error message in a database that is associated with monitoring said chain of electronic transactions.

10. The method as recited in claim 7, further comprising the step of:

if an error occurs during processing of said information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said each monitor, determining what type of error has occurred and generating an error message.

11. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein the step of processing said information further comprises the step of:

determining whether said information indicates success in said one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said each monitor.

12. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of determining whether to begin monitoring said chain of electronic transactions.

13. The method as recited in claim 12, further comprising the step of determining whether a pre-determined time interval for commencement of monitoring has been reached.

14. The method as recited in claim 13, wherein said pre-determined time interval is at least in part determined by a type of test to be performed on said chain of transactions.

15. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of creating said composite of N monitors.

16. The method as recited in claim 15, wherein the step of creating said composite of N monitors involves using a web interface for selecting said N monitors.

17. The method as recited in claim 15, wherein the step of creating said composite of N monitors involves using a web interface for selecting an order of execution of said N monitors.

18. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of:

if an error occurs during processing of said information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said at least one monitor, executing an operation for processing said error.

19. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of:

if an error occurs during processing of said information corresponding to one or more electronic transactions that are associated with said at least one monitor, determining what type of error has occurred and generating an error message.

20. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein said previous result is stored in a database that is associated with monitoring said chain of electronic transactions and wherein said database can be accessed by said composite of N monitors.

21. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein said result is stored in a database that is associated with monitoring said chain of electronic transactions.

22. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein said chain of electronic transactions comprises:

a transaction for placing a purchase order on a web site;

a transaction for checking a status of said purchase order is updated;

a transaction for checking if a confirmation e-mail message was received to confirm said purchase order;

a transaction for checking if said order is added to a database that is used to store information about said purchase order; and

a transaction for checking if said purchase order is transferred to a legacy system.

23. The method as recited in claim 18, wherein said operation for processing error includes logging an error message in a database that is associated with monitoring said chain of electronic transactions.

24. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising creating an alert based on a number of errors that are produced when executing said composite of N monitors, wherein said alert is to automatically notify a user that is monitoring said chain of electronic transactions.

25. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising creating an alert based on a type of error that is produced when executing said composite of N monitors, wherein said alert is to automatically notify a user that is monitoring said chain of electronic transactions.

26. A apparatus for monitoring a chain of electronic transactions, the apparatus comprising:

a computer having a memory and a processor;

a composite of N monitors residing in said memory and executed by said processor, wherein N is a positive integer that is greater than 1, and in said composite of N monitors;

a computer-readable medium comprising one or more stored sequences which, when executed by said processor, causes said processor to carry out the steps of;

with respect to a first monitor, executing said first monitor;

with respect to each monitor that is to be executed after said first monitor is executed, performing the steps of;

if a previous result that is produced by executing a previous monitor and that satisfies a set of predetermined criteria, wherein said previous monitor is from said composite, then;

using said previous result as an input to said each monitor that is to be executed after said first monitor is executed; and

executing said each monitor.

27. The apparatus as recited in claim 26, wherein each monitor of said composite of N monitors is operable to monitor a corresponding server, wherein said corresponding server is one of N corresponding servers that are associated with said chain of electronic transactions.

28. The apparatus as recited in claim 27, wherein each monitor of said composite of N monitors is operable to monitor said corresponding server through a corresponding backend service of said corresponding server.

29. The apparatus as recited in claim 27, wherein said composite of N monitors are operable to use an internet, wherein said internet communicatively couples each monitor with each other monitor within said composite of N monitors and with said N corresponding servers for monitoring said chain of electronic transactions.