Mechanism and apparatus for returning results of services in a distributed computing environment

• US 6,868,447 B1
• Filed: 09/12/2000
• Issued: 03/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Oracle America, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Slaughter, Gregory L., Abdelaziz, Mohamed M., Saulpaugh, Thomas E., Traversat, Bernard A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lim, Krisna
• Application Number:
  US09/660,553
• Time in Patent Office: 1,645 Days
• Field of Search: 709/225, 709/203, 709/206, 709/219, 709/227, 709/315, 707/10, 707/200, 707/103.R, 719/315, 340/825.52
• US Class Current: 709/225
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/465 Distributed object oriented systems remote method invocation [RMI] G06F9/548
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/542 Event management; Broadcasting; Multicasting; Notifications
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5058 Service discovery by the service manager
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1001 for accessing one among a plurality of replicated servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/303 Terminal profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/08 Protocols for interworking; Protocol conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

Systems and methods for returning results of services within a distributed computing environment are provided. After a client invokes one or more functions of a service, results of the function(s) may be returned to the client in a plurality of ways: for example, in a message, in a space (e.g., a network-addressable storage location), in a space wherein the client is notified via an event, using an advertisement returned in a message, using an advertisement returned in a space, and using an advertisement returned in a space wherein the client is notified via an event. The advertisement may include the information necessary to access and read the results in a storage location such as a space. A schema for the service may specify a plurality of messages which are usable to invoke the function(s) of the service. The messages, results, and advertisements may be expressed in a platform-independent and/or programming-language-independent data representation language such as XML. The availability of these plurality of methods may enhance the flexibility and adaptability of the distributed computing environment for a variety of situations, such as for clients having differing capabilities. For additional flexibility, results may also be efficiently passed to another service.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

a first client sending a first message to a first service to invoke one or more functions of the first service, wherein a schema for the first service specifies a plurality of messages usable to invoke the functions of the first service, and wherein the first message is specified by the schema;

the first service generating a set of results in response to the first message, wherein the set of results are expressed in a data representation language; and

storing the set of results in a space without returning the set of results directly to the first client, wherein the space comprises a network-addressable storage location.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending to the first client an event to notify the first client that the space stores the set of results.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

the first client reading the set of results from the space in response to the event.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

the first client sending a second message to the first service, wherein the second message comprises a request to pass a location of the set of results to a second service; and

the second service reading the set of results from the location.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

a second client reading the set of results from the space.

6. The method of claim 1,

wherein the data representation language comprises eXtensible Markup Language (XML).

7. A method comprising:

a first client sending a first message to a first service to invoke one or more functions of the first service, wherein a schema for the first service specifies a plurality of messages usable to invoke the functions of the first service, and wherein the first message is specified by the schema;

the first service generating a set of results in response to the first message, wherein the set of results are expressed in a data representation language; and

generating an advertisement of the set of results, wherein the advertisement comprises information which is usable to access the set of results.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

storing the set of results in a space without returning the set of results directly to the first client, wherein the space comprises a network-addressable storage location.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

sending to the first client a second message comprising the advertisement of the set of results, wherein the second message is expressed in the data representation language.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

the first client reading the set of results from a location specified in the advertisement for the set of results.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

storing the advertisement of the set of results in a space, wherein the space comprises a network-addressable storage location.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

sending to the first client an event to notify the first client of the storing the advertisement of the set of results in the space.

13. The method of claim 7,

wherein the data representation language comprises eXtensible Markup Language (XML).

14. The method of claim 7,

wherein the advertisement comprises a Uniform Resource Indicator (URI) for the set of results.

15. A method comprising:

a client sending a first message to a service to invoke one or more functions of the service, wherein a schema for the service specifies a plurality of messages usable to invoke the functions of the service, and wherein the first message is specified by the schema;

the service generating a set of results in response to the first message, wherein the set of results are expressed in a data representation language; and

sending a second message expressed in the data representation language to the client, wherein the second message comprises the set of results.

16. A system comprising:

a first client;

a first service which is communicatively coupled to the first client; and

a space which is communicatively coupled to the first client and the first service, wherein the space comprises a network-addressable storage location;

wherein the first client is operable to send a first message to the first service to invoke one or more functions of the first service, wherein a schema for the first service specifies a plurality of messages usable to invoke the functions of the first service, and wherein the first message is specified by the schema;

wherein the first service is operable to;

receive the first message sent by the first client;

generate a set of results in response to the first message, wherein the set of results are expressed in a data representation language; and

store the set of results in the space without returning the set of results directly to the first client.

17. The system of claim 16,

wherein the first service is operable to send to the first client an event to notify the first client that the space stores the set of results.

18. The system of claim 17,

wherein the first client is operable to read the set of results from the space in response to the event.

19. The system of claim 16, further comprising:

a second service which is communicatively coupled to the first client and the space;

wherein the first client is operable to send a second message to the first service, wherein the second message comprises a request to pass a location of the set of results to the second service; and

wherein the second service is operable to read the set of results from the location.

20. The system of claim 16, further comprising:

a second client which is communicatively coupled to the space, wherein the second client is operable to read the set of results from the space.

21. The system of claim 16,

wherein the data representation language comprises eXtensible Markup Language (XML).

22. A system comprising:

a first client;

a first service which is communicatively coupled to the first client;

wherein the first client is operable to send a first message to the first service to invoke one or more functions of the first service, wherein a schema for the first service specifies a plurality of messages usable to invoke the functions of the first service, and wherein the first message is specified by the schema; and

wherein the first service is operable to;

receive the first message sent by the first client;

generate a set of results in response to the first message, wherein the set of results are expressed in a data representation language; and

generate an advertisement of the set of results, wherein the advertisement comprises information which is usable to access the set of results.

23. The system of claim 22, further comprising:

a space which is communicatively coupled to the first client and the first service, wherein the space comprises a network-addressable storage location;

wherein the first service is operable to store the set of results in the space without returning the set of results directly to the first client.

24. The system of claim 22,

wherein the first service is operable to send to the first client a second message comprising the advertisement of the set of results, wherein the second message is expressed in the data representation language.

25. The system of claim 24,

wherein the first client is operable to read the set of results from a location specified in the advertisement for the set of results.

26. The system of claim 22, further comprising:

a space which is communicatively coupled to the first client and the first service, wherein the space comprises a network-addressable storage location;

wherein the first service is operable to store the advertisement of the set of results in the space.

27. The system of claim 26,

wherein the first service is operable to send to the first client an event to notify the first client that the space stores the advertisement of the set of results.

28. The system of claim 22,

wherein the data representation language comprises eXtensible Markup Language (XML).

29. The system of claim 22,

wherein the advertisement comprises a Uniform Resource Indicator (URI) for the set of results.

30. A system comprising:

a first client;

a first service which is communicatively coupled to the first client;

wherein the first client is operable to send a first message to the first service to invoke one or more functions of the first service, wherein a schema for the first service specifies a plurality of messages usable to invoke the functions of the first service, and wherein the first message is specified by the schema; and

wherein the first service is operable to;

receive the first message sent by the first client;

generate a set of results in response to the first message, wherein the set of results are expressed in a data representation language; and

send a second message expressed in the data representation language to the client, wherein the second message comprises the set of results.

31. A carrier medium comprising program instructions, wherein the program instructions are computer-executable to implement:

a first client sending a first message to a first service to invoke one or more functions of the first service, wherein a schema for the first service specifies a plurality of messages usable to invoke the functions of the first service, and wherein the first message is specified by the schema;

the first service generating a set of results in response to the first message, wherein the set of results are expressed in a data representation language; and

storing the set of results in a space without returning the set of results directly to the first client, wherein the space comprises a network-addressable storage location.

32. The carrier medium of claim 31, wherein the program instructions are further computer-executable to implement:

sending to the first client an event to notify the first client that the space stores the set of results.

33. The carrier medium of claim 32, wherein the program instructions are further computer-executable to implement:

the first client reading the set of results from the space in response to the event.

34. The carrier medium of claim 31, wherein the program instructions are further computer-executable to implement:

the first client sending a second message to the first service, wherein the second message comprises a request to pass a location of the set of results to a second service; and

the second service reading the set of results from the location.

35. The carrier medium of claim 31, wherein the program instructions are further computer-executable to implement:

a second client reading the set of results from the space.

36. The carrier medium of claim 31,

wherein the data representation language comprises eXtensible Markup Language (XML).

37. A carrier medium comprising program instructions, wherein the program instructions are computer-executable to implement:

a first client sending a first message to a first service to invoke one or more functions of the first service, wherein a schema for the first service specifies a plurality of messages usable to invoke the functions of the first service, and wherein the first message is specified by the schema;

the first service generating a set of results in response to the first message, wherein the set of results are expressed in a data representation language; and

generating an advertisement of the set of results, wherein the advertisement comprises information which is usable to access the set of results.

38. The carrier medium of claim 37, wherein the program instructions are further computer-executable to implement:

storing the set of results in a space without returning the set of results directly to the first client, wherein the space comprises a network-addressable storage location.

39. The carrier medium of claim 37, wherein the program instructions are further computer-executable to implement:

sending to the first client a second message comprising the advertisement of the set of results, wherein the second message is expressed in the data representation language.

40. The carrier medium of claim 39, wherein the program instructions are further computer-executable to implement:

the first client reading the set of results from a location specified in the advertisement for the set of results.

41. The carrier medium of claim 37, wherein the program instructions are further computer-executable to implement:

storing the advertisement of the set of results in a space, wherein the space comprises a network-addressable storage location.

42. The carrier medium of claim 41, wherein the program instructions are further computer-executable to implement:

sending to the first client an event to notify the first client of the storing the advertisement of the set of results in the space.

43. The carrier medium of claim 37,

wherein the data representation language comprises eXtensible Markup Language (XML).

44. The carrier medium of claim 37,

wherein the advertisement comprises a Uniform Resource Indicator (URI) for the set of results.

45. A carrier medium comprising program instructions, wherein the program instructions are computer-executable to implement:

a client sending a first message to a service to invoke one or more functions of the service, wherein a schema for the service specifies a plurality of messages usable to invoke the functions of the service, and wherein the first message is specified by the schema;

the service generating a set of results in response to the first message, wherein the set of results are expressed in a data representation language; and

sending a second message expressed in the data representation language to the client, wherein the second message comprises the set of results.