Mechanism and method for managing service-specified data in a profile service

• US 6,920,455 B1
• Filed: 05/19/1999
• Issued: 07/19/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Oracle America, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Weschler, Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): Pham, Khanh B.
• Application Number:
  US09/315,200
• Time in Patent Office: 2,253 Days
• Field of Search: 709331-332, 709227-228, 709/201, 707/100, 707/103, 707/200
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/20 of structured data, e.g. relational data
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure

Abstract

A profiling service for accessing user data. The profiling service includes a hierarchical structure of profile objects. Each profile object contains true-data attributes and meta-data attributes associated to the true-data attributes. Methods in the profiling service allow a client to access user data according to meta-data attribute settings. The true-data attributes may include the user data, or an external reference to the user data. The profile objects may also include bindings to other profile objects. Meta-data attributes can be identified with a prefix field in a meta-data value field, and methods to read and write the true and meta-data attributes may be included in the profile objects. The methods may also set an owner, an access privilege, a group, a creation time, a update time, expiration time, a trigger location, a binding flag, and an assurance level of true-data attributes. The profile objects can include profile level meta-data attributes.

Claims

1. A method for managing a profile service, the method comprising:

storing at least one true-data attribute in a profile object, said true-data attribute includes a true-data key and at least one true-data value field;

associating at least one meta-data attribute with said true-data attribute, said meta-data attribute includes a meta-data key and at least one meta-data value field, wherein the meta-data value field describes the associated true-data attribute;

storing said associated meta-data attribute in said profile object; and

managing said true-data attribute according to said associated meta-data attribute.

2. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes indicating in said meta-data attribute an access privilege of said true-data attribute.

3. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes indicating in said meta-data attribute an owner of said true-data attribute.

4. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes indicating in said meta-data attribute a group of said true-data attribute.

5. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes indicating in said meta-data attribute a creation time of said true-data attribute.

6. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes indicating in said meta-data attribute a update time of said true-data attribute.

7. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes indicating in said meta-data attribute a expiration time of said true-data attribute.

8. The method as defined in claim 7, wherein the method further includes;

identifying said true-data attribute with said expiration time beyond a profile service time; and

deleting said identified true-data attribute from said profile object.

9. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes indicating in said meta-data attribute at least one trigger location of said true-data attribute.

10. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes indicating in said meta-data attribute a binding flag of said true-data attribute.

11. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes indicating in said meta-data attribute an assurance level of said true-data attribute.

12. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes identifying said meta-data attribute information by a prefix field in said meta-data value field.

13. The method as defined in claim 1, wherein the method further includes:

associating at least one profile level meta-data attribute to said profile object;

storing said profile level meta-data attribute; and

managing said profile object according to said associated profile meta-data attribute.

14. The method as defined in claim 13, wherein the method further includes indicating in said profile level meta-data attribute at least one template resource ID of said profile object.

15. The method as defined in claim 13, wherein the method further includes indicating in said profile level meta-data attribute an object class of said profile object.

16. The method as defined in claim 13, wherein the method further includes indicating in said profile level meta-data attribute an object ID of said profile object.

17. The method as defined in claim 13, wherein the method further includes indicating in said profile level meta-data attribute a binding resource ID of said profile object.

18. A profiling service for accessing user data, said profiling service comprising:

a plurality of profiled objects stored in a physical medium;

at least one true-data attribute contained in each of said profile objects, said true-data attribute includes a true-data key and at least one true-data value field;

at least one meta-data attribute associated to said true-data attribute and contained in said profile object, said meta-data attribute includes a meta-data key and at least one meta-data value field, wherein the meta-data value field describes the associated true-data attribute; and

methods within each profile object to access the user data according to said meta-data attribute.

19. The profile service of claim 18, wherein said true-data attribute comprises the user data.

20. The profile service of claim 18, wherein said true-data attribute comprises an external reference to the user data.

21. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising at least one true-data attribute binding to another one of said profile objects.

22. The profile service of claim 18, wherein said meta-data attribute is identified with a prefix field in said meta-data value field.

23. The profile service of claim 18, wherein said meta-data key is equated with said true-data key.

24. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within said profile objects to read and write said true-data attribute.

25. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within said profile objects to read and write said meta-data attribute.

26. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within the profiling service to set an owner of said true-data attribute.

27. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set an access privilege of said true-data attribute.

28. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set a group of said true-data attribute.

29. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set a creation time of said true-data attribute.

30. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set a update time of said true-data attribute.

31. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within said profile objects to change a expiration time of said true-data attribute.

32. The profile service of claim 31, further comprising methods within said profile objects to delete said true-data attribute with said expiration time beyond a profile service time.

33. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set a trigger location of said true-data attribute.

34. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set a binding flag of said true-data attribute.

35. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set an assurance level of said true-data attribute.

36. The profile service of claim 18, further comprising at least one profile level meta-data attribute.

37. The profile service of claim 36, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set a template resource ID of said profile object.

38. The profile service of claim 36, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set an object class of said profile object.

39. The profile service of claim 36, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set an object ID of said profile object.

40. The profile service of claim 36, further comprising methods within said profile objects to set a binding resource ID of said profile object.

41. A profiling service for accessing user data, said profiling service comprising:

means for storing at least one true-data attribute in a profile object, said true-data attribute includes a true-data key and at least one true-data value field;

means for associating at least one meta-data attribute with said true-data attribute, said meta-data attribute includes a meta-data key and at least one meta data value field, wherein the meta-data value field describes the associated true-data attribute;

means for storing said associated meta-data attribute with said associated true-data attribute; and

means for managing said true-data attribute according to said associated meta-data attribute.

42. A profile object stored in a physical medium for maintaining client configuration data in a hierarchical fashion, the profile object comprising:

at least one true-data attribute in the profile object, said true-data attribute includes a true-data key and at least one true-data value field; and

at least one meta-data attribute associated to with said true-data attribute and stored in said profile object, said meta-data attribute includes a meta-data key and at least one meta-data value field, wherein the meta-data value field describes the associated true-data attribute.

43. The profile object of claim 42, wherein said meta-data attribute specifies an access privilege of said true-data attribute.

44. The profile object of claim 42, wherein said meta-data attribute specifies a expiration time of said true-data attribute.

45. The profile object of claim 42, further including an aging method for deleting said true-data attribute with said expiration time beyond a profile service time.

46. The profile object of claim 42, wherein said meta-data attribute specifies a binding flag of said true-data attribute.

47. The profile object of claim 42, further including at least one profile level meta-data attribute associated to the profile object.

48. A computer program product comprising:

a computer usable medium and computer readable code embodied on said computer useable medium for causing the managing of a profile service, the computer readable code comprising;

computer readable program code configured to cause the computer to effect the storing of at least one true-data attribute in a profile object, said true-data attribute includes a true-data key and at least one true-data value field;

computer readable program code configured to cause the computer to effect the associating of at least one meta-data attribute with said true-data attribute, said meta-data attribute includes a meta-data key and at least one meta-data value field, wherein said meta-data key is equated with said true-data key;

computer readable program code configured to cause the computer to effect the storing of said associated meta-data attribute; and

computer readable program code configured to cause the computer to effect the managing of said true-data attribute according to said associated meta-data attribute.

49. A computer program product embodied in a tangible media comprising:

computer program devices readable by a data processor coupled to the tangible media for managing a plurality of profile data structures, each profile data structure comprising a hierarchical structure of true-data attributes and meta-data attributes, the computer program product comprising;

first program code devices configured to cause the data processor to store said true-data attributes in said profile data structures, said true-data attributes include a true-data key and at least one true-data value field;

second program code devices configured to cause the data processor to associate said meta-data attributes with said true-data attributes, said meta-data attributes include a meta-data key and at least one meta-data value field, wherein said meta-data key is equated with said true-data key;

third program code devices configured to cause the data processor to store said associated meta-data attribute; and

forth program code devices configured to cause the data processor to manage said true-data attributes according to said associated meta-data attributes.

50. The computer program product of claim 49 wherein the tangible media comprises a magnetic disk.

51. The computer program product of claim 49 wherein the tangible media comprises an optical disk.

52. The computer program product of claim 49 wherein the tangible media comprises a propagating signal.

53. The computer program product of claim 49 wherein the tangible media comprises a random access memory device.