Method and device for a user profile repository

• US 6,941,291 B1
• Filed: 12/07/2000
• Issued: 09/06/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Fisher, Steven, Kumar, Raj, Mehta, Samir, Zoller, Gregory
• Primary Examiner(s): Le, Uyen
• Assistant Examiner(s): THAI, HANH B
• Application Number:
  US09/732,541
• Time in Patent Office: 1,734 Days
• Field of Search: 707 1- 10, 707/103.R, 707/201, 711/119, 711/141, 711/118
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99936 Pattern matching access

Abstract

A method and device for providing access, via a single point, to information stored on multiple data sources. One embodiment comprises a method in which first an interface (port) receives a call specifying a user identifier and a set of information from an application program. The set of information comprises a number of fields, where the fields correspond to information which is physically stored over a number of databases. Next, the method determines the location of the fields of information corresponding to the user identifier. Next, using the identifier which the application program passed in, the method retrieves the information. For example, the method may first retrieve information corresponding to a first field from a first database. Then, the method may retrieve information corresponding to a second field from a second database. Then, the method provides the information to the application program.

Claims

1. A method of providing access to information comprising the steps of:

a) a repository receiving a call from an application program, said call specifying a user identifier and a requested logical collection of information of a plurality of logical collections of information;

b) in response to said call, said repository determining locations having portions of said requested logical collection of information corresponding to said user identifier by;

b1) determining a plurality of fields associated with said requested logical collection of information, wherein said fields describe information distributed over a plurality of databases; and

b2) accessing a stored mapping of said fields to said databases, said mapping stored on said repository;

c) using said user identifier and said stored mapping, said repository retrieving information corresponding to a first of said plurality of fields from a first of said plurality of databases;

d) using said user identifier and said stored mapping, said repository retrieving information corresponding to a second of said plurality of fields from a second of said plurality of databases, wherein said first and second database store information in a different format from one another;

e) said repository providing said requested logical collection of information to said application program, retrieved from said first and second databases; and

f) said repository storing in a cache said requested logical collection of information which was requested by said application program.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising determining entitlement status corresponding to said user identifier with respect to said set of information.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising said repository updating a first of said plurality of fields in said requested logical collection of said information by writing information to a first of said plurality of databases.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein said update is based upon responses given by a user of said application program.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein said update is based upon monitoring activity of a user of said application program, said activity being related to said requested logical collection of information, wherein said first of said plurality of fields in said logical collection of said information is updated implicitly.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein said databases comprise a first database with entitlement information thereon and a second database with user profile information thereon.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

said repository providing a parameter to said application program that is used to track active user records stored in said cache;

said repository receiving said parameter from said application program in order to track a user record associated with said call; and

said repository deleting said user record from said cache if said user record is inactive, based on the received parameter.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising repeating said a)–

f) for application programs that are compliant with different programming languages from one other.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

said repository performing concurrency management of information stored on said plurality of databases, wherein said repository is a central repository.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising;

said central repository associating a version number with a user record;

said central repository updating the version number if the user record is updated;

said central repository providing the current version number of said user record to applications requesting said user record; and

said central repository allowing a write involving said user record only if a version number of said user record that is provided by an application attempting said write matches the version number currently associated with said user record.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said stored mapping of said fields to said databases maps fields associated with said requested set of information to databases, and wherein said first field is mapped to said first database and said second field is mapped to said second database in said stored mapping.

12. In a computer system having a processor coupled to a bus, a computer readable medium coupled to said bus and having stored therein a computer program that when executed by said processor causes said computer system to implement a method of providing a data repository, said method comprising:

a) receiving a call from an application program, said call specifying a user identifier and a requested logical collection of information of a plurality of logical collections of information;

b) in response to said call, determining locations having portions of said requested logical collection of information corresponding to said user identifier by;

b1) determining a plurality of fields associated with said requested logical collection of information, wherein said fields describe information distributed over said plurality of databases; and

b2) accessing a stored mapping of said fields to said databases, said mapping stored on said data repository;

c) using said user identifier, retrieving information corresponding to a first of said plurality of fields from a first of said plurality of databases;

d) using said user identifier, retrieving information corresponding to a second of said plurality of fields from a second of said plurality of databases, wherein said first and second database store information in a different format from one another; and

e) providing said requested logical collection of information to said application program;

f) storing said requested logical collection of information in the data repository.

13. The computer readable medium of claim 12 wherein said method further comprises determining entitlement status corresponding to said user identifier with respect to said requested logical collection of information.

14. The computer readable medium of claim 12 wherein said method further comprises updating a second of said plurality of fields in said requested logical collection of said information by writing information to a first of said plurality of databases.

15. The computer readable medium of claim 12 wherein said requested logical collection of information comprises information relating to a single user.

16. The computer readable medium of claim 12 wherein said requested logical collection of information comprises information relating to a group of users.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein said method further comprises providing a parameter to said application program that is used to track active user records.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 17, wherein said a) of said method further comprises receiving said parameter from said application program, wherein a user record associated with said call is tracked.

19. A computer readable medium having stored thereon program instructions for implementing a data repository operable to access information stored on a plurality of databases having different data formats, said data repository comprising:

a view manager organizing a user record into a plurality of logical collections of information, said logical collections of information comprising data fields;

an object request broker operable to receive a request to said repository from an application and operable to return to said application a requested logical collection of information corresponding to a specified user identifier;

a datasource manager having a stored mapping of the data fields to said databases, wherein the datasource manager is operable to access the requested logical collection of information by forming database requests to at least two of the databases having different data formats; and

a record manager operable to store the requested logical collection of information and to remove the requested logical collection of information based on a pre-determined period of time.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein a first of the databases comprises entitlement information.

21. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein a second of the databases comprises user profile information.

22. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein said datasource manager is further operable to update said requested logical collection by writing to a first of said databases.

23. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein at least one of the databases resides external to a computer system in which said computer readable medium resides, and wherein said stored mapping maps to said external database.

24. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein said requested logical collection pertains to a single user.

25. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein said requested logical collection pertains to a group of users.

26. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein said object request broker is further operable to process requests originating from more than one programming language.

27. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein said object request broker is further operable to process requests originating from more than one computing platform.

28. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein said object request broker is accessed via a published user record read/update application program interface (API) that is used by said application to read and update user records on the plurality of databases.

29. The computer readable medium of claim 28, wherein said user repository is accessing via a user record creation API that is used by a limited set of applications for creation of user records on the plurality of databases.

30. A data repository operable to access information stored on a plurality of databases having different data formats, said data repository comprising:

means for organizing a user record into a plurality of logical collections of information, said logical collections of information comprising data fields;

means for receiving a request to said repository from an application and for returning to said application a requested logical collection of information corresponding to a specified user identifier;

means for storing mapping of the data fields to said databases;

means for accessing the requested logical collection of information by forming database requests to at least two of the databases having different data formats; and

means for storing the requested logical collection of information and for removing the requested logical collection of information based on a pre-determined period of time.

31. The data repository of claim 30, further comprising means for updating said requested logical collection by writing to a first of said databases.