Reviewing cached user-group information in connection with issuing a digital rights management (DRM) license for content

• US 6,990,502 B2
• Filed: 02/26/2003
• Issued: 01/24/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Waxman, Peter David, Narin, Attila, Venkatesh, Chandramouli, Rozenfeld, Yevgeniy (Eugene), Larson, David
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Shahid
• Assistant Examiner(s): EHICHIOYA, FRED I
• Application Number:
  US10/374,324
• Publication Number:
  US 20040167926A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,063 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1, 707/2, 707/3, 707/100, 707/104.1, 235/380, 713/156, 713/167, 713/201, 715/11, 715/780
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6218 to a system of files or objects, e.g. local or distributed file system or database
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

A computer network has storage devices organized into X levels and storing element-group information. To determine whether an element is a member of any target groups, each target group is validated by searching the storage devices to find a target group item and, if found, placing the target group in a validated target bin (V). Also, the element is validated by searching the storage devices to find an element item, and if found, determining from the item all groups that the element is listed as being a member of and placing such member-of groups in a search bin (S). If (S) intersects (V), the element is a member of a target group. If not, all groups in (S) are moved to a queue (Q1) corresponding to the storage device at level 1 and an iterative process searches for a membership path from the element to any target group.

Claims

1. A method for determining whether an element within an organization is a member of one or more target groups pre-defined within the organization, the organization maintaining a computer network comprising a plurality of storage devices organized into X levels and storing element-group information, the storage devices including a directory at a higher, more-costly level X and at least one cache, each cache being at a lower, less-costly level below X and including at least a portion of the element-group information in the directory, the levels 1 to X corresponding to least-costly to most-costly, the method comprising:

validating each target group by searching the levels of storage devices to find an item for the target group and, if the target group is found, placing the target group in a validated target bin (V);

validating the element by searching the levels of storage devices to find an item for the element, and if the item for the element is found, determining from the item all groups that the element is listed as being a member of and placing such member-of groups in a search bin (S);

firstly determining whether any group in (S) matches any group in (V);

if so, concluding that the element is a member of a target group; and

if not continuing by moving all groups in (S) to a queue (Q1) corresponding to the storage device at level 1 and performing an iterative process to search for a membership path from the element to any target group,

the iterative process comprising, for each level x from 1 to X;

secondly determining whether a queue (Qx) corresponding to the level is empty;

if empty, incrementing the level and returning to the secondly determining step if x<

X, and concluding that the element is not a member of any target group if x=X′

,

if not empty, removing a group from (Qx) and determining whether the removed group is already in a discard bin (D);

if in (D), returning to the secondly determining step;

if not in (D), searching for an item corresponding to the removed group in the storage device corresponding to the level;

if no such item is found from the search, moving the removed group to (Q(x+1)) if x<

X and moving the removed group to (D) if x=X, and returning to the secondly determining step;

if such an item is found from the search, placing each newly discovered group that the removed group is a member of as determined from the found item into (S), moving the removed group to (D), and returning to the firstly determining step,

whereby the iterative process develops all possible paths from the element to any of the validated target groups, and more costly operations at a higher level storage device do not occur until all possible less costly operations at all lower level storage devices are exhausted;

wherein validating each target group comprises;

placing each target group in a target bin (T); and

for each level from 1 to X, searching in the storage device at the level for an item corresponding to each target group in (T), and if such an item is located removing the target group from (T) and placing such target group in the validated target bin (V).

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising, if such an item is found, populating any lower-level storage devices with corresponding item.

3. The method of claim 1 comprising, after searching the levels of storage devices for each target group, determining whether (V) is empty and if so concluding that no valid target groups are found.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein validating the element comprises, for each level from 1 to X, searching in the storage device at the level for an item corresponding to the element until such item is found.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising, if such an item corresponding to the element is found, populating any lower-level storage devices with a corresponding item.

6. The method of claim 1 comprising, after searching the levels of storage devices for the element, determining whether an item for the element is found and if not concluding that no valid element is found.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein X=3, with a local cache at level 1, a remote cache at level 2, and the directory at level 3.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising, if such an item is found, populating any lower-level storage devices with a corresponding item.

9. The method of claim 1 for determining whether a user from an organization is a member of one or more target groups pre-defined within the organization, the organization maintaining the computer network comprising the plurality of storage devices organized into X levels and storing user-group information.

10. A computer-readable storage having stored thereon computer-executable instructions for performing a method for determining whether an element within an organization is a member of one or more target groups pre-defined within the organization, the organization maintaining a computer network comprising a plurality of storage devices organized into X levels and storing element-group information, the storage devices including a directory at a higher, more-costly level X and at least one cache, each cache being at a lower, less-costly level below X and including at least a portion of the element-group information in the directory, the levels 1 to X corresponding to least-costly to most-costly, the method comprising:

validating each target group by searching the levels of storage devices to find an item for the target group and, if the target group is found, placing the target group in a validated target bin (V);

validating the element by searching the levels of storage devices to find an item for the element, and if the item for the element is found, determining from the item all groups that the element is listed as being a member of and placing such member-of groups in a search bin (S);

firstly determining whether any group in (S) matches any group in (V);

if so, concluding that the element is a member of a target group; and

if not continuing by moving all groups in (S) to a queue (Q1) corresponding to the storage device at level 1 and performing an iterative process to search for a membership path from the element to any target group,

the iterative process comprising, for each level x from 1 to X;

secondly determining whether a queue (Qx) corresponding to the level is empty;

if empty, incrementing the level and returning to the secondly determining step if x<

X, and concluding that the element is not a member of any target group if x=X′

,

if not empty, removing a group from (Qx) and determining whether the removed group is already in a discard bin (D);

if in (D), returning to the secondly determining step;

if not in (D), searching for an item corresponding to the removed group in the storage device corresponding to the level;

if no such item is found from the search, moving the removed group to (Q(x+1)) if x<

X and moving the removed group to (D) if x=X, and returning to the secondly determining step;

if such an item is found from the search, placing each newly discovered group that the removed group is a member of as determined from the found item into (S), moving the removed group to (D), and returning to the firstly determining step,

whereby the iterative process develops all possible paths from the element to any of the validated target groups, and more costly operations at a higher level storage device do not occur until all possible less costly operations at all lower level storage devices are exhausted;

wherein validating each target group comprises;

placing each target group in a target bin (T); and

for each level from 1 to X, searching in the storage device at the level for an item corresponding to each target group in (T), and if such an item is located removing the target group from (T) and placing such target group in the validated target bin (V).

11. The medium of claim 10 wherein the method further comprises, if such an item is found, populating any lower-level storage devices with corresponding item.

12. The medium of claim 10 wherein the method comprises, after searching the levels of storage devices for each target group, determining whether (V) is empty and if so concluding that no valid target groups are found.

13. The medium of claim 10 wherein validating the element comprises, for each level from 1 to X, searching in the storage device at the level for an item corresponding to the element until such item is found.

14. The medium of claim 13 wherein the method further comprises, if such an item corresponding to the element is found, populating any lower-level storage devices with a corresponding item.

15. The medium of claim 10 wherein the method comprises, after searching the levels of storage devices for the element, determining whether an item for the element is found and if not concluding that no valid element is found.

16. The medium of claim 10 wherein X=3, with a local cache at level 1, a remote cache at level 2, and the directory at level 3.

17. The medium of claim 10 wherein the method further comprises, if such an item is found, populating any lower-level storage devices with a corresponding item.

18. The medium of claim 10 wherein the method is for determining whether a user from an organization is a member of one or more target groups pre-defined within the organization, the organization maintaining the computer network comprising the plurality of storage devices organized into X levels and storing user-group information.