Method, system, and apparatus for exposing server properties to a client application

• US 7,188,112 B1
• Filed: 09/12/2003
• Issued: 03/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zhigu Holdings Limited
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Wang, Li, Vigesaa, Eric Barber, Lindquist, Joshua, Chen, Wentao, Godfrey, Gloria Monroe
• Primary Examiner(s): Robinson; Greta
• Assistant Examiner(s): LEWIS, CHERYL RENEA
• Application Number:
  US10/661,193
• Time in Patent Office: 1,271 Days
• Field of Search: 707/10, 707/100, 707/104.1, 707/200, 707 1- 5, 707/6, 709/203
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99936 Pattern matching access

Abstract

A method, system, apparatus, and computer-readable medium are provided for exposing and utilizing property values maintained at a server computer. A request is received at the server computer for a resource, such as a Web page. In response to receiving the request, a determination is made by the server computer as to whether a property value maintained at the server computer should be returned with the resource. If the property value should be returned with the resource, the current value of the specified property is retrieve and is rendered into the resource as a variable statement specifying the current value of the property. The resource, including the variable statement, is then returned to the requesting application where it may be utilized.

Claims

1. A method for exposing property values maintained at a server computer to an application executing on a client computer, the method comprising:

receiving, at the server computer, a request for a resource from the application executing on the client computer;

determining, at the server computer, whether a property value maintained at the server computer should be returned with the resource;

in response to determining, at the server computer, that the property value should be returned with the resource, retrieving, at the server computer, the current value of the property, wherein retrieving the current value comprises identifying a location of the property from an Extensible Markup Language (XML) map;

rendering, at the server computer, into the resource a variable statement specifying the current value of the property; and

returning, from the server computer, the resource including the variable statement to the requesting application executing on the client computer.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the resource comprises a page displayable by the application, and wherein determining whether a property value maintained at the server computer should be returned with the resource comprises determining whether a data file associated with the page includes a tag indicating that a property value should be returned with the resource.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the tag comprises the name utilized by the server computer to identify the property value.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the tag further comprises a name that should be utilized to refer to the property value within the variable statement.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising after rendering the variable statement into the resource:

rendering into the resource program code utilizing the variable statement into the resource.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the program code is specified in the data file data file that includes the tag indicating that the property value should be returned with the resource.

7. A computer-readable medium having stored thereon computer-executable instructions which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of claim 1.

8. A computer-controlled apparatus capable of performing the method of claim 1.

9. A system for exposing property values maintained at a server computer to an application executing on a client computer, the system comprising:

a server computer operative to;

receive a request from the application for a resource,

determine whether a property value maintained at the server computer should be returned with the resource,

retrieve a current value of the property, wherein retrieving the current value of the property comprises identifying a location of the property from an Extensible Markup Language (XML) map;

render into the resource a variable statement specifying the current value of the property in response to determining that the property value should be returned with the resource, and

return the resource including the variable statement to the requesting application; and

a client computer operative to;

generate the request to the server computer for the resource,

receive the resource from the server computer, and

execute program code for utilizing the variable statement returned with the resource.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the resource comprises a web page displayable by the application, and wherein the server computer is operative to determine whether the property value should be returned with the resource comprises determining whether a solution specification file associated with the page includes a tag indicating that a property value should be returned with the resource.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the tag comprises the name utilized by the server computer to identify the property value.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the tag further comprises a name that should be utilized by the program code executing on the client computer to refer to the property value within the variable statement.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the server computer is further operative to render into the resource the program code executed by the client computer to utilize the variable statement.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the program code is contained within the solution specification file.

15. A computer-readable storage medium which stores a set of instructions which when executed performs a method for exposing a property value stored at a server computer to a client computer, the method executed by the set of instructions comprising:

receiving, at the server computer from the client computer, a request for a resource;

in response to receiving the request from the client computer, determining, at the server computer, that a server property tag indicates that a property value, maintained at the server computer, is to be exposed to the client computer within the resource requested by the client computer, the property value being stored in an extensible markup language data structure; and

in response to determining that the server property tag indicates that the property value is to be exposed to the client computer, transmitting, from the server computer to the client computer, the property value within the resource requested by the client computer.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein determining that the server property tag indicates that the property value is to be exposed further comprises determining that the server property tag indicates that the property value is to be exposed wherein the server property tag further comprises a property parameter that identifies a name utilized by the server computer to identify the property value.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein determining that the server property tag indicates that the property value is to be exposed further comprises determining that the server property tag indicates that the property value is to be exposed wherein the server property tag further comprises a name parameter that identifies a name that should be utilized by the client computer to refer to the property value within a variable statement.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17, further comprising transmitting, from the server computer to the client computer, one or more data fields that include program code that may be executed on the client computer to utilize the variable statement.

19. A method for exposing property values maintained at a server computer to an object executing within a web browser on a client computer, the method comprising:

receiving, at the server computer, a request for a displayable web page from the web browser executing on the client computer;

consulting, at the server computer, a solution specification file associated with the web page to determine whether a property value maintained at the server computer should be returned with the web page;

in response to determining, at the server computer, that the property value should be returned with the resource, retrieving, at the server computer, the current value of the property from a location within the server computer, wherein retrieving the current value comprises identifying a location of the property from an Extensible Markup Language (XML) map;

rendering, at the server computer, into the web page a variable statement specifying the current value of the property; and

returning, from the server computer, the web page, including the variable statement, to the requesting web browser executing on the client computer.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

retrieving from the solution specification file executable script that utilizes the variable statement; and

rendering into the web page the executable script following the rendering of the variable statement.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

receiving the web page at the web browser; and

executing the executable script within a script host provided by the web browser to thereby utilize the property value identified by the variable statement.