Offline multi-table data editing and storage

• US 7,546,286 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2005
• Issued: 06/09/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/19/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Dickinson, Richard L., Chauhan, Sumit, Kouznetsov, Pavel
• Primary Examiner(s): LEROUX, ETIENNE PIERRE
• Application Number:
  US11/300,728
• Publication Number:
  US 20060095447A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,272 Days
• Field of Search: 707/2, 707/101, 707/103.R, 709/227
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/20 of structured data, e.g. relational data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/18 of spreadsheets form-filling G06F40/174
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99932 Access augmentation or optimizing

Abstract

Methods, systems and computer products are provided for allowing bi-directional communication between a database application and a remote data source and for allowing updating of data on a remote data source with data edited or created at a client site remote from the remote data source during an offline data editing or entry session via a client database application.

Claims

1. A method of bi-directional communication between a database application and a remote data source, comprising:

receiving data at the database application from the remote data source;

storing the data at the database application;

building a relationship graph at the database application for representing a hierarchical relationship between a first portion of the stored data with a second portion of the stored data, the first portion of the stored data having a parent data list and the second portion of the stored data comprising a child data list;

receiving a termination of a connection between the database application and the remote data source;

receiving changes only to the second portion of the stored data at the database application;

generating a change log at the database application representing changes made to the second portion of the stored data;

receiving a connection between the database application and the remote data source; and

publishing the changed second portion of the stored data from the database application to the remote data source for replacing corresponding data at the remote data source with the changed second portion of the stored data, wherein the changes to the second portion of the stored data comprising the child data list are published with the unchanged first portion of the stored data comprising the parent data list so as to maintain a pre-existing parent-child relationship between the parent data list and the child data list.

2. The method of claim 1, whereby receiving the data at the database application includes receiving the data at the database application formatted according to the Extensible Markup Language.

3. The method of claim 1, whereby storing the data at the database application includes storing the data as a database object comprising one or more rows of data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein building a relationship graph at the database application for representing a relationship between a first portion of the data with a second portion of the data includes building a relationship graph at the database application for representing a hierarchical relationship between a first list of data with a second list of data, the first and second lists of data included in the stored data.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein building a relationship graph at the database application includes parsing a lookup table at the remote data source for determining hierarchical relationships between the first list of data and the second list of data.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein publishing the changed stored data to the remote data source includes publishing the change log to the remote data source for providing a representation of changes made to the stored data.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising, at the database application, receiving a notification that a version of the published data is in conflict with a version of corresponding data maintained at the remote data source that will be replaced by the published data if the published data is saved to the remote data source.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein receiving the notification includes receiving a notification of the content of the corresponding data maintained at the remote data source that will be replaced by the published data if the published data is saved to the remote data source.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein receiving the notification further includes receiving a notification of an author of the corresponding data that will be replaced by the published data if the published data is saved to the remote data source.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein receiving the notification further includes receiving information as to a time the corresponding data was published to the remote data source.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising replacing the corresponding data with the published data.

12. The method of claim 7, in response to receiving a notification that a version of the published data is in conflict with a version of corresponding data maintained at the remote data source that will be replaced by the published data if the published data is saved to the remote data source, discarding the published data such that the corresponding data is not changed.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving one or more new rows of data added to the stored data at the database application.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising applying a temporary identification to any new row of data added to the stored data at the database application.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein publishing the changed stored data from the database application to the remote data source for replacing corresponding data at the remote data source with the changed stored data includes replacing any temporary identifications applied to any new row of data added to the stored data at the database application with permanent row identifications at the remote data source.

16. A computer readable medium containing computer executable instructions which when executed by a computer perform a method of publishing data from a client side database application to a remote data source, comprising:

receiving one or more lists of data at the database application from the remote data source;

storing the one or more lists of data at the database application;

building a relationship graph at the database application for representing a hierarchical relationship between a first list of the one or more lists of data with a second list of the one or more lists of data, the first list of the one or more lists of data comprising a parent data list of product names data and the second list of the one or more lists of data comprising a child data list of product orders data;

receiving a termination of a connection between the database application and the remote data source;

receiving changes only to the stored second list of the one or more lists of data at the database application;

generating a change log at the database application representing changes made to the stored second list of the one or more lists of data;

receiving a connection between the database application and the remote data source; and

publishing the changed stored second list of the one or more lists of data to the remote data source according to the relationship graph such that the changed stored second list is published to the remote data source according to the hierarchical relationship imposed by the relationship graph, wherein changes to the child data list of product orders data comprising the changes to the stored second list are published with the unchanged parent data list of product names data comprising the first list so as to maintain a pre-existing parent-child relationship between the parent data list of product names data and the child data list of product orders data.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein publishing the changed stored second list of the one or more lists of data to the remote data source includes publishing the change log to the remote data source for providing a representation of changes made to the stored second list of the one or more lists of data.

18. A computer readable medium containing computer executable instructions which when executed by a computer perform a method of publishing data from a client side database application to a remote data source, comprising:

receiving one or more lists of data at the database application from the remote data source;

storing the one or more lists of data at the database application;

building a relationship graph at the database application for representing a hierarchical relationship between a first of the one or more lists of data with a second of the one or more lists of data, the first list of the one or more lists of data comprising a parent data list and the second list of the one or more lists of data comprising a child data list;

receiving changes only to the stored second list of the one or more lists of data at the database application while the database application is not connected to the remote data source;

publishing the changed stored second list of the one or more lists of data to the remote data source according to the relationship graph such that the changed stored second list is published to the remote data source according to the hierarchical relationship imposed by the relationship graph, wherein changes to the child data list comprising the changes to the stored second list are published with the unchanged parent data list comprising the first list so as to maintain a pre-existing parent-child relationship between the parent data list and the child data list; and

receiving a notification that a version of the published one or more lists of data is in conflict with a version of corresponding data maintained at the remote data source that will be replaced by the published one or more lists of data if the published one or more lists of data are saved to the remote data source.