Method and system of typing resources in a distributed system

• US 7,702,687 B2
• Filed: 06/01/2005
• Issued: 04/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Micro Focus LLC (Open Text Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Govindarajan, Kannan, Shama, Shamik, Umamaheshwaran, Shankar, Sarukkai, Sekhar R., Karp, Alan H., Banerji, Arindam
• Primary Examiner(s): LeRoux; Etienne P
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen; Cindy
• Application Number:
  US11/141,839
• Publication Number:
  US 20050240651A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,784 Days
• Field of Search: 707/2, 707/3, 707/102, 707/6, 709/217, 709/219, 709/200
• US Class Current: 707/770
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/462 Lookup
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/463 Naming
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/5015 Service provider selection
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/465 Distributed object oriented systems remote method invocation [RMI] G06F9/548
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5027 the resource being a machine, e.g. CPUs, Servers, Terminals
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/966 Distributed
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

A system and method for typing resources in a distributed system is provided which enables flexible searching mechanisms for finding distributed resources. The distributed system includes at least three types of resources: service, vocabulary and contract resources. The service resource includes the implementation logic for the service. A contract resource contains interface data used for accessing resources. The vocabulary resource contains an attribute schema defining attributes used to describe resources. Each resource—including service, vocabulary and contract resources—is typed by associating one or more vocabulary resources and one or more contract resources with the resource. The vocabulary resources explain the meaning of attribute lists describing the resource and enable the resource to be discovered. The contract resources provide data for accessing the resource. Because vocabulary and contract resources are themselves resources, they are also typed by vocabulary and contract resources and are, accordingly, discoverable and accessible. Typing resources with vocabularies and contracts that are themselves discoverable resources, provides a structural mechanism for supporting robust resource discovery processes suitable for large, loosely-coupled distributed systems.

Claims

1. A method of discovering one or more target resources in a distributed system executable over two or more computers interconnected by a computer network, the distributed system including an infrastructure executable on each computer connecting the resources, the resources including service, vocabulary and contract resources, the method comprising:

receiving a search request for the target resources from a client, including a target description describing the target resources;

searching a database of resource information, wherein the resource information includes;

one or more resource descriptions describing associated resources, explanatory information explaining the resource descriptions, and access data, including interface data, for accessing the associated resource;

determining whether one or more resource descriptions match the target description; and

sending result information about matching resources to the client.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is received from a locally connected client.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the request is received from a remote computer over the computer network.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the target description includes a reference to the target resource.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the target description includes target attributes describing the target resources;

the resource descriptions include resource attributes describing the resources; and

determining whether one or more resource descriptions match the target description includes comparing the attributes in the target description with the attributes in the resource descriptions.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein:

the target description includes a query describing a relationship among the attributes; and

determining whether one or more resource descriptions match the target description includes comparing the relationship among attributes described by the query with the relationship among attributes described in the resource descriptions.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

if the target description includes a reference to a contract resource to which the target resources are typed, then searching only resource information in the database typed to the contract resource.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

if the target description includes a reference to a vocabulary resource to which the target resources are typed, then searching only resource information in the database typed to the vocabulary resource.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein:

if the target description includes a reference to a vocabulary resource and to a contract resource to which the target resources are typed, then searching only resource information in the database typed to the vocabulary resource and the contract resource.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the result information includes references to the matching resources.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the references include URLs to the matching resources.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the result includes interface data for accessing the matching resources.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the interface data includes the set of IDL interfaces supported by each matching resource.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the interface data includes stub classes for invoking methods on the matching resources.

15. A computer system for discovering one or more target resources in a distributed system executable over two or more computers interconnected by a computer network, the distributed system including an infrastructure executable on each computer connecting the resources, the resources including service, vocabulary and contract resources, the computer system comprising:

at least two computers connected over the computer network; and

a computer program executable on each computer generating processes accessible to at least one other computer over the computer network;

wherein the computer programs further comprises computer instructions for;

receiving a search request for the target resources from a client, including a target description describing the target resources;

searching a database of resource information, wherein the resource information includes;

one or more resource descriptions describing associated resources, explanatory information explaining the resource descriptions, and access data, including interface data, for accessing the associated resource;

determining whether one or more resource descriptions match the target description; and

sending result information about matching resources to the client.

16. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the request is received from a locally connected client.

17. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the request is received from a remote computer over the computer network.

18. The computer system of claim 15, wherein:

the target description includes a reference to the target resource.

19. The computer system of claim 15, wherein:

the target description includes target attributes describing the target resources;

the resource descriptions include resource attributes describing the resources; and

determining whether one or more resource descriptions match the target description includes comparing the attributes in the target description with the attributes in the resource descriptions.

20. The computer system of claim 19, wherein:

the target description includes a query describing a relationship among the attributes; and

determining whether one or more resource descriptions match the target description includes comparing the relationship among attributes described by the query with the relationship among attributes described in the resource descriptions.

21. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the computer program further comprises computer instructions for:

if the target description includes a reference to a contract resource to which the target resources are typed, then searching only resource information in the database typed to the contract resource.

22. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the computer program further comprises computer instructions for:

if the target description includes a reference to a vocabulary resource to which the target resources are typed, then searching only resource information in the database typed to the vocabulary resource.

23. The computer system of claim 15, wherein:

if the target description includes a reference to a vocabulary resource and to a contract resource to which the target resources are typed, then searching only resource information in the database typed to the vocabulary resource and the contract resource.

24. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the result information includes references to the matching resources.

25. The computer system of claim 24, wherein the references include URLs to the matching resources.

26. The computer system of claim 15, wherein the result includes interface data for accessing the matching resources.

27. The computer system of claim 26, wherein the interface data includes the set of IDL interfaces supported by each matching resource.

28. The computer system of claim 26, wherein the interface data includes stub classes for invoking methods on the matching resources.

29. A computer program product having a computer readable medium having computer program logic recorded thereon for discovering one or more target resources in a distributed system, the resources including service, vocabulary, and contract resources, the computer program product comprising:

code for receiving a search request for the target resources from a client, including a target description describing the target resources;

code for searching a database of resource information local to the client, wherein the resource information includes;

one or more resource descriptions describing associated resources, explanatory information explaining the resource descriptions, and access data, including interface data, for accessing the associated resource;

code for determining whether one or more resource descriptions match the target description;

code for sending a search query to one or more computers remote from the client if it is determined that the resource descriptions do not match the target description, wherein the search query requests searching one or more other databases of resource information located at each of the one or more computers remote from the client;

code for receiving responses to the search query from the one or more computers remote from the client; and

code for sending result information about matching resources to the client.

31. The computer program product of claim 29, wherein the request is received from a locally connected client.

32. The computer program product of claim 29, wherein the request is received from a second computer remote from the client.

33. The computer program product of claim 29, wherein:

the target description includes a reference to the target resource.

34. The computer program product of claim 29, wherein:

the target description includes target attributes describing the target resources;

the resource descriptions include resource attributes describing the resources; and

the code for determining whether one or more resource descriptions match the target description includes code for comparing the attributes in the target description with the attributes in the resource descriptions.

35. The computer program product of claim 34, wherein:

the target description includes a query describing a relationship among the attributes; and

the code for determining whether one or more resource descriptions match the target description includes code for comparing the relationship among attributes described by the query with the relationship among attributes described in the resource descriptions.

36. The computer program product of claim 29, further comprising:

code for searching only resource information in the database typed to a particular contract resource if the target description includes a reference to the particular contract resource to which the target resources are typed.

37. The computer program product of claim 29, wherein the result information includes one or more of the following:

URLs to the matching resources;

stub classes for invoking methods on the matching resources; and

a set of IDL interfaces supported by each matching resource.

30. The computer program product of Clam 29, wherein the resource descriptions conform to an industry standard defining resource descriptions.