Self-registering objects for an IPC mechanism

• US 7,730,522 B2
• Filed: 05/16/2005
• Issued: 06/01/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/16/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Bernabeu-Aubon, Jose M., Havens, Jeff L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Arani; Taghi T
• Assistant Examiner(s): PLECHA, THADDEUS J
• Application Number:
  US11/130,301
• Publication Number:
  US 20060259488A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,842 Days
• Field of Search: 707/9, 713164-167, 713/194, 726 1- 30, 719/330, 719/312, 709/215
• US Class Current: 726/4
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/468 Specific access rights for resources, e.g. using capability register
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/548 Object oriented; Remote method invocation [RMI] non-remote method invocation G06F9/449

Abstract

In response to receiving a communication from a first process directed to a second process, a trusted entity determines if an object reference in the communication refers to an object owned by a first process which is being exported to a second process or if the communication refers to an object not owned by the first process which is being passed to the second process. The trusted entity generates a second object reference for use by the second process. Use of a naming convention identifies the reference as a reference to an object which is foreign to or owned by the processes.

Claims

1. A computer system, comprising:

a processor coupled to a computer-readable storage medium, the computer readable storage medium including;

instructions for executing an operating system, the operating system having a kernel, wherein the kernel includes instructions for maintaining a table for a first process and a table for a second process, wherein the kernel is solely able to access the table for the first process and the table for the second process;

instructions for configuring an inter-process communication channel between the first process and the second process;

instructions for sending, by the first process, a reference to an object controlled by the first process to the second process via the inter-process communication channel, wherein the object includes a method operation;

instructions for detecting, by the kernel that the first process exported the reference interface to an object to the second process by monitoring information sent via the inter-process communication channel and determining that the reference to the object was sent;

instructions for determining, by the kernel, that the reference for the object has not been previously exported to the second process by searching the table for the second process;

instructions for generating, in response to determining that the reference for the object has not been previously exported to the second process, a local name for the reference for the object and associating the local name for the reference for the object with a name for the object;

instructions for generating, by the kernel, an entry in the table for the second process, the entry including information that identifies that the object is foreign to the second process and local to the first process, the local name for the reference for the object and the name for the object; and

instructions for making, by the kernel, the local name for the reference for the object table available to the second process.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the kernel includes instructions for determining that the object is owned by the first process.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the kernel includes instructions for generating a local name for the object for use by the second process according to a naming convention that distinguishes between an object that is owned by the second process and an object that is not owned by the second process.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the kernel is solely able to access a namespace of objects for the first process.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the kernel is solely able to access a namespace of references for the second process.

6. A computer-implemented method for self-registering resources in an inter-process communication mechanism comprising:

maintaining, by a kernel, a table for a first process, a table for a second process, and a table for a third process, wherein the kernel is solely able to access the table for the first process, the table for the second process and the table for the third process;

establishing an inter-process communication channel between the first process and the second process;

detecting, by the kernel, that the first process exported a first process local name for a resource to an object controlled by the third process to the second process by monitoring information sent via the inter-process communication channel, the object including a method operation;

determining, by the kernel, that the resource for the object controlled by the third process has not been previously exported to the second process by searching the table for the second process and in response to determining that the resource for the object controlled by the third process has not been previously exported to the second process;

determining, by the kernel, that the resource is controlled by the third process and generating a second process local name for the resource;

generating, by the kernel, an entry in the table for the second process, the entry including information that identifies that the object is foreign to the second process, local to the third process, and the second process local name for the resource; and

sending, by the kernel, a signal to the second process, the signal indicating that the table has been updated and including the second process local name for the resource.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

generating an entry in the table for the third process, the entry indicating that the third process owns the object.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

generating a local name for the object for use by the second process according to a naming convention that distinguishes between an object that is owned by the second process and an object that is not owned by the second process.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

storing the local name in the table for the second process.

10. A computer-readable storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions for:

maintaining, by a kernel, a table for a first process, a table for a second process, and a table for a third process, wherein the kernel is solely able to access the table for the first process, the table for the second process and the table for the third process;

establishing an inter-process communication channel between the first process and the second process;

detecting, by the kernel, that the first process exported a first process local name for a resource to an object controlled by the third process to the second process by monitoring information sent via the inter-process communication channel, the object including a method operation;

determining, by the kernel, that the resource for the object controlled by the third process has not been previously exported to the second process by searching the table for the second process and in response to determining that the resource for the object controlled by the third process has not been previously exported to the second process;

determining, by the kernel, that the resource is controlled by the third process and generating a second process local name for the resource;

generating, by the kernel, an entry in the table for the second process, the entry including information that identifies that the object is foreign to the second process, local to the third process, and the second process local name for the resource; and

sending, by the kernel, a signal to the second process, the signal indicating that the table has been updated and including the second process local name for the resource.

11. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, comprising further computer-executable instructions for:

determining, by the kernel that the object is owned by the third process.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, comprising further computer-executable instructions for:

generating, by the kernel, a local name for the object for use by the second process according to a naming convention that distinguishes between an object that is owned by the second process and an object that is not owned by the second process.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, comprising further computer-executable instructions for:

determining, by the kernel, that the object is owned by the third process by inspection of the table entry associated with the object, wherein the table entry is assigned according to a naming convention that distinguishes between an object owned by the third process and a resource not owned by the third process.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, comprising further computer-executable instructions for:

generating, by the kernel, a new entry in a namespace maintained for the second process in response to determining that the object is owned by the third process, the new entry comprising the second process local reference interface for the object.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, comprising further computer-executable instructions for:

determining that the resource for the object controlled by the third process has not been previously exported to the second process by searching the table for the second process, wherein the reference for the object controlled by the third process has previously been exported if an entry is found in the namespace.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, comprising further computer-executable instructions for:

preventing access to a namespace maintained for the first process by the first process and the second process.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, comprising further computer-executable instructions for:

preventing access to a namespace maintained for the second process by the first process and the second process.