System and program product for validating remotely cached dynamic content web pages

• US 7,904,662 B2
• Filed: 04/14/2008
• Issued: 03/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/06/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Dumont, Charles E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Farrokh; Hashem
• Application Number:
  US12/102,150
• Publication Number:
  US 20080195819A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,058 Days
• Field of Search: 711/138, 709/203
• US Class Current: 711/138
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9574 of access to content, e.g. by caching

Abstract

Under the present invention, when a request for a web page is received from a client on a server, the web page is built and analyzed for cacheability. If the web page is cacheable, an entity tag is generated. The entity tag generally identifies the various sources of dynamic content in the web page, and includes cacheability flags and time values associated with the dependencies. The entity tag is sent to the client with the web page where it is stored in local cache memory. If a subsequent request for the same web page is issued from the client, the request is accompanied with the entity tag (e.g., in a header). The entity tag is decoded and analyzed by the server to determine whether the cached web page is still valid.

Claims

1. A system for validating remotely cached dynamic content web pages, comprising:

an analyzer to analyze a plurality of parts of a response to a client request to identify a plurality of attributes thereof, wherein the attributes identify a set of dependencies of the content on sources of dynamic content;

a cacheability determinator to determine a cacheability of the response, the sources of dynamic content in the response and the set of dependencies on the sources;

a tag generator for generating an entity tag for a response to a client request for a dynamic content web page, wherein the entity tag identifies sources of dynamic content in the response and includes cacheability flags corresponding to a cacheability of the response and time values associated with a set of dependencies on the sources, and wherein the response and the entity tag are cached on the client; and

a tag analyzer for analyzing the entity tag when received from the client with a subsequent request for the dynamic content web page, wherein the analyzing includes comparing the time values within the entity tag to corresponding time values for the sources to determine if the cached response is valid;

wherein the cached response is valid if the time values within the entity tag match corresponding time values for the sources, and wherein the tag analyzer analyzes the entity tag without evaluating or rebuilding the response.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein a “

Not Modified”

status code is sent to the client if the cached response is valid.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein a new response is generated and sent to the client with a new entity tag if the cached response is not valid.

4. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a cacheability analyzer for determining the cacheability of the response, and for generating the cacheability flags; and

a response builder for generating the response.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the set of dependencies comprise at least one of a database design, database date and document data.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the time values comprise a database design time value and a data time value.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the entity tag further comprises at least one of a version number, a document identifier and a user name.

8. A program product stored on a tangible recordable medium for validating remotely cached dynamic content web pages, which when executed, comprises:

program code for analyzing a plurality of parts of a response to a client request to identify a plurality of attributes thereof, wherein the attributes identify a set of dependencies of the content on sources of dynamic content;

program code for determining a cacheability of the response, the sources of dynamic content in the response and the set of dependencies on the sources;

program code for generating an entity tag for a response to a client request for a dynamic content web page, wherein the entity tag identifies the sources of dynamic content in the response and includes the cacheability flags corresponding to a cacheability of the response and time values associated with the set of dependencies on the sources, and wherein the response and the entity tag are cached on the client;

program code for analyzing the entity tag when received from the client with a subsequent request for the dynamic content web page, wherein the analyzing includes comparing the time values within the entity tag to corresponding time values for the sources to determine if the cached response is valid; and

program code for sending a status code to the client if the cached response is valid.

9. The program product of claim 8, wherein the cached response is valid if the time values within the entity tag match corresponding time values for the sources.

10. The program product of claim 8, wherein a new response is generated and sent to the client with a new entity tag if the cached response is not valid.

11. The program product of claim 8, further comprising:

program code for determining the cacheability of the response, and for generating the cacheability flags; and

program code for generating the response.

12. The program product of claim 8, wherein the set of dependencies comprise at least one of a database design, database date and document data.

13. The program product of claim 8, wherein the time values comprise a database design time value and a data time value.

14. The program product of claim 8, wherein the entity tag further comprises at least one of a version number, a document identifier and a user name.