Content addressable information encapsulation, representation and transfer
First Claim
1. A method of managing information in a content addressable computer system comprising a plurality of computers including at least a first computer and at least two second computers, the method comprising acts of:
- (A) creating a first identifier for a unit of data, at least in part, by hashing the content of the unit of data;
(B) sending a multi-cast request including the first identifier from the first computer to the at least two second computers to access the unit of data, the unit of data comprising content comprising a second identifier identifying at least one digital asset and metadata relating to the at least one digital asset, wherein at least one of the at least two second computers uses the first identifier to access the unit of data, wherein the first identifier is the only identifier the first computer can use to identify the unit of data in the request to the at least two second-computers; and
(C) verifying that the content of the unit of data has not changed since the creation of the first identifier.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Representing a number of assets on an originating computer begins with selecting the assets to be represented. Cryptographic hash asset identifiers are generated; each of the asset identifiers is computed using the contents of a particular asset. The asset identifier is a content-based or content-addressable asset name for the asset and is location independent. An asset list is generated that includes the asset identifiers computed from the assets. A cryptographic hash asset list identifier is generated that is computed from the asset list. The asset list identifier is stored for later retrieval. The assets selected are also stored for safekeeping either locally or on a computer network. In the event of loss of the files from the originating computer, the asset list identifier is retrieved. Using the asset list identifier, the original asset list is found and retrieved from its safe location. The asset identifiers from the retrieved asset list are used to find and retrieve the individual assets from their backup locations. The assets are verified by recomputing the cryptographic hash asset identifier for each asset retrieved and comparing it to the asset identifier from the asset list. The MD5 algorithm is used for the cryptographic hash function. Assets are retrieved using a multicast protocol. A series of importer programs searches for assets to retrieve in progressively more remote locations. Assets are retrieved whole or in segments.
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Citations
111 Claims
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1. A method of managing information in a content addressable computer system comprising a plurality of computers including at least a first computer and at least two second computers, the method comprising acts of:
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(A) creating a first identifier for a unit of data, at least in part, by hashing the content of the unit of data; (B) sending a multi-cast request including the first identifier from the first computer to the at least two second computers to access the unit of data, the unit of data comprising content comprising a second identifier identifying at least one digital asset and metadata relating to the at least one digital asset, wherein at least one of the at least two second computers uses the first identifier to access the unit of data, wherein the first identifier is the only identifier the first computer can use to identify the unit of data in the request to the at least two second-computers; and (C) verifying that the content of the unit of data has not changed since the creation of the first identifier. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37)
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38. At least one non-transitory computer readable medium encoded with instructions that, when executed on a computer system, perform a method of managing information, wherein the computer system is a content addressable computer system comprising a plurality of computers including at least a first computer and at least two second computers, the method comprising acts of:
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(A) creating a first identifier for a unit of data, at least in part, by hashing the content of the unit of data; (B) sending a multi-cast request including the first identifier from the first computer to the at least two second computers to access the unit of data, the unit of data comprising content comprising a second identifier identifying at least one digital asset and metadata relating to the at least one digital asset, wherein at least one of the at least two second computers uses the first identifier to access the unit of data, wherein the first identifier is the only identifier the first computer can use to identify the unit of data in the request to the at least two second computers; and (C) verifying that the content of the unit of data has not changed since the creation of the first identifier. - View Dependent Claims (39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75)
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76. A content addressable computer system for managing information, comprising:
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a first computer; at least two second computers; and at least one controller, disposed on the first computer and/or at least one of the at least two second computers, that; creates a first identifier for a unit of data, at least in part, by hashing the content of the unit of data, the unit of data comprising content comprising a second identifier identifying at least one digital asset and metadata relating to the at least one digital asset; sends to the at least two second computers a multi-cast request including the first identifier to access the unit of data, wherein at least one of the at least two second-computers uses the first identifier to access the unit of data, wherein the first identifier is the only identifier the first computer can use to identify the unit of data in the request to the at least two second computers; and verifies that the content of the unit of data has not changed since the creation of the first identifier. - View Dependent Claims (77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111)
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Specification