Execution context infrastructure

• US 7,930,687 B2
• Filed: 11/24/2008
• Issued: 04/19/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Moorthy, Arun, Brumme, Christopher W., Krishnaswamy, Raja, Hawkins, Jonathan C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zhen; Wei Y
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nahar; Qamrun
• Application Number:
  US12/277,180
• Publication Number:
  US 20090077573A1
• Time in Patent Office: 876 Days
• Field of Search: 717/157, 717/154, 717/106, 719/315, 719/316
• US Class Current: 717/157
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4484 Executing subprograms

Abstract

Described herein is an implementation for exposing an “execution context” to a logical execution flow of procedures as it executes. An “execution context” is a set of data and/or sub-procedures that might be useful at some point during a logical execution flow (to manage and control the execution flow and provide additional services to the execution flow) of computer-executable instructions though the often complex, intertwined, and interconnected conglomeration of procedures of software product(s).

Claims

1. A computer-program product comprising one or more computer-usable storage media having computer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readable program code configured to be executed to implement a method for facilitating an execution-context infrastructure, said method comprising:

generating an instance of an execution context, the instance of an execution context comprising an ambient set of data configured for association with a particular logical execution flow so that procedures along an associated logical execution flow have access to the set of data without receiving the set of data when the procedures are invoked;

associating the execution-context instance with the particular logical execution flow;

propagating the execution-context instance along with the particular logical execution flow so that procedures along the associated logical execution flow have access to the set of data without receiving the set of data when the procedures are invoked.

2. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the execution-context instance further comprises an ambient set of procedures facilitating management of the particular logical execution flow.

3. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the propagating comprises transferring the execution-context instance across runtime-defined Common Language Runtime (CLR) asynchronous points.

4. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the propagating comprises automatically capturing the execution-context instance and transferring the captured execution-context instance across asynchronous points.

5. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the propagating comprises automatically capturing the execution-context instance and transferring the captured execution-context instance across runtime-defined Common Language Runtime (CLR) asynchronous points.

6. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the propagating comprises automatically capturing the execution-context instance and transferring one or more individual components of the captured execution-context instance across user-defined asynchronous points.

7. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the propagating comprises automatically capturing the execution-context instance and suppressing one or more individual components of the captured execution-context instance across user-defined asynchronous points.

8. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the propagating comprises transferring the execution-context instance across Appdomain, process, machine boundaries or other user defined boundaries.

9. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, further comprising exposing one or more application programming interfaces (APIs) for performing the generating, associating, and propagating so that other program modules may call the one or more APIs.

10. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, further comprising exposing, to program modules managed within a run-time environment, one or more application programming interfaces (APIs) for performing the generating, associating, and propagating so that other program modules may call the one or more APIs.

11. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, further comprising exposing, to program modules that are not managed within a run-time environment, one or more application programming interfaces (APIs) for performing the generating, associating, and propagating so that other program modules may call the one or more APIs.

12. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the execution-context instance facilitates security functionality of the particular logical execution flow, wherein the security functionality is selected from a group consisting of:

allowing a host in a managed runtime environment to participate and control the security functionality;

identifying of hardware or software related to the particular logical execution flow;

defining security policies for the particular logical execution flow;

translating security policies when crossing logically defined trust boundaries in a managed runtime environment.

13. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the execution-context instance facilitates synchronization functionality of the particular logical execution flow in a managed runtime environment.

14. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein, from the perspective of the particular logical execution flow, its associated execution-context instance is configured to facilitate replacement of a defined synchronization context model in a managed runtime environment with a new synchronization context model.

15. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, wherein the execution-context instance facilitates transaction functionality of the particular logical execution flow.

16. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

generating nested logical execution flows;

for each nested logical execution flow, repeating the generating, associating, and propagating acts so that each execution-context instance is associated with just one of the nested logical execution flows;

stacking the execution-context instances in an order that their associated logical execution flows are nested;

as the nested logical execution flows unwind, unstacking the execution-context instances in an order that is reverse of that in which their associated logical execution flows were nested.

17. A computer-program product as recited in claim 1, in a runtime environment with a host, further comprising allowing the host to participate and control in the generation and propagation of the execution-context instance.

18. A computer-program product comprising one or more computer-usable storage media having computer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readable program code configured to be executed to implement a method for facilitating an execution-context infrastructure, said method comprising:

generating nested logical execution flows;

for each nested logical execution flow, generating an instance of an execution context, the instance of an execution context comprising an ambient set of data configured for association with a particular logical execution flow so that procedures along an associated logical execution flow have access to the set of data without receiving the set of data when the procedures are invoked;

for each nested logical execution flow, associating the execution-context instance with the particular logical execution flow;

for each nested logical execution flow, propagating the execution-context instance along with the particular logical execution flow so that procedures along the associated logical execution flow have access to the set of data without receiving the set of data when the procedures are invoked;

stacking the execution-context instances in an order that their associated logical execution flows are nested.

19. One or more computer-readable media as recited in claim 18, further comprising, as the nested logical execution flows unwind, unstacking the execution-context instances in an order that is reverse of that in which their associated logical execution flows were nested.

20. A computer-program product comprising one or more computer-usable storage media having computer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readable program code configured to be executed to implement a method for facilitating an execution-context infrastructure, said method comprising:

generating an instance of an execution context, the instance of an execution context comprising an ambient set of data configured for association with a particular logical execution flow so that procedures along an associated logical execution flow have access to the set of data without receiving the set of data when the procedures are invoked;

associating the execution-context instance with the particular logical execution flow;

propagating the execution-context instance along with the particular logical execution flow so that procedures along the associated logical execution flow have access to the set of data without receiving the set of data when the procedures are invoked, wherein the propagating comprises transferring the execution-context instance across asynchronous points.