Systems and methods for cross-system digital asset tag propagation

• US 7,958,087 B2
• Filed: 10/31/2006
• Issued: 06/07/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Micro Focus LLC (Open Text Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Iron Mountain Incorporated
• Inventors: Blumenau, Steven
• Primary Examiner(s): COLAN, GIOVANNA B
• Application Number:
  US11/555,264
• Publication Number:
  US 20070113289A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,680 Days
• Field of Search: 705/51, 709/225, 709/230, 713/165, 713/153, 348/207.1, 725/97, 707/610, 707/694, 707/781, 707/913
• US Class Current: 707/610
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/125 characterised by the use of retention policies retention policies for HSM systems G06F16/185
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/14 Details of searching files based on file metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/16 Program or content traceability, e.g. by watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6218 to a system of files or objects, e.g. local or distributed file system or database
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2101 Auditing as a secondary aspect
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2135 Metering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2137 Time limited access, e.g. to a computer or data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2143 Clearing memory, e.g. to prevent the data from being stolen
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/913 Multimedia

Abstract

Systems and methods for managing digital assets in a distributed computing environment are described. Meta-data for the digital assets is stored separately from the digital assets. Meta-data for some of the digital assets is copied and stored at a central location. Meta-data for the digital assets is generated by clients of the system. A method of propagating a digital asset identification tag associated with a digital asset includes: receiving a command from a client of the distributed computing system to the central computing resource, the command comprising an indication that a change occurred to the asset identification tag of a digital asset and the changed digital asset identification tag; locating the digital asset identification tag at the central resource; updating the digital asset identification tag in response to the received command; and transmitting the updated tag to another client having a copy of the digital asset.

Claims

1. A method of propagating a digital asset identification tag associated with a digital asset of a distributed computing environment, the environment having a central computing device that at least stores the digital asset identification tag for the digital asset and one or more clients that locally stores the digital asset, the method comprising:

(a) receiving a command from a client of the distributed computing system to the central computing resource, the command comprising an indication that a change occurred to the asset identification tag of a digital asset of the client and the changed digital asset identification tag;

(b) locating the digital asset identification tag at the central resource;

(c) updating the digital asset identification tag in response to the received command to generate an updated digital asset identification tag; and

(d) transmitting to another clients having a copy of the digital asset the updated digital asset identification tag;

wherein the digital asset identification tag includes a global unique identifier field which is constructed and arranged to store a global unique identifier of the digital asset to uniquely identify the digital asset among other digital assets;

wherein receiving the command includes obtaining, within the global unique identifier field of the digital asset identification tag, the global unique identifier of the digital asset;

the global unique identifier being a hash result generated via application of a hash result generated via application of a hash function, by a client, to contents of the digital asset; and

wherein the digital asset identification tag further includes a level identifier field which is constructed and arranged to store a level identifier one of (i) an “

unmanaged”

value indicating that the digital asset identification tag is not persistently stored by the client and not persistently stored by the central computing device, (ii) a “

managed”

value indicating that the digital asset identification tag is persistently stored by the client and not persistently stored by the central computing device, and (iii) a “

records managed”

value indicating that the digital asset identification tag is persistently stored by the client and persistently stored by the central computing device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the command indicates that the change comprises the creation of a digital asset.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the transmitting occurs in a different connection session than the receiving.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the transmitting comprises transmitting to a first one of the another clients having a copy of the digital asset the updated digital asset identification tag during a first connection session and transmitting to a second of the another clients having a copy of the digital asset the updated digital asset identification tag during a second connection session.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein locating the digital asset identification tag at the central computing device includes persistently storing the digital asset identification tag in the central computing device while the digital asset (i) is stored locally at the client and (ii) is not stored at the central computing device.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein updating the digital asset identification tag includes persistently storing the updated digital asset identification tag in the central computing device while the digital asset (i) remains stored locally at the client and (ii) is not stored at the central computing device.

5. A system for propagating a digital asset identification tag associated with a digital asset of a distributed computing environment, the environment having a central computing device that at least stores the digital asset identification tag for the digital asset and one or more clients that locally stores the digital asset, the system comprising:

(a) a client in communication with the network; and

(b) a central computing device in communication with a network, the central computing device configured to;

i. receive a command from the client, the command comprising an indication that a change occurred to the asset identification tag of a digital asset of the client and the changed digital asset identification tag;

ii. locate the digital asset identification tag at a central resource of the central computing device;

iii. update the digital asset identification tag in response to the received command to generate an updated digital asset identification tag; and

iv. transmit to another client having a copy of the digital asset the updated digital asset identification tag;

wherein the digital asset identification tag includes a global unique identifier field which is constructed and arranged to store a global unique identifier of the digital asset to uniquely identify the digital asset among other digital assets;

wherein the central computing device, when receiving the command, is configured to obtain, within the global unique identifier field of the digital asset identification tag, the global unique identifier of the digital asset;

the global unique identifier being a hash result generated via application of a hash result generated via application of a hash function, by a client, to contents of the digital asset; and

wherein the digital asset identification tag further includes a level identifier field which is constructed and arranged to store a level identifier one of (i) an “

unmanaged”

value indicating that the digital asset identification tag is not persistently stored by the client and not persistently stored by the central computing device, (ii) a “

managed”

value indicating that the digital asset identification tag is persistently stored by the client and not persistently stored by the central computing device, and (iii) a “

records managed”

value indicating that the digital asset identification tag is persistently stored by the client and persistently stored by the central computing device.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the command indicates that the change comprises the creation of a digital asset.

7. The system of claim 5 wherein the central resource transmits the updated digital asset identification tag in a different connection session than the receiving.

8. The method of claim 5 wherein the central resource transmits the updated digital asset identification tag to a first one of the another clients having a copy of the digital asset during a first connection session and transmits the updated digital asset identification tag to a second of the another clients having a copy of the digital asset during a second connection session.

9. A computer readable medium having executable instructions thereon to propagate a digital asset identification tag associated with a digital asset of a distributed computing environment, the environment having a central computing device that at least stores the digital asset identification tag for the digital asset and one or more clients that locally stores the digital asset, the computer readable medium comprising:

(a) instructions to receive a command from a client of the distributed computing system to a central computing resource of the central computing device, the command comprising an indication that a change occurred to the asset identification tag of a digital asset of the client and the changed digital asset identification tag;

(b) instructions to locate the digital asset identification tag at the central computing resource;

(c) instructions to update the digital asset identification tag in response to the received command to generate an updated digital asset identification tag; and

(d) instructions to transmit to another client having a copy of the digital asset the updated digital asset identification tag;

wherein the digital asset identification tag includes a global unique identifier field which is constructed and arranged to store a global unique identifier of the digital asset to uniquely identify the digital asset among other digital assets;

wherein the instructions to receive the command includes instructions to obtain, within the global unique identifier field of the digital asset identification tag, the global unique identifier of the digital asset;

the global unique identifier being a hash result generated via application of a hash result generated via application of a hash function, by a client, to contents of the digital asset; and

wherein the digital asset identification tag further includes a level identifier field which is constructed and arranged to store a level identifier one of (i) an “

unmanaged”

value indicating that the digital asset identification tag is not persistently stored by the client and not persistently stored by the central computing device, (ii) a “

managed”

value indicating that the digital asset identification tag is persistently stored by the client and not persistently stored by the central computing device, and (iii) a “

records managed”

value indicating that the digital asset identification tag is persistently stored by the client and persistently stored by the central computing device.

10. The computer readable medium of claim 9 wherein the instructions to receive a command include instructions to receive a command that indicate that the change comprises the creation of a digital asset.

11. The computer readable medium of claim 9 wherein the instructions to transmit comprise instructions to transmit the updated digital asset identification tag during a different connection session than the receiving.

12. The computer readable medium of claim 9 wherein the instructions to transmit comprise instructions to transmit to a first one of the another clients having a copy of the digital asset the updated digital asset identification tag during a first connection session and transmitting to a second of the another clients having a copy of the digital asset the updated digital asset identification tag during a second connection session.

15. The computer readable medium of claim 9 wherein the instructions to locate the digital asset identification tag at the central computing resource includes instructions to persistently store the digital asset identification tag in the central computing device while the digital asset (i) is stored locally at the client and (ii) is not stored at the central computing device;

and

wherein the instructions to update the digital asset identification tag includes instructions to persistently store the updated digital asset identification tag in the central computing device while the digital asset (i) remains stored locally at the client and (ii) is not stored at the central computing device.