Methods and systems for providing access to an application

• US 8,135,843 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2002
• Issued: 03/13/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Citrix Systems, Inc. (Cloud Software Group)
• Original Assignee: Citrix Systems, Inc. (Cloud Software Group)
• Inventors: Kramer, Andre
• Primary Examiner(s): BLAIR, DOUGLAS B
• Application Number:
  US10/104,863
• Publication Number:
  US 20030182392A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,644 Days
• Field of Search: 709/217, 709/219, 709/227, 709/245, 719/311, 719/328, 719/329
• US Class Current: 709/227
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking

Abstract

The invention enables the publishing of a graphical user interface application on the web in a manner so that they can be discovered by manual or automatic searches. The invention includes the step of receiving a service access point (SAP) from a web service directory. The SAP is associated with a first application and identifies a web server. The invention also includes the step of retrieving address information associated with the first application from the web server identified by the SAP and launching a second application. The second application establishes a communication channel with an application server identified by the retrieved address information. The application server subsequently executes the first application and returns information to the second application.

Claims

1. A method of providing access to a remote application to an application client or end user application comprising:

(a) receiving, by a client, from a web service directory on a content server, a service access point associated with a first application, the service access point identifying a web server;

(b) receiving, by the client, from the web server identified by the service access point, address information associated with the first application;

(c) launching, by the client, a second application, the second application communicating via a presentation layer protocol with an application server identified by the received address information; and

(d) launching, by the application server, the first application and returning information to the second application via the presentation layer protocol.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising transmitting a query to the web service directory to search for the first application prior to step (a).

3. The method of claim 1 wherein step (a) comprises receiving the address of a web server and receiving a key for locating information associated with the first application in a database local to the first application.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein step (b) comprises receiving a MIME document including the address information associated with a first application.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the second application comprises an application client.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising installing the application client prior to step (c).

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the step (c) further comprises transmitting the address information to the application server via the presentation layer protocol.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first application comprises a GUI application.

9. A client device for use in a system for executing a remote first application provided by a service provider on a web service directory, the client comprising:

a client browser, the client browser (a) receiving, from a web service directory on a content server, a service access point associated with the first application, the service access point identifying a web server and (b) receiving address information associated with the first application from the web server identified by the service access point; and

an application client, the application client (a) being launched in response to the received address information, (b) communicating via a presentation layer protocol with an application server identified by the received address information to receive data from the first application; and

c) launching, by the application server, the first application and returning information to the application client.

10. The client device of claim 9 wherein the received address information is included in a MIME document.

11. The client device of claim 10 wherein the MIME document is an Independent Computing Architecture file type.

12. A method of providing access to a remote application to an application client or end user application comprising:

a) sending, by a client, a query to a web service directory on a content server for information associated with a first application;

b) transmitting, to the client, from the web service directory, a service access point associated with the first application, the service access point identifying a web server;

c) receiving, by the client, address information associated with the first application from the web server identified by the service access point;

d) launching, by the client, a second application, the second application communicating via a presentation layer protocol with an application server identified by the received address information; and

e) launching, by the application server, the first application and returning information to the second application via the presentation layer protocol.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein step (b) further comprises receiving an address of the web server and receiving a key for locating information associated with the first application in a database local to the first application.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein step (c) further comprises accessing a database local to the first application using a key contained within the service access point and having the local database return address information associated with the first application.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein step (c) comprises receiving a MIME document including the address information associated with a first application.

16. The method of claim 12 wherein the second application is an application client.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising installing the application client prior to step (d).

18. The method of claim 12 wherein the first application is a GUI application.

19. A method of providing access to a remote application to an application client or end user application comprising:

a) receiving, by a content server, from a client, a request to access a service access point associated with a first application;

b) identifying, by the content server, that the requested service access point can be used with an application client;

c) requesting, by the client, from a web server, address information associated with the first application identified by the service access point;

d) converting, by the web server, the requested address information into a file, the format of the file associated with the application client;

e) transmitting, by the web server, the file including the converted address information to the client;

(f) launching by the client a second application, the second application communicating via a presentation layer protocol with an application server identified by the converted address information; and

(g) launching by the application server the first application and returning information to the second application via the presentation layer protocol.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the service access point is identified in a web service directory.

21. The method of claim 19 further comprising transmitting the application client to the client.

22. The method of claim 19 further comprising sending, by the client, a query to a web service directory for information associated with a first application.

23. The method of claim 19 further comprising transmitting to the client from a web service directory the service access point associated with the first application, the service access point identifying a web server.

24. The method of claim 19 further comprising launching by the client an application client, the application client communicating via a presentation layer protocol with an application server identified by the received address information.

25. The method of claim 19 further comprising receiving an address of the web server and receiving a key for locating information associated with the first application in a local database.

26. The method of claim 19 further comprising accessing a local database using a key contained within the service access point and having the local database return address information associated with the first application.

27. The method of claim 19 wherein step (c) comprises receiving a MIME document including the address information associated with a first application.

28. The method of claim 19 further comprising installing the second client on the client.

29. The method of claim 19 wherein the first application is a GUI application.

30. The method of claim 19 wherein the second application is a GUI application.