Method for a cloud-based meta-file system to virtually unify remote and local files across a range of devices' local file systems

• US 8,296,338 B2
• Filed: 05/05/2010
• Issued: 10/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Entangled Media LLC (Entangled Media Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Entangled Media Corp.
• Inventors: Caso, Erik, Abraham, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Ho, Binh V.
• Application Number:
  US12/774,231
• Publication Number:
  US 20100287219A1
• Time in Patent Office: 902 Days
• Field of Search: 707/827
• US Class Current: 707/827
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/134 Distributed indices

Abstract

A system and process that establish a singular shared file system among devices in order to create a virtual representation of data on all of the devices via metadata indexing. This virtual representation of data means that the files are not actually stored on all devices and thus, with the exception of a single physical location, they do not need to take up any space (i.e. storage) on any additional device'"'"'s hard drive. This allows for significant amounts of data to be virtually stored on each device, even if there is no physical storage room available for the data on each device. The system and process do not require data to be stored on a provider server, but instead stores only lightweight metadata, i.e., a small fraction of information about the files, online.

Claims

1. A process for establishing a singular file system across multiple devices comprising:

receiving user information to open an account for establishing a singular file system across multiple devices via a web-based system that includes at least one server;

installing an individual software client on each of the multiple devices via the web-based system;

accepting registration of multiple devices via the web-based system;

scanning each of the multiple devices by each of the individual software clients to inventory data on each of the multiple devices and create a meta-index of the files for the inventoried data;

providing by the individual software clients via the multiple devices individual meta-indices of the inventoried data for each of the multiple devices to the at least one server;

integrating by the at least one server the individual meta-indices to create a single master meta-index;

providing by the at least one server the single master meta-index and meta-indices for each of the other multiple devices to each of the multiple devices via the individual software clients;

integrating metadata from the meta-indices of each of the other multiple devices into a local file system of each of the multiple devices to generate virtual files stored in the same locations as local files of the local file system, the virtual files indistinguishable from the local files by the local file system at each of the multiple devices; and

continually updating the single master meta-index on the at least one server and each of the multiple devices in response to changes to the data indexed thereon,

wherein the individual software clients facilitate storage of the data within each of the multiple devices in accordance with the single meta-data index by modifying file systems of each of the multiple devices to include virtual files for data from the single meta-data index that is not local to a multiple device.

2. The process according to claim 1 wherein the individual software clients vary according to the individual operating systems of each of the multiple devices.

3. The process according to claim 1 wherein registration of the multiple devices includes selection of categories of data for each of the multiple devices to be inventoried.

4. The process according to claim 3 wherein categories of data include documents, videos, pictures and music.

5. The process according to claim 1, wherein the individual software clients facilitate creation of a visual representation of the virtual files on a remote one of each of the multiple devices that is indistinguishable from a visual representation of an actual file that is located on a local one of the multiple devices.

6. The process according to claim 1, wherein the meta-data includes at least information regarding file name, file type, file size, local path the file is stored in, date created, and date modified.

7. A system for establishing a singular file system across multiple devices comprising:

a web-accessible server;

at least one software client plug-in;

multiple devices for storing and operating on files;

wherein the web-accessible server receives user information to open an account for establishing a singular file system across multiple devices, installs the at least one software plug-in on each of the multiple devices, accepts registration of the multiple devices, wherein the at least one software plug-in varies in accordance with an operating system of each of the multiple devices;

further wherein the at least one software client plug-in scans its respective one of the multiple devices to inventory files thereon, creates a meta-index to files for the inventoried data, provides the meta-index of the inventoried data for its respective one of the multiple devices to the web-accessible server;

further wherein the web-accessible server receives meta-indices from each of the multiple devices and integrates the meta-indices to create a single meta-index, provides the single meta-index and meta-indices for each of the other multiple devices to each of the multiple devices via the individual software clients, integrates at each of the multiple devices metadata from the meta-indices of each of the other multiple devices into a local file system of each of the multiple devices to generate virtual files stored in the same locations as local files of the local file system, the virtual files indistinguishable from the local files by the local file system at each of the multiple devices, and continually updates the single meta-index on each of the multiple devices in response to operations on the files indexed thereon,

wherein the individual software clients facilitate storage of the data within each of the multiple devices in accordance with the single meta-data index by modifying file systems of each of the multiple devices to include virtual files for data from the single meta-data index that is not local to a multiple device.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein the at least one software client plug-in facilitates storage of the files within its respective one of the multiple devices in accordance with the meta-data by modifying a file system of its respective one of the multiple devices to include virtual files for files from the single meta-index that are not local to the multiple device.

9. The process according to claim 8, wherein the at least one software client plug-in facilitates creation of a visual representation of the virtual files on its respective one of the multiple devices that is indistinguishable from a visual representation of an actual file that is physically located on a another of the multiple devices.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a set of instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations, comprising:

registering multiple devices with an account for establishing a singular file system across the multiple devices;

scanning each of the multiple devices to inventory data on each of the multiple devices and create a meta-index of the files for the inventory data;

generating a single master meta-index from meta-indices of files corresponding to inventory data on each of the multiple devices;

providing the single master meta-index and meta-indices for each of the other multiple devices to each of the multiple devices, metadata from the meta-indices of each of the other multiple devices to be integrated into a local file system of each of the multiple devices to generate virtual files stored in the same locations as local files of the local file system, the virtual files indistinguishable from the local files by the local file system at each of the multiple devices; and

facilitating storage of data within each of the multiple devices in accordance with the single master meta-index by modifying file systems of each of the multiple devices to include virtual files for data from the single master meta-data index that is not local to a multiple device.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, further comprising:

continually updating the single master meta-index on each of the multiple devices in response to changes to the data indexed thereon.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, further comprising:

updating the single master meta-index on each of the multiple devices in response to changes to meta-indices of a local file of one of the multiple devices.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, further comprising:

updating the single master meta-index on each of the multiple devices in response to changes to a local file of a first device, the local file corresponding to a virtual file of a second device, the local file system of the second device retrieving the local file from the first device.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the virtual files and the local files in the first device are indistinguishable by the local file system of the first device.