Shared resource discovery, configuration, and consumption for networked solutions

• US 8,375,130 B2
• Filed: 12/16/2010
• Issued: 02/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Eberlein, Peter, Said, Bare
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Philip B
• Application Number:
  US12/970,873
• Publication Number:
  US 20120158966A1
• Time in Patent Office: 789 Days
• Field of Search: 709223-224, 709/226, 709/220
• US Class Current: 709/226
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0813 characterised by the conditions triggering a change of settings
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/085 Retrieval of network configuration; Tracking network configuration history
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5058 Service discovery by the service manager

Abstract

A networked solution offering a software-based service via a networked architecture having a system landscape can discover a shared resource within the system landscape, for example by accessing a landscape directory comprising information about a plurality of shared resources available in the system landscape. The information about the discovered shared resource can include a second networked solution within the system landscape that has previously configured the discovered shared resource. Configuration settings can be retrieved for the discovered shared resource from the second networked solution. Using the retrieved configuration settings, a shared resource-specific communication channel can be determined for the networked solution to access the discovered shared resource in a peer-to-peer manner. A resource type-specific application programming interface can be provided to the software-based service to enable consumption of the discovered shared resource by the software-based service. Related methods, systems, and articles of manufacture are described.

Claims

1. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory machine-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by at least one programmable processor, cause the at least one programmable processor to perform operations comprising:

discovering, by a networked solution offering a software-based service via a networked architecture having a system landscape, a discovered shared resource within the system landscape, the discovering comprising accessing a landscape directory comprising information about a plurality of shared resources available in the system landscape, the information about the discovered shared resource comprising a second networked solution within the system landscape that has previously configured the discovered shared resource;

retrieving configuration settings for the discovered shared resource from the second networked solution;

determining, using the retrieved configuration settings, a shared resource-specific communication channel for the networked solution to access the discovered shared resource in a peer-to-peer manner; and

providing a resource type-specific application programming interface to the software-based service to enable consumption of the discovered shared resource by the software-based service.

2. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

adding the discovered shared resource to a locally stored list of available shared resources that are available to the networked solution.

3. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

announcing, by the networked solution, an availability of a new shared resource upon addition and configuration by the networked solution of the new shared resource, the announcing comprising sending, to at least one other networked solution, information about the new shared resource collected from an administrator when the new shared resource is configured in the networked solution.

4. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the retrieving of the configuration settings occurs at a time selected from immediately after the discovering of the discovered shared resource, when the discovered shared resource is first needed by the networked solution, and when previously retrieved configuration settings for the discovered shared resource are determined to no longer be valid.

5. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

delivering, by the networked solution to a second networked resource in the system landscape in response to a peer-to-peer request from the second networked resource, at least one of the discovered shared resource and another shared resource that the networked solution has previously configured.

6. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the networked architecture comprises a multi-tenant software architecture comprising an application server and a data repository, the application server providing access for each of a plurality of organizations to one of a plurality of client tenants, each of the plurality of client tenants comprising a customizable, organization-specific version of a core software platform;

and

wherein the networked solution comprises an externally provided application that requires one or more local shared resources of a client machine accessing one of the plurality of tenants.

7. A system comprising:

at least one programmable processor; and

at least one machine-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one programmable processor, cause the at least one programmable processor to perform operations comprising;

discovering, by a networked solution offering a software-based service via a networked architecture having a system landscape, a discovered shared resource within the system landscape, the discovering comprising accessing a landscape directory comprising information about a plurality of shared resources available in the system landscape, the information about the discovered shared resource comprising a second networked solution within the system landscape that has previously configured the discovered shared resource;

retrieving configuration settings for the discovered shared resource from the second networked solution;

determining, using the retrieved configuration settings, a shared resource-specific communication channel for the networked solution to access the discovered shared resource in a peer-to-peer manner; and

providing a resource type-specific application programming interface to the software-based service to enable consumption of the discovered shared resource by the software-based service.

8. A system as in claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise:

adding the discovered shared resource to a locally stored list of available shared resources that are available to the networked solution.

9. A system as in claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise:

announcing, by the networked solution, an availability of a new shared resource upon addition and configuration by the networked solution of the new shared resource, the announcing comprising sending, to at least one other networked solution, information about the new shared resource collected from an administrator when the new shared resource is configured in the networked solution.

10. A system as in claim 7, wherein the retrieving of the configuration settings occurs at a time selected from immediately after the discovering of the discovered shared resource, when the discovered shared resource is first needed by the networked solution, and when previously retrieved configuration settings for the discovered shared resource are determined to no longer be valid.

11. A system as in claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise:

delivering, by the networked solution to a second networked resource in the system landscape in response to a peer-to-peer request from the second networked resource, at least one of the discovered shared resource and another shared resource that the networked solution has previously configured.

12. A system as in claim 7, wherein the networked architecture comprises a multi-tenant software architecture comprising an application server and a data repository, the application server providing access for each of a plurality of organizations to one of a plurality of client tenants, each of the plurality of client tenants comprising a customizable, organization-specific version of a core software platform;

and

wherein the networked solution comprises an externally provided application that requires one or more local shared resources of a client machine accessing one of the plurality of tenants.

13. A computer-implemented method comprising:

discovering, by a networked solution offering a software-based service via a networked architecture having a system landscape, a discovered shared resource within the system landscape, the discovering comprising accessing a landscape directory comprising information about a plurality of shared resources available in the system landscape, the information about the discovered shared resource comprising a second networked solution within the system landscape that has previously configured the discovered shared resource;

retrieving configuration settings for the discovered shared resource from the second networked solution;

determining, using the retrieved configuration settings, a shared resource-specific communication channel for the networked solution to access the discovered shared resource in a peer-to-peer manner; and

providing a resource type-specific application programming interface to the software-based service to enable consumption of the discovered shared resource by the software-based service.

14. A method as in claim 13, further comprising:

adding the discovered shared resource to a locally stored list of available shared resources that are available to the networked solution.

15. A method as in claim 13, further comprising:

announcing, by the networked solution, an availability of a new shared resource upon addition and configuration by the networked solution of the new shared resource, the announcing comprising sending, to at least one other networked solution, information about the new shared resource collected from an administrator when the new shared resource is configured in the networked solution.

16. A method as in claim 13, wherein the retrieving of the configuration settings occurs at a time selected from immediately after the discovering of the discovered shared resource, when the discovered shared resource is first needed by the networked solution, and when previously retrieved configuration settings for the discovered shared resource are determined to no longer be valid.

17. A method as in claim 13, further comprising:

delivering, by the networked solution to a second networked resource in the system landscape in response to a peer-to-peer request from the second networked resource, at least one of the discovered shared resource and another shared resource that the networked solution has previously configured.

18. A method as in claim 13, wherein the networked architecture comprises a multi-tenant software architecture comprising an application server and a data repository, the application server providing access for each of a plurality of organizations to one of a plurality of client tenants, each of the plurality of client tenants comprising a customizable, organization-specific version of a core software platform;

and

wherein the networked solution comprises an externally provided application that requires one or more local shared resources of a client machine accessing one of the plurality of tenants.

19. A method as in claim 13, wherein at least one of the discovering, the retrieving, the determining, and the providing is performed on at least one processor.