Intelligent network streaming and execution system for conventionally coded applications

• US 8,438,298 B2
• Filed: 06/13/2006
• Issued: 05/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Numecent Holdings Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Endeavors Technologies, Inc. (DivestCap Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Arai, Daniel T., Panwar, Sameer, Benitez, Manuel E., Holler, Anne M., Shah, Lacky
• Primary Examiner(s): SHAW, PETER C
• Application Number:
  US11/453,301
• Publication Number:
  US 20080178298A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,520 Days
• Field of Search: 709/219, 709/203, 709/213, 709/231, 711/170, 711/171
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/1083 Partial license transfers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/34 involving the use of external additional devices, e.g. dongles or smart cards
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 applying security measures for digital rights management data processing systems or methods, specially adapted for commerce, e.g. marketing, shopping, billing, auctions or e-commerce G06Q30/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/289 Intermediate processing functionally located close to the data consumer application, e.g. in same machine, in same home or in same sub-network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/568 Storing data temporarily at an intermediate stage, e.g. caching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5681 Pre-fetching or pre-delivering data based on network characteristics
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/5682 Policies or rules for updating, deleting or replacing the stored data

Abstract

An intelligent network streaming and execution system for conventionally coded applications provides a system that partitions an application program into page segments by observing the manner in which the application program is conventionally installed. A minimal portion of the application program is installed on a client system and the user launches the application in the same ways that applications on other client file systems are started. An application program server streams the page segments to the client as the application program executes on the client and the client stores the page segments in a cache. Page segments are requested by the client from the application server whenever a page fault occurs from the cache for the application program. The client prefetches page segments from the application server or the application server pushes additional page segments to the client based on the pattern of page segment requests for that particular application. The user subscribes and unsubscribes to application programs, whenever the user accesses an application program a securely encrypted access token is obtained from a license server if the user has a valid subscription to the application program. The application server begins streaming the requested page segments to the client when it receives a valid access token from the client. The client performs server load balancing across a plurality of application servers. If the client observes a non-response or slow response condition from an application server or license server, it switches to another application or license server.

Claims

1. A method for providing secure license-based streaming delivery of a program over a network, comprising:

identifying a particular user;

receiving a request to stream a program on behalf of the particular user;

generating an access token unique to the particular user and the program;

providing a secure license comprising the access token;

providing, from a server, all active pages of the program to a client, wherein the active pages of the program are executed at the client as inactive portions of the program are streamed from the server;

receiving a message to release the access token if the client executing the active pages of the program associated with the particular user crashes or the particular user is to be evicted from having access to the program;

releasing the access token;

ceasing streaming the inactive portions of the program from the server when the access token is released; and

performing load balancing among a plurality of application servers for page segment requests.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

partitioning the program into page segments;

downloading the page segments at the client.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising managing a cache at the client by purging page segments that are stale or not needed.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the client does not request page segments that already reside in a cache.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising subscribing or unsubscribing at a subscription server.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the message to release the access token associated with the program is received after the expiry time.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising prefetching page segments associated with the program based on profile information.

9. The system of claim 2, wherein the application server is further operative to:

partition the application into page segments;

upload the page segments to the client.

8. A system comprising:

a subscription server operative to facilitate subscription to an application by a client, the subscription server operative to identify a particular user associated with the client;

a license server operative to provide a license to the client to run the application, the license server configured to;

receive a request to stream the application on behalf of the particular user;

generate an access token unique to the particular user and the application;

provide a secure license comprising the access token;

an application server operative to;

provide all active pages of the application to the client, wherein the active portions of the application are executed as inactive portions of the application are streamed, and the application is not fully installed on the client;

receive a message to release the access token if the client executing the active pages of the application associated with the particular user crashes or the particular user is to be evicted from having access to the application;

release the access token;

cease streaming the inactive portions of the application when the access token is released.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the application is not recompiled, rewritten, or rebuilt by the application server.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the license server is configured to receive a message to release the access token after the expiry time-when the application is no longer running.

12. The system of claim 8, further comprising a profile information database characterizing typical page segment needs of the application.

13. A system comprising:

a processor and a memory;

a client license manager for requesting a license to stream an application on behalf of a particular user, wherein, if the particular user has a valid subscription to the application, the client license manager is configured to receive an access token unique to the particular user and the application and to receive a secure license comprising the access token, wherein the client license manager provides an instruction to release the access token if the application associated with the particular user crashes or the particular user is to be evicted from having access to the application;

a client cache manager for caching pages of the application on the client so that subsequent requests for pages of the application can be served by the cache;

a client streaming file system for serving file system requests from the application for pages by handling page faults associated with the file system requests, asking the client cache manager for the pages, and if the pages are not cached at the client, asking an application server for the pages;

a client prefetcher for requesting pages from the application server before the client streaming file system serves a file system request from the application at the client;

a client file spoofer for intercepting file requests and redirecting the file requests to the client streaming file system, wherein the client receives, from the system, all active pages of the application, and the active pages of the application are executed at the client as inactive portions of the application are streamed from the client streaming file system.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the client cache manager is further for purging page segments that are stale or not needed.

15. The system of claim 13, further comprising a client subscription manager for subscribing or unsubscribing at a subscription server.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the client license manager is configured to send a message to release the access token associated with the application after the expiry time, thereby indicating when the application is no longer running.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the client prefetcher is further for prefetching page segments associated with the application based on profile information.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein the client streaming file system is further for performing load balancing among a plurality of application servers for page segment requests.

19. The system of claim 13, wherein the application is one of a plurality of applications, further comprising a client profiler for sending profile information to the application server, which is for updating application prefetch lists for the plurality of applications in accordance with the profile information.