Mobile service context

• US 8,818,994 B2
• Filed: 03/28/2012
• Issued: 08/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BMC Software Incorporated (KKR & Co., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: BMC Software Incorporated (KKR & Co., Inc.)
• Inventors: Kowalski, Vincent Joseph, King, Simon Jeremy, Shor, Tamar
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, PHONG H
• Application Number:
  US13/432,888
• Publication Number:
  US 20120330702A1
• Time in Patent Office: 881 Days
• Field of Search: 707/722, 707/754, 707/769, 707/803, 707/809
• US Class Current: 707/722
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0639 Performance analysis of employees; Performance analysis of enterprise or organisation operations

Abstract

According to one general aspect, a method may include requesting, from a database and by a program executing on a mobile computing device, at least a portion of a business service context regarding a business service. The method may also include receiving, from the database, an aggregated database result regarding the business service. The aggregated database result may include the requested business service context and wherein the business service context includes information from a plurality of applications. The method may also include displaying, via the mobile computing device, at least a portion of the information included by the business service context.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

requesting, by an host application executed by a processor of a mobile computing device, a business service context regarding a business service, the business service being an application or device within an Information Technology (IT) environment, the application associated with the business service including an application related to an email server, file server, Help-Desk application, a customer relationship management (CRM) application, or an automation application, the business service context including a plurality of attributes associated with the business service;

receiving, by a network interface of the mobile computing device and from an at least partially virtual database, an aggregated database result regarding the business service, the at least partially virtual database including a storage portion having non-virtual fields and a cache having virtual fields associated with the plurality of attributes, the aggregated database result being an aggregation of virtual values from the virtual fields and non-virtual values from the non-virtual fields, wherein the virtual values are received and temporally stored in the cache of the at least partially virtual database from at least one of a plurality of business applications remote from the host application to be aggregated with the non-virtual values to form the aggregated database result, the virtual values including calculated performance metrics associated with the business service; and

displaying, via the mobile computing device and within a context of the host application, the business service context including the virtual values and non-virtual values of the aggregated database result associated with the plurality of attributes.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the aggregated database result is received in response to a single database query transaction.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein requesting the business service context includes:

receiving a list of business services from a remote computing device; and

selecting a business service from one of the business services included by the list of business services.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein displaying includes displaying a first portion of information include by the business service context;

and further including;

receiving a request to display more detailed information regarding at least one aspect of the business service context; and

displaying a second portion of information of the business service context providing the more detailed information.

5. The method of claim 1, further including:

transmitting a message to a remote computing device to associate the mobile computing device with the business service; and

receiving a notification from the remote computing device when at least one predefined event regarding the business service has occurred.

6. The method of claim 1, further including:

transmitting at least a portion of information included by the business service context from the mobile computing device to a second mobile computing device.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein transmitting the portion of the information included by the business service context to a second mobile computing device includes:

instructing a remote computing device to provide the portion of the information included by the business service context to a user, and wherein the user is associated with the second computing device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein displaying a graphical user interface element includes:

displaying a business service linking user interface element that when selected causes a second business service context to be created and displayed, wherein the second business service context is associated with a second business service indicated by the business service linking user interface element.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the non-virtual values include a description of the business service and identification of an owner associated with the business service, and the calculated performance metrics includes a number of configuration items associated with the business service.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the business service context is displayed in a standardized format regardless of a type of the host application.

11. A mobile computing device comprising:

at least one processor configured to execute a host application; and

a network interface configured to;

request a business service context regarding a business service, the business service being an application or device within an Information Technology (IT) environment, the application associated with the business service including an application related to an email server, file server, Help-Desk application, a customer relationship management (CRM) application, or an automation application, the business service context including a plurality of attributes, and

receive, from an at least partially virtual database, an aggregated database result regarding the business service, the at least partially virtual database including a storage portion having non-virtual fields and a cache having virtual fields associated with the plurality of attributes, the aggregated database result being an aggregation of virtual values from the virtual fields and non-virtual values from the non-virtual fields, wherein the virtual values are received and temporally stored in the cache of the at least partially virtual database from at least one of a plurality of business applications remote from the host application to be aggregated with the non-virtual values to form the aggregated database result, the virtual values including calculated performance metrics associated with the business service,

wherein the at least one processor is configured to provide a display of the business service context within a context of the host application, the displayed business service context including the virtual values and the non-virtual values of the aggregated database result associated with the plurality of attributes.

12. The mobile computing device of claim 11, wherein the network interface is configured to:

receive a list of business services from a remote computing device; and

wherein the microprocessor is configured to;

select a business service from one of the business services included by the list of business services.

13. The mobile computing device of claim 11, wherein the at least one processor is configured to display a first portion of information include by the business service context;

and the at least one processor is configured to;

in response to a request to view more detailed information regarding at least one aspect of the business service context, cause the monitor to display a second portion of information of the business service context providing the more detailed information.

14. The mobile computing device of claim 11, wherein the network interface is configured to:

transmit a message to a remote computing device that associates the mobile computing device with the business service; and

receive a notification message from the remote computing device when at least one predefined event regarding the business service has occurred.

15. The mobile computing device of claim 14, wherein the network interface is configured to:

receive, from a database, an aggregated database result regarding an unrequested business service.

16. The mobile computing device of claim 14, wherein the network interface is configured to:

transmit a message to the remote computing device that causes a user to be associated with a group of users, wherein the group of users is associated with at least one business service.

17. The mobile computing device of claim 11, wherein the network interface is configured to:

transmit, from the mobile computing device to a second computing device, a message that includes at least a portion of information included by the business service context.

18. The mobile computing device of claim 17, wherein the message:

instructs a remote computing device to provide the portion of the information included by the business service context to a user, and wherein the user is associated with the second computing device.

19. The mobile computing device of claim 11, wherein the at least one processor is configured to:

display a business service linking user interface element that when selected causes a second business service context to be created and displayed, wherein the second business service context is associated with a second business service indicated by the business service linking user interface element.

20. A computer program product being tangibly and non-transitorily embodied on a computer-readable medium and including executable code that, when executed, is configured to cause a mobile computing apparatus to:

request, by a host application, a business service context regarding a business service, the business service being an application or device within an Information Technology (IT) environment, the application associated with the business service including an application related to an email server, file server, Help-Desk application, a customer relationship management (CRM) application, or an automation application, the business service context including a plurality of attributes associated with the business service;

receive, from an at least partially virtual database, an aggregated database result regarding the business service, the at least partially virtual database including a storage portion having non-virtual fields and a cache having virtual fields associated with the plurality of attributes, the aggregated database result being an aggregation of virtual values from the virtual fields and non-virtual values from the non-virtual fields, wherein the virtual values are received and temporally stored in the cache of the at least partially virtual database from at least one of a plurality of business applications remote from the host application to be aggregated with the non-virtual values to form the aggregated database result, the virtual values including calculated performance metrics associated with the business service; and

display, via the mobile computing device and within a context of the host application, the business service context including the virtual values and non-virtual values of the aggregated database result associated with the plurality of attributes.