System and method for preventing duplicate file uploads in a synchronized content management system

• US 8,903,838 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2012
• Issued: 12/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dropbox, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Dropbox, Inc.
• Inventors: Hunter, Rian, Euresti, David, Smith, Brian, Chen, Alicia, Sydell, Alex, Motes, Aston, Tang, Jie
• Primary Examiner(s): AL HASHEMI, SANA A
• Application Number:
  US13/723,820
• Publication Number:
  US 20140122447A1
• Time in Patent Office: 711 Days
• Field of Search: 707/661, 707/674, 707/736, 707/758, 707/791, 707/822, 707/828
• US Class Current: 707/758
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/137 Hash-based content-based indexing of textual data G06F16/31
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/174 Redundancy elimination performed by the file system management of the data involved in backup or backup restore using de-duplication of the data G06F11/14
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/178 Techniques for file synchronisation in file systems

Abstract

A method and system for preventing duplicate file uploads in a remote content management system is described. The user device receives a hash value list associated with the files stored in the remote content management system. The user device calculates a hash value associated with new files to be uploaded. The system then compares the hash value(s) associated with the new file(s) to be uploaded with the hash value list received from the remote file storage system. If the hash values of any of the new files to be uploaded match a hash value on the hash value list, then the system prevents the new files from being uploaded to the remote file storage system.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of preventing duplicate files in an account on a content management system that is associated with a particular user, comprising:

maintaining, by at least one server, a hash value list, each of the hash values on the list corresponding to a respective file that has been received by the at least one server for storage within the account;

enabling an upload of a file from a client device to the at least one server for storage within the account;

at least partially in response to receiving the file, calculating a hash value for the file;

determining whether the calculated hash value for the file is on the hash value list maintained by the at least one server;

at least partially in response to determining that the calculated hash value is not included in the hash value list;

creating an updated hash value list by adding the calculated hash value to the hash value list, and

storing the uploaded file in the account.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, at least partially in response to determining that the calculated hash value is included in the hash value list, transmitting the hash value list to the client device.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a hash value from the client device for the uploaded file.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, wherein the file has data that forms the file that is expressed in bytes, and wherein the received hash value is calculated based on at least one attribute of the file and at least a portion of the bytes that form the file.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein,

the at least one attribute is a size of the file;

and

the at least a portion of the bytes is a first 8 kilobytes of the file.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein the client device is a mobile device.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein the calculated hash value is based on all of the data that forms the file.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, further comprising based on determining that the calculated hash value is not included in the hash value list, updating the hash value list, maintained by the at least one server, by adding the received hash value to the list.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, further comprising transmitting, by the at least one server, the updated hash value list to the client device.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the file is a photo.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the content management system is a synched file sharing system.

12. A system for preventing duplicate files associated with an account on a content management system that is linked to at least one client device, comprising:

at least one processor; and

memory operatively coupled to the at least one processor;

wherein the at least one processor is configured to;

maintain a hash value list for at least one file that is;

associated with the account; and

stored in the memory of the content management system;

receive at least one file from the at least one client device;

calculate a hash value for the received at least one file; and

store the at least one file if the calculated hash value for the received at least one file is not on the list of hash value.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the at least one client device is a mobile device.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to receive a hash value from the at least one client device, wherein the received hash value is calculated based on at least one attribute of the received at least one file and at least a portion of bytes that form the received at least one file.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the calculated hash value is based on all of the bytes that form the received at least one file.

16. A system for preventing duplicate file uploads to an account on a content management system, wherein the account is linked to at least one client device, comprising:

means for maintaining a hash value list for a plurality of stored files stored in memory that is operatively coupled to the content management system, wherein the plurality of stored files are associated with the account;

a means to enable a transfer of a file from the at least one client device;

a means for calculating a hash value for the transferred file;

a means for determining whether the calculated hash value is included on the hash value list; and

a means of storing the transferred file in the memory.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein:

the transferred file is comprised of bytes; and

the calculated hash value is based on all of the bytes that comprise the transferred file.

18. The system of claim 16, further comprising a means of receiving a hash value from the at least one client device.

19. The system of claim 18, further comprising a means of updating the hash value list to include the calculated hash value and the received hash value if the calculated hash value is not included on the hash value list maintained on the content management system.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising a means of transmitting the updated hash value list to a plurality of client devices associated with the account.

21. The system of claim 16, wherein the content management system is a means for synchronizing files across multiple client devices linked to a user'"'"'s account on the content management system.

22. The system of claim 16, wherein the hash value list includes a hash value corresponding to a first file received from a first client device configured to run a first operating system and a second hash value corresponding to a second file received from a second client device configured to run a second operating system.