Bundling of web application code for optimized delivery

• US 9,052,914 B2
• Filed: 09/15/2012
• Issued: 06/09/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kieffer, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, VAN H
• Application Number:
  US13/620,850
• Publication Number:
  US 20130174182A1
• Time in Patent Office: 997 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/986 Document structures and storage, e.g. HTML extensions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/14 Tree-structured documents parsing G06F40/205; validation G06F40/226
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/60 Software deployment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44 Arrangements for executing specific programs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/445 Program loading or initiating bootstrapping G06F9/4401; security arrangements for program loading or initiating G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44521 Dynamic linking or loading; Link editing at or after load time, e.g. Java class loading
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• 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 69/04 Protocols for data compression, e.g. ROHC
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

Application code for deployment to a client over a data link is optimized to minimize download time by supplying only the application code with a particular object that is required by the object. In a web application that includes multiple pages, the HTML and JAVASCRIPT are scanned to identify code resources called by a particular web page. When all called resources are identified, they are extracted and concatenated into a single resource file. When the page is downloaded to the client, the import file is included with the page. The import file may be cached so that it need only be downloaded once, rather than being downloaded every time the page is requested. The invention is suitable for use with other interpreted scripting languages.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

identifying, by a server, one or more first external code resources referenced by a web page hosted by the server;

inspecting, by the server, using at least one processor, the one or more first external code resources to identify one or more second external code resources referenced by the one or more first external code resources to determine a set of code external to the web page utilized for one or more features of the web page to function;

bundling, by the server, the one or more first external code resources and the one or more second external code resources into an import file; and

sending the import file to a client device in response to a request from the client device to access the web page,

wherein identifying one or more first external code resources referenced by a web page comprises identifying markup language code and one or more scripting language code blocks referenced by the web page.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying one or more first external code resources referenced by a web page comprises identifying any entry points into the markup language code and the one or more scripting language code blocks.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein inspecting, using at least one processor, the one or more first external code resources to identify one or more second external code resources referenced by the one or more first external code resources comprises following a call path from each of the one or more first external code resources.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising determining that the one or more first external code resources and the one or more second external code resources are actually used by the web page prior to bundling the one or more first external code resources and the one or more second external code resources into the import file.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein following a call path from each of the one or more first external code resources comprises following a call path until one of:

a code resource is encountered that does not call any further code resources, a code resource is encountered that calls a system function, or a code resource is encountered that is actually used.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising creating, by the server, a resource list of all external code resources available to the web resource page;

and

wherein inspecting, using at least one processor, the one or more first external code resources to identify one or more second external code resources referenced by the one or more first external code resources comprises identifying the one or more second external code resources from the resource list.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising caching the import file.

8. A system comprising:

a communication device for communicating with a client device over a network;

a server comprising a memory and at least one processor; and

a program stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the at least one processor to;

identify one or more first external code resources referenced by a web page hosted by the server;

inspect the one or more first external code resources to identify one or more second external code resources referenced by the one or more first external code resources to determine a set of code external to the web page utilized for one or more features of the web page to function;

bundle the one or more first external code resources and the one or more second external code resources into an import file; and

send the import file to the client device in response to a request from the client device to access the web page,

wherein identifying one or more first external code resources referenced by a web page comprises identifying markup language code and one or more scripting language code blocks referenced by the web page.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein determining a set of code external to the web page utilized for the one or more features of the web page to function comprises identifying the set of code, from among a list of available resources, as actually being used for the one or more features of the web page to function.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the program further causes the system to identify the entry points into the set of code prior to following code paths from the entry points, each entry point being one of:

an hypertext markup language tag that incorporates a script statement, an action associated with a web page element, and a document object model event.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein bundling the one or more first external code resources and the one or more second external code resources external to the web page into an import file comprises creating a dependency tree for the set of code.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the program further causes the system to cache the import file.

13. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored thereon computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause a computer system to:

identify one or more first external code resources referenced by a web page hosted by a server;

inspect the one or more first external code resources to identify one or more second external code resources referenced by the one or more first external code resources to determine a set of code external to the web page utilized for one or more features of the web page to function;

bundle, by the server, the one or more first external code resources and the one or more second external code resources into an import file; and

send the import file to a client device in response to a request from the client device to access the web page,

wherein identifying one or more first external code resources referenced by a web page comprises identifying markup language code and one or more scripting language code blocks referenced by the web page.

14. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to bundle the one or more first external code resources and the one or more second external code resources external to the web page into an import file further comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to create a dependency tree for the set of code.

15. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to determine a set of code external to the web page utilized for the one or more features of the web page to function comprise computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to identify the set of code, from among a list of available resources, as actually being used for the one or more features of the web page to function.

16. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to identify the entry points into the set of code prior to following code paths from the entry points, each entry point being one of:

an hypertext markup language tag that incorporates a script statement, an action associated with a web page element, and a document object model event.

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 14, further comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the computer system to cache the import file.