System and method for remote file search integrated with network installable file system

• US 9,122,691 B2
• Filed: 05/13/2010
• Issued: 09/01/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Broussard, Scott J., Clay, Steven D., Spring, Eduardo N., Yan, Shunguo
• Primary Examiner(s): Shmatov, Alexey
• Application Number:
  US12/779,704
• Publication Number:
  US 20110282894A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,937 Days
• Field of Search: 707/827, 707/E17.01, 707/E17.014, 707/770, 719/328
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/148 File search processing

Abstract

A remote file system application program interface (API) for a remote file system installable file system (IFS) and operating system file system. The remote file system API enables a file content searching program that performs a search on a mapped remote drive to pass the file system path to search and the search criteria regular expression pattern to the remote system for searching and the results are returned to the client system in an IO stream. Such an application program interface is useful in the area of network file systems, network mapped drives, and file content searching programs such as a global regular expression processor (grep).

Claims

1. A computer-implementable method comprising:

accessing, via a searching system, a remote file system application program interface (API), the remote file system API enabling passing of a file system path and search criteria regular expression values and receiving of search results;

performing a search via a file content searching program on a mapped remote drive using the remote file system API, the mapped remote drive receiving the file system path and search criteria via the remote file system API; and

returning the search results to the searching system via the remote file system API; and

wherein

the file content searching program comprises a global regular expression processor (grep) type program, the grep type program comprising a command line text search function;

the remote file system API is recognized and loaded via a remote file system installable file system (IFS) operating system file system, the IFS operating system file system defining file operations to be used against a plurality of file system implementations; and

,

the grep type program utilizes the remote file system API to delegate the search to a remote file system.

2. The computer-implementable method of claim 1 wherein:

the remote file system API comprises an FHandle return object, the FHandle return object describing a return type of the search operation, the return type of the search operation enabling the searching system to read the search results using file read operations and allowing the search results to be streamed to the searching system.

3. The computer-implementable method of claim 1 wherein:

the remote file system API comprises a filePath parameter, the filePath parameter describing a path at which searching is to begin.

4. The computer-implementable method of claim 1 wherein:

the remote file system API comprises a regularExpression parameter, the regularExpression parameter describing a regular expression pattern for how the search is to be performed; and

a searchOptions parameter, the searchOptions parameter describing various options on how the search can be performed.

5. A system comprising:

a processor;

a data bus coupled to the processor; and

a computer-usable medium embodying computer program code, the computer-usable medium being coupled to the data bus, the computer program code comprising instructions executable by the processor and configured for;

accessing, via a searching system, a remote file system application program interface (API), the remote file system API enabling passing of a file system path and search criteria regular expression values and receiving of search results;

performing a search via a file content searching program on a mapped remote drive using the remote file system API, the mapped remote drive receiving the file system path and search criteria via the remote file system API; and

,

returning the search results to the searching system via the remote file system API; and

wherein

the file content searching program comprises a global regular expression processor (grep) type program, the grep type program comprising a command line text search function; and

,

the remote file system API is recognized and loaded via a remote file system installable file system (IFS) operating system file system, the IFS operating system file system defining file operations to be used against a plurality of file system implementations; and

,

the grep type program utilizes the remote file system API to delegate the search to a remote file system.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein:

the remote file system API comprises an FHandle return object, the FHandle return object describing a return type of the search operation, the return type of the search operation enabling the searching system to read the search results using file read operations and allowing the search results to be streamed to the searching system.

7. The system of claim 5 wherein:

the remote file system API comprises a filePath parameter, the filePath parameter describing a path at which searching is to begin.

8. The system of claim 5 wherein:

the remote file system API comprises a regularExpression parameter, the regularExpression parameter describing a regular expression pattern for how the search is to be performed; and

a searchOptions parameter, the searchOptions parameter describing various options on how the search can be performed.

9. A non-transitory computer-usable medium embodying computer program code, the computer program code comprising computer executable instructions configured for:

accessing, via a searching system, a remote file system application program interface (API), the remote file system API enabling passing of a file system path and search criteria regular expression values and receiving of search results;

performing a search via a file content searching program on a mapped remote drive using the remote file system API, the mapped remote drive receiving the file system path and search criteria via the remote file system API; and

returning the search results to the searching system via the remote file system API; and

wherein

the file content searching program comprises a global regular expression processor (grep) type program, the grep type program comprising a command line text search function; and

,

the remote file system API is recognized and loaded via a remote file system installable file system (IFS) operating system file system, the IFS operating system file system defining file operations to be used against a plurality of file system implementations; and

,

the grep type program utilizes the remote file system API to delegate the search to a remote file system.

10. The non-transitory computer-usable medium of claim 9 wherein:

the remote file system API comprises an FHandle return object, the FHandle return object describing a return type of the search operation, the return type of the search operation enabling the searching system to read the search results using file read operations and allowing the search results to be streamed to the searching system.

11. The non-transitory computer-usable medium of claim 9 wherein:

the remote file system API comprises a filePath parameter, the filePath parameter describing a path at which searching is to begin.

12. The non-transitory computer-usable medium of claim 9 wherein:

the remote file system API comprises a regularExpression parameter, the regularExpression parameter describing a regular expression pattern for how the search is to be performed; and

a searchOptions parameter, the searchOptions parameter describing various options on how the search can be performed.

13. A computer-implementable method comprising:

accessing, via a searching system, a remote file system application program interface (API), the remote file system API enabling passing of a file system path and search criteria regular expression values and receiving of search results;

performing a search via a file content searching program on a mapped remote drive using the remote file system API, the mapped remote drive receiving the file system path and search criteria via the remote file system API; and

returning the search results to the searching system via the remote file system API; and

wherein

the file content searching program comprises a global regular expression processor (grep) type program, the grep type program comprising a command line text search function;

the remote file system API is recognized and loaded via a remote file system installable file system (IFS) operating system file system, the IFS operating system file system defining file operations to be used against a plurality of file system implementations;

the remote file system API comprises

an FHandle return object, the FHandle return object describing a return type of the search operation, the return type of the search operation enabling the searching system to read the search results using file read operations and allowing the search results to be streamed to the searching system;

a filePath parameter, the filePath parameter describing a path at which searching is to begin;

a regularExpression parameter, the regularExpression parameter describing a regular expression pattern for how the search is to be performed; and

a searchOptions parameter, the searchOptions parameter describing various options on how the search can be performed.