Method and apparatus for allowing sharing of streamable applications

• US 9,124,653 B2
• Filed: 09/03/2004
• Issued: 09/01/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CA, Inc. (d/b/a CA Technologies) (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Symantec Corporation (NortonLifeLock Inc.)
• Inventors: Rachman, Ophir, Malka, Gabriel, Raz, Uri
• Primary Examiner(s): GOLDBERG, ANDREW C
• Application Number:
  US10/934,873
• Publication Number:
  US 20060053228A1
• Time in Patent Office: 4,015 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416

Abstract

A client on a network includes a file system that includes various non-streamable software applications. A streaming support system in the client enables a streamable software application to be located in the file system and executed in a streaming mode without being isolated from the non-streamable software applications in the file system. Non-streamable software applications can invoke the streamable software application, and vice versa. Multiple streamable software applications can be concurrently located throughout the file system and can be executed in the client in the streaming mode without restriction to any particular portion of the main file system. Streamable applications can be located anywhere in the file system that the corresponding non-streamable versions of the applications would be able to be located. The main file system does not need to contain complete copies of the required files for any streamable applications.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

installing, in a client computer system having a file system, a software module that is executable to configure the client computer system to share information between a streamable user application and a non-streamable user application executable on an operating system of the client computer system to request blocks of data for their respective applications and to receive an input from a user;

wherein the software module is executable to configure the client computer system to share information by;

locating the non-streamable user application and downloaded portions of the streamable user application in the file system; and

the operating system maintaining a single registry for the streamable user application and the non-streamable user application, wherein the single registry does not include a portion dedicated to registry data for streamable applications.

2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the streamable user application is not located in a portion of the file system reserved for streamable applications but not non-streamable applications.

3. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the streamable user application is stored at a user-modifiable location in the file system.

4. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the client computer system is configured to execute the non-streamable user application to invoke the streamable user application, and wherein the client computer system is configured to execute the streamable user application to invoke the non-streamable user application.

5. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

executing the streamable user application on the client computer system in a streaming mode; and

receiving one or more blocks of the streamable user application at the client computer system from a remote server while the streamable user application is executing on the client computer system.

6. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein a plurality of streamable user applications are concurrently located in the file system, and wherein each of the plurality of streamable user applications is executable on the client computer system in a streaming mode without being restricted to any particular portion of the file system.

7. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein said software module includes a filter driver that is executable to determine whether a request for a block of data of the streamable user application is for a streamable user application or a non-streamable user application.

8. A method, comprising:

transmitting a software module to a client computer system over a data network, wherein the software module is executable on the client computer system to share information between a streamable user application and a non-streamable user application executable on an operating system of the client computer system to request blocks of data for their respective applications and to receive an input from a user;

wherein the software module is executable to configure the client computer system to share information by;

locating the non-streamable user application and downloaded portions of the streamable user application in a file system of the client computer system; and

the operating system maintaining a single registry for the streamable user application and the non-streamable user application, wherein the single registry does not include a portion dedicated to registry data for streamable applications.

9. A method comprising:

configuring a client computer system having a file system to share information between a streamable user application and a non-streamable user application executable on an operating system of the client computer system to request blocks of data for their respective applications and to receive an input from a user, wherein the configuring includes;

locating the non-streamable user application and downloaded portions of the streamable user application in the file system; and

the operating system maintaining a single registry for the streamable user application and the non-streamable user application, wherein the single registry does not include a portion dedicated to registry data for streamable applications.

10. A method as recited in claim 9, wherein the streamable user application is not stored in a virtual file system for streamable user applications.

11. A method as recited in claim 9, wherein the streamable user application is stored at a user-modifiable location in the file system.

12. A method as recited in claim 9, further comprising:

executing the streamable user application on the client computer system in a streaming mode; and

receiving one or more blocks of the streamable user application at the client computer system from a remote server while the streamable user application is executing on the client computer system.

13. A method as recited in claim 12, wherein a plurality of streamable user applications are concurrently located in the file system, and wherein each of the plurality of streamable user applications is executable on the client computer system in the streaming mode without being restricted to any particular portion of the file system.

14. A method as recited in claim 9, wherein said configuring the client computer system comprises installing a filter driver on the client computer system, wherein the filter driver is executable to determine whether a request for a block of the streamable user application is for a streamable user application or a non-streamable user application.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having program instructions stored thereon, wherein the program instructions are executable to perform:

transmitting a software module to a client computer system over a data network, wherein the software module is executable on the client computer system to configure the client system to share information between a streamable user application and a non-streamable user application executable on an operating system of the client computer system to request blocks of data for their respective applications and to receive an input from a user;

wherein the software module is executable to configure the client computer system to share information by;

locating the non-streamable user application and downloaded portions of the streamable user application in a file system of the client computer system; and

the operating system maintaining a single registry for the streamable user application and the non-streamable user application, wherein the single registry does not include a portion dedicated to registry data for streamable applications.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having program instructions stored thereon, wherein the program instructions are executable to perform:

configuring a client computer system having a file system to share information between a plurality of streamable user applications and a plurality of non-streamable user applications executable on an operating system of the client computer system to request blocks of data for their respective applications and to receive an input from a user, wherein the configuring includes;

locating the plurality of non-streamable user applications and downloaded portions of the plurality of streamable user applications in the file system; and

maintaining a single registry for the plurality of streamable user applications and the plurality of non-streamable user applications, wherein the single registry does not include a portion dedicated to registry data for streamable applications;

wherein executing at least one of the plurality of streamable user applications on the client computer system, includes receiving one or more portions of the streamable user application from a remote server while the streamable user application is executing on the client computer system.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein each streamable user application is stored at a user-modifiable location in the file system.

18. A method, comprising:

a filter driver receiving a first request for a first block of data, wherein the first request is received from an operating system of a computer system;

the filter driver determining that the first block is for a non-streamable user application;

the filter driver providing the first request to a file system of the computer system;

the filter driver receiving a second request for a second block of data, wherein the second request is received from the operating system;

the filter driver determining that the second block is for a streamable user application;

the filter driver determining whether the second block is present in the file system;

in response to determining the second block is for the streamable user application and is not present in the file system, the filter driver requesting the second block from a remote server coupled to the computer system via a network; and

wherein the computer system is configured to share information between the streamable user application and the non-streamable user application executable on the operating system and to receive an input from a user, wherein the computer system is configured to share the information by;

storing both the non-streamable user application and downloaded portions of the streamable user application in the file system; and

storing registry information for the streamable user application and the non-streamable user application in a single registry maintained by the operating system, wherein the single registry does not include a portion dedicated to registry data for streamable applications.

19. A method as recited in claim 18, wherein the streamable user application is not restricted to any particular portion of the file system.

20. A processing system, comprising:

a processor;

a network adapter configured to communicate over a network;

a memory storing program instructions executable to implement an operating system;

the memory further storing program instructions executable to share information between one or more streamable user applications and one or more non-streamable user applications executable on the operating system and to receive an input from a user, wherein the program instructions executable to share information are executable to;

locate the one or more non-streamable user applications and downloaded portions of the one or more streamable user applications in a file system of the processing system; and

cause the operating system to maintain a single registry for the one or more streamable user applications and the non-streamable user applications, wherein the single registry does not include a portion dedicated to registry data for streamable applications; and

the memory further storing program instructions to implement a filter driver that is executable to determine whether a request from the operating system for a block of data is for a streamable user application or a non-streamable user application.

21. A processing system as recited in claim 20, wherein the memory further stores program instructions executable to request the block from a remote server in response to determining that the block is for a streamable user application and is not present in the file system, and in response to receiving the block from the remote server, to provide the block to the operating system.

22. A processing system as recited in claim 20, wherein the one or more streamable user applications are not restricted to any particular portion of the file system.

23. A processing system as recited in claim 20, wherein the request is from a streamable user application that is stored at a user-modifiable location in the file system.

24. A method, comprising:

a client computer system locating a non-streamable user application and downloaded portions of a streamable user application in a file system of the client computer system, wherein the streamable user application and the non-streamable user application are executable on an operating system of the client computer system to request blocks of data for their respective applications and to receive an input from a user; and

the operating system maintaining a single registry for the streamable user application and the non-streamable user application, wherein the single registry does not include a portion dedicated to registry data for streamable applications;

wherein the locating and the maintaining configure the client computer system to share information between the streamable user application and the non-streamable user application.

25. The method as recited in claim 24, wherein the streamable user application is stored at a user-modifiable location in the file system.

26. The method as recited in claim 24, wherein the client computer system is configured to execute the non-streamable user application to invoke the streamable user application, and wherein the client computer system is configured to execute the streamable user application to invoke the non-streamable user application.

27. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having program instructions stored thereon that are executable by a computer system having a file system to:

configure the computer system to share information between a streamable user application and a non-streamable user application executable on an operating system of the computer system to request blocks of data for their respective applications and to receive an input from a user;

wherein configuring the computer system to share information includes;

locating the non-streamable user application and portions of the streamable user application in the file system; and

the operating system maintaining a single registry for the streamable user application and the non-streamable user application, wherein the single registry does not include a portion dedicated to registry data for streamable applications.

28. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 27, wherein the program instructions are further executable to implement a filter driver that is executable to determine whether a request for a block of the streamable user application is for a streamable user application or a non-streamable user application.