Management of background tasks

• US 9,146,778 B2
• Filed: 08/21/2014
• Issued: 09/29/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Jiang, Rachel, Manlapaz, Rhon, Donahue, Megan, Wilson, Dawn, Miller, Darin, Saffitz, Michael, Crocker, Kenneth Lynn, Shields, Kevin
• Primary Examiner(s): YANCHUS III, PAUL B
• Application Number:
  US14/465,339
• Publication Number:
  US 20140366031A1
• Time in Patent Office: 404 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4843 by program, e.g. task dispatcher, supervisor, operating system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4893 taking into account power or heat criteria power management in computers in general G06F1/3203; thermal management in computers in general G06F1/206
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

Background tasks are managed through background task settings that allow or prevent the execution of agents associated with mobile device applications in the background of a mobile computing device. Background task management can extend the battery life of a mobile device and can be done by a user, the mobile device or a combination thereof. Agents scheduled for execution by a mobile device are executed according to the background task settings associated with the application. Background task settings can be controlled via background task control panels. Background task settings can be set on a system-wide, application or background task basis. Disabled background tasks can be enabled when the application is next launched. A user can be invited to navigate to the background task control panels when various events occur such as the battery life dropping below a threshold or the current power consumption exceeding a threshold.

Claims

1. A method of managing the execution of background tasks on a computing device, the method comprising:

executing an application in a foreground of the computing device, the executing comprising scheduling one or more tasks of the application for execution by the computing device;

moving the application from the foreground of the computing device to a background of the computing device; and

while the application continues to operate in the background of the computing device, allowing or preventing execution of the scheduled one or more tasks of the application according to one or more background task settings associated with the application.

2. The method of claim 1, the method further comprising:

receiving, via a background task control panel presented at a display of the computing device, an indication to allow or prevent execution of the scheduled one or more tasks of the application in the background of the computing device; and

setting the one or more background task settings according to the received indication.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the one or more background task settings indicate that the scheduled one or more tasks of the application are to be prevented from executing in the background of the computing device.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the one or more background task settings indicate that the scheduled one or more tasks of the application are to be allowed to execute in the background of the computing device.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the application is one of one or more applications, the background task control panel comprising a list of the one or more applications, the list comprising a background task status indicator for at least one of the one or more applications.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the background task control panel is presented in response to determining that a number of tasks scheduled for execution by the computing device exceeds a scheduled agent threshold.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein the background task control panel is presented in response to determining that the scheduled one or more tasks of the application would cause a number of tasks scheduled for execution by the computing device to exceed a maximum scheduled agent threshold.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein the background task control panel is presented in response to determining that a battery life of the computing device has dropped below a battery life threshold or a power consumption rate of the computing device exceeds a power consumption rate threshold.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the allowing or preventing execution of the scheduled one or more tasks of the application in the background of the computing device comprises suspending the scheduled one or more tasks of the application.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the allowing or preventing execution of the scheduled one or more tasks of the application in the background of the computing device comprises unscheduling the scheduled one or more tasks of the application.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that a length of time over which the application has not been executed in the foreground of the computing device exceeds an inactivity period threshold; and

upon determining that the inactivity period threshold has been exceeded, setting the one or more background task settings associated with the application to prevent the scheduled one or more tasks of the application from executing in the background of the computing device.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising the computing device automatically setting the one or more background task settings associated with the application in response to an event.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the event comprises detecting a battery life of the computing device crossing a battery life threshold.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the event comprises detecting a power consumption rate of the computing device crossing a power consumption rate threshold.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the event comprises detecting the computing device connecting to or disconnecting from an external power supply.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the moving the application from the foreground of the computing device to the background of the computing device occurs in response to launching a second application.

17. One or more computing device-readable media storing computing device-executable instructions for causing a computing device to perform operations, the operations comprising:

executing an application in a foreground of the computing device, the executing comprising scheduling one or more tasks of the application for execution by the computing device;

moving the application from the foreground of the computing device to a background of the computing device; and

while the application continues to operate in the background of the computing device, preventing execution of the scheduled one or more tasks of the application according to a background task setting associated with the application.

18. The one or more computing device-readable media of claim 17, the operations further comprising:

receiving, via a background task control panel presented at a display of the computing device, an indication to allow or prevent execution of the scheduled one or more tasks of the application in the background of the computing device; and

setting the background task setting according to the received indication.

19. The one or more computing device-readable media of claim 17, the operations further comprising the computing device automatically setting the background task setting associated with the application in response to detecting a battery life of the computing device crossing a battery life threshold, detecting a power consumption rate of the computing device crossing a power consumption rate threshold or detecting disconnection of the computing device from an external power supply.

20. At least one computing device programmed to carry out operations, the operations comprising:

receiving user input at the computing device indicating that one or more tasks of an application are to be allowed to execute in a background of the computing device;

setting one or more background task settings associated with the application according to the received user input;

executing the application in a foreground of the computing device, the executing comprising scheduling the one or more tasks of the application for execution by the computing device, the scheduling comprising adding the one or more tasks of the application to a scheduler;

moving the application from the foreground of the computing device to the background of the computing device;

determining that a length of time over which the application has not been executed in the foreground of the computing device exceeds an inactivity period threshold; and

upon determining that the inactivity period threshold has been exceeded;

setting the one or more background task settings associated with the application to prevent the scheduled one or more tasks of the application from executing in the background of the computing device; and

while the application continues to operate in the background of the computing device, removing the scheduled one or more tasks of the application from the scheduler in accordance with the one or more background task settings associated with the application.