Recognizing cloud content

• US 9,164,997 B2
• Filed: 01/19/2012
• Issued: 10/20/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: von Haden, Kyle M., Hwang, Jennifer H.
• Primary Examiner(s): DANG, THANH HA T
• Application Number:
  US13/354,055
• Publication Number:
  US 20130191339A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,370 Days
• Field of Search: 707/600, 707/638
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/11 File system administration, e.g. details of archiving or snapshots file system backup G06F11/14
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/176 Support for shared access to files; File sharing support
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/178 Techniques for file synchronisation in file systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/901 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures for retrieval from the web G06F16/951
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/123 Storage facilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

Recognizing cloud content techniques are described herein. A designated storage location for cloud content corresponding to a service is registered locally at a device. Files stored in association with the registered storage location may be recognized as cloud content of the corresponding service. The recognized cloud content may be handled in various ways to customize the user experience and tailor interaction with cloud content. For example, icons or other visual identifiers may be used within device, operating system and/or application user interfaces to represent an association of files with a particular service based on recognition of the files as cloud content. Additionally, a registered storage location for a device may be employed to obtain relative paths to files that may be used to roam file activity lists between different devices.

Claims

1. A method implemented by a computing device comprising:

registering a top level path name for a local storage location on the computing device;

associating user files stored under the top level path name with a collaboration service;

detecting the files stored locally under the top level path name;

recognizing the detected files as cloud content associated with the collaboration service;

tracking activities of one or more applications of the computing device with the recognized files, the tracking using relative paths formed by removing the registered to level path name from absolute paths to the files in the local storage; and

outputting indications for display via the one or more applications of the computing device to reflect association of the recognized files with the collaboration service, the indications providing one or more visual identifiers distinguishing files associated with the collaboration service from other content not associated with the collaboration service.

2. The method as described in claim 1, wherein registering the top level path name for a local storage location comprises storing the top level path name for a local storage location via a data object designated for registration of locations for files associated with collaboration services.

3. The method as described in claim 2, wherein the data object comprises a file system configuration and settings entry.

4. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the files comprise synchronized offline files with versions stored locally on multiple devices to which the files are synchronized.

5. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the indications comprise icons representing the collaboration service for display with corresponding items presented in an activities list.

6. The method as described in claim 1, wherein detecting files associated with the registered top level path name comprises parsing references to the files to detect references that contain the registered top level path name.

7. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the one or more applications comprise a productivity suite that integrates multiple office productivity modules.

8. The method as described in claim 1,

wherein tracking the activities using the relative paths further comprises detecting processing actions performed by the one or more applications of the computing device and adding an item that describes the processing action for the particular recognized file in an activities list.

9. A system comprising:

a computing device;

one or more processors; and

one or more computer-readable storage devices comprising instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, implement a recognition module configured to perform operations comprising;

associating files stored in a registered location on the computing device with a collaboration service;

recognizing the files associated with the collaboration service as cloud content;

obtaining a relative path for the files stored on the computing device by removing the registered location from absolute paths to the files in the local storage;

tracking activities of one or more applications with the files recognized as cloud content using the relative paths;

ascertaining activities associated with the relative paths for files synchronized across multiple devices via the collaboration service;

constructing paths to local versions of the files in local storage of the computing device by combining the relative paths with the registered location for files associated with the collaboration service registered on the computing device; and

rendering a list of activities that uses the constructed paths for list items corresponding to the files associated with the collaboration service.

10. The system as described in claim 9, wherein the recognition module is further configured to perform operations comprising:

roaming, via the collaboration service, the list of the activities for the recognized files using the relative paths to enable other devices to match the activities to corresponding versions of the recognized files in local storage of the other devices.

11. The system as described in claim 9, wherein the recognition module is further configured to perform operations comprising:

recording the registered location for files associated with the collaboration service via a designated data object when the collaboration service is activated on the computing device.

12. The system as described in claim 9, wherein:

the relative paths include a service identifier corresponding to the collaboration service; and

constructing the paths to local versions of the files further comprises;

looking-up the registered location based on the service identifier; and

replacing the service identifier in the relative paths with the registered location.

13. The system as described in claim 9, wherein the activities include indications of recently used documents across the multiple devices for inclusion in a recently used documents list output at the computing device.

14. The system as described in claim 9, wherein the activities include indications of files that have been pinned to user interfaces of an application across the multiple devices to enable pinning of corresponding files within a user interface for the application output at the computing device.

15. The system as described in claim 9, wherein rendering the list of activities comprises presenting a visual indication representing the collaboration service with the list items corresponding to the files associated with the collaboration service.

16. The system as described in claim 9, wherein the recognition module is further configured to perform operations comprising:

recognizing that an activity list synched between the multiple devices contains at least one item associated with a particular collaboration service that is unavailable on the computing device by determining that a path for the particular collaboration service is not registered at the computing device; and

outputting a notification to install the particular collaboration service at the computing device to access the at least one item.

17. A system comprising:

a computing device; and

one or more processors configured to perform operations to handle recognized cloud content of the computing device including;

registering a top level path name for a local storage location on the computing device;

associating user files stored under the top level path name with a collaboration service;

detecting the files stored locally under the top level path name;

recognizing the detected files as cloud content associated with the collaboration service;

tracking activities of one or more applications of the computing device with the recognized files, the tracking using relative paths formed by removing the registered top level path name from absolute paths to the files in the local storage; and

outputting indications for display via the one or more applications of the computing device to reflect association of the recognized files with the collaboration service, the indications providing one or more visual identifiers distinguishing files associated with the collaboration service from other content not associated with the collaboration service.

18. The system as described in claim 17, wherein registering the top level path name for a local storage location comprises storing the top level path name for a local storage location via a data object designated for registration of locations for files associated with collaboration services.

19. The system as described in claim 18, wherein the data object comprises a file system configuration and settings entry.

20. The system as described in claim 17, wherein the files comprise synchronized offline files with versions stored locally on multiple devices to which the files are synchronized.