Offline simulation of online session between client and server

• US 9,171,049 B2
• Filed: 11/04/2002
• Issued: 10/27/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/13/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Hopkins, Christopher D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Quoc A
• Application Number:
  US10/287,177
• Publication Number:
  US 20030233404A1
• Time in Patent Office: 4,740 Days
• Field of Search: 715/513, 715/501.1, 715201-203, 715/736, 715/740, 715/745, 709/203, 709213-229, 434/118, 434/362
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/00 Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/214 Database migration support
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2372 Updates performed during offline database operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2379 Updates performed during online database operations; commit processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/27 Replication, distribution or synchronisation of data between databases or within a distributed database system; Distributed database system architectures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/95 Retrieval from the web
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/145 involving simulating, designing, planning or modelling of a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

Systems and Methods for conducting an offline session simulating an online session between a client and server in a network environment. The client imports data and functional logic from the server prior to going offline. The imported functional logic is embedded into a format or document that is capable of being interpreted and performed by the local interface at the client that is used to interact with server when online. Whether offline or online, the user utilizes the same local interface at the client to transmit instructions to the functional logic to manipulate the data. In an offline session, such instructions cause the imported and embedded functional logic to execute, thereby manipulating the data imported at the client. Known synchronization methods may also be used to maintain consistency and coherency between the imported data at the client and the database at the server.

Claims

1. A method of conducting and then simulating an online database session, including:

conducting from at least one client machine through a local interface an online database session via a database server API while the client machine is connected by a network to the online database, including invoking database manipulation logic running on a remote database server responsive to instructions transmitted through the local interface;

prior to going offline, importing to the client machine at least a data subset and a logic subset,

wherein the data subset is a subset of data from the online database to be used in an offline database session following the online database session;

wherein the logic subset is a subset of the database manipulation logic running on the remote database server to be locally simulated on the client machine following the online database session; and

wherein the logic subset and the data subset are embedded within at least one document and the logic subset is embedded in the document in a format usable by the local interface; and

conducting a simulated database session using the local interface to access a local version of the database server API in an offline mode, following the online database session, using an imported data subset and a logic subset to simulate and reproduce a user interface to and functionality of the online database session without being connected to the online database.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

importing user customizations for presentation of the imported data by the local interface while the client is online.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the user interface includes a web browser.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the embedded logic subset is expressed in a scripting language understood by the web browser.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the format comprises at least one document that utilizes a markup language to identify structures within the document.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the imported data subset is stored in at least one document that utilizes a markup language to identify structures within the document.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the imported data subset and embedded logic subset relate to customer relationship management.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the logic subset is embedded into an HTML document.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the logic subset is accessed using a URL embedded into an HTML document.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein simulating, only so long as the client is offline, an online session with the database by invoking the logic subset, includes:

invoking the embedded logic subset to build at least one dynamically generated screen to enable a user to manipulate the data imported.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the logic subset embedded into a document in a format capable of being used by the local interface includes:

database server logic for creating one or more new records to hold data when the client is offline.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the data subset is corresponds to a user criteria for conducting an offline session.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the database comprises a relational database.

14. A system that enables a client system to conduct and to simulate an online database session, including:

an online database server, sometimes simulated, that includes online database manipulation logic running on the database server accessed via a database server API that manipulates an online database responsive to instructions received from a local interface of a client machine;

a data packaging service, coupled to the database server, that packages a data subset of data stored by the online database to be used in an offline database session;

a logic packaging service, coupled to the database server, that packages a logic subset of the database manipulation logic running on the database server to be locally simulated on the client machine following the online database session; and

an export service, operable during an online session, that exports for use by the client machine at least a data subset a the logic subset, wherein the export service embeds the logic subset and the data subset within at least one document in a format usable by the local interface of the client machine; and

wherein the document containing the data subset and the logic subset includes instructions usable by the local interface on the client machine via a local version of the database server API to conduct a simulated database session in an offline mode and reproduce a user interface to and functionality of the online database session without being connected to the online database.

15. The system of claim 14, an import service that imports data from the client that had been manipulated during the simulated database session conducted by the client while the client was not connected to the online database.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the export service is further capable of exporting user customizations for the presentation of the exported data by the user interface.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the export service is implemented with XML-RPC.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the user interface includes a web browser.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein the embedded logic subset is expressed as a scripting language understood by the web browser.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the documents utilize a markup language to identify structures within the documents.

21. The system of claim 14, wherein the exported data subset is exported as at least one document that utilizes a markup language to identify structures within the document.

22. The system of claim 14, wherein the exported data subset and embedded logic subset relate to customer relationship management.

23. A non-transitory computer readable media including computer instructions that, when run on a client machine, implements on at least one client machine:

conducting from at least one client machine through a local interface an online database session via a database server API while the client machine is connected by a network to the online database, including invoking database manipulation logic running on a remote database server responsive to instructions transmitted through the local interface;

prior to going offline, importing to the client machine at least a data subset and a logic subset,

wherein a data subset of data from the online database to be used in an offline database session following the online database session;

wherein the logic subset of the database manipulation logic running on the database server to be locally simulated on the client machine following the online database session; and

wherein the logic subset and the data subset are embedded within at least one document and the logic subset is embedded in the document in a format usable by the local interface; and

conducting a simulated database session using the local interface to access a local version of the database server API in an offline mode, following the online database session, using the imported data subset and logic subset to simulate and reproduce a user interface to and functionality of the online database session without being connected to the online database.

24. The computer instructions of claim 23 wherein the user interface includes a web browser.

25. The computer instructions of claim 23, wherein at least a portion of the computer instructions are expressed in a scripting language.

26. The computer instructions of claim 23, wherein the format comprises at least one document that utilizes a markup language to identify structures within the document.

27. The computer instructions of claim 23, wherein the imported data subset is stored in at least one document that utilizes a markup language to identify structures within the document.

28. The computer instructions of claim 23, wherein the computer instructions and the imported data subset relate to customer relationship management.