Hierarchical publish/subscribe system

• US 9,235,829 B2
• Filed: 06/27/2012
• Issued: 01/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: VeriSign, Inc.
• Original Assignee: VeriSign, Inc.
• Inventors: Gallant, John K., Henderson, Karl M., Verd, Brad
• Primary Examiner(s): Park, Jeong S
• Application Number:
  US13/534,732
• Publication Number:
  US 20130024528A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,294 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/217
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1854 with non-centralised forwarding system, e.g. chaincast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/63 Routing a service request depending on the request content or context

Abstract

A method for publishing a message includes receiving, at a first relay, a subscription request from a first client, wherein the subscription request includes a target. The method also includes: recording, at the first relay, subscription information of the first client based on the subscription request; receiving, at the first relay, a publication request from a second client, wherein the publication request includes a message string characterized by a pattern; determining, by the first relay, that the target matches at least a portion of the pattern; determining, by the first relay, if the publication request is a local publication request based on a predetermined policy rule; and transmitting the message string to the first client if the publication request is determined to be a local publication request.

Claims

1. A method for publishing a message, the method comprising:

receiving, at a first relay, a subscription request from a first client, wherein the subscription request includes a target;

recording, at the first relay, subscription information of the first client based on the subscription request;

receiving, at the first relay, a publication request from a second client, wherein the publication request includes a message string characterized by a pattern;

determining, by the first relay, that the second client is not on a black list of clients stored at the first relay;

determining, by the first relay, that the target matches at least a portion of the pattern;

determining, by the first relay, that the publication request is a local publication request based on a predetermined policy rule, wherein the local publication request is a publication request for one or more clients connected to the first relay, wherein the predetermined policy rule comprises one or more of;

designating publication requests from a particular set of one or more clients as local publication requests, or designating publication messages having a specific pattern as local publication requests; and

transmitting the message string to the first client based on the determining that the publication request is a local publication request.

2. The method of claim 1, comprising transmitting a publication message from the first relay to a central relay if the publication request is determined to be not a local publication request, wherein the publication message includes the message string.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first relay is a remote relay.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first relay is a central relay.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, at the first relay, a publication request from a second client comprises receiving the publication request from a second relay in communication with the second client and the first relay.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first client is connected to the first relay.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the target comprises a pattern including a predetermined character string.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the pattern includes exact text characters.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the pattern includes metacharacters indicative of rules for describing text characters.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing the black list at the first relay; and

ignoring the publication request from the second client if the second client is on the black list.

11. A first relay in a publish/subscribe message system, the first relay is configured to:

receive a subscription request from a first client, wherein the subscription request includes a target;

record subscription information of the first client based on the subscription request;

receive a publication request from a second client, wherein the publication request includes a message string characterized by a pattern;

determine that the second client is not on a black list of clients stored at the first relay;

determine that the target matches at least a portion of the pattern;

determine that the publication request is a local publication request based on a predetermined policy rule, wherein the local publication request is a publication request for one or more clients connected to the first relay, wherein the predetermined policy rule comprises one or more of;

designating publication requests from a particular set of one or more clients as local publication requests, or designating publication messages having a specific pattern as local publication requests; and

transmit the message string to the first client.

12. The first relay of claim 11, further configured to transmit a publication message from the first relay to a central relay if the publication request is determined to be not a local publication request, wherein the publication message includes the message string.

13. The first relay of claim 11, wherein the first relay acts as a remote relay in the publish/subscribe message system.

14. The first relay of claim 11, wherein the first relay acts as a central relay in the publish/subscribe message system.

15. The first relay of claim 11, further configured to receive the publication request from a second relay in communication with the second client and the first relay.

16. The first relay of claim 11, wherein the first client is connected to the first relay.

17. The first relay of claim 11, wherein the target comprises a pattern including a predetermined character string.

18. The first relay of claim 17, wherein the pattern includes exact text characters.

19. The first relay of claim 17, wherein the pattern includes metacharacters indicative of rules for describing text characters.

20. The first relay of claim 11, further configured to:

store the black list; and

ignore the publication request from the second client if the second client is on the black list.