Method and apparatus for wireless devices access to external storage

• US 9,239,686 B2
• Filed: 09/25/2013
• Issued: 01/19/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/22/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: SynKloud Technologies, LLC (SY Ventures)
• Original Assignee: Sheng Tai Tsao
• Inventors: Tsao, Sheng Tai (Ted)
• Primary Examiner(s): Elmore, Reba I
• Application Number:
  US14/036,744
• Publication Number:
  US 20150089181A1
• Time in Patent Office: 846 Days
• Field of Search: 711/111, 711/114, 711/147, 711/171, 709/219, 709/226, 707/795, 707/802
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/13 File access structures, e.g. distributed indices arrangements of input from, or output to, record carriers G06F3/06
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0604 Improving or facilitating administration, e.g. storage management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0605 by facilitating the interaction with a user or administrator
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0631 by allocating resources to storage systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0643 Management of files
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0644 Management of space entities, e.g. partitions, extents, pools
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/067 Distributed or networked storage systems, e.g. storage area networks [SAN], network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72403 with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording

Abstract

Traditionally, wireless device, such as cell phone or personal data assistant device (PDA), has relatively smaller storage capacity. Therefore, it is quite often that a user of the wireless device has difficulty to find more storage space for storing ever increased personal data, such as storing multiple Gig bytes of multimedia data including digital video, music, or photo picture etc. Instant application disclosed a system and method for a storage system providing storage service to the wireless device for the wireless device remotely storing personal data into an external storage space allocated exclusively to a user of the wireless device by the storage system.

Claims

1. A server for delivering storage service, comprising:

a plurality of storage spaces; and

a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions that, being executed by the server, causes the server delivering the storage service;

wherein the program instructions comprise;

program instructions for allocating exclusively a first one of the storage spaces to a user of a first wireless device;

program instructions for establishing a communication link for the first wireless device remotely access to the first one of the storage spaces;

program instructions for presenting the first one of the storage spaces to the user on the first wireless device through communication with the first wireless device; and

program instructions for updating the first one of the storage spaces according to a requested operation for remotely access to the first one of the storage spaces in response to the user from the first wireless device performing the operation,

wherein said operation comprises storing data into the first one of the storage spaces or retrieving data therefrom,

the storing of said data including to download a file from a remote server across a network into the first one of the storage spaces through utilizing download information for the file cached in the first wireless device in response to the user from the first wireless device performing the operation for downloading the file.

2. The server as recited in claim 1, wherein said downloading a file from a remote server further comprises:

the first wireless device obtaining downloading information for the file from the remote server, transmitting the cached downloading information to the server, and causing the server in accordance with the downloading information to download the file into the first one of the storage spaces.

3. The server as recited in claim 1, wherein said storage spaces further are configured among a plurality of storage devices.

4. The server as recited in claim 1, wherein the data being stored into or retrieved from the first one of the storage spaces, further is a message or multimedia data of video, digital music, or digital picture.

5. The server as recited in claim 1, wherein said operation further comprises:

from the first wireless device remotely deleting, moving, copying or renaming a folder in the first one of the storage spaces.

6. The server as recited in claim 5, wherein said operation further comprises:

from the first wireless device remotely deleting, moving, copying or renaming a file in the first one of the storage spaces.

7. The server as recited in claim 1, wherein said operation further comprises:

from the first wireless device remotely creating a folder or a folder structure in the first one of the storage spaces.

8. The server as recited in claim 1, wherein said program instructions further configures the server to cause display of the first one of the storage spaces in a web browser executed on the first wireless device for the user remotely access to the first one of the storage spaces.

9. The server as recited in claim 1, wherein the program instructions further causes the server to allocate exclusively a second one of the storage spaces of a predefined capacity to a user of a second wireless device for facilitating the user remotely access to the second one of the storage spaces.

10. The server as recited in claim 1, wherein the first wireless device further is one of a cell phone or a personal data assistant and management device (“

PDA”

).

11. The server as recited in claim 1, wherein the download information for the file further includes at least the name of the file and the internet protocol (“

IP”

) address of the remote server.

12. A server for delivering storage service, comprising:

a plurality of storage spaces, and a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions that, executed by the server, causes the server to deliver the storage service;

wherein the program instructions comprises;

program instructions for the server allocating exclusively a first one of the storage spaces of a predefined capacity to a user of a first wireless device;

program instructions for establishing a communication link for the first wireless device remotely access to the first one of the storage spaces;

program instructions for sending information of the first one of the storage spaces to the first wireless device for presenting the first one of the storage spaces to the user; and

program instructions for updating the first one of the storage spaces according to a requested operation for remotely access to the first one of the storage spaces in response to the user from the first wireless device performing the operation,

wherein said operation comprises creating from the first wireless device a folder structure of a plurality of folders in the first one of the storage spaces, and comprises to delete or move or copy or rename a first one of the folders in the folder structure, wherein each of the folders being used by the first wireless device for storing data therein or retrieving data therefrom.

13. The server as recited in claim 12, wherein said storing data includes to download a file from a remote server across a network into the first one of the storage spaces through utilizing download information for the file cached in the first wireless device in response to the user from the first wireless device performing the operation for downloading the file.

14. The server as recited in claim 13, wherein said downloading a file comprises:

the first wireless device obtaining download information for the file from the remote server, transmitting the cached download information to the server; and

causing the server in accordance with the downloading information to store the file from the remote server into the first one of the storage spaces.

15. The server as recited in claim 12, wherein said operation further comprises:

from the first wireless device to create a folder in the folder structure.

16. The server as recited in claim 12, wherein said data being stored into or retrieved from the first one of the storage spaces, further comprises a message, or a multimedia data of video, digital music or photo picture.

17. The server as recited in claim 12, wherein said operation further comprises:

from the first wireless device to delete, move, copy or rename a file in the folder structure.

18. The server as recited in claim 12 wherein said storage spaces further are configured among a plurality of storage devices.

19. The server as recited in claim 13, wherein said download information for the file further includes at least the name of the file and the internet protocol (“

IP”

) address of the remote server.

20. The server as recited in claim 12, wherein the program instructions further causes the server to:

allocate exclusively a second one of the storage spaces of a predefined capacity to a user of a second wireless device for facilitating the user remotely access to the second one of the storage spaces.