Real-time user interaction-based alterations to the scope of data synchronization between client and remote devices

• US 9,282,169 B1
• Filed: 07/12/2013
• Issued: 03/08/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oxygen Cloud Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Oxygen Cloud Incorporated
• Inventors: Chang, Peter C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Barot, Bharat N
• Application Number:
  US13/941,309
• Time in Patent Office: 970 Days
• Field of Search: 709202-205, 707610-612
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/00 Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/27 Replication, distribution or synchronisation of data between databases or within a distributed database system; Distributed database system architectures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/273 Asynchronous replication or reconciliation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/275 Synchronous replication

Abstract

Methods, apparatus and systems for altering a scope of data synchronization are disclosed. The scope of data synchronization is altered in real-time via user interactions with the data. In one embodiment, a client device may include folder stubs that reference folders of information stored at a remote server. In response to a user selecting the folder stub, additional folder and/or file stubs provided within the folder are acquired by the client device from the remote server, and a scope of data synchronization is expanded to include the path to the folder referenced by the folder stub. The scope of data synchronization may also be contracted. In response to a user commanding the client device to de-synchronize a synchronized folder, the scope of synchronization may be contracted to exclude the folder and any sub-folders.

Claims

1. A method of altering a scope of data synchronization at a client computing device, the method comprising:

establishing, by the client computing device, a connection to a remote computing system that is located remotely from the client computing device;

displaying representations of stub folders via the client computing device, each stub folder referencing a corresponding folder of information that is stored at the remote computing system but not stored at the client computing device;

receiving a user selection of one of the stub folders;

in response to receiving the user selection of one of the stub folders, displaying representations of stub sub-folders, each stub sub-folder referencing a corresponding sub-folder of information in the folder referenced by the selected stub folder which is stored at the remote computing system but not stored at the client computing device;

receiving a user selection of one of the stub sub-folders to synchronize the selected stub sub-folder; and

in response to receiving the user selection of the selected stub sub-folder referencing a sub-folder, synchronizing the sub-folder in the folder of information referenced by the selected stub sub-folder between the client computing device and the remote computing system resulting in a synchronized sub-folder of information without synchronizing other sub-folders in the folder of information referenced by the selected stub folder.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein synchronizing the sub-folder of information referenced by the selected stub sub-folder includes acquiring, from the remote computing system, information representative of file stubs and folder stubs located within the sub-folder of information referenced by the selected stub sub-folder, each file stub referencing a file stored at the remote computing system within the sub-folder of information referenced by the selected stub sub-folder.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

in response to receiving the user selection of one of the stub sub-folders, displaying the acquired file stubs and folder stubs.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein synchronizing the sub-folder of information referenced by the selected stub sub-folder includes expanding the scope of data synchronization to include the sub-folder of information referenced by the selected stub sub-folder.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein expanding the scope of data synchronization includes modifying a synchronization map to include a path to the sub-folder of information referenced by the selected stub sub-folder.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to receiving the user selection of one of the stub sub-folders, replacing the displayed representation of the selected stub sub-folder with a graphical representation indicating that the sub-folder of information referenced by the selected stub sub-folder is synchronized between the client computing device and the remote computing system.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a new folder of information; and

in response to receiving the new folder of information, synchronizing the new folder of information between the client computing device and the remote computing system resulting in a new synchronized folder of information.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein synchronizing the new folder of information includes expanding the scope of data synchronization to include the new folder and sub-folders located within the new folder.

9. A client computing device, comprising:

a storage element for storing data;

a user interface for providing information to a user and receiving inputs from the user;

a communication interface for communicating with a remote computing system that is located remotely from the client computing device; and

a processor coupled to the storage element, the user interface, and the communication interface, the processor being operable to;

establish a connection to the remote computing system via the communication interface;

display, via the user interface, representations of stub folders, each stub folder referencing a corresponding folder of information that is stored at the remote computing system but not stored at the client computing device;

receive, via the user interface, a user selection of one of the stub folders;

in response to receiving the user selection of one of the stub folders, display representations of stub sub-folders, each stub sub-folder referencing a corresponding sub-folder of information in the folder referenced by the selected stub folder which is stored at the remote computing system but not stored at the client computing device;

receive a user selection of one of the stub sub-folders to synchronize the selected stub sub-folder; and

in response to receiving the user selection of the selected stub sub-folder referencing a sub-folder, synchronize the sub-folder in the folder of information referenced by the selected stub sub-folder between the client computing device and the remote computing system resulting in a synchronized sub-folder of information.

10. The client computing device of claim 9, wherein the processor is further operable to:

receive a command to de-synchronize the synchronized sub-folder of information; and

in response to receiving the command to de-synchronize the synchronized sub-folder of information, de-synchronize the synchronized sub-folder of information.

11. The client computing device of claim 10, wherein the processor is further operable to:

in response to receiving the command to de-synchronize the synchronized sub-folder of information, generate a sub-folder stub that references the sub-folder of information at the remote computing system.

12. The client computing device of claim 10, wherein de-synchronizing the synchronized sub-folder of information includes deleting, at the client computing device, files, folders, file stubs, and folder stubs located within the synchronized sub-folder of information.

13. The client computing device of claim 10, wherein de-synchronizing the synchronized sub-folder of information includes contracting a scope of data synchronization to exclude the synchronized sub-folder of information.

14. The client computing device of claim 13, wherein contracting the scope of data synchronization includes modifying a synchronization map to exclude a path to the synchronized sub-folder of information and paths to sub-folders located within the synchronized sub-folder of information.

15. The client computing device of claim 10, wherein the processor is further operable to:

in response to receiving the command to de-synchronize the synchronized sub-folder of information, replace a graphical representation indicating that the sub-folder of information is synchronized between the client computing device and the remote computing system with a graphical representation of a stub sub-folder that references the sub-folder of information at the remote computing system.

16. A method of altering a scope of data synchronization at a remote computing system, the method comprising:

establishing, by the remote computing system, a connection to a client computing device that is located remotely from the remote computing system;

receiving, from the client computing device, a reference to a folder of information stored at the remote computing system but not stored at the client computing device, the reference being generated from one of a plurality of stub folders and in response to a user selection of the one of the plurality of stub folders;

receiving, from the client computing device, a reference to a sub-folder of information in the folder which is stored at the remote computing system but not stored at the client computing device to synchronize the sub-folder; and

in response to receiving the reference to the sub-folder of information stored at the remote computing system, synchronizing the sub-folder of information between the client computing device and the remote computing system resulting in a synchronized sub-folder of information without synchronizing other sub-folders in the folder of information.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein synchronizing the sub-folder of information includes communicating, to the client computing device, file stubs and folder stubs located within the sub-folder of information, each file stub referencing a file stored at the remote computing system within the sub-folder and each folder stub referencing a folder stored at the remote computing system within the sub-folder.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein synchronizing the sub-folder of information includes expanding the scope of data synchronization to include the sub-folder of information.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein expanding the scope of data synchronization includes modifying a synchronization map to include a path to the sub-folder of information.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

receiving a new folder of information from the client computing device; and

in response to receiving the new folder of information, expanding the scope of data synchronization to include the new folder of information and sub-folders located within the new folder.

21. A remote server computing system, comprising:

a storage element for storing data;

a communication interface for communicating with a client computing device that is located remotely from the remote computing system; and

a processor coupled to the storage element and the communication interface, the processor being operable to;

establish a connection to the client computing device via the communication interface;

receive, from the client computing device and via the communication interface, a reference to a folder of information stored in the storage element of the remote computing system but not stored at the client computing device, the reference being generated from one of a plurality of stub folders and in response to a user selection of the one of the plurality of stub folders;

receive, from the client computing device, a reference to a sub-folder of information in the folder which is stored in the storage element of the remote computing system but not stored at the client computing device to synchronize the sub-folder; and

in response to receiving the reference to the sub-folder of information stored in the storage element of the remote computing system, synchronize the sub-folder of information between the client computing device and the remote computing system resulting in a synchronized sub-folder of information without synchronizing other sub-folders in the folder of information.

22. The remote server computing system of claim 21, wherein the processor is further operable to:

receive, from the client computing device, a command to de-synchronize the synchronized sub-folder of information; and

in response to receiving the command to de-synchronize the synchronized sub-folder of information, de-synchronize the synchronized sub-folder of information.

23. The remote server computing system of claim 22, wherein de-synchronizing the synchronized sub-folder of information includes contracting a scope of data synchronization to exclude the synchronized sub-folder of information.

24. The remote server computing system of claim 23, wherein contracting the scope of data synchronization includes modifying a synchronization map to exclude a path to the synchronized sub-folder of information and paths to sub-folders located within the synchronized sub-folder of information.

25. The remote server computing system of claim 22, wherein de-synchronizing the synchronized sub-folder of information includes modifying file synchronization properties of files located within the sub-folder of information and sub-folders located within the sub-folder of information, the file synchronization properties being modified to indicate that the files are not synchronized.