Systems and methods for real-time de-duplication

• US 9,542,428 B2
• Filed: 10/09/2012
• Issued: 01/10/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Kemp, Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): Ruiz, Angelica
• Application Number:
  US13/647,714
• Publication Number:
  US 20130091103A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,554 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/23 Updating
• 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

Abstract

Disclosed are systems, apparatus, and methods for identifying and processing duplicative records in one or more database systems. In various implementations, a first data object may be created and stored in a first database system, where the first data object includes a plurality of data fields capable of storing a plurality of data values. A trigger function may be executed in response to creating the first data object, where the trigger function causes one or more servers to determine if one or more existing data objects stored in the second database system match the first data object, and where the trigger function further causes one or more servers in the first database system to retrieve one or more data values from the one or more existing data objects. The retrieved one or more data values may be stored in one or more data fields of the first data object.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

creating a first data object in a first database system, wherein the first data object includes a first plurality of data fields capable of storing a corresponding first plurality of data values;

executing a trigger function in response to creating the first data object, wherein the trigger function causes one or more servers in a second database system to determine if one or more existing data objects stored in the second database system include a combination of a second plurality of data values corresponding to a second plurality of data fields that match the combination of the first corresponding plurality of data values included in the first plurality of data fields, and wherein the trigger function further causes one or more servers in the first database system to retrieve one or more data values of the second plurality of data values from the one or more existing data objects, wherein the first data object and the one or more existing data objects are different types of records;

storing the retrieved one or more data values of the second plurality of data values in one or more data fields of the first plurality of data fields;

storing the first data object in the first database system;

automatically creating a link between the stored first data object and the one or more existing data objects stored in the second database system that include the matching combination of the second plurality of data values, the link being automatically created in response to storing the retrieved one or more data values of the second plurality of data values in the data fields of the first plurality of data fields of the first data object;

periodically checking the linked one or more existing data objects to identify whether or not any subsequent changes have been made to the one or more existing data objects; and

automatically updating, using the created link, the stored first data object in response to identifying a subsequent change made to any of the one or more linked existing data objects.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the executing and storing the retrieved one or more data values are part of an automated process executed by one or more servers of the first database system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first plurality of data fields are capable of being displayed as display fields in a user interface of a computer system.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the retrieved one or more data values are displayed to a user of the computer system via the user interface.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first plurality of data fields store data for a form capable of receiving information from a user, and wherein the retrieved one or more data values are displayed to the user in one or more display fields of the form prior to the user completing the form.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first data object is a record stored in a multi-tenant database system and is capable of storing one or more data values contributed by a user of the multi-tenant database system.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the types of records of the first data object and the linked one or more existing data objects are selected from the group of record types consisting of an account, contact, lead, and opportunity, each of the linked one or more existing data objects having a different record type from the first data object.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the determining is based on one or more data values selected from the group consisting of a phone number, a name, an address, a company name, a professional organization name, an employee identifier, and an email address.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the retrieved one or more data values include information aggregated from a distributed group of users and entities.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the first database system and the second database system are operated by the same entity.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising comparing the stored first data object and the one or more existing data objects, stored in the second database system that include the combination of the second plurality of data values after a predetermined time to determine if either the first data object or the one or more existing data objects is a duplicate record, and automatically deleting one of the first data object and the one or more existing data objects in response to the determination that one of the first data object and the one or more existing data objects is a duplicate record.

12. A non-transitory machine-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to carry out the steps of:

creating a first data object in a first database system, wherein the first data object includes a first plurality of data fields capable of storing a corresponding first plurality of data values;

executing a trigger function in response to creating the first data object, wherein the trigger function causes one or more servers in a second database system to determine if one or more existing data objects stored in the second database system include a combination of a second plurality of data values corresponding to a second plurality of data fields that match the combination of the first corresponding plurality of data values included in the first plurality of data fields, and wherein the trigger function further causes one or more servers in the first database system to retrieve one or more data values from the one or more existing data objects, wherein the first data object and the one or more existing data objects are different types of records;

storing the retrieved one or more data values of the second plurality of data values in one or more data fields of the first plurality of data fields;

storing the first data object in the first database system;

automatically creating a link between the stored first data object and the one or more existing data objects stored in the second database system that include the matching combination of the second plurality of data values, the link being automatically created in response to storing the retrieved one or more data values of the second plurality of data values in the data fields of the first plurality of data fields of the first data object;

periodically checking the one or more existing data objects to identify whether or not any subsequent changes have been made to the one or more existing data objects; and

automatically updating, using the created link, the stored first data object in response to identifying a subsequent change made to any of the one or more linked existing data objects.

13. The machine-readable medium of claim 12, wherein the first plurality of data fields store data for a form capable of receiving information from a user, and wherein the retrieved one or more data values are displayed to the user in one or more display fields of the form prior to the user completing the form.

14. The machine-readable medium of claim 12, wherein the first data object is a record stored in a multi-tenant data base system, and wherein the types of records of the first data object and the linked one or more existing data objects are selected from the group of record types consisting of an account, contact, lead, and opportunity, each of the linked one or more existing data objects having a different record type from the first data object.

15. The machine-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the determining is based on one or more data values selected from the group consisting of a phone number, a name, an address, a company name, a professional organization name, an employee identifier, and an email address.

16. An apparatus comprising:

a processor; and

one or more stored sequences of instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to carry out the steps of;

creating a first data object in a first database system, wherein the first data object includes a first plurality of data fields capable of storing a corresponding first plurality of data values;

executing a trigger function in response to creating the first data object, wherein the trigger function causes one or more servers in a second database system to determine if one or more existing data objects stored in the second database system include a combination of a second plurality of data values corresponding to a second plurality of data fields that match the combination of the first corresponding plurality of data values included in the first plurality of data fields, and wherein the trigger function further causes one or more servers in the first database system to retrieve one or more data values from the one or more existing data objects, wherein the first data object and the one or more existing data objects are different types of records;

storing the retrieved one or more data values of the second plurality of data values in one or more data fields of the first plurality of data fields;

storing the first data object in the first database system;

automatically creating a link between the stored first data object and the one or more existing data objects stored in the second database system that include the matching combination of the second plurality of data values, the link being automatically created in response to storing the retrieved one or more data values of the second plurality of data values in the data fields of the first plurality of data fields of the first data object;

periodically checking the one or more existing data objects to identify whether or not any subsequent changes have been made to the one or more existing data objects; and

automatically updating, using the created link, the stored first data object in response to identifying a subsequent change made to any of the one or more linked existing data objects.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the first plurality of data fields store data for a form capable of receiving information from a user, and wherein the retrieved one or more data values are displayed to the user in one or more display fields of the form prior to the user completing the form.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the first data object is a record stored in a multi-tenant data base system, and wherein the types of records of the first data object and the linked one or more existing data objects are selected from the group of record types consisting of an account, contact, lead, and opportunity, each of the linked one or more existing data objects having a different record type from the first data object.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the determining is based on one or more data values selected from the group consisting of a phone number, a name, an address, a company name, a professional organization name, an employee identifier, and an email address.