System, method and computer program product for creating a re-usable component utilizing a multi-tenant on-demand database service

• US 9,791,993 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2013
• Issued: 10/17/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Waite, Andrew, Chasman, Douglas
• Primary Examiner(s): Bloomquist, Keith
• Application Number:
  US13/866,830
• Publication Number:
  US 20130239029A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,642 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/00 Digital computing or data processing equipment or methods, specially adapted for specific functions information retrieval, database structures or file system structures therefor G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/36 Software reuse

Abstract

In accordance with embodiments, there are provided mechanisms and methods for creating a re-usable component for use in association with a multi-tenant on-demand database service. These mechanisms and methods for creating a re-usable component for use in association with a multi-tenant on-demand database service can allow the re-usable component to be utilized by multiple tenants of the multi-tenant on-demand database service.

Claims

1. A method of automatically creating a re-usable component for a user-interface, the method including:

responsive to a user selection, automatically generating by a server of a shared on-demand database a re-usable component having access to one or more fields of the shared on-demand database based on a next unique identifier in a sequence of not yet used unique identifiers that are available and are valid for a specific client;

wherein the re-usable component includes a code definition adopted from a pre-determined re-usable component template;

presenting the re-usable component as an interface portion for display across an interface installed at and specific to a client;

receiving from a user, customization code that modifies a functionality of the re-usable component;

automatically generating an updated code definition of the re-usable component modified based on the customization code;

creating a new re-usable component in accordance with the updated code definition; and

presenting the new re-usable component in place of the re-usable component as the interface portion for display across the interface in a package received by and installed at a specific client;

thereby enabling customizing the interface installed at and specific to the client with a re-usable component including the customization code used among a plurality of users in interfaces installed at and customized to respective ones of the plurality of users.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein generating a re-usable component based on a next unique identifier in a sequence of not yet used unique identifiers includes:

receiving a name and definition for a re-usable code component as text;

converting the text for the name and the definition to a mark-up language; and

generating the re-usable code component based on the mark-up language for integration into an interface.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the text is received as input to input fields of an interface.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the automatically generating an updated code definition of the re-usable component based on the customization code includes:

updating an attribute of the code definition of the re-usable component based on the customization code, wherein the updating includes specifying at least one database.

5. The method of claim 4, further including:

accessing at least one value from the database;

automatically executing the code definition based on the value; and

presenting results across an interface page generated by the execution.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the code definition specifies a manner to render output.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving from a user customization code includes:

receiving an input via another re-usable component of an interface page, the another re-usable component different from the re-usable component.

8. The method of claim 1, further including:

receiving a reference within a page to the re-usable component, the reference including code for specifying a manner to render output; and

wherein the automatically generating an updated code definition of the re-usable component based on the customization code includes;

inserting the code for specifying a manner to render output within an area of the re-usable component for receiving input of an unspecified type.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the code that specifies a manner to render output includes code for modifying a resulting output of a first re-usable component that takes as input an output of a second re-usable component.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the code definition includes one or more restrictions placed on types of changes that a user may make to the re-usable component.

11. The method of claim 1, further including checking that an identifier includes a name available to the specific client.

12. The method of claim 1, further including checking that an identifier is not yet used to refer to any other re-usable component of other users.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein automatically generating a name and a code definition for the second re-usable component includes:

receiving the name and code definition of the body re-usable component as text;

converting the text for the name and the code definition to a mark-up language; and

generating the code definition for a second re-usable component based on the mark-up language for integration into an interface.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the text is received as input to input fields of an interface.

13. A method of automatically creating a re-usable component for a user-interface, the method including:

receiving by a server of a shared on-demand database a request to include, in a code definition of a first re-usable component having access to one or more fields of the shared on-demand database, a reference to a body re-usable component;

responsive to the request, automatically generating a name and a code definition for a second re-usable component based on at least;

a next unique identifier in a sequence of not yet used unique identifiers that are available and are valid for a specific client; and

a code definition of a pre-determined re-usable component template; and

instantiating a second re-usable component from the first re-usable component the instantiating based on the name, as automatically generated, and code definition of the body re-usable component; and

presenting the second re-usable component as a panel portion for display across an interface in a package received by and installed at a specific client;

thereby enabling customizing the interface installed at and specific to the specific client with a re-usable component including customization code used among a plurality of users in interfaces installed at and customized to respective ones of the plurality of users.

16. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium impressed with computer program instructions to automatically create a re-usable component for a user-interface, which instructions, when executed on a processor, implement a method comprising:

automatically generating by a server of a shared on-demand database a re-usable component having access to one or more fields of the shared on-demand database based on a next unique identifier in a sequence of not yet used unique identifiers that are available and are valid for a specific client;

wherein the re-usable component includes a code definition adopted from a pre-determined re-usable component template;

presenting the re-usable component as an interface portion for display across an interface installed at and specific to a client;

receiving from a user, customization code that modifies a functionality of the re-usable component;

automatically generating an updated code definition of the re-usable component modified based on the customization code;

creating a new re-usable component in accordance with the updated code definition; and

presenting the new re-usable component in place of the re-usable component as the interface portion for display across the interface in a package received by and installed at a specific client;

thereby enabling customizing the interface installed at and specific to the client with a re-usable component including the customization code used among a plurality of users in interfaces installed at and customized to respective ones of the plurality of users.

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16, implementing the method further comprising:

updating an attribute of the code definition of the re-usable component based on the customization code, wherein the updating includes specifying at least one database;

accessing at least one value from the database;

automatically executing the code definition based on the value; and

presenting results generated by the executing the code definition across an interface page.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16, implementing the method further comprising:

receiving a reference within a page to the re-usable component, the reference including code for specifying a manner to render output; and

wherein the automatically generating an updated code definition of the re-usable component based on the customization code includes;

inserting the code for specifying a manner to render output within an area of the re-usable component for receiving input of an unspecified type.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the code that specifies a manner to render output includes code for modifying a resulting output of a first re-usable component that takes as input an output of a second re-usable component.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the code definition includes one or more restrictions placed on types of changes that a user may make to the re-usable component.

21. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16, implementing the method further comprising:

checking that an identifier includes a name available to the specific client.

22. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16, implementing the method further comprising:

checking that an identifier is not yet used to refer to any other re-usable component of other users.