System, method and computer program product for defining custom junction objects in an on-demand database service

• US 9,798,784 B1
• Filed: 08/22/2008
• Issued: 10/24/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Wong, Simon, Choi, Ryan, Weissman, Craig, Polcari, Michael P., Brady, David M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Boccio, Vincent F
• Application Number:
  US12/196,876
• Time in Patent Office: 3,350 Days
• Field of Search: 707785, 707786, 707 97, 707803, 707711, 707713, 707 71
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2465 Query processing support for facilitating data mining operations in structured databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2477 Temporal data queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/604 Tools and structures for managing or administering access control systems

Abstract

In accordance with embodiments, there are provided mechanisms and methods for defining custom junction objects in an on-demand database service. These mechanisms and methods for defining custom junction objects in an on-demand database service can enable embodiments to provide for enhanced security and more efficient querying, etc. The ability of embodiments to provide such features may lead to these and other benefits in an on-line environment.

Claims

1. A method of implementing a many-to-many relationship among objects defined for business entities or business activities using database tables in an on-demand database service, the method comprising:

receiving information associated with a plurality of arbitrary objects defined in the on-demand database service;

defining a custom junction object comprising a many-to-many relationship of any tuple selected from the plurality of arbitrary objects, wherein the custom junction object includes at least a first direct parent-child relationship implementing the many-to-many relationship that includes a first parent object and a plurality of child objects, and a second parent-child relationship that includes a second parent object, and the plurality of child objects;

storing in the on-demand database service, custom junction objects including information about related tuples of arbitrary objects using the custom junction object defined;

defining one or more read-write security criteria associated with the custom junction object and enforcing the read-write security criteria, wherein the read-write security criteria applicable to the child objects depend on a combined evaluation of read-write security criteria applicable to both the first parent object and the second parent object;

receiving from a source a first query of a pipeline of queries that when run return a predetermined number of temporally ordered entities associated with a plurality of accounts of the on-demand database service;

running the first query for a predetermined number of temporally ordered entities associated with a first account;

limiting a second query for temporally ordered entities associated with a second account by conditionally retrieving at least one of temporally ordered entities associated with a second account based on a determination whether a date associated with the at least one of the temporally ordered entities would result in the at least one of the temporally ordered entities not being included in the predetermined number of temporally ordered entities; and

using the custom junction object to provide a result to at least one query, wherein visibility of child objects in the result is determined by visibility to the source of the first parent object and visibility to the source of the second parent object;

thereby ensuring that the source receives in the result only business entities or business activities of child objects whose parent objects are visible to the source.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein combined evaluation of first and second parents read-write security criteria allows a child object to be written when both the first parent object and the second parent object are allowed to be read, but not written.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the combined evaluation of first and second parents read-write security criteria allows a child object to be written when at least one of the first parent object and the second parent object are allowed to be written and at least one of the first parent object and the second parent object are allowed to be read but not written.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the custom junction object comprises a many-to-many relationship associated with a plurality of the arbitrary objects associated with a single household.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the custom junction object comprises a many-to-many relationship associated with a plurality of the arbitrary objects that have a business relationship.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the on-demand database service includes a multi-tenant on-demand database service.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a detail page associated with at least one parent of the custom junction object, the detail page including a custom related list showing one or more custom junction objects related to at least one parent.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a detail page associated with a household, the detail page including a list of children related to one or more accounts associated with the household.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first parent object and the second parent object are both parent objects to each one of the plurality of child objects.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the read-write security criteria is selectively enforced by enforcing the read-write security criteria when both the first parent object and the second parent object are publicly shared.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the combined evaluation of first and second parents read-write security criteria allows a child object to be read when both the first parent object and the second parent object are allowed to be read.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the combined evaluation of first and second parents read-write security criteria allows a child object to be written when both the first parent object and the second parent object are allowed to be written.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein

the on-demand database service includes database tables defining at least one account object, a second object, and

a custom junction object that links the account object and the second object as parents in a many-to-many relationship with the plurality of child objects as descendants, the method further comprising:

receiving a request by a user to add a further child object to the plurality of child objects;

determining permission of the user to add the further child object by evaluating read-write security criteria controlling access by the user to the account object and also evaluating read-write criteria controlling access by the user to the second object;

granting to the user, permission to add the further child object that exceeds the read-write security criteria controlling access by the user to at least one of the account object or to the second object; and

using the custom junction object to control visibility to the user of the further child object, wherein visibility of the further child object to the user is determined by visibility to the user of the account object and visibility to the user of the second object;

thereby ensuring that the user has visibility to only those child objects whose parent objects are visible to the user.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the custom junction object is further linked to permissions data for both the account object and the second object and does not include sharing rules.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein deletion of the custom junction object includes cascading deletion of the plurality of child objects.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the user inherits permission to add a further child from both the account object and the second object according to a rule that the user is granted permission to add a further child object when the user has read but not write access to both the account object and the second object.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the user inherits permission to add a further child from both the account object and the second object according to a rule that the user is granted permission to add a further child object when the user has read but not write access to one of the account object and the second object and has read-write access to an other of the account object and the second object.

18. A non-transitory machine-readable medium impressed with computer program instructions to implement a many-to-many relationship among objects defined for business entities or business activities using database tables in an on-demand database service, which instructions, when executed, cause one or more processors to carry out:

receiving information associated with a plurality of arbitrary objects defined in the on-demand database service;

defining a custom junction object comprising a many-to-many relationship of any tuple selected from the plurality of arbitrary objects, wherein the custom junction object includes at least a first direct parent-child relationship implementing the many-to-many relationship that includes a first parent object and a plurality of child objects, and a second parent-child relationship that includes a second parent object, and the plurality of child objects;

storing in the on-demand database service, custom junction objects including information about related tuples of arbitrary objects using the custom junction object defined;

defining one or more read-write security criteria associated with the custom junction object and enforcing the read-write security criteria, wherein the read-write security criteria applicable to the child objects depend on a combined evaluation of read-write security criteria applicable to both the first parent object and the second parent object;

receiving from a source a first query of a pipeline of queries that when run return a predetermined number of temporally ordered entities associated with a plurality of accounts of the on-demand database service;

running the first query for a predetermined number of temporally ordered entities associated with a first account;

limiting a second query for temporally ordered entities associated with a second account by conditionally retrieving at least one of temporally ordered entities associated with a second account based on a determination whether a date associated with the at least one of the temporally ordered entities would result in the at least one of the temporally ordered entities not being included in the predetermined number of temporally ordered entities; and

using the custom junction object to provide a result to at least one query, wherein visibility of child objects in the result is determined by visibility to the source of the first parent object and visibility to the source of the second parent object;

thereby ensuring that the source receives in the result only business entities or business activities of child objects whose parent objects are visible to the source.

19. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor; and

a non-transitory computer readable memory with one or more stored sequences of computer program instructions to implement a many-to-many relationship among objects defined for business entities or business activities using database tables in an on-demand database service, which instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to carry out;

receiving information associated with a plurality of arbitrary objects defined in the on-demand database service;

defining a custom junction object comprising a many-to-many relationship of any tuple selected from the plurality of arbitrary objects, wherein the custom junction object includes at least a first direct parent-child relationship implementing the many-to-many relationship that includes a first parent object and a plurality of child objects, and a second parent-child relationship that includes a second parent object, and the plurality of child objects;

storing in the on-demand database service, custom junction objects including information about related tuples of arbitrary objects using the custom junction object defined;

defining one or more read-write security criteria associated with the custom junction object and enforcing the read-write security criteria, wherein the read-write security criteria applicable to the child objects depend on a combined evaluation of read-write security criteria applicable to both the first parent object and the second parent object;

receiving from a source a first query of a pipeline of queries that when run return a predetermined number of temporally ordered entities associated with a plurality of accounts of the on-demand database service;

running the first query for a predetermined number of temporally ordered entities associated with a first account;

limiting a second query for temporally ordered entities associated with a second account by conditionally retrieving at least one of temporally ordered entities associated with a second account based on a determination whether a date associated with the at least one of the temporally ordered entities would result in the at least one of the temporally ordered entities not being included in the predetermined number of temporally ordered entities; and

using the custom junction object to provide a result to at least one query, wherein visibility of child objects in the result is determined by visibility to the source of the first parent object and visibility to the source of the second parent object;

thereby ensuring that the source receives in the result only business entities or business activities of child objects whose parent objects are visible to the source.

20. A method for transmitting code for implementing a many-to-many relationship among objects defined for business entities or business activities using database tables in a multi-tenant database system on a transmission medium, the method comprising:

transmitting code for receiving information associated with a plurality of arbitrary objects defined in the multi-tenant database system;

transmitting code for defining a custom junction object comprising a many-to-many relationship of any tuple selected from the plurality of arbitrary objects, wherein the custom junction object includes at least a first direct parent-child relationship implementing the many-to-many relationship that includes a first parent object and a plurality of child objects, and a second parent-child relationship that includes a second parent object, and the plurality of child objects;

transmitting code for storing in the multi-tenant database system, custom junction objects including information about related tuples of arbitrary objects using the custom junction object defined;

transmitting code for defining one or more read-write security criteria associated with the custom junction object and enforcing the read-write security criteria, wherein the read-write security criteria applicable to the child objects depend on a combined evaluation of read-write security criteria applicable to both the first parent object and the second parent object;

transmitting code for receiving from a source a first query of a pipeline of queries that when run return a predetermined number of temporally ordered entities associated with a plurality of accounts of the multi-tenant database system;

transmitting code for running the first query for a predetermined number of temporally ordered entities associated with a first account;

transmitting code for limiting a second query for temporally ordered entities associated with a second account by conditionally retrieving at least one of temporally ordered entities associated with a second account based on a determination whether a date associated with the at least one of the temporally ordered entities would result in the at least one of the temporally ordered entities not being included in the predetermined number of temporally ordered entities; and

transmitting code for providing a result to at least one query using the custom junction object, wherein visibility of child objects in the result is determined by visibility to the source of the first parent object and visibility to the source of the second parent object.