Techniques for ephemeral messaging with legacy clients

• US 9,906,480 B2
• Filed: 12/10/2015
• Issued: 02/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Steiner, Matthew, Fein, Jeremy, Murphy-Chutorian, Erik, Yang, Ting, Portillo, Alvin
• Primary Examiner(s): Boutah, Alina N
• Application Number:
  US14/965,623
• Publication Number:
  US 20170171131A1
• Time in Patent Office: 810 Days
• Field of Search: 709206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/02 using automatic reactions or user delegation, e.g. automatic replies or chatbot-generated messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/216 Handling conversation history, e.g. grouping of messages in sessions or threads
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services

Abstract

Techniques for ephemeral message are described. In one embodiment, an apparatus may comprise a sender inbound messaging component operative to receive an incoming update for a message queue at a client support server for a messaging system from a messaging client on a client device; a legacy client support component operative to determine whether the messaging client supports a client-side time-to-live setting; determine whether the incoming update should be associated with a server-specified time-to-live setting where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting; and assign the incoming update the server-specified time-to-live setting where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting and where the incoming update should be associated with a server-side time-to-live setting. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

receiving an incoming update for a message queue at a client support server for a messaging system from a messaging client on a client device;

determining whether the messaging client supports a client-side time-to-live setting;

determining whether the incoming update should be associated with a server-specified time-to-live setting where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting; and

assigning the incoming update the server-specified time-to-live setting where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting and where the incoming update should be associated with a server-side time-to-live setting.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the incoming update corresponds to an atomic modification to a message inbox for the messaging client on the client device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, further comprising:

determining that a time-to-live registry for the client device is not cached in memory on the client support server;

retrieving the time-to-live registry for the client device;

determining whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on the time-to-live registry for the client device; and

caching the time-to-live registry in memory on the client support server.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a notification of an opening of a network connection with the messaging client on the client device;

determining whether the messaging client supports the client-side time-to-live setting in response to receiving the notification of the opening of the network connection with the messaging client on the client device; and

caching a time-to-live registry in memory on the client support server for a duration of the network connection where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, further comprising:

determining that a time-to-live registry for the client device is cached in memory on the client support server; and

determining whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on the time-to-live registry for the client device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, further comprising:

determining whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on a time-to-live registry for the client device, the time-to-live registry comprising a listing of message threads associated with time-to-live settings.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, further comprising:

determining whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on a time-to-live registry for the client device, the time-to-live registry comprising a listing of media channels associated with time-to-live settings.

8. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor circuit on a device;

a sender inbound messaging component operative on the processor circuit to receive an incoming update for a message queue at a client support server for a messaging system from a messaging client on a client device;

a legacy client support component operative on the processor circuit to determine whether the messaging client supports a client-side time-to-live setting;

determine whether the incoming update should be associated with a server-specified time-to-live setting where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting; and

assign the incoming update the server-specified time-to-live setting where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting and where the incoming update should be associated with a server-side time-to-live setting.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the incoming update corresponds to an atomic modification to a message inbox for the messaging client on the client device.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, further comprising:

the legacy client support component operative to determine that a time-to-live registry for the client device is not cached in memory on the client support server;

retrieve the time-to-live registry for the client device;

determine whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on the time-to-live registry for the client device; and

cache the time-to-live registry in memory on the client support server.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, further comprising:

the legacy client support component operative to receive a notification of an opening of a network connection with the messaging client on the client device;

determine whether the messaging client supports the client-side time-to-live setting in response to receiving the notification of the opening of the network connection with the messaging client on the client device; and

cache a time-to-live registry in memory on the client support server for a duration of the network connection where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting.

12. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, further comprising:

the legacy client support component operative to determine that a time-to-live registry for the client device is cached in memory on the client support server; and

determine whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on the time-to-live registry for the client device.

13. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, further comprising:

the legacy client support component operative to determine whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on a time-to-live registry for the client device, the time-to-live registry comprising a listing of message threads associated with time-to-live settings.

14. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, further comprising:

the legacy client support component operative to determine whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on a time-to-live registry for the client device, the time-to-live registry comprising a listing of media channels associated with time-to-live settings.

15. At least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

receive an incoming update for a message queue at a client support server for a messaging system from a messaging client on a client device, wherein the incoming update corresponds to an atomic modification to a message inbox for the messaging client on the client device;

determine whether the messaging client supports a client-side time-to-live setting;

determine whether the incoming update should be associated with a server-specified time-to-live setting where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting; and

assign the incoming update the server-specified time-to-live setting where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting and where the incoming update should be associated with a server-side time-to-live setting.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

determine that a time-to-live registry for the client device is not cached in memory on the client support server;

retrieve the time-to-live registry for the client device;

determine whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on the time-to-live registry for the client device; and

cache the time-to-live registry in memory on the client support server.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

receive a notification of an opening of a network connection with the messaging client on the client device;

determine whether the messaging client supports the client-side time-to-live setting in response to receiving the notification of the opening of the network connection with the messaging client on the client device; and

cache a time-to-live registry in memory on the client support server for a duration of the network connection where the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

determine that a time-to-live registry for the client device is cached in memory on the client support server; and

determine whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on the time-to-live registry for the client device.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

determine whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on a time-to-live registry for the client device, the time-to-live registry comprising a listing of message threads associated with time-to-live settings.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the messaging client does not support the client-side time-to-live setting, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

determine whether the incoming update should be associated with the server-specified time-to-live setting based on a time-to-live registry for the client device, the time-to-live registry comprising a listing of media channels associated with time-to-live settings.