Preserving scripting objects on a client

• US 20040230906A1
• Filed: 09/09/2003
• Published: 11/18/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: Sap Portals Israel Ltd (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Pik, Yossi, Brutman, David
• Granted Patent: US 7,376,698 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/522
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/142 Managing session states for stateless protocols; Signalling session states; State transitions; Keeping-state mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

Systems and techniques to preserve state information in a client-server environment. In general, in one implementation, the technique includes: storing, in a shared memory of a client, a scripting object that retains state information for an original document, and cloning the stored scripting object to a newly loaded document. Storing the scripting object can involve copying a scripting object reference to the shared memory to cause retention of the scripting object by the client during document loading. Cloning the stored scripting object to the newly loaded document can be performed recursively, and can involve creating a new scripting object in the new document and copying data from the stored scripting object to the new scripting object. The state information retained in the scripting object can be navigation information associated with the loaded document, and the loaded document can be a portal page in a portal system.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

storing, in a shared memory of a client, a scripting object that retains state information for an original document; and

in response to a request to load a new document, cloning the stored scripting object to the new document.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the original document comprises a loaded document, the request comprises a request to reload the loaded document, and the new document comprises the reloaded document.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein storing the scripting object comprises, in response to the load request, copying a reference to the scripting object to the shared memory to cause retention of the scripting object by the client during document loading.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein cloning the stored scripting object to the new document comprises:

creating a new scripting object in the new document; and

copying data from the stored scripting object to the new scripting object.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein copying the reference to the scripting object to the shared memory comprises:

selecting the shared memory based on the original document; and

copying the reference to the scripting object to the selected shared memory.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein selecting the shared memory comprises:

selecting a parent document memory space in a browser if the original document is a frame in the parent document; and

selecting a memory space of another browser instance that is related to the original document if the original document is a top level in the browser.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein the request to load the new document comprises a client event triggered by a user.

8. The method of claim 3, wherein the state information retained in the scripting object comprises user navigation information associated with the original document, and the original document comprises a portal page in a portal system.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising, in response to the request to load the new document, invoking a new browser instance to load the new document.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein cloning the stored scripting object to the new document comprises recursively cloning internal objects of the stored scripting object.

11. An article comprising a machine-readable medium storing instructions operable to cause one or more machines to perform operations comprising:

storing, in a shared memory of a client, a scripting object that retains state information for an original document; and

in response to a request to load a new document, cloning the stored scripting object to the new document.

12. The article of claim 11, wherein the original document comprises a loaded document, the request comprises a request to reload the loaded document, and the new document comprises the reloaded document.

13. The article of claim 11, wherein storing the scripting object comprises, in response to the load request, copying a reference to the scripting object to the shared memory to cause retention of the scripting object by the client during document loading.

14. The article of claim 13, wherein cloning the stored scripting object to the new document comprises:

creating a new scripting object in the new document; and

copying data from the stored scripting object to the new scripting object.

15. The article of claim 13, wherein copying the reference to the scripting object to the shared memory comprises:

selecting the shared memory based on the original document; and

copying the reference to the scripting object to the selected shared memory.

16. The article of claim 15, wherein selecting the shared memory comprises:

selecting a parent document memory space in a browser if the original document is a frame in the parent document; and

selecting a memory space of another browser instance that is related to the original document if the original document is a top level in the browser.

17. The article of claim 13, wherein the request to load the new document comprises a client event triggered by a user.

18. The article of claim 13, wherein the state information retained in the scripting object comprises user navigation information associated with the original document, and the original document comprises a portal page in a portal system.

19. The article of claim 11, further comprising, in response to the request to load the new document, invoking a new browser instance to load the new document.

20. The article of claim 11, wherein cloning the stored scripting object to the new document comprises recursively cloning internal objects of the stored scripting object.

21. A system comprising:

a portal that sends portal pages to a client; and

a portal page generated by the portal and sent to the client, the portal page having scripting code that creates a scripting object at the client, the scripting object representing a navigation control and retaining navigation information associated with the portal page,

wherein, in response to a navigation event generated using the navigation control, the scripting code causes the client to perform operations comprising;

copying a reference to the scripting object to a shared memory of the client to cause the client to store the scripting object during a page load, and

cloning the stored scripting object to the loaded page.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the loaded page comprises instructions to adjust the cloned scripting object.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein cloning the stored scripting object to the loaded page comprises:

creating a new scripting object in the loaded page; and

copying data from the stored scripting object to the new scripting object.

24. The system of claim 21, wherein copying the reference to the scripting object to the shared memory comprises:

selecting the shared memory based on the portal page; and

copying the reference to the scripting object to the selected shared memory.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein selecting the shared memory comprises:

selecting a parent document memory space in a browser if the portal page is a frame in the parent document; and

selecting a memory space of another browser instance if the portal page is a top level in the browser.

26. The system of claim 21, wherein cloning the stored scripting object to the loaded document comprises recursively cloning internal objects of the stored scripting object.

27. The system of claim 21, wherein the scripting object includes an initialization procedure that implements the cloning of the stored scripting object to the loaded page.

28. The system of claim 21, wherein the client comprises a Web browser that presents the portal page.

29. A system comprising:

means for storing, in a shared memory of a client, a scripting object that retains state information for an original document; and

means for cloning, in response to a request to load a new document, the stored scripting object to the new document.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein the means for storing comprises means for copying a reference to the scripting object to the shared memory to cause retention of the scripting object by the client during document loading.

31. The system of claim 29, wherein the means for cloning comprises means for recursively cloning the stored scripting object to the new document.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein the means for recursively cloning comprises scripting-object initialization-procedure means for creating a new scripting object in the new document, and copying data from the stored scripting object to the new scripting object.

33. The system of claim 29, wherein the state information retained in the scripting object comprises user navigation information associated with the original document, and the new document comprises a portal page in a portal system.