Agent-less Follow-me Service for Cloud-based Applications

• US 20110302297A1
• Filed: 06/04/2010
• Published: 12/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC (Allied Inventors Management, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Empire Technology Development LLC (Allied Inventors Management, LLC)
• Inventors: Kruglick, Ezekiel
• Granted Patent: US 8,447,853 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4856 resumption being on a different machine, e.g. task migration, virtual machine migration G06F9/5088 takes precedence

Abstract

Technologies are generally described herein for providing an agent-less follow-me service. An example web browser may be configured to receive a first link to a reference table from a portable token. The web browser may be configured to retrieve a second link to an on-going web application from the reference table. The second link may reflect a first state of the on-going web application. The web browser may be configured to open the on-going web application corresponding to the second link. As a user interacts with the on-going web application, the on-going web application may be configured to transition from the first state to a second state. The web browser may be configured to update the second link in the reference table to reflect the second state of the on-going web application.

Claims

1. A method for providing a follow-me service, comprising:

receiving, through a computing device having a processor and a memory, a first link to a reference table, the reference table comprising a second link corresponding to a first state of an on-going web application;

retrieving, through the computing device, the second link from the reference table via the first link;

opening the on-going web application corresponding to the second link on a web browser configured to execute on the computing device; and

upon opening the on-going web application on the web browser, updating, through the computing device, the second link in the reference table to reflect a second state of the on-going web application.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, through a computing device having a processor and a memory, a first link to a reference table comprises receiving, through the computing device, the first link to the reference from a portable token.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving, through a computing device having a processor and a memory, a first link to a reference table comprises receiving the first link to the reference table at the computing device when the portable token is within a proximity to the computing device.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

receiving, through the computing device, an indication that the portable token is outside the proximity of the computing device;

upon receiving the indication that the portable token is outside the proximity of the computing device, determining, through the computing device, whether the reference table reflects a current state of the on-going web application;

upon determining that the reference table does not reflect the current state of the on-going web application, updating, through the computing device, the second link in the reference table to reflect the current state of the on-going web application; and

upon determining that the reference table reflects the current state of the on-going web application or upon updating the second link in the reference table to reflect the current state of the on-going web application, closing the on-going web application on the web browser.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, through a computing device having a processor and a memory, a first link to a reference table comprises receiving, through the computing device, the first link to the reference table and access control data;

and wherein retrieving, through the computing device, the second link from the reference table via the first link comprises;

accessing, through the computing device, the first link to the reference table;

upon accessing the first link, receiving, through the computing device, an authentication request from the first link;

upon receiving the authentication request, sending, through the computing device, the access control data to the first link;

receiving, through the computing device, permission to access the reference table from the first link; and

upon receiving the permission, retrieving, through the computing device, the second link from the reference table.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein retrieving, through the computing device, the second link from the reference table via the first link comprises retrieving, through the computing device, the second link and a corresponding cookie from the reference table;

and wherein opening the on-going web application corresponding to the second link on a web browser configured to execute on the processor from the memory comprises;

transmitting, through the computing device, the cookie and a request to access the on-going web application to the second link;

upon transmitting the cookie and the request to access the on-going web application to the second link, receiving, through the computing device, permission to access the on-going web application from the second link; and

upon receiving the permission to access the on-going web application, opening the on-going web application corresponding to the second link on the web browser.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, through the computing device, an indication that the on-going web application has been closed; and

upon receiving the indication that the on-going web application has been closed, removing, through the computing device, the second link from the reference table.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein updating, through the computing device, the second link in the reference table to reflect a second state of the on-going web application comprises replacing, through the computing device, the second link in the reference table with a third link corresponding to the second state of the on-going web application.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein updating, through the computing device, the second link in the reference table to reflect a second state of the on-going web application comprises updating, through the computing device, the second link in the reference table to reflect the second state of the on-going web application at a predefined time interval.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the web application comprises a stateless, cloud-based web application.

11. A computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable instructions stored thereon which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to:

receive, through the computer, an indication that a portable token is within a proximity of the computer;

when the indication is received that the portable token is within the proximity of the computing device, receive, through the computer, a first link to a reference table from the portable token, the reference table comprising a second link corresponding to a first state of an on-going web application;

retrieve, through the computer, the second link from the reference table via the first link;

open the on-going web application corresponding to the second link on a web browser executed by the computer;

when the on-going web application is opened, update, through the computer, the second link in the reference table to reflect a second state of the on-going web application;

receive, through the computer, an indication that the portable token is outside the proximity of the computer; and

when the indication that the portable token is outside the proximity of the computer is received, close the on-going web application on the web browser.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the portable token comprises a pluggable device;

and wherein the portable token is within the proximity of the computing device when the portable token is plugged into the computing device.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the portable token is outside the proximity of the computing device when the portable token is unplugged from the computing device.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the portable token comprises a wireless device;

and wherein the portable token is within the proximity of the computing device when the portable token is within a range of the computing device according to a wireless protocol.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the portable token is outside the proximity of the computing device when the portable token is outside the range of the wireless device according to the wireless protocol.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the portable token comprises a radio frequency identification tag;

and wherein the portable token is within the proximity of the computing device when the portable token is placed within a range of a radio frequency identification reader coupled to the computing device, the range enabling communication between the radio frequency identification reader and the portable token.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the portable token is outside the proximity of the computing device when the portable token is placed again within the range of the radio frequency identification receiver coupled to the computing device.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the first link and the second link comprise uniform resource locators.

19. A computer system for providing a follow-me service, comprising:

a processor,

a memory coupled to the processor;

a web browser which executes in the processor from the memory; and

a web browser plug-in coupled to the web browser, wherein the web browser plug-in is adapted to execute in the processor from the memory and, when executed by the processor, causes the computer system provide the follow-me service by;

receiving an indication that a portable token is within a proximity of the computer system;

upon receiving the indication that the portable token is within the proximity of the computer system, receiving a first link to a reference table, the reference table comprising a second link corresponding to a first state of an on-going web application;

retrieving the second link and a corresponding cookie from the reference table via the first link;

transmitting the cookie and a request to access the on-going web application to the second link;

upon transmitting the cookie and the request to access the on-going web application to the second link, receiving permission to access the on-going web application from the second link;

upon receiving the permission to access the on-going web application, opening the on-going web application corresponding to the second link on the web browser;

upon opening the on-going web application, updating the second link in the reference table to reflect a second state of the on-going web application;

receiving an indication that the portable token is outside the proximity to the computer system;

upon receiving the indication that the portable token is outside the proximity to the computer system, determining whether the reference table reflects a current state of the on-going web application;

upon determining that the reference table does not reflect the current state of the on-going web application, updating the second link in the reference table to reflect the current state of the on-going web application; and

upon determining that the reference table reflects the current state of the on-going web application or upon updating the second link in the reference table to reflect the current state of the on-going web application, closing the on-going web application on the web browser.

20. The computer system of claim 19, wherein state information regarding the on-going web application is encoded in the second link.

21. The computer system of claim 19, wherein the reference table stores the second link in Extensible Markup Language.

22. The computer system of claim 19, wherein the reference table is user-specific.