Method, Apparatus and System for File Transfer Based on File Directory

• US 20120166549A1
• Filed: 08/24/2010
• Published: 06/28/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
• Inventors: Liu, Geng, Lu, Yipeng
• Granted Patent: US 9,300,721 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/08 Annexed information, e.g. attachments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a file directory-based file transfer method, apparatus and system to address the problem that conventional instant messaging (IM) systems cannot directly implement one-time transfer of an entire file directory. In one aspect, a the sending IM client sends files under root directories of one or more file folders under a file directory one file folder after another. Before sending files under a root directory of a respective file folder, the receiving IM client may send a notification message including a name of the respective file folder and location information of the respective folder under the file directory, and then send all files under the root directory of the respective file folder one-by-one. The receiving IM client establishes a file folder according to the received notification message, and stores files received after the notification message into a root directory of the established file folder.

Claims

1. A method of file directory-based file transfer, the method comprising:

receiving, from an instant messaging (IM) client of a sender, a notification message that includes a name of a first file folder and location information of the first file folder under a file directory;

forwarding the notification message to an IM client of a receiver to establish, at the receiver, a second file folder that corresponds to the first file folder;

receiving, from the IM client of the sender, one or more files under a root directory of the first file folder; and

forwarding the received one or more files under the root directory of the first file folder to the IM client of the receiver to store the received one or more files under a root directory of the second file folder.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the IM client of the sender sends the notification message and the files via a peer-to-peer (P2P) connection with the IM client of the receiver, and the IM client of the receiver receives the notification message and the files sent by the IM client of the sender via the P2P connection;

or

the IM client of the sender sends the notification message and the files through a server, and the IM client of the receiver receives the notification message and the files sent by the IM client of the sender through the server.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

prior to receiving the one or more files from the IM client of the sender, receiving, from the IM client of the sender, a transfer request to transfer the file directory, the transfer request including storage space information of the file directory;

determining whether the receiver has sufficient storage space to store the file directory according to the storage space information included in the transfer request message; and

when the receiver has sufficient storage space to store the file directory, receiving, from the IM client of the receiver, a response message that accepts the transfer request to transfer the file directory.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein at least one of the files received from the IM client of the sender is compressed by the IM client of the sender, and wherein the at least one of the files is decompressed by the IM client of the receiver after being received by the IM client of the receiver.

5. A system of file directory-based file transfer, the system comprising:

a server, the server configured to;

receive, from an instant messaging (IM) client of a sender, a notification message that includes a name of a first file folder and location information of the first file folder under a file directory;

forward the notification message to an IM client of a receiver to establish, at the receiver, a second file folder that corresponds to the first file folder;

receive, from the IM client of the sender, one or more files under a root directory of the first file folder; and

forward the received one or more files under the root directory of the first file folder to the IM client of the receiver to store the received one or more files under a root directory of the second file folder.

6. The system as recited in claim 5, wherein the server is further configured to:

prior to receiving the one or more files from the IM client of the sender, receive, from the IM client of the sender, a transfer request to transfer the file directory, the transfer request including storage space information of the file directory;

determine whether the receiver has sufficient storage space to store the file directory according to the storage space information included in the transfer request message; and

when the receiver has sufficient storage space to store the file directory, receive, from the IM client of the receiver, a response message that accepts the transfer request to transfer the file directory.

7. The system as recited in claim 5, wherein the server is further configured to:

receive at least one file from the IM client of the sender that is compressed.

8. A computing device, comprising:

a processor;

a storage, coupled to the processor, that stores data;

a sending module executable by the processor, the sending module configured to;

send a notification message that includes a name of a first file folder and location information of the first file folder under a file directory, and

send one or more files under a root directory of the first file folder; and

a receiving module executable by the processor, the receiving module configure to;

receive the notification message to establish a second file folder that corresponds to the first file folder, and

receive the one or more files under the root directory of the first file folder to store the received one or more files under a root directory of the second file folder.

9. The computing device as recited in claim 8, further comprising:

a file compression/decompression module executable by the processor, the file compression/decompression module configured to compress a file to be sent by the sending module and decompress a file received by the receiving module, wherein the sending module is configured to send the compressed file.

10. The computing device as recited in claim 8, wherein:

at least one of the sending module and the receiving module is configured to establish communication with an instant messaging (IM) client residing on another computing device via a peer-to-peer (P2P) connection.

11. The computing device as recited in claim 8, wherein:

prior to sending the one or more files, the sending module sends a first transfer request to transfer the file directory, the transfer request including storage space information of the file directory;

the receiving module, upon receiving a second transfer request, determines whether there is sufficient storage space to store the file directory according to the storage space information included in the second transfer request message; and

when there is sufficient storage space to store the file directory, the receiving module sends a response message that accepts the second transfer request to transfer the file directory.