LINKING OF CONTENT BETWEEN INSTALLATIONS OF A CONTENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

• US 20150100548A1
• Filed: 01/31/2014
• Published: 04/09/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hyland UK Operations Limited (Hyland Software Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Alfresco Software Incorporated (Hyland Software Incorporated)
• Inventors: Mc Erlean, Neil, Aksoy, Tuna, Burch, Nick, Farman, Michael, Holmes-Higgin, Paul, Newton, John, Remmington, Brian, Rogers, Mark, Vonka, Jan, Webster, David
• Granted Patent: US 10,963,482 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/610
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/178 Techniques for file synchronisation in file systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/27 Replication, distribution or synchronisation of data between databases or within a distributed database system; Distributed database system architectures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/275 Synchronous replication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/02 for separating internal from external traffic, e.g. firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes

Abstract

Content maintained in a first repository of a first installation (which can optionally be an on-premise installation) of a content management system, as well as metadata associated with the content, can be shared via an approach in which content items maintained in the first repository are synchronized with a copy of the content items maintained in a second repository of a second installation (which can optionally be a cloud-based installation). The first installation can be optionally firewall protected. The copy of the content items can be accessed by collaborative users both within and external to a firewall. Related systems, methods, products, etc. are described.

Claims

1. A computer program product comprising a machine-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by at least one programmable processor, cause the at least one programmable processor to perform operations of a first installation of a content management system, the operations comprising:

establishing authentication between a first repository managed by the first installation and a second repository managed by a second installation of the content management system, the first installation being protected by a firewall preventing access to the first repository by an external user;

linking a content item maintained by the first repository with a copy of the content item maintained by the second repository such that the copy of the content item is accessible by an external user subject to one or more access controls enforceable by the second installation, the copy comprising both content of the content item and a set of metadata in common with the content item at the first repository; and

synchronizing the set of metadata between the copy of the content item and the content item in the first repository, the synchronizing occurring via a push to the second installation of changes to the content item at the first repository for writing to the copy of the content item at the second repository, and via a pull to the first installation of changes to the copy of the content item at the second repository for writing to the content item at the first repository, the first installation initiating both the push and the pull.

2. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the access controls are defined based on either or both of an input from an internal user of the first installation who initiates the linking of the content item and the copy of the content item, and an access permission defined for an existing structure at the second installation that is designated as a destination for the copy of the content item.

3. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the linking further comprises:

adding the content item to a synchronization set;

associating a marker aspect with the content item at the first repository when the content item is added to the synchronization set; and

adding an entry in a first audit log for the synchronization indicating addition of the content item the synchronization set, the adding of the entry triggering a first push synchronization to the second installation to create the copy of the content item at the second repository.

4. A computer program product as in claim 3, wherein the operations further comprise:

unsynchronizing the copy of the content item and the content item, the unsynchronizing comprising removing the marker aspect from the content item at the first repository and adding an unsynchronization record to the first audit log.

5. A computer program product as in claim 4, wherein the unsynchronizing further comprises pushing a removal node from the first installation to the second installation, the removal node causing the second installation to delete the copy of the content item upon receipt of the removal node.

6. A computer program product as in claim 4, wherein the unsynchronizing further comprises pushing a removal node from the first installation to the second installation, the removal node causing the second installation to retain the copy of the content item without further reporting of changes made to the copy back to the first installation.

7. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the synchronizing occurs periodically and comprises receiving from the second installation a change manifest generated from a second audit log that records changes to the copy of the content item at the second repository occurring since a previous synchronization and reading from a first audit log that records changes to the content item at the first repository occurring since the previous synchronization.

8. A computer program product as in claim 7, wherein the pull further comprises querying the second audit log from the first installation and the push further comprises sending information from the first audit log to the second installation.

9. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the first installation serves as a system of record for changes to the content item and the second installation serves as a system of engagement where collaborative changes to the copy of the content item occur.

10. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the content item and the copy of the content item comprise one or more of a file, a folder, and a directory structure.

11. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the linking further comprises creating a synchronization set defining content for synchronization between the first repository and the second repository, the defining comprising selecting the content item for inclusion in the synchronization set and a destination in the second repository to which the content item in the synchronization set is to be synchronized.

12. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the first repository comprises an on-premise repository protected from access by external users by a firewall, and the second repository comprises a cloud-based tenant repository outside of the firewall.

13. A computer program product as in claim 12, wherein the cloud-based tenant repository comprises a plurality of sites, and wherein a synchronization set defines content for synchronization between the first repository and the second repository, the synchronization set comprising the content item for inclusion in the synchronization set and a site of the plurality of sites in the second repository as a destination to which the content item in the synchronization set is to be synchronized

14. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the synchronizing further comprises:

sending a request for a change manifest from the first installation to the second installation, the request comprising a repository identifier identifying the first repository;

receiving the change manifest from the second repository at the first repository, the change manifest comprising a synchronization set identifier identifying a changed synchronization set of the one or more synchronization sets, the changed synchronization set comprising the content item which has had its copy changed at the second repository subsequent to a previous synchronization between the first repository and the second repository;

requesting from the second repository based on the change manifest, a detailed record of changes made at the second repository to the content item identified by the content item identifier; and

receiving, at the first repository from the second repository, a set of change descriptions comprising the detailed record of changes.

15. A computer program product as in claim 1, wherein the establishing authentication comprises verifying that an internal user of the first installation has authorized access to a destination for the copy of the content item at the second installation, the verifying comprising at least one of receiving authentication credentials provided by the first user and retrieving the authentication credentials from a credentials store.

17. A system as in claim 14, wherein the computer hardware comprises at least one programmable processor and a machine-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one programmable processor to perform the operations.

16. A system comprising:

computer hardware configured to perform operations of a first installation of a content management system, the operations comprising;

establishing authentication between a first repository managed by the first installation and a second repository managed by a second installation of the content management system, the first installation being protected by a firewall preventing access to the first repository by an external user;

linking a content item maintained by the first repository with a copy of the content item maintained by the second repository such that the copy of the content item is accessible by an external user subject to one or more access controls enforceable by the second installation, the copy comprising both content of the content item and a set of metadata in common with the content item at the first repository; and

synchronizing the set of metadata between the copy of the content item and the content item in the first repository, the synchronizing occurring via a push to the second installation of changes to the content item at the first repository for writing to the copy of the content item at the second repository, and via a pull to the first installation of changes to the copy of the content item at the second repository for writing to the content item at the first repository, the first installation initiating both the push and the pull.

18. A system as in claim 16, wherein the linking further comprises:

adding the content item to a synchronization set;

associating a marker aspect with the content item at the first repository when the content item is added to the synchronization set; and

adding an entry in a first audit log for the synchronization indicating addition of the content item the synchronization set, the adding of the entry triggering a first push synchronization to the second installation to create the copy of the content item at the second repository.

19. A system as in claim 16, wherein the first repository comprises an on-premise repository protected from access by external users by a firewall, and the second repository comprises a cloud-based tenant repository outside of the firewall.

20. A system as in claim 19, wherein the cloud-based tenant repository comprises a plurality of sites, and wherein a synchronization set defines content for synchronization between the first repository and the second repository, the synchronization set comprising the content item for inclusion in the synchronization set and a site of the plurality of sites in the second repository as a destination to which the content item in the synchronization set is to be synchronized.

21. A system as in claim 16, wherein the synchronizing further comprises:

sending a request for a change manifest from the first installation to the second installation, the request comprising a repository identifier identifying the first repository;

receiving the change manifest from the second repository at the first repository, the change manifest comprising a synchronization set identifier identifying a changed synchronization set of the one or more synchronization sets, the changed synchronization set comprising the content item which has had its copy changed at the second repository subsequent to a previous synchronization between the first repository and the second repository;

requesting from the second repository based on the change manifest, a detailed record of changes made at the second repository to the content item identified by the content item identifier; and

receiving, at the first repository from the second repository, a set of change descriptions comprising the detailed record of changes.

22. A computer-implemented method comprising:

establishing authentication between a first repository managed by a first installation of a content management system and a second repository managed by a second installation of the content management system, the first installation being protected by a firewall preventing access to the first repository by an external user;

linking a content item maintained by the first repository with a copy of the content item maintained by the second repository such that the copy of the content item is accessible by an external user subject to one or more access controls enforceable by the second installation, the copy comprising both content of the content item and a set of metadata in common with the content item at the first repository; and

synchronizing the set of metadata between the copy of the content item and the content item in the first repository, the synchronizing occurring via a push to the second installation of changes to the content item at the first repository for writing to the copy of the content item at the second repository, and via a pull to the first installation of changes to the copy of the content item at the second repository for writing to the content item at the first repository, the first installation initiating both the push and the pull.

23. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving, by a second installation of a content management system from a first installation of the content management, confirmation that a first repository managed by the first installation of the content management system has established authentication with a second repository managed by the second installation, the first installation being protected by a firewall preventing access to the first repository by an external user;

receiving, at the second installation, a link of a content item maintained by the first repository with a copy of the content item maintained by the second repository such that the copy of the content item is accessible by an external user subject to one or more access controls enforceable by the second installation, the copy comprising both content of the content item and a set of metadata in common with the content item at the first repository; and

synchronizing the set of metadata between the copy of the content item and the content item in the first repository, the synchronizing occurring via receipt by the second installation of a push from the first installation of changes to the content item at the first repository for writing to the copy of the content item at the second repository, and by the second installation responding to a pull to the first installation of changes to the copy of the content item at the second repository for writing to the content item at the first repository, the first installation initiating both the push and the pull.