Computing system and method for migrating a mobile computing environment

• US 6,804,718 B1
• Filed: 03/15/2000
• Issued: 10/12/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kent Ridge Digital Labs
• Original Assignee: Kent Ridge Digital Labs
• Inventors: Rangarajan, Sridharan, Pang, Hwee Hwa
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheikh, Ayaz
• Assistant Examiner(s): LAFORGIA, CHRISTIAN A
• Application Number:
  US09/525,590
• Time in Patent Office: 1,672 Days
• Field of Search: 707/4, 713/201, 705/44, 370/463, 709/203, 709/226
• US Class Current: 709/226
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/549 Remote execution
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/54 Interprogram communication

Abstract

A computing system for enabling the migration of a mobile computing environment to provide a consistent computing environment for a user is disclosed. The computing system is connectable to remote storage and has a local computing environment, an operating system, and a local storage. It also includes a means for mapping a user-interface portion of the mobile computing environment onto the local computing environment using information transferred from said remote storage being connected to the system, the mapping means being actuable by the user. The computer system further includes a file system in the operating system for receiving and translating requests for performing file operations on the local storage. There is also included a means for monitoring and intercepting a request made to the file system for operation on a file, the request being actuable by the mapped user-interface and the file being stored on a said remote storage being connected to the system.

Claims

1. A computing system connectable to remote storage and having a local computing environment, an operating system, and a local storage, said computing system including:

means for enabling the migration of a mobile computing environment to the computer system to provide a consistent computing environment for a user, the mobile computing environment including a user-interface, file access, directory access and application program access;

the means for enabling the migration comprising;

means for mapping the user-interface portion of the mobile computing environment onto said local computing environment using information transferred from said remote storage being connected to said system, the mapping means being actuable by said user;

a file system in said operating system for receiving and translating requests for performing file operations on said local storage; and

means for monitoring and intercepting a request made to said file system for operation on a file stored on said remote storage being connected to said system, said request being actuable by the mapped user-interface;

wherein said file from said remote storage is transferred to said local storage by said monitoring means.

2. The system as in claim 1, wherein said connectivity between said system and said remote storage is provided by a communications medium.

3. The system as in claim 2, wherein said information from said remote storage is transferred by said mapping means.

4. The system as in claim 2, further including a file access protocol for providing said connectivity between said system and said remote storage, wherein said file access protocol is dynamically selectable and dependent on the file access protocol of said remote storage.

5. The system as in claim 2, wherein said mapping means is an application program actuable by said user.

6. The system as in claim 2, wherein said monitoring means includes at least two components resident in the kernel of said operating system, a first component being layered on top of said file system and a second component providing said connectivity between said system and said remote storage.

7. The system as in claim 2, wherein said communications medium is a communications network.

8. The system as in claim 7, where in said remote storage for said transferred information is a first remote storage and said remote storage for said file is stored on a second remote storage.

9. The system as in claim 8, wherein said operating system is a graphical user interface based operating system.

10. The system as in claim 9, wherein said mapping means is a graphical user interface based operating system application program, said first remote storage is provided by a Web portal and said second remote storage is a File Transfer Protocol server.

11. The system as in claim 7, wherein said mobile computing environment is a graphical user interface based operating system computing environment which includes at least one of a wallpaper, a plurality of desktop icons, a plurality of program and document shortcuts, a clipboard or cache, a registry, and a plurality of directory mappings.

12. The system as in claim 1, wherein said monitoring means further modifies said request to point to said file stored on said local storage and passes said modified request to said file system.

13. A method of providing a consistent computing environment for a user of a computing system, said computing system being connectable to remote storage and having a local computing environment, an operating system, and a local storage, said method comprising:

migrating a mobile computing environment to the computing system to provide the consistent computing environment for the user, the mobile computing environment including a user-interface, file access, directory access and application program access;

the migrating step comprising the steps of;

mapping the user-interface portion of the mobile computing environment onto said local computing environment, the mapping step including transferring information stored on said remote storage being connected to said computing system, and using the transferred information for mapping said user-interface, said mapping step being actuated by said user;

receiving and translating requests in a file system in said operating system for performing file operations on said local storage; and

monitoring and intercepting a request made to said file system for operation on a file stored on said remote storage being connected to said computing system, said request being actuated by said mapped user interface;

wherein said monitoring step includes transferring said file from said remote storage to said local storage.

14. The method as in claim 13, further including the step of providing connectivity between said computer system and said remote storage using a communications medium.

15. The method as in claim 14, further including the step of providing a file access protocol to connect said computing system to said remote storage.

16. The method as in claim 15, wherein said providing step includes selecting dynamically said file access protocol, said selection being dependent on the file access protocol of said remote storage.

17. The method as in claim 14, wherein said monitoring step further includes

layering a first component on top of said file system in said operating system, and

connecting said computing system and said remote storage using a second component,

wherein both said components are resident in the kernel of said operating system.

18. The method as in claim 14, wherein said step of providing connectivity using said communications medium includes using a communications network.

19. The method as in claim 18, wherein said mapping and monitoring steps further include connecting said computing system to a first remote storage and a second remote storage respectively.

20. The method as in claim 19, wherein said mapping and monitoring steps further include connecting said computing system to a web portal and a File Transfer Protocol server respectively.

21. The method as in claim 20 providing a mobile computing environment in relation to a graphical user interface based operating system which includes at least one of a wallpaper, a plurality of desktop icons, a plurality of program and document shortcuts, a clipboard or cache, a registry, and a plurality of directory mappings.

22. The method as in claim 13, wherein said monitoring step further includes modifying said request to point to said file stored on said local storage.

23. The method as in claim 22, wherein said monitoring step further includes passing said modified request to said file system.

24. A computer program product for providing a consistent computing environment for a user, comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer readable program code means embodied in said medium for causing migration of a mobile computing environment to a computing system, including a user interface, file access, directory access and application program access, said computing system being connectable to remote storage and having a local computing environment, an operating system, and a local storage, the computer readable program code means including;

code means for mapping the user interface portion of said mobile computing environment onto said local computing environment, including transferring information stored on said remote storage being connected to said computing system, and using the transferred information for mapping said user-interface, the step of mapping being actuated by said user;

code means for receiving and translating requests in a file system in said operating system for performing file operations on said local storage; and

code means for monitoring and intercepting a request made to said file system for operation on a file stored on said remote storage being connected to said computing system, said request being actuated by said mapped user-interface;

wherein said code means for monitoring includes means for transferring said file from said remote storage to said local storage.

25. The computer program product as in claim 24, further including computer readable program code means for providing connectivity between said computer system and said remote storage using a communications medium.

26. The computer program product as in claim 25, further including computer readable program code means for providing a file access protocol to connect said system to said remote storage.

27. The computer program product as in claim 26, wherein said computer readable program code means for providing includes means for selecting dynamically said file access protocol, said selection being dependent on the file access protocol of said remote storage.

28. The computer program product as in claim 25, wherein said computer readable program code means for monitoring further includes

computer readable program code means for layering a first component on top of said file system in said operating system, and

computer readable program code means for connecting said computing system to said second remote storage using a second component,

wherein both said components are resident in the kernel of said operating system.

29. The computer program product as in claim 25, wherein said computer readable program code means for providing connectivity using said communications medium includes means for using a communications network.

30. The computer program product as in claim 29, wherein said mapping and monitoring means further include means for connecting said computer system to a first remote storage and a second remote storage respectively.

31. The computer program product as in claim 30, wherein said mapping and monitoring means further include means for connecting said computing system to a web portal and a File Transfer Protocol server respectively.

32. The computer program product as in claim 31, further including computer readable program code means for providing a mobile computing environment in relation to a graphical user interface based operating system which includes at least one of a wallpaper, a plurality of desktop icons, a plurality of program and document shortcuts, a clipboard or cache, a registry, and a plurality of directory mappings.

33. The computer program product as in claim 24, wherein said computer readable program code means for monitoring further includes means for modifying said request to point to said file stored on said local storage.

34. The computer program product as in claim 33, wherein said computer readable program code means for monitoring further includes means for passing said modified request to said file system.

35. A computing system connectable to remote storage and having an operating system that provides a local user-interface and controls a local storage, said computing system including:

means for enabling the migration of a mobile computing environment to the computing system, the mobile computing environment including a user-interface, file access, directory access and application program access, the means for enabling the migration comprising;

an arbitrator means in said operating system for arbitrating access to files, directories, and information for locating and accessing said files and directories;

an account manager means communicable with said arbitrator means and said remote storage for mapping the user-interface portion of said mobile computing environment onto said local user-interface using information stored on said remote storage;

a file system in said operating system for receiving and translating requests for performing file operations on said local storage; and

a file monitor means for intercepting a request made to said file system for operation on a file stored on said remote storage, and redirecting said request to said remote storage, wherein said request is actuated through the mapped local user-interface;

wherein said file from said remote storage is transferred to said local storage by said file monitor means.

36. The system as in claim 35, further including a file access protocol for providing said connectivity between said system and said remote storage, wherein said file access protocol is dynamically selectable and dependent on the file access protocol of said remote storage.

37. The system as in claim 36, wherein said account manager means is an application program.

38. The system as in claim 37, wherein said file monitor means includes at least two components residing in the kernel of said operating system, where a first component is layered on top of said file system and a second component provides said connectivity between said system and said remote storage.

39. The system as in claim 38, wherein said remote storage includes at least two remote storage devices, where a first remote storage device is logically connected to said application program and a second remote storage device is logically connected to said second component.

40. The system as in claim 39, wherein said operating system is a graphical user interface based operating system.

41. The system as in claim 40, wherein said application program is a graphical user interface based operating system application program and said first remote storage is provided by an Internet port resident on a Web server, and said first and second components of said file monitor means are graphical user interface based operating system kernel components and said second storage is a File Transfer Protocol server.

42. The system as in claim 39, wherein said mobile computing environment is a graphical user interface based operating system computing environment that includes at least one of a wallpaper, a plurality of desktop icons, a plurality of program and document shortcuts, a clipboard or cache, a registry, and a plurality of directory mappings.