Method and apparatus for accessing web services

• US 7,676,472 B2
• Filed: 06/07/2004
• Issued: 03/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kurhekar, Manish P, Srivastava, Biplav
• Primary Examiner(s): Cottingham; John R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Khakhar; Nirav K
• Application Number:
  US10/862,221
• Publication Number:
  US 20060004764A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,101 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/75 Indicating network or usage conditions on the user display

Abstract

Methods, apparatuses and computer programs for making information relating to web services available to applications hosted by a client platform and/or using such information to invoke web services for use by an application hosted by a client platform are disclosed. The information is preferably obtained from a local repository or otherwise from a remote repository via the internet. The information may relate to web services previously used by the applications such as particular invocation instances of those web services. The information may comprise statistical Quality of Service (QoS) information relating to particular invocation instances of web services.

Claims

1. A method for making access information relating to web services locally available to local applications hosted by a client platform, said method comprising:

storing access information relating to said web services, including binding related information associated with prior web service requests by a first local application, in a local access registry hosted by said client platform, wherein said access information relating to web services further includes discovery related information, including Universal Description, Discovery, and Integration (UDDI) directory information, goal criteria, and resulting subsets of web services, selection related information comprising;

selection criteria and selected subsets of web services, composition related information comprising;

composed candidate workflows and corresponding rankings, orchestration related information comprising;

orchestration selections and corresponding rankings, actual workflows, Quality of Service (QoS) or Service Level Agreement (SLA) requirements, and runtime context and statistical information, binding related information comprising;

Web Services Description Language (WSDL) information, binding options and decision criteria, and context and statistical information, invocation related information comprising;

proxy and network connectivity, parameter level and statistical and context information, associated with said prior web service requests by local applications;

subsequently requesting, by a second local application, a web service;

if binding related information associated with said web service, requested by said second local application, is stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said web service based on associated binding related information stored in said local access registry; and

if said binding related information associated with said web service is not stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said web service using a remote web service directory, based on said requesting by said second local application.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising associating said requested web service with said discovery related information stored in said local access registry.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said binding information associated with said requested web service is not stored in said local access registry because said binding information associated with said requested web service is stale.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said local access registry also stores invocation related information including proxy/network connectivity, parameter level, and statistical/context information related to invocation and web service instances.

5. A method for making access information relating to suitable web services locally available to local applications hosted on a client platform, said method comprising:

storing access information relating to said suitable web services, including binding related information and composition related information, including corresponding rankings, associated with prior web service requests by a first local application, into a local access registry hosted by said client platform, wherein said access information relating to web services further includes discovery related information, including Universal Description, Discovery, and Integration (UDDI) directory information, goal criteria, and resulting subsets of web services, selection related information comprising;

selection criteria and selected subsets of web services, orchestration related information comprising;

orchestration selections and corresponding rankings, actual workflows, Quality of Service (QoS) or Service Level Agreement (SLA) requirements, and runtime context and statistical information, binding related information comprising;

Web Services Description Language (WSDL) information, binding options and decision criteria, and context and statistical information, invocation related information comprising;

proxy and network connectivity, parameter level and statistical and context information, associated with said prior web service requests by local applications;

subsequently requesting, by a second local application, a suitable web service via a local proxy server;

searching, by said local proxy server, said local access registry for binding related information associated with said suitable web service;

if binding related information associated with said suitable web service, requested by said second local application, is stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said suitable web service based on said binding related information and said composition related information, including corresponding rankings, stored in said local access registry;

if said binding related information associated with said web service is not stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said suitable web service using a remote web service directory based on said requesting by said second local application;

ranking, by said proxy server, said suitable web service, based on said corresponding rankings of said composition related information for a set of suitable web services; and

adding said suitable web service to a ranked list of suitable web services, based on said corresponding rankings.

6. An apparatus for making access information relating to web services locally available to local applications hosted by a client platform, said apparatus comprising:

at least one communications interface that transmits and receives said access information relating to said web services between said client platform and a remote web service directory, wherein said access information relating to web services further includes discovery related information, including Universal Description, Discovery, and Integration (UDDI) directory information, goal criteria, and resulting subsets of web services, selection related information comprising;

selection criteria and selected subsets of web services, composition related information comprising;

composed candidate workflows and corresponding rankings, orchestration related information comprising;

orchestration selections and corresponding rankings, actual workflows, Quality of Service (QoS) or Service Level Agreement (SLA) requirements, and runtime context and statistical information, binding related information comprising;

Web Services Description Language (WSDL) information, binding options and decision criteria, and context and statistical information, invocation related information comprising;

proxy and network connectivity, parameter level and statistical and context information, associated with said prior web service requests by local applications;

a memory unit that stores said access information;

a processing unit coupled to said at least one communications interface and said memory unit, said processing unit;

storing access information relating to said web services, including binding related information associated with prior web service requests by a first local application, in a local access registry hosted by said client platform;

subsequently requesting, by a second local application, a web service;

if binding related information associated with said web service, requested by said second local application, is stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said web service based on said binding related information stored in said local access registry; and

if said binding related information associated with said web service is not stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said web service using a remote web service directory based on said requesting by said second local application.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said processing unit further associates said web service with said discovery related information stored in said local access registry.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein if said binding information associated with said web service is not stored in said local access registry, then said binding information associated with said web service is stale.

9. The apparatus of claim 6, comprising said processing unit, wherein said local access registry also stores invocation related information including proxy/network connectivity, parameter level, and statistical/context statistical information related to invocation and web service instances.

10. An apparatus for making access information relating to suitable web services locally available to local applications hosted on a client platform, said apparatus comprising:

at least one communications interface that transmits and receives said access information relating to said suitable web services between said client platform and a remote web service directory;

a memory unit that stores said access information;

a processing unit coupled to said at least one communications interface and said memory unit, said processing unit;

storing access information relating to said suitable web services, including binding related information and composition related information, including corresponding rankings, associated with prior web service requests by a first local application, into a local access registry hosted by said client platform, wherein said access information relating to web services further includes discovery related information, including Universal Description, Discovery, and Integration (UDDI) directory information, goal criteria, and resulting subsets of web services, selection related information comprising;

selection criteria and selected subsets of web services, orchestration related information comprising;

orchestration selections and corresponding rankings, actual workflows, Quality of Service (QoS) or Service Level Agreement (SLA) requirements, and runtime context and statistical information, binding related information comprising;

Web Services Description Language (WSDL) information, binding options and decision criteria, and context and statistical information, invocation related information comprising;

proxy and network connectivity, parameter level and statistical and context information, associated with said prior web service requests by local applications;

subsequently requesting, by a second local application, a suitable web service via a local proxy server;

searching, by said local proxy server, said local access registry for binding related information associated with said suitable web service;

if binding related information associated with said suitable web service, requested by said second local application, is stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said suitable web service based on said binding related information and said composition related information, including corresponding rankings, stored in said local access registry;

if said binding related information associated with said web service is not stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said suitable web service using a remote web service directory based on said requesting by said second local application;

ranking, by said proxy server, said suitable web service, based on said corresponding rankings of said composition related information for a set of suitable web services; and

adding said suitable web service to a ranked list of suitable web services, based on said corresponding rankings.

11. A method for making access information relating to web services locally available to local applications hosted by a client platform, said method comprising:

storing access information relating to web services, including the locations of Web Services Description Language (WSDL) documents associated with prior web service requests by a first local application, in a local access registry hosted by said client platform, wherein said access information relating to web services further includes discovery related information, including Universal Description, Discovery, and Integration (UDDI) directory information, goal criteria, and resulting subsets of web services, selection related information comprising;

selection criteria and selected subsets of web services, composition related information comprising;

composed candidate workflows and corresponding rankings, orchestration related information comprising;

orchestration selections and corresponding rankings, actual workflows, Quality of Service (QoS) or Service Level Agreement (SLA) requirements, and runtime context and statistical information, binding related information comprising;

Web Services Description Language (WSDL) information, binding options and decision criteria, and context and statistical information, invocation related information comprising;

proxy and network connectivity, parameter level and statistical and context information, associated with said prior web service requests by local applications;

subsequently requesting, by a second local application, a web service;

if a location of a WSDL document associated with said web service requested, by said second local application, is stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said web service based on said location of said WSDL document stored in said local access registry; and

if said location of said WSDL document associated with said web service is not stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said web service using a remote web service directory, based on said location of said WSDL document requested by said second local application.

12. An apparatus for making access information relating to web services locally available to local applications hosted by a client platform, said apparatus comprising:

at least one communications interface that transmits and receives said access information relating to said web services between said client platform and locations of Web Services Description Language (WSDL) documents;

a memory unit that stores said access information;

a processing unit coupled to said at least one communications interface and said memory unit, said processing unit;

storing access information relating to web services, including the locations of WSDL documents associated with prior web service requests by a first local application, in a local access registry hosted by said client platform, wherein said access information relating to web services further includes discovery related information, including Universal Description, Discovery, and Integration (UDDI) directory information, goal criteria, and resulting subsets of web services, selection related information comprising;

selection criteria and selected subsets of web services, composition related information comprising;

composed candidate workflows and corresponding rankings, orchestration related information comprising;

orchestration selections and corresponding rankings, actual workflows, Quality of Service (QoS) or Service Level Agreement (SLA) requirements, and runtime context and statistical information, binding related information comprising;

Web Services Description Language (WSDL) information, binding options and decision criteria, and context and statistical information, invocation related information comprising;

proxy and network connectivity, parameter level and statistical and context information, associated with said prior web service requests by local applications;

subsequently requesting, by a second local application, a web service;

if a location of a WSDL document associated with said web service requested by said second local application is stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said web service based on said location of said WSDL document stored in said local access registry; and

if said location of said WSDL document associated with said web service is not stored in said local access registry, then invoking, by said local access registry, said web service using a remote web service directory, based on said requesting by said second local application.