Sharing data in scalable software blade architecture

• US 7,870,288 B2
• Filed: 10/28/2005
• Issued: 01/11/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: R2 Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: Boerries, Marco, Srinivasan, Venkatachary, Schulz, Torsten, Meyer, Markus
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee; Philip C
• Assistant Examiner(s): COX, NATISHA D
• Application Number:
  US11/262,549
• Publication Number:
  US 20070101022A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,901 Days
• Field of Search: 709/238
• US Class Current: 709/238
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes

Abstract

A system and method for sharing data between two users on different blades in scalable software blade architecture are disclosed. The system includes a plurality of blades, where each blade includes software components and hardware components, each blade serves a predefined group of users, and each user is associated with one or more user devices. The system further includes a first blade and a second blade, where the first blade connects a first user to a first connected dataset and the second blade connects a second user to a second connected dataset, and the first blade and the second blade operate independent of each other, a blade manager for managing the first and second blades, a pipe device for connecting the first and second blades, and logic for sharing portions of the first connected dataset of the first user with the second user using the pipe device.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a first blade server and a second blade server,

wherein the first blade server and the second blade server each serves a predefined group of users,

wherein the first blade server connects a first user to a first connected dataset and the second blade server connects a second user to a second connected dataset, the first user and the second user are each associated with one or more user devices,

wherein the first blade server and the second blade server operate independently of each other,

wherein each of the connected datasets is implemented by an aggregated backend including data available on backends of a plurality of associated content nodes, and

wherein each of the connected datasets is accessible to the corresponding user via a plurality of user devices of the user;

a blade manager for managing the first and second blade servers;

a pipe device for connecting the first and second blade servers; and

wherein the at least one of the first blade server and the second blade server are configured for;

sharing portions of the first connected dataset of the first user with the second user using the pipe device

identifying a shared dataset and its corresponding access restrictions from the first connected dataset, the shared dataset comprising at least a portion of ˜

the first connected dataset;

transferring a copy of the shared dataset and its corresponding access restrictions from the first blade server to the second blade server, such that the Copy of the shared dataset is stored in the second connected dataset, and the copy of the access restrictions is stored on second blade server;

receiving modifications of the copy of the shared dataset stored in the second connected dataset by the second user at the second blade server according to the second user'"'"'s access restrictions stored on the copy of the access restrictions; and

propagating the modifications to the copy of the shared dataset stored in the second connected dataset from the second blade server to the first blade server using the pipe device such that the modifications are applied by the first blade server to the shared dataset in the first connected dataset.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein a connected dataset comprises:

at least one or more emails, contacts, calendar, tasks, notes, pictures, music, documents, videos, bookmarks, and links.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the first blade server maintains transient states of the first connected dataset and the second blade server maintains transient states of the second connected dataset.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein each of the first and second blade servers comprises:

a device manager for interfacing with the user devices;

a content router for routing data to the user devices; and

a database for storing configuration information of the user accounts and the user devices.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the blade manager is configured for:

receiving an invitation from the first user to share data with the second user;

authenticating the first user and the second user;

forwarding the invitation to the second user; and

logic for receiving an acceptance to share data from the second user.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the authenticating comprises:

verifying the first user and the second user are permitted to access the system.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the pipe device is configured for:

acting as a proxy of the first user from the perspective of the second blade server; and

acting as a proxy of the second user from the perspective of the first blade server.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the sharing comprises:

logic for receiving modifications of the shared dataset by the first user at the first blade server according to the first user'"'"'s access restrictions; and

logic for propagating changes to the shared dataset from the first blade server to the second blade server using the pipe device.

9. A method comprising:

providing a first blade server and a second blade server,

wherein the first blade server and the second blade server each serves a predefined group of users,

wherein the first blade server connects a first user to a first connected dataset and the second blade server connects a second user to a second connected dataset, the first user and the second user each associated with one or more user devices,

wherein the first blade server and the second blade server operate independent of each other,

wherein each of the connected datasets is implemented by an aggregated backend including data available on backends of a plurality of associated content nodes, and

wherein each of the connected datasets is accessible to the corresponding user via a plurality of user devices of the user;

managing the first and second blade servers by a blade manager;

providing a pipe device for connecting the first and second blade servers; and

sharing portions of the first connected dataset of the first user with the second user using the pipe device;

identifying a shared dataset and its corresponding access restrictions from the first connected dataset, the shared dataset comprising at least a portion of the first connected dataset;

transferring a copy of the shared dataset and its corresponding access restrictions from the first blade server to the second blade server, such that the copy of the shared dataset is stored in the second connected dataset, and the copy of the access restrictions is stored on the second blade server;

receiving modifications of the copy of the shared dataset stored in the second connected dataset by the second user at the second blade server according to the second user'"'"'s access restrictions stored on the copy of the access restrictions; and

propagating the modifications to the copy of the shared dataset stored in the second connected dataset from the second blade server to the first blade server using the pipe device such that the modifications are applied by the first blade server to the shared dataset in the first connected dataset.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein a connected dataset comprises:

at least one or more emails, contacts, calendar, tasks, notes, pictures, music, documents, videos, bookmarks, and links.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein:

the first blade server maintains transient states of the first connected dataset and the second blade server maintains transient states of the second connected dataset.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein each of the first and second blade servers comprises:

a device manager for interfacing with the user devices;

a content router for routing data to the user devices; and

a database for storing configuration information of the user accounts and the user devices.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein managing the first and second blade servers comprises:

receiving an invitation from the first user to share data with the second user;

authenticating the first user and the second user;

forwarding the invitation to the second user; and

receiving an acceptance to share data from the second user.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein authenticating comprises:

verifying the first user and the second user are permitted to access the system.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein providing a pipe device comprises:

configuring the pipe device to act as a proxy of the first user from the perspective of the second blade server; and

configuring the pipe device to act as a proxy of the second user from the perspective of the first blade server.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein sharing comprises:

receiving modifications of the shared dataset by the first user at the first blade server according to the first user'"'"'s access restrictions; and

propagating changes to the shared dataset from the first blade server to the second blade server using the pipe device.

17. A computer readable storage medium for tangibly storing thereon computer readable instructions comprising:

code for operating a first blade server and a second blade server,

wherein the first blade server and the second blade server each serves a predefined group of users,

wherein the first blade server connects a first user to a first connected dataset and the second blade server connects a second user to a second connected dataset, the first user and the second user associated with one or more user devices,

wherein the first blade server and the second blade server operate independent of each other,

wherein each of the connected datasets is implemented by an aggregated backend including data available on backends of a plurality of associated content nodes, and wherein each of the connected datasets is accessible to the corresponding user via a plurality of user devices of the user;

code for managing the first and second blade servers by a blade manager;

code for connecting the first and second blade servers by a pipe device; and

code for sharing portions of the first connected dataset of the first user with the second user using the pipe device;

code for identifying a shared dataset and its corresponding access restrictions from the first connected dataset, the shared dataset comprising at least a portion of the first connected dataset;

code for transferring a copy of the shared dataset and its corresponding access restrictions from the first blade server to the second blade server, such that the copy of the shared dataset is stored in the second connected dataset, and the copy of the access restrictions are stored on the second blade server;

code for receiving modifications of the copy of the shared dataset stored in the second connected dataset by the second user at the second blade server according to the second user'"'"'s access restrictions stored on the copy of the access restrictions; and

code for propagating the modifications to the copy of the shared dataset stored in the second connected dataset from the second blade server to the first blade server using the pipe device such that the modifications are applied by the first blade server to the shared dataset in the first connected dataset.

18. The computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein a connected dataset comprises:

at least one or more emails, contacts, calendar, tasks, notes, pictures, music, documents, videos, bookmarks, and links.

19. The computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein:

the first blade server maintains transient states of the first connected dataset and the second blade server maintains transient states of the second connected dataset.

20. The computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein each of the first and second blade servers comprises:

a device manager for interfacing with the user devices;

a content router for routing data to the user devices; and

a database for storing configuration information of the user accounts and the user devices.

21. The computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the code for managing the first and second blade servers comprises:

code for receiving an invitation from the first user to share data with the second user;

code for authenticating the first user and the second user;

code for forwarding the invitation to the second user; and

code for receiving an acceptance to share data from the second user.

22. The computer readable storage medium of claim 21, wherein the code for authenticating comprises:

code for verifying the first user and the second user are permitted to access the system.

23. The computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the code for connecting the first and second blade servers comprises:

code for configuring the pipe device to act as a proxy of the first user from the perspective of the second blade server; and

code for configuring the pipe device to act as a proxy of the second user from the perspective of the first blade server.

24. The computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the code for sharing comprises:

code for receiving modifications of the shared dataset by the first user at the first blade server according to the first user'"'"'s access restrictions; and

code for propagating changes to the shared dataset from the first blade server to the second blade server using the pipe device.