Methods and systems for open source collaboration in an application service provider environment

• US 8,140,513 B2
• Filed: 02/17/2011
• Issued: 03/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Box Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Box Incorporated
• Inventors: Ghods, Sam, Jourda, Florian
• Primary Examiner(s): LEROUX, ETIENNE PIERRE
• Application Number:
  US13/030,090
• Publication Number:
  US 20110209118A1
• Time in Patent Office: 397 Days
• Field of Search: 707/3, 707/204, 707/706, 709/217
• US Class Current: 707/706
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/541 via adapters, e.g. between incompatible applications

Abstract

A system and method for integrating a plurality of web-based applications with a web-based file management system. The web-based application may provide a service to the users of the web-based file management system, such that the web-based application can interact with the files of said users. The integration of the service of the web-based application with the web-based file management system is achieved through a simple web interface to configure the service, without the developer of the web-based application having to change the application programming interface (API) of the application. The user of the web-based file management system may add services of a plurality of available web-based applications and use these services with one or more files that are stored on the web-based file management system.

Claims

1. An API-agnostic method for providing a plurality of web-based applications to a user of a web based file management system:

providing a web based file management system which provides users web based file management services;

providing the user of the web based file management system access to a plurality of web based applications, each web based application having a specific API;

providing an integration engine configurable for the web-based application, the integration engine providing a file from the file management system a command prepared using a parameter; and

providing a web based interface for configuring said integration engine by a developer entering values for the parameter;

requesting service information to define a service provided by the web based application, including;

name, description, email, website for application description, access control parameters, an image to identify the service, and an API key;

receiving the service information; and

creating the service by which the action can be defined to modify the file.

2. A method for configuring a web based file management system to integrate with an application programming interface (API) of a web based application, the method comprising:

requesting action information used to enable the web based file management system to interact with the web based application, the action information including;

a command address and one or more commands;

receiving the action information defining the action to be performed on one or more files in response to a request;

creating an action incorporating the action information,

wherein the action sends the file and the one or more commands to the web based application via the command address in accordance with the action information;

requesting service information to define a service provided by the web based application, including;

name, description, email, website for application description, access control parameters, one or more pictures to identify the service, and an API key;

receiving the service information; and

creating the service by which the action can be defined to modify one or more files.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the action information includes one or more file types, wherein the one or more file types limit display of the action by the web based file management system to files of the one or more file types.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein the action information includes permission information determining permission requirements of the web based file management system for the action to be available for shared files.

5. The method of claim 2 wherein the action information includes status information, wherein the status information determines if the service is visible in a user searchable service directory and if it is executable.

6. The method of claim 2 further comprising a request for a response address specifying a return path for the file from the web based application to the web based file management system.

7. The method of claim 2 wherein the action information includes security parameters to provide access authentication for the web based application.

8. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

operating a computing device implementing the web based file management system storing one or more files.

9. A method for integrating a web based file management system with the API of a web based application, the method comprising:

transmitting one or more files and a command structure of the API of the web based application to said web based application;

receiving one or more files from the web based application;

storing the files on a server of the web based file management system;

requesting service information to define a service provided by the web based application, including;

name, description, email, website for application description, access control parameters, and an API key;

receiving the service information; and

creating the service by which the action can be defined to modify the one or more files.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the file is retrieved from the response address of the web based application by the web based file management system.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein a command language is specified for the command structure, and the command language is selected from the group consisting of representational state transfer (REST), extensible markup language (XML), and simple object access protocol (SOAP).

12. A system for integrating a web-based file management system with a web-based application, the system comprising:

a web-based file management system (WBFMS) storing a file; and

an integration engine including a developer interfaces;

wherein a developer of a web-based application (WBA) can configure an application programmer interface (API) of the WBA to allow the WBFMS to send and receive data with the WBA in accordance with commands provided by the developer to the WBFMS to enable the WBFMS to communicate with the WBA;

wherein, the integration engine uses service information to define a service provided by the WBA, including;

name, description, website for application description, access control parameters, and an API key;

creates the service by which the action can be defined to modify the file.

13. The system of claim 12 further comprising:

a configuration interface operable to receive commands to configure the integration engine.

14. The system of claim 12 further comprising an action defined by the commands provided by the developer operable to cause the WBFMS to perform the action on a file stored by the WBFMS.

15. The system of claim 12 further comprising a service stored in the web WBFMA providing one or more actions under the service in accordance with the commands provided by the developer.

16. The system of claim 12 wherein an action included in the WBFMA is stored as a command structure and provided along with a file to a WBA for the performance of an action on the file by the WBA.

17. The system of claim 12 wherein the WBFMS transmits the file and the commands provided by the developer to the WBA and receives the file as modified by the WBA when the WBA has completed the action.

18. The system of claim 12 wherein the WBFMS transmits the file and the commands to the WBA and then transmits a request to the WBFMS to request the file from the WBA as modified by the WBA.