Synchronous interface to asynchronous processes

• US 8,478,818 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2012
• Issued: 07/02/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Salesforce.com, Inc.
• Inventors: Shkvarchuk, Taras, Lerner, Alexander, Boulos, Thomas Nabiel
• Primary Examiner(s): Donaghue, Larry
• Assistant Examiner(s): MCLEOD, MARSHALL M
• Application Number:
  US13/563,365
• Publication Number:
  US 20120303698A1
• Time in Patent Office: 336 Days
• Field of Search: 709/203, 709/217, 709/220, 709/223
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/5601 Transfer mode dependent, e.g. ATM
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5619 Network Node Interface, e.g. tandem connections, transit switching
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/5629 Admission control
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/20 for managing network security; network security policies in general filtering policies H04L63/0227
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561

Abstract

Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, implementing and using techniques for selectively accessing one or more web services from a client machine, the one or more web services and the client machine being accessible over a network. A request for information is received from a client machine with a conversion engine. The request is received over a synchronous interface. The request is processed in the conversion engine. The processed request is transmitted over an asynchronous interface from the conversion engine to at least one web service. Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, for converting a web service description language file for a synchronous web service into a web service description language file for an asynchronous client machine are also described.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for accessing one or more services from a client machine, the one or more services and the client machine being accessible over a network, the method comprising:

receiving, at a host, a request from the client machine to use synchronous communications between the client machine and a service;

retrieving, at the host, a second service description file, the second service description file indicating how to interact with the service using synchronous communications, the second service description file being a translation of a first service description file indicating how to interact with the service using asynchronous communications; and

providing, to the client machine, the second service description file.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, the second service description file being stored on a storage medium accessible at the host.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing, to the client machine, data for generation of client machine code to interact with the service.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

facilitating communication between the client machine and the service via one or more conversion engines, the one or more conversion engines configured to communicate asynchronously with the service in accordance with the first service description file, the one or more conversion engines configured to communicate synchronously with the client machine in accordance with the second service description file.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein facilitating communications between the client machine and the service comprises:

receiving a synchronous request from the client machine in accordance with the second description, and

converting the synchronous request to an asynchronous message for transmission to the service in accordance with the first description.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

translating the first service description file to the second service description file, including one or more of;

translating a types part of the first service description file into a types part of the second service description file,

translating a message part of the first service description file into a message part of the second service description file,

translating a port type part of the first service description file into a port type part of the second service description file,

translating a bindings part of the first service description file into a bindings part of the second service description file, and

translating a service part of the first service description file into a service part of the second service description file.

7. Integration services apparatus for providing a client machine with access to one or more services over a network comprising:

an asynchronous communications interface to provide a first service description file indicating how to interact with a service using asynchronous communications;

a conversion engine configured to translate the first service description file into a second service description file, the second description file indicating how to interact with the service using synchronous communications; and

a synchronous communications interface to receive a request from the client machine to use synchronous communications between the client machine and the service and provide the second service description file to the client machine.

8. The integration services apparatus of claim 7, wherein the conversion engine is configured to communicate asynchronously with the service in accordance with the first service description file, and to communicate synchronously with the client machine in accordance with the second service description file.

9. The integration services apparatus of claim 7, wherein the conversion engine is configured to facilitate messaging and mediate policy differences among a plurality of users and one or more services according to the policy framework.

10. The integration services apparatus network of claim 7, further comprising:

a directory stored in a central repository comprising one or more computing devices, the directory mapping an identity for each of a plurality of users to a policy framework which defines access information relating to one or more services.

11. The integration services apparatus of claim 10, wherein the central repository is configured to store one or more service description files for one or more of the services, the central repository storing at least the first and second service description files.

12. One or more non-transitory computer readable media having instructions stored thereon for accessing one or more services from a client machine, the one or more services and the client machine being accessible over a network, the instructions comprising:

a first instruction to store, at a host, a first service description file describing how to interact with a service using asynchronous communications, the service being accessible via the host;

a second instruction to translate, at the host, the first service description file into a second service description file describing how to interact with the service using synchronous communications;

a third instruction to receive, at the host, a request from the client machine to use synchronous communications between the client machine and the service; and

a fourth instruction to provide, to the client machine, the second service description file.

13. A computer-implemented method for accessing one or more services from a client machine, the one or more services and the client machine being accessible over a network, the method comprising:

receiving, at a host, a request from the client machine to use asynchronous communications between the client machine and a service; and

retrieving, at the host, a second service description file, the second service description file indicating how to interact with the service using asynchronous communications, the second service description file being a translation of a first service description file indicating how to interact with the service using synchronous communications; and

providing, to the client machine, the second service description file.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 13, further comprising:

providing, to the client machine, data for generation of client machine code to interact with the service.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 13, further comprising:

translating the first service description file to the second service description file, including one or more of;

translating a types part of the first service description file into a types part of the second service description file,

translating a message part of the first service description file into a message part of the second service description file,

translating a port type part of the first service description file into a port type part of the second service description file,

translating a bindings part of the first service description file into a bindings part of the second service description file, and

translating a service part of the first service description file into a service part of the second service description file.

17. The integration services apparatus of claim 13, wherein the conversion engine is configured to communicate synchronously with the service in accordance with the first service description file, and to communicate asynchronously with the client machine in accordance with the second service description file.

18. The integration services apparatus of claim 13, further comprising:

a directory stored in a central repository comprising one or more computing devices, the directory mapping an identity for each of a plurality of users to a policy framework which defines access information relating to one or more services.

16. Integration services apparatus for providing a client machine with access to one or more services over a network comprising:

a synchronous communications interface to provide a first service description file indicating how to interact with a service using synchronous communications;

a conversion engine to translate the first service description file into a second service description file, the second description file indicating how to interact with the service using asynchronous communications; and

an asynchronous communications interface to receive a request from the client machine to use asynchronous communications between the client machine and the service and provide the second service description file to the client machine.

19. One or more non-transitory computer readable media having instructions stored thereon for accessing one or more services from a client machine, the one or more services and the client machine being accessible over a network, the instructions comprising:

first instructions to retrieve, from a storage medium, a second service description file, the second service description file indicating how to interact with a service using synchronous communications, the second service description file being a translation of a first service description file indicating how to interact with the service using asynchronous communications; and

;

second instructions to provide, to the client machine, the second service description file.

20. One or more non-transitory computer readable media having instructions stored thereon for accessing one or more services from a client machine, the one or more services and the client machine being accessible over a network, the instructions comprising:

first instructions to retrieve, from a storage medium, a second service description file, the second service description file indicating how to interact with a service using asynchronous communications, the second service description file being a translation of a first service description file indicating how to interact with the service using synchronous communications; and

;

second instructions to provide, to the client machine, the second service description file.