Auto-updating an application without requiring repeated user authorization

• US 8,997,076 B1
• Filed: 11/26/2008
• Issued: 03/31/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Djabarov, Gueorgui N., Gutnik, Yevgeniy, Shakil, Omer
• Primary Examiner(s): Dao, Thuy
• Assistant Examiner(s): ST LEGER, GEOFFREY R
• Application Number:
  US12/324,037
• Time in Patent Office: 2,316 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 717/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/029 Firewall traversal, e.g. tunnelling or, creating pinholes

Abstract

A loader application and an associated dynamic link library are installed on a client system. Upon a first execution of the loader application, a user authorization to communicate with locations external to the client via a communications network is received. The dynamic link library and not the loader application is auto-updated without requiring additional user authorization. The auto-updating is repeated during one or more executions of the loader application subsequent to the first execution.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

at a client system,

installing a loader application and an associated dynamic link library on the client system, wherein the loader application and the dynamic link library comprise a single client application and the dynamic link library includes a function that sends a request to a location external to the client system for auto-updates to the dynamic link library;

upon a first execution of the loader application, receiving a user authorization for the client application to communicate with locations external to the client system via a communications network, wherein receiving the user authorization includes triggering a firewall on the client system;

in accordance with the user authorization, auto-updating the dynamic link library and not the loader application;

in accordance with a determination that the loader application remains unchanged, enabling the client application to continue to communicate with locations external to the client system via the communications network without requiring additional user authorization; and

repeating the auto-updating during one or more executions of the loader application subsequent to the first execution, wherein repeating auto-updating the dynamic link library does not trigger the firewall on the client system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein a process in which the loader application executes communicates with a server system.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving auto-updates from the server system that replace at least a portion of the dynamic link library.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the loader application, upon startup of the loader application, calls a function in the dynamic link library.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the client application comprises an event recording application, the method further including:

recording event information with respect to events that occur at the client system and transmitting at least a portion of the recorded event data to a server upon at least one trigger condition being met.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the at least one trigger condition comprises passage of a predetermined amount of time after a previous transmission of event data, collection of a predetermined amount of event data or event information at the client system, or occurrence of a particular event or events at the client system.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein recording event information with respect to events that occur at the client system comprises:

recording a current client system real time clock (RTC) timestamp based on a client system RTC time at the occurrence of each event;

assigning each event a unique sequence identification; and

transmitting event data, including the event information and associated RTC timestamp and sequence identification information to a server system, when a network connection is established between the client system and the server system and any of a plurality of trigger conditions is met, the plurality of trigger conditions including;

passage of a predetermined amount of time after a previous transmission of event data, collection of a predetermined amount of event data or event information at the client system, and occurrence of a particular event or events at the client system.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the recorded event information comprises information with respect to at least one of:

accessing a URL, starting execution of a client application, closing the client application, performing operations within an accessed URL, and performing operations within the client application.

9. A client comprising:

one or more processors;

memory storing one or more programs to be executed by the one or more processors, the one or more programs including;

a client application installed on the client, comprising;

a loader application installed on the client, which when executed for a first time, initiates receipt of a user authorization for the client application to communicate with locations external to the client, wherein a firewall is triggered on the client when the loader application initiates receipt of the user authorization; and

a dynamic link library associated with the loader application installed on the client, wherein

the dynamic link library includes a function that sends a request to a location external to the client for auto-updates to the dynamic link library,

the dynamic link library and not the loader application is auto-updated without requiring additional user authorization,

the client application, in accordance with a determination that the loader application remains unchanged, is enabled to continue to communicate with locations external to the client, and

at least portions of the dynamic link library are auto-updated during one or more executions of the loader application subsequent to the first execution, wherein the firewall is not triggered on the client when the dynamic link library is auto-updated during the one or more executions.

10. The client of claim 9, wherein a process in which the loader application executes communicates with a server system.

11. The client of claim 9, wherein the loader application includes instructions, for execution by the one or more processors, that upon startup of the loader application call a function in the dynamic link library.

12. The client of claim 9, wherein the client application comprises an event recording application that records event information with respect to events that occur at the client and transmits at least a portion of the recorded event data to a server upon at least one trigger condition being met.

13. The client of claim 12, wherein the at least one trigger condition comprises passage of a predetermined amount of time after a previous transmission of event data, collection of a predetermined amount of event data or event information at the client, or occurrence of a particular event or events at the client.

14. The client of claim 12, wherein the event recording application comprises instructions, executable by the one or more processors, to:

record a current client real time clock (RTC) timestamp based on a client RTC time at the occurrence of each event;

assign each event a unique sequence identification; and

transmit event data, including the event information and associated RTC timestamp and sequence identification information to a server system, when a network connection is established between the client and the server system and any of a plurality of trigger conditions is met, the plurality of trigger conditions including;

collection of a predetermined amount of event data at the client and occurrence of a particular event or events at the client.

15. The client of claim 12, wherein the recorded event information comprises information with respect to at least one of:

accessing a URL, starting execution of a client application, closing the client application, performing operations within an accessed URL, and performing operations within the client application.