U.S. patent application number 16/202938 was filed with the patent office on 2020-05-28 for decoupling platform as a service providers using a service management platform.
The applicant listed for this patent is SAP PORTALS ISRAEL LTD.. Invention is credited to Chaim Bendelac, Asher Kirshenbaum, Lior Okman.
Application Number | 20200169481 16/202938 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 70770221 |
Filed Date | 2020-05-28 |
United States Patent
Application |
20200169481 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Okman; Lior ; et
al. |
May 28, 2020 |
DECOUPLING PLATFORM AS A SERVICE PROVIDERS USING A SERVICE
MANAGEMENT PLATFORM
Abstract
A registration interface is provided to service providers for
registering services with a service management platform. The
service management platform is configured to provide access to
services from multiple service providers to application developers
using a same application developer interface. A registration
request is received for a service from a service provider. The
service is registered to make the service available to application
developers. A provision request for the service is received from an
application developer. The provision request is forwarded to a
broker associated with the service provider. A provision response
is received from the broker. The provision response indicates a
status of provisioning an instance of the service at the service
provider. A create-binding request for binding information for the
service is received from the application developer. Binding
information is provided to the application developer, in response
to the create-binding request.
Inventors: |
Okman; Lior; (Tzoran,
IL) ; Bendelac; Chaim; (Kfar Saba, IL) ;
Kirshenbaum; Asher; (Kefar Sava, IL) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
SAP PORTALS ISRAEL LTD. |
Ra'anana |
|
IL |
|
|
Family ID: |
70770221 |
Appl. No.: |
16/202938 |
Filed: |
November 28, 2018 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 20/102 20130101;
H04L 41/0293 20130101; H04L 41/5029 20130101; H04L 65/1073
20130101; H04L 41/5032 20130101; H04L 67/2838 20130101; H04L 67/16
20130101; H04L 67/2814 20130101; G06Q 30/04 20130101; H04L 67/2809
20130101; H04L 41/5054 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04L 12/24 20060101
H04L012/24; H04L 29/08 20060101 H04L029/08; H04L 29/06 20060101
H04L029/06; G06Q 30/04 20060101 G06Q030/04; G06Q 20/10 20060101
G06Q020/10 |
Claims
1. A computer-implemented method, comprising: providing, at a
service management platform, a registration interface to service
providers for registering services with the service management
platform, wherein the service management platform is configured to
provide access to services from multiple service providers to
application developers using a same application developer
interface; receiving, through the registration interface, a first
registration request for a first service from a first service
provider; registering, in response to the first registration
request, the first service at the service management platform to
make the first service available to application developers;
receiving, at the service management platform, through the
application developer interface, and from an application developer,
a first provision request for the first service; forwarding the
first provision request for the first service to a first broker
associated with the first service provider; receiving a first
provision response from the first broker, wherein the first
provision response indicates a status of provisioning an instance
of the first service at the first service provider; receiving, from
the application developer, a first create-binding request for
binding information for the first service; and providing, to the
application developer and in response to the first create-binding
request, first binding information for the application developer to
use in an application to access the first service.
2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, comprising:
receiving, through the registration interface, a second
registration request for a second service from a second service
provider; and registering, in response to the second registration
request, the second service at the service management platform to
make the second service available to application developers.
3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, comprising:
receiving, at the service management platform, through the
application developer interface, and from the application
developer, a second provision request for the second service;
forwarding the second provision request for the second service to a
second broker associated with the second service provider;
receiving a second provision response from the second broker,
wherein the second provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the second service at the second
service provider; receiving, from the application developer, a
second create-binding request for binding information for the
second service; and providing, to the application developer and in
response to the second create-binding request, second binding
information for the application developer to use in the application
to access the second service.
4. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, comprising:
providing, at the service management platform, a service-discovery
interface for applications developers to discover services
available through the service management platform; receiving a
view-catalog request, through the service-discovery interface, from
the application developer; and providing a service catalog to the
application developer, in response to the view-catalog request,
wherein the service catalog includes information describing the
first service and the second service.
5. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, comprising providing
a usage report, to the application developer, which describes use
of the first service and the second service by the application.
6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, comprising providing
a single invoice to the application developer for use of both the
first service and the second service.
7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, comprising receiving
a single payment, from the application developer, for use of both
the first service and the second service.
8. A non-transitory, computer-readable medium storing one or more
instructions executable by a computer system to perform operations
comprising: providing, at a service management platform, a
registration interface to service providers for registering
services with the service management platform, wherein the service
management platform is configured to provide access to services
from multiple service providers to application developers using a
same application developer interface; receiving, through the
registration interface, a first registration request for a first
service from a first service provider; registering, in response to
the first registration request, the first service at the service
management platform to make the first service available to
application developers; receiving, at the service management
platform, through the application developer interface, and from an
application developer, a first provision request for the first
service; forwarding the first provision request for the first
service to a first broker associated with the first service
provider; receiving a first provision response from the first
broker, wherein the first provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the first service at the first service
provider; receiving, from the application developer, a first
create-binding request for binding information for the first
service; and providing, to the application developer and in
response to the first create-binding request, first binding
information for the application developer to use in an application
to access the first service.
9. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 8, the
operations further comprising: receiving, through the registration
interface, a second registration request for a second service from
a second service provider; and registering, in response to the
second registration request, the second service at the service
management platform to make the second service available to
application developers.
10. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 9, the
operations further comprising: receiving, at the service management
platform, through the application developer interface, and from the
application developer, a second provision request for the second
service; forwarding the second provision request for the second
service to a second broker associated with the second service
provider; receiving a second provision response from the second
broker, wherein the second provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the second service at the second
service provider; receiving, from the application developer, a
second create-binding request for binding information for the
second service; and providing, to the application developer and in
response to the second create-binding request, second binding
information for the application developer to use in the application
to access the second service.
11. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 9, the
operations further comprising: providing, at the service management
platform, a service-discovery interface for applications developers
to discover services available through the service management
platform; receiving a view-catalog request, through the
service-discovery interface, from the application developer; and
providing a service catalog to the application developer, in
response to the view-catalog request, wherein the service catalog
includes information describing the first service and the second
service.
12. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 9, the
operations further comprising providing a usage report, to the
application developer, which describes use of the first service and
the second service by the application.
13. The non-transitory, computer-readable medium of claim 12, the
operations further comprising providing a single invoice to the
application developer for use of both the first service and the
second service.
14. A computer-implemented system, comprising: one or more
computers; and one or more computer memory devices interoperably
coupled with the one or more computers and having tangible,
non-transitory, machine-readable media storing one or more
instructions that, when executed by the one or more computers,
perform one or more operations comprising: providing, at a service
management platform, a registration interface to service providers
for registering services with the service management platform,
wherein the service management platform is configured to provide
access to services from multiple service providers to application
developers using a same application developer interface; receiving,
through the registration interface, a first registration request
for a first service from a first service provider; registering, in
response to the first registration request, the first service at
the service management platform to make the first service available
to application developers; receiving, at the service management
platform, through the application developer interface, and from an
application developer, a first provision request for the first
service; forwarding the first provision request for the first
service to a first broker associated with the first service
provider; receiving a first provision response from the first
broker, wherein the first provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the first service at the first service
provider; receiving, from the application developer, a first
create-binding request for binding information for the first
service; and providing, to the application developer and in
response to the first create-binding request, first binding
information for the application developer to use in an application
to access the first service.
15. The computer-implemented system of claim 14, the operations
further comprising: receiving, through the registration interface,
a second registration request for a second service from a second
service provider; and registering, in response to the second
registration request, the second service at the service management
platform to make the second service available to application
developers.
16. The computer-implemented system of claim 15, the operations
further comprising: receiving, at the service management platform,
through the application developer interface, and from the
application developer, a second provision request for the second
service; forwarding the second provision request for the second
service to a second broker associated with the second service
provider; receiving a second provision response from the second
broker, wherein the second provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the second service at the second
service provider; receiving, from the application developer, a
second create-binding request for binding information for the
second service; and providing, to the application developer and in
response to the second create-binding request, second binding
information for the application developer to use in the application
to access the second service.
17. The computer-implemented system of claim 15, the operations
further comprising: providing, at the service management platform,
a service-discovery interface for applications developers to
discover services available through the service management
platform; receiving a view-catalog request, through the
service-discovery interface, from the application developer; and
providing a service catalog to the application developer, in
response to the view-catalog request, wherein the service catalog
includes information describing the first service and the second
service.
18. The computer-implemented system of claim 15, the operations
further comprising providing a usage report, to the application
developer, which describes use of the first service and the second
service by the application.
19. The computer-implemented system of claim 18, the operations
further comprising providing a single invoice to the application
developer for use of both the first service and the second
service.
20. The computer-implemented system of claim 19, the operations
further comprising receiving a single payment, from the application
developer, for use of both the first service and the second
service.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] A Platform as a Service (PaaS) model can be used for network
application development. A cloud computing provider can provide, to
an application developer, hardware and software tools used for
application development, using infrastructure located at, or
associated with, the cloud computing provider. The application
developer, as a user of the PaaS model, can use the infrastructure
provided by the cloud computing provider rather than invest in
purchasing and building such infrastructure on premise at the
application developer.
SUMMARY
[0002] The present disclosure describes decoupling platform as a
service (PaaS) providers using a service management platform. In an
implementation, a registration interface is provided, at a service
management platform, to service providers for registering services
with the service management platform. The service management
platform is configured to provide access to services from multiple
service providers to application developers using a same
application developer interface. A first registration request is
received, through the registration interface, for a first service
from a first service provider. The first service is registered, at
the service management platform to make the first service available
to application developers, in response to the first registration
request. A first provision request for the first service is
received from an application developer, at the service management
platform, through the application developer interface. The first
provision request for the first service is forwarded to a first
broker associated with the first service provider. A first
provision response is received from the first broker. The first
provision response indicates a status of provisioning an instance
of the first service at the first service provider. A first
create-binding request for binding information for the first
service is received from the application developer. First binding
information for the application developer to use in an application
to access the first service is provided to the application
developer, in response to the first create-binding request.
[0003] The described subject matter can be implemented using a
computer-implemented method; a non-transitory, computer-readable
medium storing computer-readable instructions to perform the
computer-implemented method; and a computer-implemented system
comprising one or more computer memory devices interoperably
coupled with one or more computers and having tangible,
non-transitory, machine-readable media storing instructions that,
when executed by the one or more computers, perform the
computer-implemented method/the computer-readable instructions
stored on the non-transitory, computer-readable medium.
[0004] The subject matter described in this specification can be
implemented to realize one or more of the following advantages.
First, a service management platform can standardize wiring and
cross-integration of services from multiple cloud computing
platforms and vendors. Second, the service management platform can
enable developers to choose best-matching services from different
vendors and avoid being locked in to a particular vendor. Third,
the service management platform can enable service providers to
focus on providing specific services, since a given service
provider in the service management platform does not need to
individually offer a full set of services that may be desired by a
given customer. Fourth, the service management platform can treat
all services the same way, which can enable all services provided
by the platform, even if from multiple, different vendors, to be
used more easily and uniformly than if different services were
treated differently by the platform. Fifth, the service management
platform can define a standard interface for service providers to
add services to the platform in a single, unified manner, which can
allow services to be consistently onboarded and consumed by
developers using a single platform application programming
interface (API) or tool. Sixth, the service management platform can
assist in wiring efforts of installing and registering two concrete
services with one another. Seventh, a developer's learning curve
can include the learning of a single tool or API, instead of
multiple tools and APIs from multiple vendors. Eighth, a developer
customer can receive usage reports, from the service management
platform, that show usage of services from multiple, different
service providers. Ninth, a developer customer can receive and pay
a single bill, for usage from services from multiple, different
service providers, rather than paying each provider separately
using different billing procedures and interfaces.
[0005] The details of one or more implementations of the subject
matter of this specification are set forth in the Detailed
Description, the Claims, and the accompanying drawings. Other
features, aspects, and advantages of the subject matter will become
apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art from the Detailed
Description, the Claims, and the accompanying drawings.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0006] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a
system for decoupling platform as a service (PaaS) providers using
a service management platform, according to an implementation of
the present disclosure.
[0007] FIG. 2 is a swim lane diagram illustrating an example of a
computer-implemented method for decoupling PaaS providers using a
service management platform, according to an implementation of the
present disclosure.
[0008] FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a
computer-implemented method for decoupling PaaS providers using a
service management platform, according to an implementation of the
present disclosure.
[0009] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a
computer-implemented system used to provide computational
functionalities associated with described algorithms, methods,
functions, processes, flows, and procedures, according to an
implementation of the present disclosure.
[0010] Like reference numbers and designations in the various
drawings indicate like elements.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0011] The following detailed description describes decoupling
platform as a service (PaaS) providers using a service management
platform, and is presented to enable any person skilled in the art
to make and use the disclosed subject matter in the context of one
or more particular implementations. Various modifications,
alterations, and permutations of the disclosed implementations can
be made and will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in
the art, and the general principles defined can be applied to other
implementations and applications, without departing from the scope
of the present disclosure. In some instances, one or more technical
details that are unnecessary to obtain an understanding of the
described subject matter and that are within the skill of one of
ordinary skill in the art may be omitted so as to not obscure one
or more described implementations. The present disclosure is not
intended to be limited to the described or illustrated
implementations, but to be accorded the widest scope consistent
with the described principles and features.
[0012] PaaS offerings can vary in the breadth, quality and variety
of the offered services. PaaS offerings can include, for example,
both: 1) hyper-providers that have a broad set of service types,
managed with a same set of application programming interfaces
(APIs) and tools and 2) providers of differentiated specialty
services that offer a fewer set of specialized services. An analogy
can be that a hyper-provider is like a supermarket with many
offerings and a specialized provider is like a patisserie that
specializes in exquisite wedding cakes.
[0013] Consequently, application developers that are faced with
this variety of service offerings may need to choose between the
convenience of using services from a single platform or the ability
to use multiple, best matching services from multiple platforms. If
using a single platform and vendor, a developer can conveniently
use a single management API and tools for provisioning all the
services required by an application. However, utilizing services
from outside the chosen vendor's offering can be far more
difficult. For example, if a developer uses multiple service
providers, the developer may need to learn and debug integration
with multiple, different APIs. As another example, different
vendors may block integration of services with other vendors.
[0014] A platform abstraction referred to as a service management
platform can be used to standardize the wiring and
cross-integration of services from multiple cloud computing
platforms and vendors. The service management platform can enable
developers to choose best-matching services from different vendors
and to avoid vendor lock-in while using a single management API and
tool. The service management platform can enable service providers
to focus on specific services, without having to implement every
conceivable service in-house just to be attractive to
developers.
[0015] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a
system 100 for decoupling PaaS providers using a service management
platform, according to an implementation of the present disclosure.
Software vendors 102, 104, and 106 can offer one or more services
for use by developers (such as, developers 107 and 108) for use in
applications (such as, applications 110, 112, 114, and 116).
[0016] For the purposes of this disclosure, a service can be
considered a managed software offering that can be used by an
application. Typically, services expose an API that can be invoked
to perform one or more actions provided by the service.
Non-interactive services can also be used that perform one or more
actions without direct prompting from an application. In some
implementations, services can range from a PaaS offering, specific
backend services (such as, a database to be used by an
application), or Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) offerings in the form
of APIs.
[0017] A service instance can be considered to be an instantiation
of a service offering. A service instance can be a resource that
can vary by type of service. For example, a service instance can be
a single database executing on a multi-tenant server, a dedicated
server cluster, or an account in a web application. In some
implementations, an application can be bound to a service instance.
A service binding can be a representation of an association between
an application and a service instance. Service bindings can include
credentials that an application may use to communicate with a
service instance. Service bindings can also vary by type of
service. In some implementations, a service binding can include
credentials that can be used to access a service or resource or
information used to make a configuration change.
[0018] In some cases, a software vendor can also be referred to as
a service provider. A software vendor can be a specialized provider
that provides one or a small set of services. For example, the
software vendor 102 can offer a specialized service 118 and the
software vendor 106 can offer a specialized service 119. A software
vendor can also be a hyper-provider that provides a larger set of
services than a specialized provider. For example, the software
vendor 104 can offer services 120, 122, and 124, among other
services, in a large, comprehensive set of offered services. In
some cases, a specialized provider can focus and compete on service
quality whereas a hyper-provider can focus and compete on service
quantity.
[0019] To develop an application in a cloud computing platform
environment, the developer 107 or the developer 108 can purchase
and provision instances for relevant services that a respective
application may use. If the developer 107 or the developer 108
choose to purchase different services from different vendors, then
the respective developer doesn't have a single unified view of the
services which are used in the application being developed. As
another example, the developer 107 or the developer 108 may choose
to use a same vendor, such as the vendor 104, for all services used
by an application.
[0020] In some cases, providers have proprietary interfaces and
configurations and that require customers to learn and to use the
proprietary interfaces and configurations to consume services
through the particular provider. Developers may prefer to limit
applications to the services provided by a main vendor, because
using multiple vendors may be more difficult to manage and more
difficult to implement than using a single vendor. However, if a
developer uses only a main vendor, an application may be limited to
services which are available from that main vendor.
[0021] In general, a developer may have to make tradeoffs when
deciding which and how many providers to use. For example, each
provider may offer different and possibly unique services that may
be of use and of interest to a consumer, but each provider that a
consumer uses can result in a learning curve cost with respect to
each different provider's interfaces and configurations. To access
additional services from a larger set of providers, a customer may
take on a larger overall learning curve cost. A customer who
decides to use multiple service providers may have to learn
multiple interfaces for service-related operations (for example,
for service management, provisioning, discovery, reporting,
billing, backup, and restore). If a customer wants to lessen their
learning curve cost by using less providers, the customer may have
to accept having access to a smaller set of services.
[0022] Although a given service provider may offer a limited/finite
set of services, the developer 107 and the developer 108 can access
multiple services from multiple, different providers through the
same interface by using a service management platform 126. In some
implementations, the service management platform 126 can be
configured to mediate between developers and service providers to
enable customers to find and use desired services. In some cases,
the service management platform 126 is a virtual platform that
decouples PaaS providers and services by decoupling services from a
physical platform executing the services. Services can be onboarded
into the service management platform 126 from multiple vendors and
can then be provisioned and consumed in a conventional manner,
allowing for standard, sharable services that can be used by
developers across service providers and in a consistent manner. As
an example, the service management platform 126 can: 1) permit both
a third-party cloud computing system and a database provider to
register with the service management platform 126 and 2)
orchestrate connectivity between a database instance and a
third-party cloud computing system instance.
[0023] In some cases, the service management platform 126 can
provide specific security mechanisms that establish trust (both
technically and commercially) between service vendors and service
consumers. The service management platform 126 can provide both
technical mediation (for usage) and commercial mediation (for
payment). In some implementations, the service management platform
126 can offer a complete solution that manages a group of features,
from networking to commercial, to enable the consumption of
services from heterogeneous service providers through a single
middleman component.
[0024] The service management platform 126 can provide a single
point of integration between various service vendors that register
with the service management platform 126. In some cases, a given
vendor can expose one or more services to the service management
platform 126. Service vendors can also receive service management
and usage context from the service management platform 126.
[0025] In some implementations, the service management platform 126
can provide an API that defines an interface between the service
management platform 126 and service providers. Since the
integration between the service management platform 126 and a
specific service includes a well-defined service interface which
uses regular, standard APIs for that service, it can be easy to
integrate any service by any vendor into the service management
platform 126. The service management platform 126 can provide a
standard interface for providers and developers that allows for the
following operations: 1) retrieving a catalog of available
services; 2) provisioning a new instance of a service; 3)
de-provisioning an existing instance of a service; 4)
updating/managing parameters of an existing service; 5) binding two
concrete instances of existing services together, to make it easy
to integrate the existing services; 6) unbinding two previously
bound services; 7) usage reporting; and 8) billing.
[0026] The service management platform 126 can also provide a set
of mediation, connectivity, and handshake technologies. For
example, the service management platform 126 can connect to a
broker executing in a service provider system. Connections can be
established, transparently to a developer customer of the service
management platform 126, between the service management platform
126 and a service provider broker during service registration,
provisioning, binding, and service use.
[0027] For example, the vendor 102 and the vendor 104 include the
broker 128 or the broker 130, respectively. If a service exists for
which a particular vendor doesn't provide a broker, another
implementer can provide a broker for that service based on standard
APIs exposed by that vendor. For example, the service management
platform 126 is associated with a broker 132 that can be configured
to interact with the vendor 106.
[0028] Brokers manage the lifecycle of services. The service
management platform 126 interacts with the brokers 128, 130, and
132 to provision and manage service instances and service bindings.
A single broker of a vendor can expose multiple services, or a
vendor can include multiple brokers that each expose a service per
broker. A broker can implement a service broker API and respond to
requests from the service management platform 126 for provisioning,
binding, unbinding, and de-provisioning.
[0029] Provisioning can reserve a service instance on a service.
When a broker receives a provision request from the service
management platform 126, the broker can perform an action to create
a new resource. What provisioning represents and includes can vary
by service type. For example, for a database service, provisioning
can result in an empty dedicated database server executing on its
own virtual machine or an empty schema on a shared database server.
As another example, for non-database services, provisioning can
result in creation of an account on a multi-tenant SaaS
application.
[0030] The service management platform 126 can include or provide
software that manages cloud computing environments into which
applications and brokers are provisioned. Since the service
management platform 126 is exposed to all the catalogs provided by
all registered vendors, the service management platform 126 can
provide an aggregated catalog that represents a unified marketplace
interface for developers.
[0031] The developer 107 and the developer 108 can each have a
customer context/managed account in the service management platform
126. The developer 107 and the developer 108 can use a single
interface to manage all the services used by a respective
application. Developers can use the APIs and tools provided by the
service management platform 126 to provision and gain access to any
services registered in the service management platform 126.
Developers who are customers of the service management platform 126
can provision services from any of the registered service providers
using a single, standardized interface. Developer customers of the
service management platform 126 can consistently manage, using a
same approach, all services used through the service management
platform 126. In some implementations, the service management
platform 126 permits a developer customer to access a variety of
services from multiple service providers, selecting an overall set
of services that best meet the customer's needs, while becoming
familiar and experienced with a single interface.
[0032] Developers can take advantage of the fact that the service
management platform 126 can manage services and interact with
vendor brokers, rather than the developer being required to
directly provision services from vendors. The service management
platform 126 can orchestrate actual provisioning operations with
the various vendors, on behalf of a respective developer. The
developer need not be aware of the source of any specific
service--the service management platform 126 can act as a service
provider facade.
[0033] A developer customer can receive usage reports, from the
service management platform 126, that show usage of services from
multiple, different service providers. A developer customer can
receive and pay a single bill, for usage from services from
multiple, different service providers, rather than paying each
provider separately using different billing procedures and
interfaces. Additionally, service providers can receive payment,
and reports, from the service management platform 126.
[0034] FIG. 2 is a swim lane diagram illustrating an example of a
computer-implemented method 200 for decoupling PaaS providers using
a service management platform, according to an implementation of
the present disclosure. For clarity of presentation, the
description that follows generally describes method 200 in the
context of the other figures in this description. However, it will
be understood that method 200 can be performed, for example, by any
system, environment, software, and hardware, or a combination of
systems, environments, software, and hardware, as appropriate. In
some implementations, various steps of method 200 can be executed
in parallel, in combination, in loops, or in any order.
[0035] At 202, a developer 204 (or a tool used by the developer
204) sends a view service catalog request to a service management
platform 206 to query the service management platform 206 for
available services. In response to the view service request, the
service management platform 206 can aggregate information about
services that have been registered from brokers across multiple
vendors. From 202, method 200 proceeds to 208.
[0036] At 208, the service management platform 206 sends a first
get-catalog request to a first broker 210. The service management
platform 206 can send get-catalog requests to one or more other
brokers. For example, at 212, the service management platform 206
sends a second get-catalog request to a second broker 214. The
service management platform 206 can query a catalog endpoint from
all registered brokers in order to present an aggregated catalog.
From 212, method 200 proceeds to 216.
[0037] At 216, the first broker 210 returns catalog information to
the service management platform 206 in response to the first
get-catalog request. The catalog information can be a list of
services available through the first broker 210. From 216, method
200 proceeds to 218.
[0038] At 218, the second broker 210 returns catalog information to
the service management platform 206 in response to the second
get-catalog request. From 218, method 200 proceeds to 220.
[0039] At 220, the service management platform 206 sends aggregated
catalog information to the developer 204 in response to the view
service catalog request. From 220, method 200 proceeds to 222.
[0040] As described in the following, the developer 204 can issue
provision requests against the service management platform 206 for
those services which are of interest for an application 207
developed by the developer 204. The service management platform 206
can contact the brokers for those services and provision instances
of those services on behalf of the developer 204. For instance, at
222, the developer sends a provision-service-one request to the
service management platform 206 to provision a first service. From
222, method 200 proceeds to 224.
[0041] At 224, the service management platform 206 sends a first
provision request to the first broker 210. From 224, method 200
proceeds to 226.
[0042] At 226, the first broker 210 provisions an instance 228 of
the first service. From 226, method 200 proceeds to 230.
[0043] At 230, the instance 228 sends a provisioning status to the
first broker 210. From 230, method 200 proceeds to 232.
[0044] At 232, the first broker 210 sends a provisioning response
to the service management platform 206, in response to the first
provision request. From 232, method 200 proceeds to 234.
[0045] At 234, the service management platform 206 sends a
provisioning response (which can be a forwarded response) to the
developer 204. From 234, method 200 proceeds to 236.
[0046] At 236, the developer sends a provision-service-n request to
the service management platform 206 to provision a second service.
From 236, method 200 proceeds to 238.
[0047] At 238, the service management platform 206 sends a second
provision request, to the second broker 214. From 238, method 200
proceeds to 240.
[0048] At 240, the second broker 214 provisions an instance 242 of
the second service. From 240, method 200 proceeds to 244.
[0049] At 244, the instance 242 sends a provisioning status to the
second broker 214. From 244, method 200 proceeds to 246.
[0050] At 246, the second broker 214 sends a provisioning response
to the service management platform 206, in response to the second
provision request. From 246, method 200 proceeds to 248.
[0051] At 248, the service management platform 206 sends a
provisioning response (which can be a forwarded response) to the
developer 204. From 248, method 200 proceeds to 250.
[0052] At 250, the developer 204 sends a create-binding request to
the service management platform 206 for binding information to bind
the application 207 to the first service. A similar create-binding
request can be sent for binding information for the second service
(but is not shown). From 250, method 200 proceeds to 252.
[0053] At 252, the service management platform 206 forwards the
create-binding request to the first broker 210. From 252, method
200 proceeds to 254.
[0054] At 254, the first broker 210 forwards the create-binding
request to the instance 228. From 254, method 200 proceeds to
256.
[0055] At 256, the instance 228 sends binding information to the
first broker 210 in response to the create-binding request. The
binding information can include credentials which allow the
application 207 to access the first service. From 256, method 200
proceeds to 258.
[0056] At 258, the first broker 210 forwards the binding
information to the service management platform 206. From 258,
method 200 proceeds to 260.
[0057] At 260, the service management platform 206 forwards the
binding information to the developer 204. From 260, method 200
proceeds to 262.
[0058] At 262, the developer 204 uses the received binding
information to bind the application 207 to the first service. From
262, method 200 proceeds to 266.
[0059] At 266, the application 207 sends a binding response to the
developer 204. Although a binding to the first service is
discussed, the application 207 can also be bound to the second
service. After 266, method 200 can stop.
[0060] FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a
computer-implemented method 300 for decoupling PaaS providers using
a service management platform, according to an implementation of
the present disclosure. For clarity of presentation, the
description that follows generally describes method 300 in the
context of the other figures in this description. However, it will
be understood that method 300 can be performed, for example, by any
system, environment, software, and hardware, or a combination of
systems, environments, software, and hardware, as appropriate. In
some implementations, various steps of method 300 can be executed
in parallel, in combination, in loops, or in any order.
[0061] At 302, a registration interface is provided, at a service
management platform, to service providers for registering services
with the service management platform. The service management
platform is configured to provide access to services from multiple
service providers to application developers using a same
application developer interface. From 302, method 300 proceeds to
304.
[0062] At 304, a first registration request is received, through
the registration interface, for a first service from a first
service provider. Other registration requests can be received from
other service providers. For example, a second registration request
can be received, through the registration interface, for a second
service from a second service provider. From 304, method 300
proceeds to 306.
[0063] At 306, the first service is registered, in response to the
first registration request, at the service management platform, to
make the first service available to application developers through
the service management platform. Other services can be registered
in response to other registration requests, such as the second
registration request, to make the other service(s) available to
application developers through the service management platform. The
service management platform can provide a service-discovery
interface for applications developers to discover services
available through the service management platform. A view-catalog
request can be received, through the service-discovery interface,
from the application developer. A service catalog can be provided
to the application developer, in response to the view-catalog
request, which includes information describing the first service,
the second service, and any other services available through the
service management platform. From 306, method 300 proceeds to
308.
[0064] At 308, a first provision request for the first service is
received, at the service management platform, through the
application developer interface, from an application developer.
Other provision requests can be received, from the same or a
different application developer, for other services, from the same
or other service providers. For example, a second provision request
for the second service can be received, at the service management
platform and through the same application developer interface, from
the application developer. From 308, method 300 proceeds to
310.
[0065] At 310, the first provision request for the first service is
forwarded to a first broker associated with the first service
provider. Other received provision requests for other services can
be forwarded to respective brokers associated with other respective
services. For example, a second provision request for the second
service can be forwarded to a second broker associated with the
second service provider. From 310, method 300 proceeds to 312.
[0066] At 312, a first provision response is received from the
first broker. The first provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the first service at the first service
provider. Other provision responses can be received in response to
other provision requests. For example, the service management
platform can receive a second provision response from the second
broker in response to the second provision request. From 312,
method 300 proceeds to 314.
[0067] At 314, a first create-binding request is received, from the
application developer, for binding information for the first
service. Other create-binding requests can be received from the
same or a different application developer for other services. For
example, a second create-binding request can be received from the
application developer for the second service. From 314, method 300
proceeds to 316.
[0068] At 316, first binding information is provided, to the
application developer and in response to the first create-binding
request, for the application developer to use in an application to
access the first service. Other binding information can be provided
in response to other create-binding requests. For example, second
binding information can be provided, to the application developer
and in response to the second create-binding request, for the
application developer to use in an application to access the second
service. A usage report can be provided, to the application
developer, which describes use of the first service, the second
service, and possibly other services, by the application developer
in the application (and possibly other applications). A single
invoice can be provided to the application developer for use of the
first service, the second service, and any other services access
through the service management platform. A single payment can be
received, from the application developer, for use of the first
service, the second service, and other services, through the
service management platform, for a particular billing period. After
316, method 300 can stop.
[0069] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a
computer-implemented System 400 used to provide computational
functionalities associated with described algorithms, methods,
functions, processes, flows, and procedures, according to an
implementation of the present disclosure. In the illustrated
implementation, System 400 includes a Computer 402 and a Network
430.
[0070] The illustrated Computer 402 is intended to encompass any
computing device, such as a server, desktop computer,
laptop/notebook computer, wireless data port, smart phone, personal
data assistant (PDA), tablet computer, one or more processors
within these devices, or a combination of computing devices,
including physical or virtual instances of the computing device, or
a combination of physical or virtual instances of the computing
device. Additionally, the Computer 402 can include an input device,
such as a keypad, keyboard, or touch screen, or a combination of
input devices that can accept user information, and an output
device that conveys information associated with the operation of
the Computer 402, including digital data, visual, audio, another
type of information, or a combination of types of information, on a
graphical-type user interface (UI) (or GUI) or other UI.
[0071] The Computer 402 can serve in a role in a distributed
computing system as, for example, a client, network component, a
server, or a database or another persistency, or a combination of
roles for performing the subject matter described in the present
disclosure. The illustrated Computer 402 is communicably coupled
with a Network 430. In some implementations, one or more components
of the Computer 402 can be configured to operate within an
environment, or a combination of environments, including
cloud-computing, local, or global.
[0072] At a high level, the Computer 402 is an electronic computing
device operable to receive, transmit, process, store, or manage
data and information associated with the described subject matter.
According to some implementations, the Computer 402 can also
include or be communicably coupled with a server, such as an
application server, e-mail server, web server, caching server, or
streaming data server, or a combination of servers.
[0073] The Computer 402 can receive requests over Network 430 (for
example, from a client software application executing on another
Computer 402) and respond to the received requests by processing
the received requests using a software application or a combination
of software applications. In addition, requests can also be sent to
the Computer 402 from internal users (for example, from a command
console or by another internal access method), external or
third-parties, or other entities, individuals, systems, or
computers.
[0074] Each of the components of the Computer 402 can communicate
using a System Bus 403. In some implementations, any or all of the
components of the Computer 402, including hardware, software, or a
combination of hardware and software, can interface over the System
Bus 403 using an application programming interface (API) 412, a
Service Layer 413, or a combination of the API 412 and Service
Layer 413. The API 412 can include specifications for routines,
data structures, and object classes. The API 412 can be either
computer-language independent or dependent and refer to a complete
interface, a single function, or even a set of APIs. The Service
Layer 413 provides software services to the Computer 402 or other
components (whether illustrated or not) that are communicably
coupled to the Computer 402. The functionality of the Computer 402
can be accessible for all service consumers using the Service Layer
413. Software services, such as those provided by the Service Layer
413, provide reusable, defined functionalities through a defined
interface. For example, the interface can be software written in a
computing language (for example JAVA or C++) or a combination of
computing languages, and providing data in a particular format (for
example, extensible markup language (XML)) or a combination of
formats. While illustrated as an integrated component of the
Computer 402, alternative implementations can illustrate the API
412 or the Service Layer 413 as stand-alone components in relation
to other components of the Computer 402 or other components
(whether illustrated or not) that are communicably coupled to the
Computer 402. Moreover, any or all parts of the API 412 or the
Service Layer 413 can be implemented as a child or a sub-module of
another software module, enterprise application, or hardware module
without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.
[0075] The Computer 402 includes an Interface 404. Although
illustrated as a single Interface 404, two or more Interfaces 404
can be used according to particular needs, desires, or particular
implementations of the Computer 402. The Interface 404 is used by
the Computer 402 for communicating with another computing system
(whether illustrated or not) that is communicatively linked to the
Network 430 in a distributed environment. Generally, the Interface
404 is operable to communicate with the Network 430 and includes
logic encoded in software, hardware, or a combination of software
and hardware. More specifically, the Interface 404 can include
software supporting one or more communication protocols associated
with communications such that the Network 430 or hardware of
Interface 404 is operable to communicate physical signals within
and outside of the illustrated Computer 402.
[0076] The Computer 402 includes a Processor 405. Although
illustrated as a single Processor 405, two or more Processors 405
can be used according to particular needs, desires, or particular
implementations of the Computer 402. Generally, the Processor 405
executes instructions and manipulates data to perform the
operations of the Computer 402 and any algorithms, methods,
functions, processes, flows, and procedures as described in the
present disclosure.
[0077] The Computer 402 also includes a Database 406 that can hold
data for the Computer 402, another component communicatively linked
to the Network 430 (whether illustrated or not), or a combination
of the Computer 402 and another component. For example, Database
406 can be an in-memory or conventional database storing data
consistent with the present disclosure. In some implementations,
Database 406 can be a combination of two or more different database
types (for example, a hybrid in-memory and conventional database)
according to particular needs, desires, or particular
implementations of the Computer 402 and the described
functionality. Although illustrated as a single Database 406, two
or more databases of similar or differing types can be used
according to particular needs, desires, or particular
implementations of the Computer 402 and the described
functionality. While Database 406 is illustrated as an integral
component of the Computer 402, in alternative implementations,
Database 406 can be external to the Computer 402. As illustrated,
the Database 406 holds the previously described service catalog
416.
[0078] The Computer 402 also includes a Memory 407 that can hold
data for the Computer 402, another component or components
communicatively linked to the Network 430 (whether illustrated or
not), or a combination of the Computer 402 and another component.
Memory 407 can store any data consistent with the present
disclosure. In some implementations, Memory 407 can be a
combination of two or more different types of memory (for example,
a combination of semiconductor and magnetic storage) according to
particular needs, desires, or particular implementations of the
Computer 402 and the described functionality. Although illustrated
as a single Memory 407, two or more Memories 407 or similar or
differing types can be used according to particular needs, desires,
or particular implementations of the Computer 402 and the described
functionality. While Memory 407 is illustrated as an integral
component of the Computer 402, in alternative implementations,
Memory 407 can be external to the Computer 402.
[0079] The Application 408 is an algorithmic software engine
providing functionality according to particular needs, desires, or
particular implementations of the Computer 402, particularly with
respect to functionality described in the present disclosure. For
example, Application 408 can serve as one or more components,
modules, or applications. Further, although illustrated as a single
Application 408, the Application 408 can be implemented as multiple
Applications 408 on the Computer 402. In addition, although
illustrated as integral to the Computer 402, in alternative
implementations, the Application 408 can be external to the
Computer 402.
[0080] The Computer 402 can also include a Power Supply 414. The
Power Supply 414 can include a rechargeable or non-rechargeable
battery that can be configured to be either user- or
non-user-replaceable. In some implementations, the Power Supply 414
can include power-conversion or management circuits (including
recharging, standby, or another power management functionality). In
some implementations, the Power Supply 414 can include a power plug
to allow the Computer 402 to be plugged into a wall socket or
another power source to, for example, power the Computer 402 or
recharge a rechargeable battery.
[0081] There can be any number of Computers 402 associated with, or
external to, a computer system containing Computer 402, each
Computer 402 communicating over Network 430. Further, the term
"client," "user," or other appropriate terminology can be used
interchangeably, as appropriate, without departing from the scope
of the present disclosure. Moreover, the present disclosure
contemplates that many users can use one Computer 402, or that one
user can use multiple computers 402.
[0082] Described implementations of the subject matter can include
one or more features, alone or in combination.
[0083] For example, in a first implementation, a
computer-implemented method includes: providing, at a service
management platform, a registration interface to service providers
for registering services with the service management platform,
wherein the service management platform is configured to provide
access to services from multiple service providers to application
developers using a same application developer interface; receiving,
through the registration interface, a first registration request
for a first service from a first service provider; registering, in
response to the first registration request, the first service at
the service management platform to make the first service available
to application developers; receiving, at the service management
platform, through the application developer interface, and from an
application developer, a first provision request for the first
service; forwarding the first provision request for the first
service to a first broker associated with the first service
provider; receiving a first provision response from the first
broker, wherein the first provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the first service at the first service
provider; receiving, from the application developer, a first
create-binding request for binding information for the first
service; and providing, to the application developer and in
response to the first create-binding request, first binding
information for the application developer to use in an application
to access the first service.
[0084] The foregoing and other described implementations can each,
optionally, include one or more of the following features:
[0085] A first feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a second registration request is received for a
second service from a second service provider. The second service
is registered, in response to the second registration request, at
the service management platform to make the second service
available to application developers.
[0086] A second feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a second provision request for the second service
is received, at the service management platform, through the
application developer interface, and from the application
developer. The second provision request for the second service is
forwarded to a second broker associated with the second service
provider. A second provision response is received from the second
broker. The second provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the second service at the second
service provider. A second create-binding request for binding
information for the second service is received, from the
application developer. Second binding information for the
application developer to use in the application to access the
second service is provided, to the application developer, in
response to the second create-binding request.
[0087] A third feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a service-discovery interface is provided, at the
service management platform, for applications developers to
discover services available through the service management
platform. A view-catalog request is received, through the
service-discovery interface, from the application developer. A
service catalog is provided to the application developer, in
response to the view-catalog request. The service catalog includes
information describing the first service and the second
service.
[0088] A fourth feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a usage report is provided, to the application
developer, which describes use of the first service and the second
service by the application.
[0089] A fifth feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a single invoice is provided to the application
developer for use of both the first service and the second
service.
[0090] A sixth feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a single payment is received, from the
application developer, for use of both the first service and the
second service.
[0091] In a second implementation, a non-transitory,
computer-readable medium stores one or more instructions executable
by a computer system to perform operations comprising: providing,
at a service management platform, a registration interface to
service providers for registering services with the service
management platform, wherein the service management platform is
configured to provide access to services from multiple service
providers to application developers using a same application
developer interface; receiving, through the registration interface,
a first registration request for a first service from a first
service provider; registering, in response to the first
registration request, the first service at the service management
platform to make the first service available to application
developers; receiving, at the service management platform, through
the application developer interface, and from an application
developer, a first provision request for the first service;
forwarding the first provision request for the first service to a
first broker associated with the first service provider; receiving
a first provision response from the first broker, wherein the first
provision response indicates a status of provisioning an instance
of the first service at the first service provider; receiving, from
the application developer, a first create-binding request for
binding information for the first service; and providing, to the
application developer and in response to the first create-binding
request, first binding information for the application developer to
use in an application to access the first service.
[0092] The foregoing and other described implementations can each,
optionally, include one or more of the following features:
[0093] A first feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a second registration request is received for a
second service from a second service provider. The second service
is registered, in response to the second registration request, at
the service management platform to make the second service
available to application developers.
[0094] A second feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a second provision request for the second service
is received, at the service management platform, through the
application developer interface, and from the application
developer. The second provision request for the second service is
forwarded to a second broker associated with the second service
provider. A second provision response is received from the second
broker. The second provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the second service at the second
service provider. A second create-binding request for binding
information for the second service is received, from the
application developer. Second binding information for the
application developer to use in the application to access the
second service is provided, to the application developer, in
response to the second create-binding request.
[0095] A third feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a service-discovery interface is provided, at the
service management platform, for applications developers to
discover services available through the service management
platform. A view-catalog request is received, through the
service-discovery interface, from the application developer. A
service catalog is provided to the application developer, in
response to the view-catalog request. The service catalog includes
information describing the first service and the second
service.
[0096] A fourth feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a usage report is provided, to the application
developer, which describes use of the first service and the second
service by the application.
[0097] A fifth feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a single invoice is provided to the application
developer for use of both the first service and the second
service.
[0098] A sixth feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a single payment is received, from the
application developer, for use of both the first service and the
second service.
[0099] In a third implementation, A computer-implemented system
comprises one or more computers and one or more computer memory
devices interoperably coupled with the one or more computers that
have tangible, non-transitory, machine-readable media storing one
or more instructions. The instructions, when executed by the one or
more computers, perform one or more operations comprising:
providing, at a service management platform, a registration
interface to service providers for registering services with the
service management platform, wherein the service management
platform is configured to provide access to services from multiple
service providers to application developers using a same
application developer interface; receiving, through the
registration interface, a first registration request for a first
service from a first service provider; registering, in response to
the first registration request, the first service at the service
management platform to make the first service available to
application developers; receiving, at the service management
platform, through the application developer interface, and from an
application developer, a first provision request for the first
service; forwarding the first provision request for the first
service to a first broker associated with the first service
provider; receiving a first provision response from the first
broker, wherein the first provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the first service at the first service
provider; receiving, from the application developer, a first
create-binding request for binding information for the first
service; and providing, to the application developer and in
response to the first create-binding request, first binding
information for the application developer to use in an application
to access the first service.
[0100] The foregoing and other described implementations can each,
optionally, include one or more of the following features:
[0101] A first feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a second registration request is received for a
second service from a second service provider. The second service
is registered, in response to the second registration request, at
the service management platform to make the second service
available to application developers.
[0102] A second feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a second provision request for the second service
is received, at the service management platform, through the
application developer interface, and from the application
developer. The second provision request for the second service is
forwarded to a second broker associated with the second service
provider. A second provision response is received from the second
broker. The second provision response indicates a status of
provisioning an instance of the second service at the second
service provider. A second create-binding request for binding
information for the second service is received, from the
application developer. Second binding information for the
application developer to use in the application to access the
second service is provided, to the application developer, in
response to the second create-binding request.
[0103] A third feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a service-discovery interface is provided, at the
service management platform, for applications developers to
discover services available through the service management
platform. A view-catalog request is received, through the
service-discovery interface, from the application developer. A
service catalog is provided to the application developer, in
response to the view-catalog request. The service catalog includes
information describing the first service and the second
service.
[0104] A fourth feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a usage report is provided, to the application
developer, which describes use of the first service and the second
service by the application.
[0105] A fifth feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a single invoice is provided to the application
developer for use of both the first service and the second
service.
[0106] A sixth feature, combinable with any of the following
features, wherein a single payment is received, from the
application developer, for use of both the first service and the
second service.
[0107] Implementations of the subject matter and the functional
operations described in this specification can be implemented in
digital electronic circuitry, in tangibly embodied computer
software or firmware, in computer hardware, including the
structures disclosed in this specification and their structural
equivalents, or in combinations of one or more of them. Software
implementations of the described subject matter can be implemented
as one or more computer programs, that is, one or more modules of
computer program instructions encoded on a tangible,
non-transitory, computer-readable medium for execution by, or to
control the operation of, a computer or computer-implemented
system. Alternatively, or additionally, the program instructions
can be encoded in/on an artificially generated propagated signal,
for example, a machine-generated electrical, optical, or
electromagnetic signal that is generated to encode information for
transmission to a receiver apparatus for execution by a computer or
computer-implemented system. The computer-storage medium can be a
machine-readable storage device, a machine-readable storage
substrate, a random or serial access memory device, or a
combination of computer-storage mediums. Configuring one or more
computers means that the one or more computers have installed
hardware, firmware, or software (or combinations of hardware,
firmware, and software) so that when the software is executed by
the one or more computers, particular computing operations are
performed.
[0108] The term "real-time," "real time," "realtime," "real (fast)
time (RFT)," "near(ly) real-time (NRT)," "quasi real-time," or
similar terms (as understood by one of ordinary skill in the art),
means that an action and a response are temporally proximate such
that an individual perceives the action and the response occurring
substantially simultaneously. For example, the time difference for
a response to display (or for an initiation of a display) of data
following the individual's action to access the data can be less
than 1 millisecond (ms), less than 1 second (s), or less than 5 s.
While the requested data need not be displayed (or initiated for
display) instantaneously, it is displayed (or initiated for
display) without any intentional delay, taking into account
processing limitations of a described computing system and time
required to, for example, gather, accurately measure, analyze,
process, store, or transmit the data.
[0109] The terms "data processing apparatus," "computer," or
"electronic computer device" (or an equivalent term as understood
by one of ordinary skill in the art) refer to data processing
hardware and encompass all kinds of apparatuses, devices, and
machines for processing data, including by way of example, a
programmable processor, a computer, or multiple processors or
computers. The computer can also be, or further include
special-purpose logic circuitry, for example, a central processing
unit (CPU), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or an
application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). In some
implementations, the computer or computer-implemented system or
special-purpose logic circuitry (or a combination of the computer
or computer-implemented system and special-purpose logic circuitry)
can be hardware- or software-based (or a combination of both
hardware- and software-based). The computer can optionally include
code that creates an execution environment for computer programs,
for example, code that constitutes processor firmware, a protocol
stack, a database management system, an operating system, or a
combination of execution environments. The present disclosure
contemplates the use of a computer or computer-implemented system
with an operating system, for example LINUX, UNIX, WINDOWS, MAC OS,
ANDROID, or IOS, or a combination of operating systems.
[0110] A computer program, which can also be referred to or
described as a program, software, a software application, a unit, a
module, a software module, a script, code, or other component can
be written in any form of programming language, including compiled
or interpreted languages, or declarative or procedural languages,
and it can be deployed in any form, including, for example, as a
stand-alone program, module, component, or subroutine, for use in a
computing environment. A computer program can, but need not,
correspond to a file in a file system. A program can be stored in a
portion of a file that holds other programs or data, for example,
one or more scripts stored in a markup language document, in a
single file dedicated to the program in question, or in multiple
coordinated files, for example, files that store one or more
modules, sub-programs, or portions of code. A computer program can
be deployed to be executed on one computer or on multiple computers
that are located at one site or distributed across multiple sites
and interconnected by a communication network.
[0111] While portions of the programs illustrated in the various
figures can be illustrated as individual components, such as units
or modules, that implement described features and functionality
using various objects, methods, or other processes, the programs
can instead include a number of sub-units, sub-modules, third-party
services, components, libraries, and other components, as
appropriate. Conversely, the features and functionality of various
components can be combined into single components, as appropriate.
Thresholds used to make computational determinations can be
statically, dynamically, or both statically and dynamically
determined.
[0112] Described methods, processes, or logic flows represent one
or more examples of functionality consistent with the present
disclosure and are not intended to limit the disclosure to the
described or illustrated implementations, but to be accorded the
widest scope consistent with described principles and features. The
described methods, processes, or logic flows can be performed by
one or more programmable computers executing one or more computer
programs to perform functions by operating on input data and
generating output data. The methods, processes, or logic flows can
also be performed by, and computers can also be implemented as,
special-purpose logic circuitry, for example, a CPU, an FPGA, or an
ASIC.
[0113] Computers for the execution of a computer program can be
based on general or special-purpose microprocessors, both, or
another type of CPU. Generally, a CPU will receive instructions and
data from and write to a memory. The essential elements of a
computer are a CPU, for performing or executing instructions, and
one or more memory devices for storing instructions and data.
Generally, a computer will also include, or be operatively coupled
to, receive data from or transfer data to, or both, one or more
mass storage devices for storing data, for example, magnetic,
magneto-optical disks, or optical disks. However, a computer need
not have such devices. Moreover, a computer can be embedded in
another device, for example, a mobile telephone, a personal digital
assistant (PDA), a mobile audio or video player, a game console, a
global positioning system (GPS) receiver, or a portable memory
storage device.
[0114] Non-transitory computer-readable media for storing computer
program instructions and data can include all forms of
permanent/non-permanent or volatile/non-volatile memory, media and
memory devices, including by way of example semiconductor memory
devices, for example, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory
(ROM), phase change memory (PRAM), static random access memory
(SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), erasable programmable
read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable
read-only memory (EEPROM), and flash memory devices; magnetic
devices, for example, tape, cartridges, cassettes,
internal/removable disks; magneto-optical disks; and optical memory
devices, for example, digital versatile/video disc (DVD), compact
disc (CD)-ROM, DVD+/-R, DVD-RAM, DVD-ROM, high-definition/density
(HD)-DVD, and BLU-RAY/BLU-RAY DISC (BD), and other optical memory
technologies. The memory can store various objects or data,
including caches, classes, frameworks, applications, modules,
backup data, jobs, web pages, web page templates, data structures,
database tables, repositories storing dynamic information, or other
appropriate information including any parameters, variables,
algorithms, instructions, rules, constraints, or references.
Additionally, the memory can include other appropriate data, such
as logs, policies, security or access data, or reporting files. The
processor and the memory can be supplemented by, or incorporated
in, special-purpose logic circuitry.
[0115] To provide for interaction with a user, implementations of
the subject matter described in this specification can be
implemented on a computer having a display device, for example, a
cathode ray tube (CRT), liquid crystal display (LCD), light
emitting diode (LED), or plasma monitor, for displaying information
to the user and a keyboard and a pointing device, for example, a
mouse, trackball, or trackpad by which the user can provide input
to the computer. Input can also be provided to the computer using a
touchscreen, such as a tablet computer surface with pressure
sensitivity or a multi-touch screen using capacitive or electric
sensing. Other types of devices can be used to interact with the
user. For example, feedback provided to the user can be any form of
sensory feedback (such as, visual, auditory, tactile, or a
combination of feedback types). Input from the user can be received
in any form, including acoustic, speech, or tactile input. In
addition, a computer can interact with the user by sending
documents to and receiving documents from a client computing device
that is used by the user (for example, by sending web pages to a
web browser on a user's mobile computing device in response to
requests received from the web browser).
[0116] The term "graphical user interface," or "GUI," can be used
in the singular or the plural to describe one or more graphical
user interfaces and each of the displays of a particular graphical
user interface. Therefore, a GUI can represent any graphical user
interface, including but not limited to, a web browser, a touch
screen, or a command line interface (CLI) that processes
information and efficiently presents the information results to the
user. In general, a GUI can include a number of user interface (UI)
elements, some or all associated with a web browser, such as
interactive fields, pull-down lists, and buttons. These and other
UI elements can be related to or represent the functions of the web
browser.
[0117] Implementations of the subject matter described in this
specification can be implemented in a computing system that
includes a back-end component, for example, as a data server, or
that includes a middleware component, for example, an application
server, or that includes a front-end component, for example, a
client computer having a graphical user interface or a Web browser
through which a user can interact with an implementation of the
subject matter described in this specification, or any combination
of one or more such back-end, middleware, or front-end components.
The components of the system can be interconnected by any form or
medium of wireline or wireless digital data communication (or a
combination of data communication), for example, a communication
network. Examples of communication networks include a local area
network (LAN), a radio access network (RAN), a metropolitan area
network (MAN), a wide area network (WAN), Worldwide
Interoperability for Microwave Access (WIMAX), a wireless local
area network (WLAN) using, for example, 802.11 a/b/g/n or 802.20
(or a combination of 802.11x and 802.20 or other protocols
consistent with the present disclosure), all or a portion of the
Internet, another communication network, or a combination of
communication networks. The communication network can communicate
with, for example, Internet Protocol (IP) packets, frame relay
frames, Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) cells, voice, video, data,
or other information between network nodes.
[0118] The computing system can include clients and servers. A
client and server are generally remote from each other and
typically interact through a communication network. The
relationship of client and server arises by virtue of computer
programs executing on the respective computers and having a
client-server relationship to each other.
[0119] While this specification contains many specific
implementation details, these should not be construed as
limitations on the scope of any inventive concept or on the scope
of what can be claimed, but rather as descriptions of features that
can be specific to particular implementations of particular
inventive concepts. Certain features that are described in this
specification in the context of separate implementations can also
be implemented, in combination, in a single implementation.
Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a
single implementation can also be implemented in multiple
implementations, separately, or in any sub-combination. Moreover,
although previously described features can be described as acting
in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, one or
more features from a claimed combination can, in some cases, be
excised from the combination, and the claimed combination can be
directed to a sub-combination or variation of a
sub-combination.
[0120] Particular implementations of the subject matter have been
described. Other implementations, alterations, and permutations of
the described implementations are within the scope of the following
claims as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. While
operations are depicted in the drawings or claims in a particular
order, this should not be understood as requiring that such
operations be performed in the particular order shown or in
sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed
(some operations can be considered optional), to achieve desirable
results. In certain circumstances, multitasking or parallel
processing (or a combination of multitasking and parallel
processing) can be advantageous and performed as deemed
appropriate.
[0121] Moreover, the separation or integration of various system
modules and components in the previously described implementations
should not be understood as requiring such separation or
integration in all implementations, and it should be understood
that the described program components and systems can generally be
integrated together in a single software product or packaged into
multiple software products.
[0122] Accordingly, the previously described example
implementations do not define or constrain the present disclosure.
Other changes, substitutions, and alterations are also possible
without departing from the spirit and scope of the present
disclosure.
[0123] Furthermore, any claimed implementation is considered to be
applicable to at least a computer-implemented method; a
non-transitory, computer-readable medium storing computer-readable
instructions to perform the computer-implemented method; and a
computer system comprising a computer memory interoperably coupled
with a hardware processor configured to perform the
computer-implemented method or the instructions stored on the
non-transitory, computer-readable medium.
* * * * *