EP0278315A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
A system and method for accessing remote files in a distributed networking environment
Assignee: International Business Machines Corp
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Filing: 1988-01-26
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2008-01-26
Abstract
Abstract A system and method for accessing remote files (5) in a distributed networking environment . To reduce the network traffic overhead when files at other nodes are accessed, and to preserve the file system semantics, i.e. the file integrity, the accessing of the various files are managed by file synchronization modes. A file is given a first synchronization mode if a file is open at only one node for either read or write access. A file is given a second synchronization mode if a file is opened for read only access at any node. A file is given a third synchronization mode if the file is open for read access in more than one node, and at least one node has the file open for write access. If a file is in either the first or second synchronization mode, the client node (B), which is the node accessing the file , uses a client cache (12B) within its operating system to store the file. All read and writes are then sent to this cache. If a file is in the third mode, all read and write requests must go to the server node (A) where the file resides. The node accessing the file does not use the cache in its operating system to access the file data this third mode. The client cache is managed such that all read and write requests access the client cache in the first and second synchronization modes. In the third synchronization mode, the client cache is not used. In this way, overall system performance is improved without sacrificing file integrity.
Inventors
- 👤 Donavon William Johnson
- 👤 Grover Herbert Newman
- 👤 Amal Ahmed Shahen-Gouda
- 👤 Charles Herbert Sauer
- 👤 Todd Allen Smith
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 15:28
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06F; G06F12/00; G06F12/02; G06F12/08; G06F12/0802; G06F12/0806; G06F12/0813; G06F16/00; G06F16/10; G06F16/17; G06F16/172; G06F16/18; G06F16/182; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S707/00; Y10S707/99931; Y10S707/99938
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 24
Claim 1
Independent Claim
91 words
A system for accessing a file in a server processing system (10A) at a server node (A) for use by a client processing system (10B) at a client node (B) comprising: a server cache (12A) in the server processing system (10A) for caching blocks of the file (5) at the server node (A); a client cache (12B) in the client processing system (10B) for caching blocks of the file at the client node (B) from the server cache (12A); means for achieving performance benefits of block caching while maintaining file integrity.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
91 words
A system for accessing a file in a server processing system (10A) at a server node (A) for use by a client processing system (10B) at a client node (B) comprising: a server cache (12A) in the server processing system (10A) for caching blocks of the file (5) at the server node (A); a client cache (12B) in the client processing system (10B) for caching blocks of the file at the client node (B) from the server cache (12A); means for achieving performance benefits of block caching while maintaining file integrity.
Claim 3
Independent Claim
100 words
A system for accessing a file in a server processing system (10A) at a server node (A) for use by a client processing system (10B) at a client node (B) comprising: a server cache (12A) in the server processing system (10A) for caching blocks of the file (5) at the server node; a client cache (12B) in the client processing system (10B) for caching blocks of the file at the client node (B) from the server cache (12A); means for generating a file synchronization mode for the file; and means for managing the client cache through the file synchronization mode.
Claim 4
Independent Claim
100 words
A system for accessing a file in a server processing system (10A) at a server node (A) for use by a client processing system (10B) at a client node (B) comprising: a server cache (12A) in the server processing system (10A) for caching blocks of the file (5) at the server node; a client cache (12B) in the client processing system (10B) for caching blocks of the file at the client node (B) from the server cache (12A); means for generating a file synchronization mode for the file; and means for managing the client cache through the file synchronization mode.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
39 words
The system as in Claim 2 wherein the file synchronization mode is a first file mode if all opens for the file are at only one client node, and at least one of the opens is for write access.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
25 words
The system of Claim 2 wherein the file synchronization mode is a second file mode if the file is only open for read only access.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
47 words
The system of Claim 2 wherein the file synchronizaton mode is a third file mode if the file is open by processes executing at more than one node, and the file is open for write access by at least one process executing in at least one node.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
26 words
The system of Claim 2 wherein the file synchronization mode is a third file mode if a device containing the file is open for write access.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
20 words
The system of Claim 3 or 4 wherein the client cache is accessed for a read access to the file.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
18 words
The system of Claim 3 wherein the client cache is accessed for a write access to the file.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
20 words
The system of Claim 5 or 6 wherein the server cache is accessed for a read access to the file.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
20 words
The system of Claim 5 or 6 wherein the server cache is accessed for a write access to the file.
Claim 13
Independent Claim
56 words
A method for accessing a file (5) in a server processing system (10A) at a server node (A) for use by a client processing system (10A) at a client node (B) comprising the steps of: generating a synchronization mode for the file; and caching the file at the server node (A) in a server cache (12A).
Claim 14
Independent Claim
56 words
A method for accessing a file (5) in a server processing system (10A) at a server node (A) for use by a client processing system (10A) at a client node (B) comprising the steps of: generating a synchronization mode for the file; and caching the file at the server node (A) in a server cache (12A).
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
31 words
The method of Claim 11 wherein a first synchronization mode is generated if all opens are at one client node, and at least one of the opens is for write access.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of Claim 11 wherein a second synchronization mode is generated if the file is only open for read only access.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
44 words
The method of Claim 11 wherein a third synchronization mode is generated if the file is open by processes executing at more than one node, and the file is open for write access by at least one process executing in at least one node.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of Claim 11 wherein a third synchronization mode is generated if a device containing the file is open for write access.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
35 words
The method of Claim 12 or 13 further comprising the steps of caching the file at the client node in a client cache, and accessing the client cache for a read access to the file.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
33 words
The method of Claim 12 further comprising the steps of caching the file at the client node in a client cache, and accessing the client cache for a write access to the file.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of Claim 14 or 15 further comprising the step of accessing the server cache for a read access to the file.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of Claim 14 or 15 further comprising the step of accessing the server cache for a write access to the file.
Claim 23
Independent Claim
70 words
A method for accessing a file (5) in a server processing system (10A) at a server node (A) for use by a client processing system (10B) at a client node (B), said method comprising the steps of: caching blocks of the file at a server cache(12a), caching blocks of the file at a client cache (12B); and accessing blocks of the file in the client cache while maintaining file integrity.
Claim 24
Independent Claim
70 words
A method for accessing a file (5) in a server processing system (10A) at a server node (A) for use by a client processing system (10B) at a client node (B), said method comprising the steps of: caching blocks of the file at a server cache(12a), caching blocks of the file at a client cache (12B); and accessing blocks of the file in the client cache while maintaining file integrity.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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